Surly Troll with S&S Couplings, Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14, and Gates Carbon Drive Belt

This customized Surly Troll was built for a customer in Easton,Maryland who wanted a bike for travel touring and general utility use. He came to us looking to get Surly's newly released World Troller frame built up with a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Gates Carbon Drive. However, at the time, the World Troller frames had not started shipping, so we took a standard Surly Troll frame and modified it by adding S&S couplings, a belt drive splitter, and a new coat of white powder coat to get very nearly the same result with the additional feature of being belt compatible.

Surly Troll with Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Schmidt Dynamo

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.

For the varied type of riding this customer is planning to do, a SPEEDHUB was the best choice to serve his needs. Rohloff's hubs are widely recognized as the most suitable drivetrain choice for long distance touring, which this customer plans to embark on in the future. On an unsupported tour that can lead you into remote and unknown areas, you don't want to risk being stranded far from a bike shop with drivetrain problems. The hardened steel gear wheels within the SPEEDHUBs are well protected and far more durable than any derailleur system. The Rohloff hubs are also the ideal choice for our customer’s other intended application: reliable daily commuting. To make it across town quickly at a moment’s notice, the commuter cyclist needs a drivetrain that remains in tune and performs consistently every time they get on their bike.

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.

Final touches include Shimano’s XT dual-purpose touring pedals with a platform on one side and an SPD interface on the other to allow them to be used both with clipless shoes for longer rides and flat soled shoes for around town rides. Race Face’s Turbine cranks, made from forged 7050 aluminum, make an extremely strong and hard wearing pedaling platform. Cromoly steel Tubus racks are light and strong.

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.

Surly ECR with Rohloff SPEEDHUB and belt drive

We built this Surly ECR for a customer in Mount Pleasant, SC who is bikepacking through the backcountry of Colorado this summer and planning a future tour along the Rhine River in Germany. He has toured extensively through Europe in the past but was considering a new Rohloff SPEEDHUB-equipped touring rig to make his future adventures as enjoyable as possible. He had been comparing a number of 29er frames before the ECR was released last year, including Surly's Ogre model. He was drawn to the larger volume tires of the 29+ platform, but the Krampus frame didn't have the right geometry and mounting points he wanted. Once the ECR became available his decision was pretty easy, and he contacted us to put together this bikepacking-specific ECR with some unique modifications and a custom paint job.

Surly Big Dummy Cargo Bike with Rohloff SPEEDHUB, Schlumpf Speed Drive, and S&S couplers

When a customer told us he was planning to tour through Europe on a cargo bike, we knew we were in for a fun and unique project. Cargo bikes are perfect for hauling plenty of gear, but can be cumbersome on long distance rides or hilly terrain - not to mention a challenge to get through an airport. While our customer was not concerned with riding fast, he said he wanted a cargo bike that was comfortable, durable, and versatile enough to get him and his gear across a continent. The whole bike needed to easily pack up to fit on planes and trains, and would also serve as his daily commute vehicle when he returned from his trip. After a few conversations with our customer about his needs, we set to work planning out a build that would meet his criteria. His unique riding needs were a natural fit for a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 internal gear hub and Schlumpf Innovations Speed Drive two speed internal crankset, which together provide a reliable, wide gear range drivetrain that is perfect for hauling heavy loads across long distances.

Surly Pugsley with Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and belt drive

Surly's Pugsley is the bike that brought fatbiking to the masses. Although not the original fatbike, it was the first fatbike that was widely available and offered at a price that many riders could afford. Since then, it has been updated with different frame colors and build kits each year while sticking to the same basic design centered around four inch wide tires. Surly's complete Pugsley "Special Ops" build has one of the most unique colorways yet, featuring a maroon frame, gumwall tires, and chrome rims, seatpost, stem, and handlebars. We converted this stock Puglsey to a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Gates Carbon Drive-equipped demo bike for Wheel Life Cyclery bike shop near Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They will have the bike available for customers to test ride both the Rohloff and belt drive systems.

