Surly Bike Owners

What groupset and shifters are you running with that triple crankset? Is it an 8 speed cassette?

Love that! A very fine example.

Really like this.

Put my LHT on a diet

1st was 650b Dynamo with the metal mudguards, rack and basket

2nd bored of the weight, but it back to 26s, put some spare chromoplastics and the Nitto M12

3rd put the knobbys on and took the mudguards off

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I always like the look of a lht with knobbies

great dadbike that and appropriate user name.

Shifters are Shimano 7sp, moving that LX derailleur back and forth across a 12-30 7sp cassette.

Thanks for the kind words, all. It’s a good bike to use for going on bike rides.

Latest iteration is definitely the best.

The second in a set called “Lilac”

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riding this round for a little bit now, much like previous cross check talk it does nothing special, not spritely, not particularly great loaded, and tbqh, feels a bit dead 90% of the time. this isn't built light but it's got some light bits on it and it's still portly, you can feel the frame flex, just enough to trick you into thinking it might not be you who's slow, but never plush enough to make you feel like you're gaining some real comfort as you would with a beefier bike.

i can see why someone might get one of these and think that it's a compromise, sounds like a bike for someone who doesn't like riding bikes, but finds themselves needing to ride a bike, somewhere. they might not know what they'll face and something like the cross check would take them there. if they wanted to do something fun they'd choose something specialised, or even something just nicer. lighter tubing, more customised geometry, a little prettier, hell, even disc brakes.

but i think they fun of this bike does come in its modularity, unlike a lot of bikes in this kind of no mans land of utility it stands out. i think that's because of min maxing

previously, i have owned a kepler and a caad x, when i tried to make the kepler spritely its geo let it down, it still felt like a weighty steel disc tourer, looked like one too. when i tried to make the caad x a little more capable it had a carbon fork and no mounts. the sjs basket just flexed on the canti mounts down the canal path, threatening to put me in the drink or in the dentists chair. when you tried to tilt these bikes to either side of the spectrum they supposedly occupied, you could never quite get it there.

the cross check tho? has cross-ish geo, nice high bb and and steep ish seat tube, you won't hit a podium on it but you'll feel quicker off the lights than your old dawes galaxy. then it also has the mounts, yeah you put a lot of wight on it your bars will flop around like a fish, but you can put some nice solid racks on it if needs be. it hasn't got discs which keeps the weight down, it has dt shifter bosses so you can swap between bars easily (albeit with time and faff of doing brakes still), it feels robust enough for you to drop it in anger at the top of a hard climb and looks unasuming enough to leave outside the pub but still take a fun ride home.

all in all the surly cross check might be a list of compramises that please noone , but even after all the gravel bikes, all roads, quiver killers and all rounders its inspired, it still stands out in doing these compramises in a way none of the bikes released since manage to do.

(i have tilted the saddle down since this)

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Excellent.

Loved several cross checks in my past, still regret selling the last one I had.

When my ex asks if I'm happy now, I usually reply "content", maybe "cross check" would be a better answer, confusing as fuck to her, but gives off the right vibe for me.

I, too, miss my cross check.

Currently fighting the desire to buy and build another one.

If anyone wants to sell a 50cm frame and fork...

I fully understand that desire, why fight it?

Well, you know, the intersection of "need" and "want"...

You clearly have room for another bike, having sent the Mr Pink south.
Need/want, it's all the same to me ;)

I’m thoroughly enjoying it. I’ll post a photo up at the weekend of the current guise. Still need to swap levers and add my cable cherries…

Does anyone have real life experience of the latest iteration of the Karate Monkey? I'm not enjoying my Sonder Transmitter as much as I hoped and thought the monkey might scratch the trail and bikepacking itch with a change of forks and some 29er wheels

post a photo

Glad to hear it, please do!

Current guise. Just need to swap the levers and match the bottle cages.

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Seriously nice!

Can you do me a favour and measure the seat tube from BB centre to top of seat clamp? Trying to confirm I've remembered/ understood surly sizing correctly...

My least favourite measurement but it’s about 550. Top tube is 545 so it’s the surly 52cm (which sounds about right).

Cheers, I am remembering correctly then!

There's a reason I've had about four of these. Only bike I've ever used to haul loads as well as do a 300km audax on. Flat bars? Sure. Drops? Sure. Almighty stopping power of cheap V Brakes? Sure.

Ogre is gr8

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