Gyeswho

I originally planned on buying a Surly Steamroller frameset, after selling my Capo, because I was feeling really limited by what could be done with it as a "fast" road commuter/lockup bike/long distance rider. It was because of buying a Crosscheck that I discovered how awesome it is to have the ability to run large tires anytime you want. Since the Steamroller had a similar geo to the Capo, I was pretty much set on making the trade, but when a fellow bike aficionado told me about the Mercier WT I had to check it out since he mentioned it also had room for large tires. I was surprised to find it had the same geo as the Steamroller along with having more tire room and fender/rack eyelets, but I was a bit bummed it had a 26.8 seatpost listed in the specs. After some thinking it over, it only made sense to get it because it was only $30 more at $440 for a complete bike (including shipping) as opposed to buying a Steamroller frameset for $410 (including shipping from universal cycles).

When I got the frame I was super excited to start piecing it up. Got the tires on and was pleased to find all that space left even with 40mm Schwalbe Marathon XR tires. Even 50mm Big Apples fit!! (but you have to ride brakeless with those because the tire rubs the brake calipher) I was even more happy to find that the frame in fact did take a 27.2 post, but that excitement was short-lived when I took it for a test ride and found the seatpost shifted on me. After taking a closer look I was so pissed to find this:

At first I thought I had to send it back to get a replacement since they F'd up, but I didn't even want to go through all the trouble (since they only sell complete bikes and I would have to send everything back) so I decided to be resourceful and find out how to make my own compression slot on some frame building sites. 15 minutes later with a hacksaw and dremel and I solved the problem:

Now I think this was just a mistake on my frame since on the website photo gallery, it shows the frame to have a compression slot cut

The ride is absolutely great with the large tires and I was really really suprised to find how fast the handling is. I think it handles a little faster than the Capo and definitely much faster than the converted Crosscheck. It does have toe overlap, even with clipless pedals, (due to the large tires), but I've dealt with it before on previous bikes. While it is a much heavier than the Capo, I don't care about the weight because it more than makes up for it with how comfortable the ride is. With a Brooks and fat tires, it's really smooth and comfy to ride on. It's nice having a fast bike along with the option to put small or large tires. Depending on the mood, smaller tires will make it both lighter and faster, but the option for larger tires makes it able to roll off road as well. I also want to make note that since it has the same geo as a Steamroller, it can also be raced on the velodrome as well! I'll be doing a lot of Barbie dress-up since it has so many options available!

Gyeswho

xxguitarist

Looks nice!
I'm glad you decided to swap it out for the Capo! lol

Torelli4

Very nice! I'm looking for a set of fenders for the Centurion I just converted. I like those.

Dustintendo

wondering why you opted to zip tie+full housings for the rear brake in the pic with the drops on

Gyeswho

thanks. They are Zefal Croozer and Swan fenders

I hadn't completely set up everything in those pics. I wanted to ride it to the shop to get some riser bars and didn't feel like setting it up all the way.

eMXiMeR

Makes me wish I got a WT instead of a stripper!

feetpower

damn that looks tough as nails! great build!

aikigreg

Maybe I missed this reading the post, but what flat bar did you use when you swapped?

Gyeswho

It's a Bontrager riser bar

Dustintendo

your bikes always have a "no bs" look to them while still looking good

mander

Gyeswho, you rule man. Looks great!

brandonspeck

Gyeswho, love all your bikes man. This does not disappoint. This is how I'm building up my steamroller.

dmcdmc

me likey. you said it was heavier than the capo...how much does it weigh?

Gyeswho

thanks. I'd say it's about 20-23lbs

Noobert

gyeswho- rather then p.m.ing you i'll just ask you here. I noticied on your cross check at one point you had the dimension cross fork. Did you like it?

And you have to get the road specific brake for the road brake pull?

Gyeswho

I currently have a Dimension Cross Disk fork on the XCheck. I like it very much and it didn't change the handling of the bike because it's similar in geo to the original. Yes, I got the road specifc Avid BB7 disk brake for it.

mountainjesus

My gf just ordered one of these, unfortunately they were out of the emerald green in her size, but I will post pics when it gets here. I sure hope it has compression slots otherwise that'll be a pain. Good fix tho, and good idea on the risers.

SpiderMike

Thanks for the review. They should have name it something like "El Jefe", or "HMFIC" instead of Kilo WT. It just looks like it could own the road, MUP trail, and fireroads... to a point.

adriano 

kilo wt was my idea!

Gyeswho

Hauler mode - the use of bigger tires makes carrying things a perk with this bike as well since you won't have to worry about pinch flats as much

j3ffr3y

Windows 7 was my idea!

adriano 

https://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.p...2&postcount=23

destikon

^^ You should get a free one.

preston811

^^what rack is that?