Monkey Ride: Neil’s Surly Krampus 29+ Mountain Bike with SuspensionFork, Belt Drive, and Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14

Neil built this Surly Krampus after test riding Tyler's Krampus and others we've built for customers and realizing that he needed one of his own. Naturally, he chose a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Gates Carbon Drive belt system for the drivetrain. The bike was finished just before Neil and Phil drove north for the Seattle Bicycle Expo, and Neil took it out for its first rides on the famed trails of the Pacific Northwest. The Krampus proved to be a very capable trail bike, with the oversize tires, stable handling, suspension fork, and dropper seatpost making for a fun all-mountain hardtail that is well suited to Neil's riding style.

We've put together quite a few Krampus builds for customers using the stock steel fork that comes with the frames, but most of these builds have had a touring or commuting focus, where the rigid fork is appropriate. The 3" wide tires that these bikes use provide some minor suspension that smooths out bumpy roads, but Neil wanted his own bike to be tailored towards more aggressive mountain biking where a suspension fork is a must - similar to the Krampus we built for the Interbike trade show: a durable ride capable of hitting jumps, rock gardens, and tight, twisty trails with ease.

Surly Troll Mountain/Touring/Commuting Bike with Rohloff SPEEDHUB500/14 and Schmidt Dynamo

This black and silver Surly Troll was built for a customer of ours in San Francisco who was looking for the ideal all-around bike for the many different kinds of riding he planned to do. He wanted to be able to ride comfortably both on road and off, ride around town to run errands, and go on some longer tours. As with many of our customers, versatility and durability were priorities for this build, which is why the bike was built around the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 drivetrain.

Rohloff-Equipped Surly Ogre Mountain/Touring/Commuting Bike

The customer who purchased this bike was interested in a versatile bike that he could commute on and also use to get into mountain biking. He wanted a bike that would be comfortable for trips around town but capable enough to hit some of the many great mountain bike trails in Marin County, where he lives. After a few conversations about his dream bike, we put together this build based around the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Surly's Ogre frame.

Surly frames are all designed with a lot of versatility in mind and make great all-around bikes. Their Ogre frameset was chosen as the basis for this build because it is designed for commuting and touring on mixed road surfaces, with plenty of braze-ons for racks, fenders, and water bottles. The frame's geometry will also tackle singletrack with ease.

Surly Pugsley Fat Bike with Suspension Fork, Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14, and Gates Belt Drive

Fatbikes are known for their wide tires’ ability to provide grip and traction in just about all trail conditions. We've built many of these bikes with Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 gear hubs and several with a Gates Carbon Drive belt system as well, but how would a fatbike be improved if you added a suspension fork to the equation? That was the question we intended to answer with this Surly Pugsley build. Apparently the same question had been on many other peoples’ minds because the bike attracted plenty of attention when we showcased it in our booth at the Interbike tradeshow last September.

The goal for this Pugsley was twofold. First, we wanted to experiment with a more aggressive handling trail-specific fatbike. We also wanted to create a bike that would pique the interest of bike shop owners and industry insiders at Interbike, which is the bike industry’s largest trade show. Like the Surly Krampus build that also drew people into our booth, this Puglsey is one of the few Monkey Lab creations not built for a specific customer but rather as an experimental show bike.

Monkey Ride: Tyler's 29+ Surly Krampus Mountain Bike with RohloffSPEEDHUB 500/14

Tyler here at Cycle Monkey has a bit of a fat tire fetish. He also has a bit of a Surly fetish. It sometimes seems as if he has almost as many Surly bikes as he does Surly T-shirts, and he's been known to wear a different Surly tee every day for two weeks straight - with socks to match just to show off. This bike is one of his recent creations - a Surly Krampus with 29x3.0" Surly Knard tires and a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 internally geared drivetrain.

