They are what they are, cheap mass produced hi tensile steel frames. The sycophants can never see any bad in the 9 lengths of scaffold soldered together.

I believe that on ones get a good following on here because they are cheap, trendy and steel.

Steel fell out of favour with the big bike manufacturers and I truly believe that people have forgotten the wonder properties of steel. It has flex and at the same time incredibly strong. It is not as brittle as alu and has those sleek thin tube looks. Therefore it rides nice 🙂

Of course there are much better steel frames out there but a little more expensive (especially if you go 853).

LBS in slagging off product they dont sell shocker.

"LBS in slagging off product they dont sell shocker"

Possibly. He has 3 steel bikes so he's not anti steel. But you might be right.

he has 3 steel bikes? perhaps there is more than a good chance at least one of them is made on the same production line as on-one's.

on-one's aren't hi-ten steel fwiw, they're cromo

Go on then who was it? Jason, Pete or Jim?

You get what you pay for and you get a lot for your money, some of the On-One full builds seem too cheap for them to be making anything out of it. I seem to remember reading in my MBUK reading days that On-One massively slashed the rrp when they discovered they had specced frames with restrictive clearance and the frames were hailed as a top buy. A couple friends still ride original gimps and love them.

Everyopne has their opinions.

They may not have the 'neatest' welds, but they're fit for purpose. Bike geeks are a funny bunch. 'Rubbish welds' usually mean they might not have a symmetrical pattern or look pretty - after all, how many typical bike nerds are metal fabricators? Don't know their arese from their elbow most of them, its just knowledge picked up from hearsay, LBS and the internet. In this day and age, LBS's don't really know much better than the rest of us (i.e. the buying public are better informed)

I've had a couple of on-ones. The fabrication has been fine as has alignment. They've modern geometry, arguably at the forefront of modern frame geometry thinking and not afraid the experiment. They've ridden pretty nicely to, but the paint is brittle and poor wearing.

Its a bike build to be competent, with sensible materials as cheap as possible (in relative terms) can't see a problem with that myself.

Its never going to be a curtis is it?

I was mildly horrified as On-one is virtually worshipped on here!

Not everyone on here worship On-one or single speed.

Cheap frames-can't go wrong get waht you pay for.

Who wants the same frame as everyone else?

They're ok but the On-one website is crap.

i had an inbred for years and couldnt fault it other than the paint oh and the fact for some reason my heels rubbed on the seat and chain stays and wore it down to the metal but thats down to me not the frame. I think lol. I now have a 456 🙂

They are what they are, cheap mass produced hi tensile steel frames. The sycophants can never see any bad in the 9 lengths of scaffold soldered together.

Who cares if they ride alright?

For every On-One sycophant on here there is somebody who can't bear the idea that 9 lengths of scaffold soldered together does 95% of the job of anything else on the market.

"early DJ frames has rear tyre clearance issues"

He'd be spot on with that. I remember the delight of driving back from the airport having picked up the airfreight shipment from the production run and not being able to get my Tioga Dh 2.3in the back.

Velociraptor 1.9's fitted (just!) so we sold them off for £100. 24's fitted perfectly (we found out later).

on-one's aren't hi-ten steel fwiw, they're cromo

Correct.

As to "rubbish welding" - have a look at the Summer Season frames - as nice as any TIG I've seen, naked and there for all to see.

[i]Go on then who was it? Jason, Pete or Jim?[/i]

Not telling that would unfair! 😉

I'm really quite interested in a 16" 456 with my 130mm fork, for playtime. I also like the idea of these "naked", slacked out summer seasons (must the sunshine today)

They look pretty good to me whenever I've seen one in the flesh.
And the carbon forks I had were bloody superb.
And, by all accounts, they ride very well too.
Maybe its because the mark-up is going direct to On-One & not some bike-shop know-it-all...

Got two steel hard-tails ones an on-one and the other a dialed bikes.

OK the dialed is more expensive but I think its a nicer frame by a fair amount.

But the On-One is OK nothing hideous about it as a cheap, treat it dirty, smack it around and abuse it SS/rigid bike.

