The Surly Disc Trucker Gets Overhauled

Originally introduced in 2004, the Surly Long Haul Trucker has become one of the most widely used and iconic touring bikes on the planet. The “LHT” (as it’s commonly referred to) is a common choice among long-distance bike tourers and commuters for its legendary status, simplicity, and stalwart commitment to the reliability of steel, V-brakes, and classic standards, including a 26″ tire option. However, in 2012, Surly gave in to technology and released the Disc Trucker.

Now, eight years later, the Disc version of the storied touring bike sees another major upgrade to address the Trucker’s fit, handling, durability, component compatibility, and load-carrying capabilities. In doing so, Surly introduced a few progressive standards into the platform, including flat mount brakes, tubeless tires, and their new “captured thru-axles,” a system that features a slotted dropout on the non-threaded side to allow easy wheel removal. Watch Surly’s video about what’s changed and find detailed specs and photos below…

The Disc Trucker frame is still built from Surly’s proprietary, touring-compliant ‘Natch tubeset, but the geometry was tweaked to improve standover height, add more gear and accessory mounts, update the dropouts to accommodate captured thru-axles, incorporate flat-mount brakes, and adding a little more tire clearance on the 700c models. Here’s the full list of frame highlights:

• Redesigned front and rear dropouts to accommodate captured thru-axles
• Shortened seat tube and slightly sloped top tube for improved standover clearance
• Increased stack for a more upright riding position
• 12mm thru-axles for a stiffer feel and increased stability when fully loaded
• Flat-mount brakes for greater compatibility with modern product standards
• Slightly shorter chainstay for increased stiffness and maneuverability around corners
• Updated kickstand plate for compatibility with shorter chainstay
• Fork blade three-pack mounts for even more mounting options, plus internal routing for dynamo hubs
• Spoke holders
• Increased tire clearance to 47mm on 700c (with or without fenders)

The complete 2021 Disc Trucker comes on Pea Lime Soup green with a mix returning and updated components. While it gets STI shifters this time, it keeps the same wide 3×9 gearing (the widest gear range possible, according to Surly). It also gets the Surly Truck Stop Bar for an upright riding position, 36-spoke wheels to make the apocalypse-proof crowd happy, tubeless ExtraTerrestrial tires, and TRP flat mount brakes. Find the full build kit below.

• Frame Surly 4130 chromoly steel ‘Natch tubing
• Fork Surly 4130 chromoly, lugged and brazed
• Brakes TRP Spyre C
• Brake Levers Shimano Sora
• Headset Cane Creek 40, 1-1/8″
• Stem ProMax 31.8 4 bolt
• Handlebar Surly Truck Stop Bar
• Seatpost ProMax 27.2, 350L, non-o set (42-50), o set (52-64)
• Saddle WTB Volt Sport
• Crankset Shimano Alivio 48x36x26t
• Bottom Bracket Shimano SM-BB52
• Front Derailleur Shimano Sora R3030
• Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio M4000 SGS
• Shifters Shimano Sora 3×9
• Chain KMC X9
• Cassette Shimano Alivio, 11-34t, 9 speed
• Rims Alex Adventurer 2
• Front Hub Novatec 12×100, 6 bolt, 36H
• Rear Hub Novatec 12×142, 6 bolt, 36H
• Tires Surly Extra Terrestrial 700×41, 26×46

The 2021 Disc Trucker is available as a frameset for $725 or as a complete for $1,675 as specced above. Both are available in 10 frame sizes and come with either 26″ or 700C wheels, depending on the size. Here’s the breakdown.

For more info on the new 2021 Surly Disc Trucker, watch our first ride video below, and head over to SurlyBikes.com.

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