classic steel mtb SS conversion...a few ?'s

i've had a thoroughly used paramount mtb hanging in the basement for a while
now, and recent need for a campus commuter (school, not gas prices!) has me
thinking about an SS conversion. goals are low-cost, light, reliable, and
stealth...no bling, but no junk, y'know?

background:
1992 PDG series 90 ('blue velvet gas' colored! sometimes i get that after i
eat mexican...), silver-brazed, lugged, tange prestige OS, hand-made in
japan (*not* a waterford). also the original welded prestige OS 1.125"
threaded unicrown. lots of paint damage, very slightly tweaked seatstay,
tiny dent in top tube. currently built as a hardtail with eccentric mix of
9spd (eg: 600 ultegra rear derailleur). use will be short-range (couple
miles/day) urban commuting by a moderately-skilled XC rider, so stairs and
small drops are certainly a possibility (when i'm not packing the laptop!),
no major hills, no major crime. possible light trail use as well.

i have and plan to re-use:
frame, fork, xt v-brakes & levers (pod-free, thank-you), kore al threadless
stem, xt/mavic wheels, xc pro crank & grease-guard bb, custom 'torque' ti
seatpost (which is an absolute work of art...*beautiful*) & flite kevlar
seat, m757's.

here's what i'm wondering:
vertical dropouts. i've got a 'rennen' chain tensioner on the way (i
understand it's da proverbial bomb), and i plan to put a real SS cog spaced
out on the existing xt cassette for good chainline. i'll keep the outer
chainring as bash-guard, replace the inner with an SS wheel, and lose the
inner. how solid is this really? i understand it's the least costly has
been done many times, but is it reliable? the stack of spacers seems a
little 'redneck' (speaking as a north carolinian), and i have no time for
machines that do not work well. 34 x 16 about right?

i need to replace my probably fatigued ultra-light flat bars. low-rise this
time i think? are carbon bars durable enough to be crashed/dropped more
than once? ok with set-screw bar-ends (no way)? too much bling? how about
a quill-to-clamp stem adapter? solid or redneck?

tires. i think a want a fatty in front, 1.95 in the rear, city/urban tread,
light-weight. does this make sense for the described use? does it exist?
most wide tires seem to be heavy DH specific knobbies...got any urban
recommendations? trials tire? will pretty much anything fit a unicrown
with v-brakes?

anything else i should know?

thanks!

dookie