Never understood the hero worship of them though - not like its some hand made lovelliness. The Tinbread were nice - would understand it if on-one had gone down the niche ti route.

I have the pleasure of being an Inbred 456 owner as of January this year. I looked around at some of the dearer makes but to be honest cost was one thing that swung me to the inbred as I couldnt afford to invest in an 853 tubed frame. For me the low cost and ride quality and pleasure it has given me without that ' oh no I just dropped the bike is it scratched' feeling that I would with anything more expensive is great. After riding a Merlin Malt 1 hardtail the give that is in the 456 means I can ride all day on it whereas the stiffness of the alu meant that I felt it much sooner. As for the adaptability of it, if I had to only own one bike it would be my On One. As for the paint concerns I caught my cleat on the top tube during an unplanned dismount (a real pi55er) and thought that I was sure to see a big piece of paint removed-not so much as a scratch!
Lets face it there are a lot of bike snobs out there-we cannot all justify or indeed afford a top of the line Ti hardatil or full suss so those of us that are at the lower end of the market appreciate a good value product for what it is and how pound for pound it preforms.

I have a naked On-One Summer Season frame @ 16", superb, my favorite sunmmer play thing until I fell for one of these:
[img] [/img]
For a bit of extra special summer luvin!
I'll ride it this summer to the shops and back then, in October, it will probably get resprayed and pimped a little.

One ones - cheap simple and they just work.

I got my first Inbred this week - 2nd hand sliding dropout DN6 frame running 32/16. Doesn't look it's aligned very well at the back, ropey paint, 1.5lbs heavier than the frame that I swapped out for it...

... but boy is it fun! I can see what all the fuss is about.

So saying, if someone wants to sell me an Indy Fab for the same money, I'd take it!

I've had to face the disc mount on an on-one and it was not possible to do using the facing tool as the weld was in the way, this is probably the reason the customer was advised not to buy one by my colleague. In my opinion this is a valid reason as it is a very important thing to get right on any frame otherwise you are limited to what brakes you can fit correctly. There are three of us working at the shop who have all been riding and competing for years. I personally have been Mountain Biking (and Road Riding)for around 15 years and have done loads of stuff including, epic coast to coast rides, short coarse races both as an individual and as a team, 24hr racing, Enduro races, I have done the 100m south downs way in a day and had some great holidays in the Alps courtesy of RideTheAlps.com. I have worked for the shop for almost 3 years now and I pride myself on giving the correct advice as being a cycling fanatic I want to encourage others to get out and ride and enjoy theirselves and the best way for people to do this if they have the right bike and kit for the job! We also try and give back to the local community by doing weekly shop rides where I have spent time at the back with newbies giving riding tips and heaps of encouragement, talks to the local scouts and by doing free mechanicing at the Clic24 and being invoved in trying to open up new family cycling routes! It seems to be the in thing to knock you LBS on the forums but I don't see the likes of CRC and wiggle who seem to get a lot of mentions doing the same on the local trails! Not all LBS are the same! p.s. The Shop is called Bike City not City Bikes.

15 all..... 😉

I cant fault the welding on my P7, very uniform/smooth, and it just won another head to head with the On-One

so because 1 frame got through quality control you dismiss all of their frames? seems a bit overkill

Only reason to knock On-One is snobbery.

For the money they are brilliant bikes, many times better than any frame of an equivalent price.

If they do 97% of the job, getting something 100% is going to cost several hundred pounds more.

They also possess the benefit of being designed specifically for UK conditions, unlike some of the generic frames that are badged up to look flash.

@ [i]<blank>[/i] - So you've ridden an On-One then or are you just writing them off due to the disc mount facing for one frame?

uh oh, you've roused the on-one fan boys

Hmmm....

difficult exactly to see what CRC / Wiggle define as their local trails, given their customer base is so wide, but I wouldn't be surprised if their staff, if not as an organisation but as individuals are also involved in supporting cycling locally too. And - let's be blunt here - it's not pure altruism is it, it's a shop ride and one of the aspects that addresses is developing loyalty for the shop in the hope that the regular riders will use them for their bits, the newbies will become regular riders, the scouts will get enthusiastic and their dads will take them there for new bikes and so on.

