friend of mine wants to go singlespeed (not fixie though). She is trying to decide between an IRO Mark V and the Jamis Sputnik.
She wants road rather than an agressive track geometry (which I believe they both are), steel (they both are) and they are both close to the same price.
She has a Cannondale road bike and wants something for fun and around town.

Can anyone give me/her the pros/cons or some considerations regarding both these bikes. The IRO would be ordered with their housebrand IRO components (which I understand are pretty decent) and the Sputnik is a Reynolds 631 frame (Tony at IRO says the Mark V is now Reynolds 631 as well), Alex DA 22 rims, FSA Vero cranks, FSA Powerdrive bottom bracket
The Sputnik has an Easton EC 70 fork and the IRO is a cromoly fork.
Thanks

I happen to almost have one of each. My IRO is not a Mark V, but rather one of the Bikeforum group buy frames with the same geometry and a different tubeset.

The sputnik is a 55cm and the IRO is a 56, but the fit is nearly identical between the two. All of my other bikes are either 53s or 54s. Both bikes run a little small, so be sure to check the geometry.

I generally prefer the ride of the sputnik for faster road riding and use it as a road trainer / rain bike. The dropout adjusters are a neat feature. The IRO is currently used for commuting. One important thing to note is that you will be lucky to fit anything larger than a 23c tire into the easton fork on the Sputnik. The IRO has a ton of tire clearance for a bike drilled for short-reach brakes. For kicks I once mounted 30c hutchinson cross tires (about as small as knobby cross tires can get) on the IRO.

Both are fine bikes in this price range. If your friend is looking for a bike for road rides, go with the sputnik. If she is looking for something a little more utilitarian for road, commuting and recreation, get the IRO.