Spent 3 weeks in Europe suffering a bike withdrawal.

Looking around to buy something - the used market in Eastern Countries was not very interesting, new bike prices were higher than what I am used in US. Went back home, started surfing craigslist.

Tried - again - Giant Toughroad. On paper specs are superb; for some reasons this bike does not work for me at all.

Set up two visits for Sirrus ( one sport, one Elite) - and a day before scheduled meetings found this beauty.. 2015, pristine, single speed Karate Monkey. Score !

Here it is in original form...

Going to build it a 1 x10.

Very excited and happy, already looking to take it to Europe next year.

/ksywa

Nice ! I love Surly bikes.

My next +1 is a new 2016 Surly Ogre, it's been sitting at my LBS for almost 2 years, going to make a deal on it this Saturday.

Good luck and don't forget to post pics.


I keep tooing and froing between the LHT/DT, Ogre & Troll as my next bike.

That's a good problem to try and solve, they're all good bikes.

Here's a preview of it. Going to pick up my warrantied frame swap on my FXS6 Saturday and if all is fine the Surly is coming home with me too !

My other hybrid is a Troll, Steve Pants color, matching my wife;s Troll. Both set for daily trips to explore Rail to Trail projects in VA and WV.

You will be very happy with Ogre. Get good platforms and a Brooks.. to keep important parts happy. Then keep moving to places unseen.

/ksywa

nice, you gonna put smooth tires on it?

I know this question was for the OP and I dont mean to highjack it, but I plan on running the Schawallabe Big Apple tires on my Ogre for riding around town. I have another set of wheels with XT hubs so I can swap out the wheels easy from knobbies to smoothies.

Well, yes - once I wear the current set. Probably something in 1.75 width, with more city oriented thread; it will be my urban/suburban bike in EU. Time will tell which of Surlys - KM or Troll will be used as city/suburban bike, and which will be spending more time on unpaved trails. But but... the reason for only going to 1x10 on KM is that I can swap tires between KM and Troll... so one set of tires with city rubber, one with dirt / trail type tyres.

I will report on results.. next year :-)
/ksywa

Build is finished - pictures tomorrow.
1x10, Shimano XT 786 mech, Sunrace 11-42 casette, Microshift shifter, Sram chain. Works like a dream...
(and the XT mech with ShadowPlus is tight and quiet - but takes some effort and then a bit more for shifting. Very well articulated, no ghost shifts, no hesitation, no chain slap... just works).
Will be taking it tomorrow for a longer spin, picked it up after sunset.

Looking forward to seeing your pics, sounds like a nice set up. I'm very impressed with how well Microshifters work in the index mode compared to thumb shifters.

Well, done for now. Still need pedals, luggage rack, etc etc. But till then - time to ride !

The Microshifter is sweet.. but the XT spring is a real pain in the ass to shift. After 1/2h I almost have blisters on my thumb !!!! It certainly is not for flipping back and forth between gears, more like - dial a gear and keep pedaling..

Very happy with the setup, especially since got XT from craigslist. Previous owner forgot to mention that he tried and managed to strip threads from the screw mounting into the chainstays. (Since he was kind to forgot it and told me that mech is 100% good, did not matched his shifter.. right ! I hope he a bit crossthreaded also his frame...). Well, a $12 part fixed that - since this is a replaceable item on XT and above..

The DynaSys compatibility is great. I can swap wheels between Troll ( 26") and KM (29").

/ksywa

Great stuff.


How wide are those tyres on the KM?

WTB ExiWolf 29x2.3 (58.43 mm)

after adjusting pressure, comfy !

/ksywa

Very sweet ride ! Well done sir.

I just bought the same XT derailleur for my Ogre, but I haven't installed it yet, now I'm a bit concerned because I running Microshifters as well.

No need to be concerned. This stuff works.. you will exercise your thumb and fingers in addition to legs :-).

Enjoy !

/ksywa

Is it possible that the shifter can be adjusted, even in indexed mode? I've read that Shimano Shadow series derailleurs like your XT have a stronger spring, but I don't remember reading that they're that difficult to shift. Most will pair them up with typical trigger shifters, which would be very hard to use if that derailleur is as tight as it sounds like!

Cool thumb shifters, though.

The shifter does not need adjustment, the resistance is from derailleur. One can ride with clutch off ( but that defeats the purpose.. ) or adjust tension of clutch to lower it, increasing chances of chain slap or mis-shifts. It is not difficult - it is more pressure than Deore I have on Troll; the shifts are very articulated and precise. One will not shift my mistake or by moving hands and moving the shifter. There is a fine line between difficult - which I'd hated.. and strong, where you need to be in the mood and mind - OK, I want a shift NOW !.

I am very happy with this setup - never got used to thumb/trigger shifters.. took a long time to get used to Ultegras on road bike.

Enjoy the ride !
/ksywa

Those Microshifters are really nice, I have them on my Ogre, the rear shifter is a mix of friction and index shifters, they work really smooth and precise, but there is nothing you could do to them to make the shifting easier. I like them even better than the Ultegra set up on my Trek.

To ask a silly question, are both you guys happy with the stiffness of your respective Surly frames?


Is there any noodleyness to them at all when riding up a decently steep hill?

Yep, I am happy both with Troll and KM.
I'd say Troll is just a tiny bit softer - but both are snappy and responsive. No numb/noodly feeling from each frame; then remember that for me a full alu frame is brittle and a bit too harsh. The 1x10 drivetrain of KM is very tight; the 3x10 on Troll is a bit softer, but still a good setup for my old bones.

I will stick with steel, or steel/carbon frame of LeMond.

/ksywa

So far I like the way my Ogre rides, no squirrelly or noodlness at all, even with low pressure knobby MTB tires, very solid feel of control on and off the paved roads, though not many steep hills around here. I just put a set of Big Apples 2.3 on it, and with 35 psi it rides like its on a cloud but without the feeling of any sloppiness or slow handling. If the bike was 9 or 10 pounds lighter, I probably wouldn't ride my FXS6 during the week. So far I am enjoying the steel frame and ridged fork, I will really have a honest opinion once I put a few hundred more miles on it and the "newness" wears off, but I can see why a lot of people like Surly bikes.

Thanks for the feedback guys.


I keep alternating in my mind which of the LHT, Troll and Ogre, I want to get first and I keep changing my mind about which of them it will be.

I think you will be very happy with any choice of those 3, what I really like about Surly is their bikes come well equipped with higher end brand name components. For me the only thing I swapped out so far has been the seat and tires.

I'd say it depends on what type of riding you prefer - Troll is just tiny bit smaller' LHT has drops. You probably should get one of the frames, and build it the way you like; so say, find what size of frame you need, and the first one which you can get under XX dollars will be your first one. You can start buying components already...

:-)

/ksywa

I guess I should mention that whatever model I get, will be a frame only and I will build it up and flat bar only.

Part of why I am so undecided is that I have a set of brand new 26" wheels, tyres & tubes, plus XT V-brakes, just waiting to go on to a bike, so both the LHT and Troll are contenders here.

But as I also have two bikes with 29" wheels and disc brakes, standardising on that wheel size and disc brakes, would lead me to the Ogre.

Eventually I could always put my new 26" wheels and XT V-brakes on to my 1995 Trek 830, which was my original plan at one point, before the Toughroad caught my eye.