To me the true 'altruists' are (jeez - will I say it) people like SFB @ the Bogtrotters, the guys at BOB who lead the weekly family rides, the people who organise and lead new folks around their local trails with nothing more to it than wanting to pass on an enjoyment of riding.

i'm not even a fan, they are just bikes, but advising some one against buying one because of one incident is a poor show.

i've cracked a Marin frame and i'm going to be buying another Marin very soon (hopefully). i've not gone about advising people to stear clear regardless of how many miles i've ridden.

[i]uh oh, you've roused the on-one fan boys [/i]

The brand really is that relevant. To dismiss a brand based on the disc mounts of one frame seems absurd and that's what I wanted him to clarify: had he actually ridden an On-One?

I didn't like the funny paint Marin used to put on their bikes. I've never owned a Marin.

Sorry - are we comparing dubious logic in this thread? A weld was in the way so they are poop. Gotcha.

LOL @ blank-member he has just reminded me why I cant stand LBS they are staffed by know it alls with a superiority complex

Going by that logic I should shun all Shimano products because a hub I had squeeked...... surely the whole point of facing a frame is to get rid of the little imperfections?

"LOL @ blank-member he has just reminded me why I cant stand LBS they are staffed by know it alls with a superiority complex"

Just mouse over Member and it shows jasonlock

I have to say my experience of the on one I owned was that it wasn't very lively and was heavy. I'd never buy another but for some people I am sure its a great bike. I also have reservations regarding the construction of some of the frames with some riding friends who I know well experiencing some problems with them.

That's not to say no brand has problems with some frames/bikes. On-one are cheap and they do seem to have a loyal base of fans, I am not one of them.

blimey i think i'd think twice about using bike city now, i'm clearly not up to the high standard of rider that they expect 🙁

biggulp - Member
"LOL @ blank-member he has just reminded me why I cant stand LBS they are staffed by know it alls with a superiority complex"

Just mouse over Member and it shows jasonlock

Just a newbee to the site who is happy to post under there own name, did not even realise that my post would come up with "member", like I said in the post the customer would have been advised of a problem that we have come accross from new that could not be rectified. As for a superiority complex is that not what you are trying to say by dissing LBS's? I just enjoy riding my bike and I'm sure if you spoke to any of the guy's I have cycled with or customers bikes I have worked on they certainly wouldn't say I had a superiority complex??!!

I'm so glad my Mac now has a "drunk a bottle of red wine" filter enabled 🙂

what exactly has Jason said in his two posts to cause so much hostility?

Hi rOcKeTdOg, sorry if you have got the wrong end of the stick, I listed what riding I have done in the past to show that I have experiance of riding a bike, the one thing we do try to do at the shop is to encourage newbies to get into cycling, in the past I have lent out my own personal lights and bikes so people can have a go before spending a lot of money, I am an employee of the shop and any riding in the evenings is done in my own time and at my own expense, I felt it was only right to put a post up to reply as the shop and myself had been mentioned earlier and I thought it best to put up a response esecially given that one member had commented "LBS in slagging off product they dont sell shocker."

fair enough, it's always difficult to put across what you mean when you are just typing, hard to tell if it's tongue in cheek or not and lots of people will read what they want to read rather than what's actually written ( jusst a bit of advice as you're new here 😉 )

brant do you know if they do those filters for "8 cans of kronenbourg " 😳

Playing devil's advocate here.... to me it seemed like the experience of a person working on one frame meant that the brand got slated as a whole. If Jason had said "having worked on many On-Ones I have found that facing the disk mounts is a nightmare" there wouldn't have been the "Burn the heretic!" reaction.

@JasonLock : So, as per my previous question, have you ridden an On-One?

