I`ve got it in my head i need another bike.
My idea is to build up a singlespeed mountain bike.
Advice on Frames that work well, forks or rigid, Gear ratios...
I ride Around the Sussex and surrey downs,...
I mainly do Singletrack ridin....
Please help!!
I may have a frame if your interested cotic soul 19"
Something with track ends, sliding or horizontal dropouts or an EBB.
What Al said, & if you go sliding dropouts swap the rear axle for a plain nutted one, saves faffing with tensioners.
Drivetrain...One of Tazzy's wobble rings, they are like cheating.
Forks...rigid & steel.
Wheels...29".
I'll second takisawa2!
Look for a slot drop out 29er Scandal frame and go 29er single speed, fully rigid.
Do you know for sure that you'll like singlespeed? I have a bit of a love/hate thing with it and currently have a Chameleon that I can add gears or take them off pretty quickly depending on my mood.
32:16 is a good start. I use 32:17 though - a little easier on the hills.
You could always just use a current bike or build up a cheapy and use things like tensioners and spacers for the rear sprocket until you decide it's for you and then you can bling it up with Boone Ti sprockets, Indy Fab frames and the like.
Sussex and Surrey Downs- get something really light and really fast. Giant XTC, Kinesis Maxlight XC or Scandal 26" at the lower end of the budget, or something carbon higher up the scale.
Set of RS SIDs, lightweight wheels and a carbon riser bar and you'll have a very fast, exciting bike for those trails. Far more fun than trundling about on something big and burly and steel and heavy.
I'd recommend the Cotic Simple, because it's got the horizontal dropouts I use mine with a Rohloff. I simply swap the rear Rohloff wheel with a Single Speed wheel when the mood takes me. I'm loving this frame so much that since buying one 9 months ago I've hardly used my Orange 5. I'm totally biased though...I've a medium Cotic Simple frame, freshly powdered in Cotic orange for sale if you're interested 😉