Sub $350 29er Singlespeed

Just saw this on ebay: Motobecane Outcast 29er SS. The Outcast 29er comes in 3 different colors: matt slate, cool white & matt bronze.

Here are the specs:

FRAME: 6061 Aluminum with horizonal dropouts, 2x H2O bosses, eyelets, rr rack bosses
FORK: 4130 Chrome-Moly with etelets
CRANKSET: TruVativ Aluminum 42T 175mm with bash guard
BOTTOM BRACKET: Sealed Cartridge
PEDALS: ATB Aluminum Platform
FRONT DERAILLEUR: None – why have that?
REAR DERAILLEUR: None – you don’t need that either
SHIFTERS: None – this is SS baby – no shifting – no muss – no fuss
CASSETTE/FREEWHEEL: 18T FW – plus 18T fixed cog included in parts box
CHAIN: SS
HUBS: GRAVITY PRECISION BEARING Aluminum (black) – FLIP-FLOP REAR
SPOKES: Stainless Steel
RIMS: ALEX TN21 – Double Wall Aluminum
TIRES: KENDA NEVEGAL Blackwall 29 x 2.2
BRAKES: Brakes TEKTRO V-BRAKES – SIMPLE & RELIABLE
BRAKE LEVERS: TEKTRO ALLOY
HEADSET: Tioga Alchemy Ahead Threadless Sealed 1.125 inch
HANDLEBAR: M-Wing Comp Aluminum Riser
STEM: M-Wing Comp Threadless Aluminum 1.125 inch
TAPE/GRIP; WTB Black Palm Pillow
SADDLE: WTB Speed V with comfort groove
SEAT POST: M-Wing Aluminum Micro-Adjust
SEAT CLAMP: Alloy

The most interesting spec is definitely the 42 tooth front. Most singlespeed bikes come with a 32 or maybe a 36 tooth front. A 42 tooth front is not as common for a mountain bike because of the um… mountains. Climbing with a 42 tooth front is going to be hard, to put it mildly. If you want to try it, shift your front derailleur into the “3” and choose a “6/7” for the rear before tackling your next climb.

But at an incredibly low $329.29 (haha 29er, I get it), you can swap out the 42 tooth front and get a 32T or 36T and you still have a very, VERY well priced aluminum 29er SS. Or if you happen to prefer flat trails or live where everything is flat (Kansas?) then you’re all set.

The other interesting spec is the 18t freewheel with an 18t fixed cog. I’ve heard of a few people riding 29er singlespeeds, but I’ve never heard of a mountain biker riding a 29er fixie. If the rear wheel is fixed on one side with a freewheel on the other, you can keep a larger tooth cog for the climbs and then switch to a smaller toothed rear cog for the descents. I can just picture it right now “Uh, wait up guys, I need to flip my wheel for the descent.” Very interesting feature.

Motobecane, as of this posting, does not have any info on their website about the Outcast, but here it is anyway. For more info on the Outcast 29er, check out their ebay listing.