Good point Gulliano, I think the essence of the original conversation was about many different brands and on-one was more dis-missed by my colleage as apposed to being slagged off and other brands in his honest opinion was better suited to that individuals needs. The problem is the original tread is titled - On-one got a slagging in my LBS! - instead of - LBS gave me some advise on steel framed bikes! Then shortly followed by "LBS in slagging off product they dont sell shocker." Not a good advert for the shop which is my means of income to support my family so hence my posts. If anyone is riding at the Clic24 you will see me there (voluntarily) with a spanner in ne hand supporting everyone there riding, as I have had the privilage of riding at many events I am happy to support a local event, why not come and have a beer and see that we doin't bite?

[i]@JasonLock : So, as per my previous question, have you ridden an On-One? [/i]

Mmmmm, I take it nope then. Thought not.

If anyone is riding at the Clic24 you will see me there (voluntarily) with a spanner in ne hand supporting everyone there riding,

even if they're riding an on one 😉 😆

kidding
see you there

Hi Nukeproof, no I haven't but then again I have not slagged them off, to be fair most manufactures do make good bikes now and it's more down to the components on the frame that makes the biggest difference or even more importantly making sure that someone buys the right type of bike for the riding they do, that's why my first question is allways 'where are you going to be riding' thats why I'm usually advising the general puplic to buy a Hybrid and not a cheap full-susser that's no good to anyone. I'm a fan of Cannondale's but I'm sure there not everyones cup of tea.

[comes out of hiding 😳 ]

Jason,

[i]It seems to be the in thing to knock you LBS on the forums
[/i]

To be fair, I have no issue with XXX who said these things and doubt that he spoke the truth about yours/his experience. And if I have given that impression that I'm "knocking" Bike City, then I sincerely apologise. I'm not a major customer of yours but the service I have previously received has been fine. [b]I absolutely would not want to put off potential customers by my remarks.[/b]

I've been on this forum for a while now and am very aware of how these bikes are admired. I started this thread because of the contrast between the generally held view here and what XXX said. I am considering what inexpensive frame to get. Since other owners and Brant post here a lot it seems only fair to get opinions about on-ones. Brant has already responded to the "gimp" issue positively, I wonder if he has any comment on the facing and quality issues you describe?

PS everyone: I get the impression that Jason is new here, SO BE NICE!!!!!

The guys at Bike City (not City Bikes as per the op) do a sterling job at the Clic24.

Jason, arguing with on-one fanboys is like wrestling with a pig, the pig enjoys the attention and you'll end up covered in shite.

PS.Can you make sure you have a good supply of mono mini pads at the Clic just in case it's a mud fest like the other year as I'm soloing.

Ta.

🙂

[i]Jason, arguing with on-one fanboys is like wrestling with a pig, the pig enjoys the attention and you'll end up covered in shite.[/i]

As said, nothing to do with On-One brand, more to do with LBS giving opinions on a frame they've never ridden. Still, I don't want to argue with the Bike City fanboy.

@ jasonlock - So are you going to stock Ragley frames? 😉

are you going to stock Ragley frames?

I think I'd have to go and check 'em out first.

I'm expecting a pay increase, but not much so sorry, the lovely Ragley is waaay outa my range. 🙂

The summer season is very very tempting sounding tho. Especially as it isn't painted (not that keen on paint).

I wonder if he has any comment on the facing and quality issues you describe?

I can't understand why they'd have a problem facing a 456 frame (which you were interested in), though a Slot Dropout frame (designed to work with IS to Post Mount adapted brakes) I can imagine might be a bit fiddly, though I've never heard of a reported problem with a weld obscuring the disc mount.

but anyhow.

What you might be able to see on the Ragley frames is a CNC'd high spot on the disc mount ensuring flat facing potential.
[img] ?AWSAccessKeyId=1C9REJR1EMRZ83Q7QRG2&Expires=1239832999&Signature=jf7McoAF2fbLKF4Z41fFjWXSK%2F4%3D[/img]

To my mind, facing should be carried out in the stand, on assembly. not at production. As it's travelled 13000 miles between production and assembly in most cases.

As said, nothing to do with On-One brand, more to do with LBS giving opinions on a frame they've never ridden. Still, I don't want to argue with the Bike City fanboy.

