So what's all that about you might be asking yourself???
Well, I used to have a Trek 69er singlespeed and loved it! Originally when I bought the Trek I was going to spec a custom build singlespeed, but nothing really fitted the bill and looking at the 69er I was won over by the concept and the spec. The frame on the Trek is aluminium and is a real piece of art with lots of smooth wide extrusions stretching all the way down to the BB. All these helped to make the frame super stiff, and that's where, perhaps, the only problem was. If anything the Trek was a little too stiff, especially on longer rides.
However, as a concept a 69er has some great advantages - a 29" front wheel just glides over the trail smoothing out all those hollows, small bumps, rocks and not forgetting all those roots. It does this by having a smaller angle of attack on the trail as the wheels circumference is greater than its 26" cousin. Also, the larger circumference gives you a bigger contact patch with the trail making it grip more in fast corners. Meanwhile! the rear 26" wheel gives you all that fast direct drive & acceleration of a conventional bike. Of course there are always trade offs but the only real disadvantage I found was that cornering through tight switchbacks can be a little tricky as the wheel base is a little stretched out over a standard 26" wheelset, but this is something you get used to pretty quick and is easily adjusted with line choice.
So, when Pace - http://www.pacecycles.com/ - introduced the 104 last year, a plan started to evolve for the Treks replacement. As a bit of a Pace nut, I love the design concept and retro cues in the detailing on the frame but best of all it is a steel frame so the ride is never going to be as stiff as the Trek. Another consideration is that the Pace has sliding dropouts with a mech hanger on the drive side so if I want I can gear it as well. But, what sealed it for me as a replacement for the Trek is that a medium Pace 104 is nearly exactly the same geometry as the 17.5" Trek I was riding, so this made it the perfect choice for a new improved 69er.
Racing XC last year in the Hope sponsored Brownbacks Series - http://www.brownbacksracing.co.uk/ - was to prove quite lucrative! Winning the Weekend Warrior class provided me with a set of Hope Tech X2 brakes. Also, the prize money I had won (to be spent at Blazing Saddle in Hebden Bridge) was going to build me a singlespeed specific rear wheel. I chose the White Industries ENO hub to base it around. I have to admit this is a bit of bling as they are really beautiful things to look at in the polished finish. I already had the cranks & BB which are a pair of Middleburn RS8's & SKF BXC, both ISIS. So having already got a good 50% of the build all I needed now was a frame and I was almost there! and after a happy accident in the shop Big Bear Bikes were left with a medium sized frame, but in purple, well that was all the excuse I needed really and the 104 was falling into place!! I wanted the bike to be pearlescent white and having had a frame resprayed before I knew where I could get a descent job done. Argos Racing in Brisol - http://argoscycles.com/ - do some quality work when it comes to resprays, so off the frame went and the finished job does not disapoint. The fork choice for the build was easy as there is only one worth getting as far as I am concerned and that's a Fox F-29 and they also do it in white. As a recent convert to Stan's ZTR rims the white Crest had to be the only choice for the wheels. The Crest's are light enough for the build and they do them in both 26" & 29" ! Hope's Pro II front hub is as light as anything else around and in the silver finish would compliment the White Ind rear and finished in silver spokes the wheels would work out quite well too. The remaining build is the rest of my favourite kit - Easton post & bars, Hope stem, Ergon grips & Bontrager saddle.
Put it all together and voila! you've got a custom built singlespeed 69er.
Mike
Full spec as follows:
Frame: 104 (medium - custom respray pearlescent white)
Fork: Fox F-29 RLC FIT air (120mm)
Headset: Hope
Stem: Hope 90mm (zero degree)
Handlebar: Easton Downhill Monkeylite (hi-rise)
Grips: Ergon GX1 (white)
Brakeset: Hope Tech X2's (180mm front / 160mm rear)
Seat Clamp: Hope
Seat Post: Easton EC70 Zero
Saddle: Bontrager Evoke RXL
Bottom Bracket: SKF BXC ISIS 118mm
Crank Arms: Middleburm RS8's (ISIS)
Chain Ring: Middleburn 34
Freehub: White Industries 18T (trials)
Chain: Sram PC7X (heavy duty BMX)
Front Wheel: Hope Pro II hub (silver), DT Swiss double butted spokes (silver) & 29" ZTR Crest rim (white) - tubeless
Rear Wheel: White Industries ENO bolt-in Singlespeed hub (silver), DT Swiss double butted spokes (silver) & with 26" ZTR Crest rim (white) - tubeless
Tyres: Bontrager Mud-X 2.0 rear / Bontrager FR3 2.35 front
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