Surly Krampus 29+ Mountain Bike with Suspension Fork, Rohloff SPEEDHUB500/14, and Gates Belt Drive

Sometimes the team here at Cycle Monkey dreams up a project that is not specifically for a customer but rather to satisfy our own curiosity. We chalk it up to product research, but these projects also have a bit of a selfish motivation: we like to build cool bikes! We put together this Surly Krampus to showcase in the Rohloff booth at the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas last September. The various customizations on this build were very popular at the show and prompted plenty of people to stop by and marvel at the Rohloff hub, belt drive, and suspension fork we had installed on the frame. 

The goal for this build was to create a bike that could be ridden more aggressively through rock gardens, off drops and jumps, and down steep descents. Surly’s Krampus comes stock as a fully rigid 29er with large volume tires that can care of some of the harsh bumps found on trails. Its three inch wide tires on 50mm wide rims provide a fair amount of pneumatic suspension, but in certain situations, the bike is very clearly rigid.

Surly Krampus 29+ Commuting/Mountain Bike with Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14and Gates Belt Drive

Surly Krampus with belt drive and a Rohloff.

It’s not often that we’re asked to build the ideal bike for someone commuting in Siberia. We dreamed up this build for a customer of ours who is a British expatriate working in the snowy climate of central Russia. He intends to do a mix of snow, dirt, and paved riding in sub-freezing temperatures and wanted a dependable bike that could handle a range of conditions but still feel speedy. He ruled out a full fat bike and opted for the more versatile “29+” platform, a tire/rim designation that Surly invented to provide the float and traction of a fatbike, but the fast rollover of a 29er mountain bike. Once we agreed on the type of bike, we set to work planning out the build specifications.

Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14, belt drive splitter,
and Gates Carbon Drive belt system

Surly Troll Touring Bike with S&S Couplers, Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14,Gates Belt Drive

S&S couplers, a belt drive splitter, and a forest green paint job make this Surly Troll one of a kind.

This modified Surly Troll frame was put together for a customer who lives in Southern California, but spends a fair amount of time in the rural East Coast every year. He wanted a versatile full-sized bike that he could easily pack up to take on an airplane and was sturdy and reliable enough to know he could jump on at any time for a ride. Based on his requirements, we set to work creating the ultimate go-anywhere travel bike.

Gates Carbon Drive belt and Rohloff SPEEDHUB.

Surly Moonlander Fat Bike with Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Gates BeltDrive

At nearly 5 inches wide, the Surly Moonlander's tires are designed
 to have maximum float and traction to ride through snow, sand, or deep mud.

Just in time for winter, we built this Surly Moonlander for a customer who recently moved to the snowy state of Minnesota. He wanted a bike that could tackle the frosty bike paths and snowbanks of the Midwest in winter but that he could also take on some singletrack and dirt expeditions when the weather warmed up. After discussing a few options for an all-seasons bike, we settled on the Moonlander as the most versatile bike to handle all the conditions he planned to ride through.

The Moonlander uses 4.8” tires on 100mm rims, offering the largest tire footprint currently available on any bike. The tires can be run at pressures as low as 1 P.S.I., which enables the bike to float over snow, sand, rocks, roots, or deep mud. Essentially, this bike is meant to power over any surface imaginable and has earned a reputation as a true all-terrain bike.

Rohloff SPEEDUB 500/14 and Gates Carbon drivetrain.

(Review) Monkey Rides: Tyler’s Surly Krampus 29+ Mountain Bike With Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Gates Belt Drive

Tyler's Krampus set up for aggressive trail riding. 

Tyler, one of the newest Monkeys on our team, was an early adopter of Surly’s Krampus, a new style of bike Surly introduced last year that they call “29 +.” The three inch wide tires on 50mm wide 29 inch rims provide the float and traction of a fatbike, but the speed and maneuverability of a 29er mountain bike. Tyler loves his Krampus, but wanted a Rohloff SPEEDHUB and a Gates carbon belt drive to clean up the drivetrain and simplify the ride. His aim was straightforward - create a streamlined, aggressive all-around trailbike.