Touchy aren't you, my comment wasn't aimed at you, FWIW one of my LBS hissed at me when I took an Inbred in to have a headset fitted.

[i]Touchy aren't you[/i]

No, not really and I guess I should have put a 😉 after that sentence but I dislike the idea of people, especially LBSs who people go to advice for, giving opinions on products they have never tried.

I've had to face the disc mount on an on-one and it was not possible to do using the facing tool as the weld was in the way, this is probably the reason the customer was advised not to buy one by my colleague.

Seems this statement could equally apply to the facing tool. Perhaps you could have advised the customer to buy the frame he/she wanted but to visit a shop with a better supply of tools to get the disc mount faced...

"One of my LBS hissed at me when I took an Inbred in..."

Hmm, evidence of more LBS tutting. Did they give a specific reason?

Sorry to barge in on all the faff, but I had to comment on this.

[i]In this day and age, LBS's don't really know much better than the rest of us (i.e. the buying public are better informed)[/i]

Now, I'm sorry, but that is complete and utter rubbish. Do you have the industry insider knowledge that your LBS has? Have you spent years working with bikes, with the importers and the manufacturers or have you heard some stuff on the internet or in a magazine? There is a huge difference. Have you seen the many dozens of ways a front mech can be a pain in the arse first hand? Have you ridden just about every single major bike brand to find out the traits of each, from low end 150 quid bikes for the city to 14lb carbon road racers and 2.5k downhill bikes? Are bikes your entire life, and is your life nothing but bikes?

Also, a good LBS will say, if you ask about it, that they haven't tried a bike so they can't comment on it. I know I do. We don't know everything, but what we do know, we'll tell you. If we don't like something, we'll say. If we do like something, even if we don't sell it, we'll still say.

The public, keen as they are, is not more knowledgeable than a good bike shop staff member. I'm sorry, but that's how it is.

For what it's worth, I've owned an on-one and yes, the ride is wonderful (I love how an Inbred with only a 100mm fork will batter down anything at a million miles an hour feeling stable and controlled leaving you with a big grin at the bottom) but it was heavy for what it was, felt a bit "dead" as far as steel frames go and was somewhat sluggish uphill. Good, but you could find better. Though probably not for that little money.

just a shame that 99% of bike shop staff aren't at all like your description...

To my mind, facing should be carried out in the stand, on assembly. not at production. As it's travelled 13000 miles between production and assembly in most cases.

Does steel distort through travel alone?

[i]The public, keen as they are, is not more knowledgeable than a good bike shop staff member.[/i]

Yeah but its finding one you can trust...this thread proves that in that an LBS is going an opinion on a frame they never ridden. LBS are still businesses and therefore there not ever going to be completely unbiased. I agree some have a great deal of knowledge but I'd never 'just' take the advice of an LBS but use every source possible whether that be internet, mags and even forums.

The modern consumer is equipped with tools more powerful than ever before (particularly IT desk jockeys).
LBS staff living on beans, low wages, living the dream... Faced with semi ironic northern English direct sales model brand.
How do you realistically expect them to react ?

Cynic-al. Facing to 0.1mm seems silly 13000 miles from the workstand to me. No?

Hi Nukeproof, without speaking to my colleague I could not comment about weather he has ridden one and as I said before as far as I am aware it was a genuine conversation about steel framed bikes between two individuals I think it just got blown out of all preportion by the headline of the thread and following sensativity to an obviously well loved brand. If you had asked me a question about say what wheels to buy for mtb'ing I would dis-miss shimano in favour of Hope or Mavic which I am a fan from experiance of using the product, I hope (no pun) that you would start a thread 'LBS advises using Hope or Mavic whatb do you think?' not 'LBS Slagging off Shimano wheels shocker!' Remember it was not myself who was involved in the original conversation nor did I start the post I wasn't even in the shop at the time, why do you all hate me so much just because I work in an LBS, I feel sooo depressed - only joking - I'm off too bed dude, I'll let you have the last word I get the impression you would like that?! p.s. Can I continue the thread if I find out my colleage has ridden an on-one please?

