Surly Troll

The Surly Troll 

 I was toying with this idea for a while and it just kept bouncing around in my head. I had sold some stuff on ebay and start to save, trade and receive little parts here and there. I ended up pulling the trigger when I saw that that green Trolls were going and only 2 remained in my giraffe size XL. 

26" bikes always looked silly when paired with an XL frame. But this bike was to get some big meats donated by good friend Tomas. They are the Maxxis Hookworms in 26"x 2.5". I had these on the Surly Big Dummy that we built for my wife many moons ago. They roll fast, never puncture and rarely did we ever air them up. 

The frame arrived and I ended up chasing the botttom bracket, facing it, spraying the frame despite its ED coating. Facing headset and chasing all things threaded. 

I removed the cantilever studs since I was going to run disc. I discovered the mounts are threaded 10x1, just like a derailleur hanger. I looked everywhere for something to plug the holes and ended up with push Auto Fender plugs from Ace Hardware for .65 ea. 

I removed a lot of the Barnacles and am waiting for M5x0.8mm plastic screws to install. I used a canecreek 40 headset. Mind you this is a budget bike and not a garage queen. Thus I used reliable, affordable, replaceable parts. I also used a square taper Shimano UN55 Bottom bracket. Those things last me for years. No creaks, noises, nothing. 

The right crank is a Deore Square taper and left side is Sugino Coda arm. Chainring is Sugino 36 tooth. Now I did use singlespeed nuts but the bolt is for a double so it goes all the way thru minimizing any chance of it loosening. Grease and torqued properly. 

Front wheel is a 6 bolt, QR, 32 hole Shimano XT laced 3x with DT swiss Competition, black spokes, black nipples to 26" Surly rabbit hole. White rim strip from Surly. Tubes, Tubes, Tubes, 

Rear rim is a Sun laced to IG Rohloff. Wheel was donated and it was a chore to get this going. Patience, patience. 

Handle bars are Surly Moloko. Avid brake levers move mechanical very inexpensive Avid bb5 brakes. 

8 speed chain gets the drivetrain going and is so inexpensive since 

8 speed is so antiquated. I'm rolling on flat pedals until I figure out what pedals I want on there permanent. I will probably opt for a flip flop pedal so I can clip in on one side and use street shoes on the other. I also want to get rid of my setback Thomson post for a straight post. Saddle will be changed to a Brooks Cambium C17 carved. That seems to be my comfort saddle as of late. This Bike is a work in progress and will have some modifications as I keep riding it. It is super-rugged, durable, heavy, and reliable. It will be cool to get some long rides on it. I am looking for an adequate rack. Not interested in a Surly Rack, maybe a Tubus cargo rack . 

Surly does not make the lightest bikes but I have ridden thousands of miles on their frames with no issues. There stuff is well thought out, tested and very durable. 

Thank you for reading, 

Ari