First off, we sent off the sparkle green frame (Surly calls the color “moonlit swamp”) to get a small splitter installed on the seatstay so we could fit a belt drive through the frame. The frame came back a few days later (along with some other belt drive modification projects you’ll see soon) and we set to work.

 

We sent off the Krampus to get a small belt drive splitter installed in the frame.

Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14-Equipped Surly Pugsley Fat Bike

Surly Pugsley in its home environment

In keeping with our recent trend of Rohloff SPEEDHUB-equipped Surlys, here's a decked out Pugsley for a customer in Seattle, WA. After riding a Rohloff SPEEDHUB on his Civilian Luddite, our customer wanted to build out a second bike around the SPEEDHUB for all-terrain riding.

It's not uncommon for us to have customers order a second Rohloff hub or complete bike from us once they experience the benefits of this drivetrain system. For our Seattle customer riding in all weather conditions, the SPEEDHUB proved its worth through reliable shifting and low maintenance requirements.

Rohloff-Equipped Surly Ogre 29er Touring/Mountain Bike in HI-VIZ!

You will never lose this bike. Ever.

This is by far the brightest Surly bike we've ever put together. It's a Surly Ogre, a bike designed to be ridden just about anywhere. Our customer was looking for a versatile, mixed-terrain bike suitable for touring and light mountain biking in a package that was visible, reliable, and bulletproof. We built the bike around the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 internally geared hub, a bulletproof drivetrain that gives the full gear range of a derailleur system, requires very little maintenance, and needs no adjustments once set up.

Plenty of braze-ons for disc brakes, rim brakes, racks, fenders, bottle cages, etc. on the painted to match steel fork 

Monkey Ride: Tyler's Rohloff-Equipped Surly Moonlander Fat Bike

Tyler's monster Surly Moonlander bikepacking rig

This out of control fat bike belongs to Tyler, the newest member of the Cycle Monkey team. Tyler is never one to only go halfway, and this bike is proof. He took Surly's most extreme fat bike frame, the Moonlander, and fitted it with a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 internally geared hub, aggressive 5 inch wide tires, frame bags, a front rack, and a pair of Salsa Anything cages for the ultimate adventure bike and no dangly derailleur bits hanging off the back.

Surly's Bud and Lou tires are huge and aggressive

Rohloff-Equipped Surly Big Dummy Cargo Bike

Surly Big Dummy Rohloff cargo bike

We recently completed a Rohloff SPEEDHUB conversion on this Surly Big Dummy cargo bike for a customer in Sacramento, CA.  He wanted a bike that offered reliable around town transportation and hauling with the ability to handle off-road touring.  He found a used, mostly stock Big Dummy on Craigslist and dropped it off with us to strip the drivetrain and replace it with a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 system.  He was drawn to the SPEEDHUB for its ability to handle the high torque produced when hauling heavy loads in a low gear, not to mention the durability and reliability to circumnavigate the globe. To see another Rohloff equipped Big Dummy being ridden tens of thousands of miles around the world, check out photos from Juan Martinez!

This bike uses an idler wheel to take up chain slack without the use of a conventional derailer-style tensioner

For the rear wheel, we kept the stock Salsa Gordo rim and replaced the Deore hub with the Rohloff Speedhub. We trimmed the DT Swiss spokes in our spoke machine to fit the larger hubshell dimensions of the Rohloff. The front Deore/Salsa Gordo wheel is stock.

Rohloff-Equipped Surly Disc Trucker Commuting/Touring Bike

We built this bike for a local customer in Oakland, CA for commuting and bike packing.  He had come across the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 as the ideal drivetrain for a reliable, hassle-free daily transportation bike and came to us to test ride it and discuss build options.  The Surly Disc Trucker offered a value priced frame with Rohloff-specific features and disc brakes for all-weather braking performance.  We built the rest of the bike up with sturdy, economical parts.