Surly ECR: Built and Packed in 2 Days

The same fantastic dropout as my Troll. It’s amazing how much cleaner factory paint is than powder coat.

The ECR is ED coated, which means no framesaver! Definitely saved me some time.

Set up bush-packing style using the Salsa Minimalist in front and the Tubus Vega in the back. In these photos the ECR is rolling on Smart Sam Plus tires, but Knards are on her now. The Tubus Vega Rack also works with Knards, see below.

I am testing out a product called Shelter for the bag contact points. I’ll be interested to see if it holds up. On the last tour I just threw a strip of Gorilla tape across my top tube.

I made some rack mods to the Vega to hold a bottle cage on each side.

Cut aluminum stock with rivnuts to make the braces; and bent 1/2″ pipe-clamps to make the brackets; a little spot welding, some paint and they are ready to roll. Only time and bumpy tracks will tell if the hold up.

Template for the frame bag.

The bag design features a map pocket on the side to hold NG trail maps or ITMB travel maps.

The top panel has two straps to carry a pump and keep it out of the way.

Velocity Blunt 35s held Sams, and now Knards. More cages on the fork offer extra space and more hydration.

The Rohloff got a fresh oil change and is ready for a few thousand more miles.

I am digging these Blackspire Big Slim MKII pedals.

27 TPI Knards came last night at 7:30 via UPS. Noticed the cryptic message above the bead: WIZARD SPEAK KNOWLEDGE BOMB PUT THE TIRE DOWN AND PICK UP A BEER. So I did, then a quick install, test, and about an hour of deliberation whether to take them or the Sams. Knards won the battle; maybe not the most practical choice, but certainly the most fun. We’ll see.

A crappy night shot of the ECR sporting Knards.