This bike is a replacement for my dearly beloved single speed that was stolen by some heartless alley troll in Chicago.

==Shipping:

It arrived packed well, though I must say that they obviously place far too much faith in UPS, given the thickness of the cardboard used..still, it arrived all in one piece…or rather, it arrived in pieces, but the pieces were in good shape ;)

==First impressions:

It's a nice looking bike. I'm more of a function over form kinda guy but in this case there is a marriage of both. I like the visual and mechanical simplicity of single-speeds and it looks sharp in white with black accessories(not my usual preferred color but what they had in stock).

==The not so good:

-Handlebars:

Included in the box were the drop bars and the "flat bar". I found the flat bar ridiculously narrow(15 inches wide!). I'm assuming this is the "fixie" style meant for tricks and such but I find it much too unstable for my commute.

The drop bars are weirdly shaped such that I could not find a comfortable hand grip. I have small hands but I couldn't find any place for my hands to fit in the drop position.

-Seat

The cheap flat seat was obviously meant for pre-teens or adults without any desire to procreate in the future. I tossed it and installed a WTB Speed V Comp Saddle. My junk is thankful.

==First Ride:

A test ride revealed that either the chain or bottom bracket was "sticking" at certain points if I tried to pedal "backwards" e.g freewheel. Given that every thing I read recommended getting internet bikes set-up, I took it to my local shop.

==Setup/Mechanic Notes:

The tech mentioned that the chain wheel is not perfectly round and that this might cause issues with chain stretch in the future. He also mentioned that the tire rims don't have rim tape so that flat tires would be a very likely possibility.

==PROS(after setup, new seat and handlebars)

-Nice and light. This is a really fun frame! With the slight modifications I've made, it's a great balance between comfort and speed.

-The crankset teeth count(46) is a good balance between acceleration from a stop and top-speed. I might go up to 48 at some point for century rides but for now, I'm good.

-It's 250 bucks with free shipping. This is ridiculous.

==CONS:

-Definitely needs a setup. This is suggested for any new bike, so not necessarily a con but for a bike that you might buy in a store, they usually toss this service in as part of the price of the bike. Obviously, not an option in this case.

-Rims do not include tape so flat tires from pinching are a distinct possibility. 8 bucks will fix this.

-Not sure about the brakes. They don't really seem to grab very well but may just need to be worn in a bit..

-I found both handle bars unusable. Installed a "riser" style comfort bar and am happy with it.

-Seat is unusable except for Ken dolls and sopranos.

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Overall, with some time and attention, I am very happy with this bike. I had considered a Redline 925 and even with the expense of the setup, new bars and fenders, I'll still come out way ahead.

Cheers!

-J