We built this eye-catching purple Surly Troll for a local customer who wanted a
bike for daily commuting and long-distance touring. He asked us to build
it up with versatility and ergonomics being the primary concern. With Surly's nearly indestructible steel frame, a worry-free Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14, Schmidt dynamo front hub, dynamo-powered head light with USB charger, and a pair of steel Tubus racks, this bike is ready to serve as a reliable transporter for many years.
The Surly Troll frames are a trusted choice proven on many different kinds of terrain. From commuting to mountain biking to
mixed terrain touring, the Troll is an easy choice for versatile builds based
around 26 inch wheels. Like all of Surly’s frames, it features sturdy 4130
chromoly steel tubing to ensure longevity even under the harshest of conditions. It includes gussets on the key tube junctions where frames tend to fail - where the seat tube meets the top tube and where the top and down tubes meet the headtube. Troll frames also offers a full array of threaded mounts for racks,
water bottle cages, fenders, and Surly's trailer, making them adaptable to satisfy any rider's needs, no
matter how they intend to use it.
For the wheels, we used Sun Ringle’s MTX33 rims, which are rated for downhill mountain biking, making them plenty strong enough to handle just about anything thrown at them. The 33mm width also helps spread out the tire casing for better traction. We laced up the rims using Sapim Race spokes and brass nipples for an appropriate blend of weight and durability in mind. Naturally, we chose a black Rohloff SPEEDHUB in the rear and a matching black Schmidt SON28 in the front. Finally, we mounted the Schwalbe Marathon Mondial tires, which have a thick, flat-resistant liner embedded in the rubber so they won't be susceptible to unexpected punctures on the road.
The Schmidt SON28 dynamo hub powers a Busch and Mueller Luxos U headlight with built-in USB charger. The highly efficient Schmidt hub provides reliable battery-free
power to illuminate the road or charge electronic devices with an undetectable amount of resistance. We routed the headlight power wire through the inside of the fork leg for a clean
look, a trick which also protects the wires better than wrapping the cable around the fork blade. A second wire from the headlight running to the handlebar terminates at an on/off switch that doubles are a plug for charging a phone, gps, or
other USB device.
To fulfill the requirement of comfort, we used our standard choices for ergonomic cockpit and seating components. Ergon’s GP1 grips are shaped to distribute pressure evenly across the palms and feature an extended rest to support the rider’s wrists. The Selle Anatomica’s Titanico
X leather saddle features an opening down the middle which allows the saddle to
flex with a rider’s pedal stroke and removes pressure on the perineum. The leather breaks in over time to conform to the rider’s unique body shape but feels comfortable right out of the box.
If you’re looking for a durable touring or all-arounder of
your own, contact us to start a conversation about what we can build for you.
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