Brant, I have no idea what seems silly to you.

Are you telling me disc mounts get bent/displaced/distorted in transit?

[i]How do you realistically expect them to react ?[/i]

I might expect a balanced viewpoint based on that all-important industry knowledge, pros vs cons.

I was in the shop looking at potential bits to put on the new frame. I got chatting about my intentions and XXX was happy to suggest a few frames but I was thinking about something a bit cheaper. I mentioned a 456 and got some strong negative opinions back and no positives, which surprised me.

Y'know the moment someone takes a single viewpoint any topic*, I start to question if an objective opinion.

*not suggesting I don't rant mesself a fair bit. BTW does it matter that you're from the North and how much of that bottle of wine is left? 🙂

The problem with boring thread titles is that [yawn] no-one reads or comments on them.

It's just like selling newspapers really.

Is this storm in a teacup still running?

On ones are cheap mass produced MTB frames. Some folk like them and some don't.

Jason - I think you are new here - here is todays lesson: If it can be blown out of proportion it will be on STW.

Hmm, evidence of more LBS tutting. Did they give a specific reason?

Yep, they didn't like Brant.

[i]I'll let you have the last word I get the impression you would like that?[/i]

Yeah, yeah 🙄 hate to disappoint. 😉

I'm not in some rant mode which you seem to believe and its not solely aimed at your LBS (Fair enough if you weren't in the shop at the time as I do appreciate you can't speak for your colleagues). Its simply that I've had experiences with LBSs in that they think its fine to slate a product when they they haven't fairly tested them and I think its unprofessional to act in this manner and it gives me an inherent distrust of their advice.

[i]here is todays lesson: If it can be blown out of proportion it will be on STW. [/i]

Yeah, just see the 'Wear a helmet FFS' thread for a fine example 😉

It's not impossible that a bike frame could be a bit heavy, a bit dead, not very accurately aligned, with ugly welds, and difficult to face, while at the same time being a really inspired design.

On that basis you could slag it off for a whole bunch of reasons and yet it could be a great ride at a bargain price. It depends whether you are judging it by the finish or the design.

The clue is in the name; ON-ONE & INBRED

love you Jas

welcome to the real muppet show 😉

A brand of whatever gets bad press because the one someone has seen was faulty.... not unusual is it, seems like human nature to me and if the brand wants a better reputation it needs to try harder, if its a budget brand then mistakes happen. We've all seen bike reviews that have gone wrong because of a fault on the bike. I wouldnt buy Pace forks cause my mates broke (while litterally just riding along), its human nature and if your ask peoples OPINIONS you get their view. Local bike shops are full of opinions take them with a pinch of salt, get lots of opinions and make your choice.

Oh and On-ones are shite 😉

"rubbish built frames", "rubbish welds and facing"

have you ridden an On-One?

no I haven't

I mentioned a 456 and got some strong negative opinions back and no positives, which surprised me.

sounds like a slagging off. thread closed.

How do you realistically expect them to react ?

Well my LBS manager reacted by buying a frame from On One for himself.

Do you think he still would have if he'd read your patronising comments beforehand though?

I've never had the pleasure to ride an On-one but years back I used to be a pill-popping raver so am I allowed an opinion? 😀

nukeproof - Member
I'll let you have the last word I get the impression you would like that?

Yeah, yeah hate to disappoint.

I'm not in some rant mode which you seem to believe and its not solely aimed at your LBS (Fair enough if you weren't in the shop at the time as I do appreciate you can't speak for your colleagues). Its simply that I've had experiences with LBSs in that they think its fine to slate a product when they they haven't fairly tested them and I think its unprofessional to act in this manner and it gives me an inherent distrust of their advice.

here is todays lesson: If it can be blown out of proportion it will be on STW.

Yeah, just see the 'Wear a helmet FFS' thread for a fine example

Morning Nukeproof,

I think the dont knock on-one untill you have tried it should be applied to don't knock Bike City until you have tried it? Which I think is a fiar comment. p.s. love you Judderman, when you poppingin next?