kao

I have a surly cross check frame set. I bought it here in Taiwan from a shop in another town. Now I am in my town and I want my LBS to build it up for me. I would like to have a clearer idea what I want before I go in. Some things they will be fine with but others I would like some info before we start.

I would like to use this frame for light touring, getting around, riding with road bike friends...
Here are my ideas, any comments welcome

1. I want to use Tiagra shifters that are built into the brakes and i think Tiagra deraillers because they are a bit cheaper?
2. three chain rings for climbing
3. can i just switch between a road tire and thicker tire for touring
4. what should i look for in wheels - spoke numbers, name brands off the rack...
5. what kind of brakes? something that allows for thicker tires
...stem, bars, seat and seat post, cranks, pedals, headset, bottom bracket... i can figure out.. I don't know what to say about the gearing, brakes and wheels...

Thanks

Moose

Sounds like a good plan to me. It'd probably be a good idea to look at the specs of some similar off-the-shelf bikes to give you some direction. Like the Bianchi Volpe or the Fuji Touring and even the Surly Cross Check complete.

MrCjolsen

1. Tiagra is good.
2. Also a good idea. If you can, get some older mtb cranks or a "touring crankset" with 48 36 26 gearing.
3. Yes.
4. You might want rims on the wider side so that you can take advantage of the bikes ability to use fat tires.
5. Get cantilever brakes. V brakes (as sold on most mtb's and hybrids today) don't work with road bike levers.

Stem - Make sure it works with road bars and fits on a 1 1/8 steer tube.
Headset - Sealed Cane Creek headsets are cheap and work well.
Bottom bracket - English threaded, 68mm shell. Spindle must fit cranks be they square taper, ISIS, Octalink etc. NOTE: Crosschecks often have crank clearance issues at the chainstays. For example, Shimano 105, Ultegra, and DA double setups don't work with 109.5 mm spindles. I don't know about triples.
Seatpost - Any 27.2 will work.
Saddle - Crosschecks like Brooks 17s.
Bars - any road bar works.

kao

Thanks very much.

cyccommute 

I agree with everything with the following modifications

Tiagra shifters/brake levers are good and rugged. The Tiagra triple front derailer is probably one of the best front that Shimano makes. Much better than their higher end equipment. Better clearance. I'd opt for a mountain bike rear derailer since they have a wider capacity. Deore is very good and very cheap.

A Shimano Trekking crank is an excellent choice. JensonUSA has them for $75.


Or just run 35s all the time. Speed difference isn't that great.

Salsa Delgados or Mavic A719 touring rims or Velocity Dyad would be good choices. 36 spoke is better than 32 if you want to do touring. Not enough weight penalty to worry about. Match them to XT hubs for a really good wheel.

Cantilevers are good but probably not Avid Shorty. They tend to squeal. I have a set running with Koolstop Dual compound pads that haven't squealled yet but with stock pads expect to wake the dead

For bars and stems, Salsa Bell Lap and a Salsa stem are good choices. The Salsa Shaft post is fairly easy to adjust, however the Race Face Cadence is slightly easier and a good post.

MrCjolsen

++ For the Salsa Bell Lap bars. I have them. Great for out of the seat climbing with nice wide drops. Get a size larger than you normally use and point the brake levers in a little bit.

climbhoser

I just picked up a Cross Check and love it!

Wheels: 105/Mavic Open Pro or Ultegra/Mavic Open Pro.

I have 105/Mavic MA3 and Ultegra/Mavic Open Pros both laced 32 spokes and I weigh 200+ lbs. I have accidentally hit some very big rocks, ice chunks and even curbs hard and both are as true as when new. Bomber rims there.

I got my Ultegra/Open Pros for $180 brand spanking new.

They are both wide, too, and easily take as small as 23mm tires (maybe smaller, I haven't tried) and up to 45mm. I have 32s on my 105/MA3 wheels right now and those run great, I wouldn't even want wider unless I was riding singletrack.

Deore LX and Deore XT are both great and cheap rear derailleurs. Get an inexpensive 8 or 9 speed rear cassette and you're set!

Brakes: Tektro Oryx.

The Oryx is the same design as the expensive Shimano cantis and Avid cantis, but even stronger yet and cheap. You can get front and rear here in the states for $30 total, including pads.

Also, they mate well with road levers without needing extra parts to adjust the pull.

Hope this helps.

I love the Oryx, love Deore XT for everything and love the higher end Shimano road hubs laced to the beefy Mavic rims. I will have these things on all bikes I build for a long time.

kao

Thanks again

orangepaint

If you're wanting to do touring with it and are short on money, do consider getting some bar end or downtube shifters. They're much cheaper, indexed, lighter, and much easier to work with.