Originally Posted by
acidfast7
If it's an extra long cage just change the cassette. I don't see the problem?
My comment was that Deore is ****ty on a $1000 bike where it's the single component that does the most work on a bike.
It has a 32 cassette which was at or near the limit of that model RD. That’s limited by the upper pulley location. But it has a lot more chain wrap available from the extra long cage, so that enables the smaller ring in front.
As for value, Surly occupies a niche. At a given price point, comparing to other bikes, you will find that they have a frame with more features, but components that you might kindly describe as durable. Within their niche they're also making themselves some pricing power with their expletive-laden iconoclastic marketing.