Surly Troll or 650B Straggler?
#1
Warehouse Monkey
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Surly Troll or 650B Straggler?
I'm caught between rebuilding my Tourist or buying another bike entirely. I'm really into the smaller wheelsize as I am a shorter rider. This bike will be used for everything, as my Tourist has done it all.
So, which bike would you choose? I think both have advantages and disadvantages. Discuss.
(P.S. pictures of either bike loaded would be appreciated!)
So, which bike would you choose? I think both have advantages and disadvantages. Discuss.
(P.S. pictures of either bike loaded would be appreciated!)
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#2
Pokemon Master
It basically boils down to drop bars vs flats / jones. Which are you more comfortable with? Straggler also only fits up to a 42, while the Troll fits up to a 26 x 3.0.
#3
Senior Member
meaning, no, you can run a Troll with whatever setup you like bars wise and it works great.
Ive had mtn bike slight risers, butterfly/trekking, and drops.
Drops was my intention all along, and it works wonderfully, albeit with a short stem due to the longer toptube, and the uncut steerer is great for bar height.
#4
Pokemon Master
gong sound from The Gong Show
meaning, no, you can run a Troll with whatever setup you like bars wise and it works great.
Ive had mtn bike slight risers, butterfly/trekking, and drops.
Drops was my intention all along, and it works wonderfully, albeit with a short stem due to the longer toptube, and the uncut steerer is great for bar height.
meaning, no, you can run a Troll with whatever setup you like bars wise and it works great.
Ive had mtn bike slight risers, butterfly/trekking, and drops.
Drops was my intention all along, and it works wonderfully, albeit with a short stem due to the longer toptube, and the uncut steerer is great for bar height.
#5
Senior Member
In the end however, a 55mm stem and bars with shallow reach and drop worked fine for me. I'm about 5'10" and the medium troll and salsa cowbell bars worked out, a even slightly shorter stem would have been nice, but steerer height helped a lot.
Using a short stem had no negative affect on the bikes handling, and I was extremely happy with the handling characteristics of it loaded at all speeds on all kinds of terrain and surfaces, and I place a bikes ride and composure right up there on the list of things that give me great pleasure, especially around corners.
#6
Banned
Going to Tour France, 650B is more common there than here in the USA where it made inroads recently as 27.5 in mountain bikes
wall mart wont have tires.
Smaller wheels ? Bike Friday,, 406 20" is part of their getting a bike that packs in a suitcase*..
USA Built You have OOdles of options.. I Own 2..
*making it easier to get to the places you want to see..
....
wall mart wont have tires.
Smaller wheels ? Bike Friday,, 406 20" is part of their getting a bike that packs in a suitcase*..
USA Built You have OOdles of options.. I Own 2..
*making it easier to get to the places you want to see..
....
Last edited by fietsbob; 12-23-17 at 05:18 PM.
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The Straggler is a "light duty touring bike" (says Surly), the Troll is a heavy duty expedition bike.
#8
Senior Member
Here is my Troll somewhere in Honduras.
I havent ridden a Straggler, but I've had or do have similar bikes, so to me it really comes down to what sort of touring you expect to do.
For all around riding, the Straggler will probably be more fun and a bit faster, but the Troll really does live up to its reputation as being a solid, do all kinds of things bike.
26 has some advantages still, and a big thing is being able to take up to 3in tires now on the 2017 and newer models. Even the older ones like mine can easily take 2.5s, so you can set the bike up for all kinds of diff riding.
My trip with it that this photo is from, certainly confirmed to me that its a very capable, sturdy, and solid bike that can handle a load of 50lbs and still handle very very well.
My example of it with dropbars shows it can work well in this setup, again though, you do need to be aware of the longer toptube than other dropbar bikes, and need to be aware of this for both frame and stem size choices.
My bike was bought used and came with lighter stuff than the stock build, so is a pretty good weight, even with spd pedals, bottle cages, front and rear racks, it comes to about 30-31lbs, its been a while since I weighed it, so forget the exact number. Stock ones like my wifes Troll is about 35 I think. I also have lighter tires on it, which can be 2lbs easily compared to heavy tires.
I'm sure you are aware of the main differences between the two bikes, so to come back to waht I said earlier, you need to figure what you prefer for the majority of your riding.
My wifes bike is a XS frame, so being 26in is great for not having toe strike issues.
Personally I dont see a big diff in speed between 26 and 700 or 650, but then gearing, and bike+gear weight come into play here, so if on paved roads, I find it pretty hard to really see a diff.
what made you consider a Troll? Lets hear your views first.
I havent ridden a Straggler, but I've had or do have similar bikes, so to me it really comes down to what sort of touring you expect to do.
For all around riding, the Straggler will probably be more fun and a bit faster, but the Troll really does live up to its reputation as being a solid, do all kinds of things bike.
26 has some advantages still, and a big thing is being able to take up to 3in tires now on the 2017 and newer models. Even the older ones like mine can easily take 2.5s, so you can set the bike up for all kinds of diff riding.
My trip with it that this photo is from, certainly confirmed to me that its a very capable, sturdy, and solid bike that can handle a load of 50lbs and still handle very very well.
My example of it with dropbars shows it can work well in this setup, again though, you do need to be aware of the longer toptube than other dropbar bikes, and need to be aware of this for both frame and stem size choices.
My bike was bought used and came with lighter stuff than the stock build, so is a pretty good weight, even with spd pedals, bottle cages, front and rear racks, it comes to about 30-31lbs, its been a while since I weighed it, so forget the exact number. Stock ones like my wifes Troll is about 35 I think. I also have lighter tires on it, which can be 2lbs easily compared to heavy tires.
I'm sure you are aware of the main differences between the two bikes, so to come back to waht I said earlier, you need to figure what you prefer for the majority of your riding.
My wifes bike is a XS frame, so being 26in is great for not having toe strike issues.
Personally I dont see a big diff in speed between 26 and 700 or 650, but then gearing, and bike+gear weight come into play here, so if on paved roads, I find it pretty hard to really see a diff.
what made you consider a Troll? Lets hear your views first.
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#12
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I never ride in the drops. I'm always on the hoods. Even on my SS/FG Kilo TT with bullhorns, I'm on the flats more than stretched out of the bullhorns. The Jones style bar always did intrigue me, though.
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#13
Senior Member
ps, butterfly bars with a kind of regular length stem, maybe 90mm or thereabouts.
Last edited by djb; 12-24-17 at 06:05 AM.
#14
Senior Member
I would add that overall in the past, I've used the drops only on downhills, sprinting, and the odd headwind.
With the drop setup on the Troll, the combo of height of the bars, and the slight flareout of the cowbell salsa bars I have, makes using the drops for longer periods much more comfortable than earlier bikes.
This really is appreciated if you ride in horribly windy periods that go on for hours.
as with all bike stuff, sometimes just a few cm's of less reach, or slightly higher bars, or slightly diff dropbar dimensions and shape, can make a big difference.
#15
Senior Member
[QUOTE=saddlesores;20069791]it's winter.
you're stuck inside.
bored.
watching reruns of rick and morty.
/QUOTE]
steve, you might want to stick a piece of tape over your computer camera......;-)
you're stuck inside.
bored.
watching reruns of rick and morty.
/QUOTE]
steve, you might want to stick a piece of tape over your computer camera......;-)
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I wasn't able to do this (confidently) with my former bike with 32mm tires.
If you do any winter riding I would choose the Troll.
#17
No one carries the DogBoy
Troll is a great bike. I had one a few years ago that I had built up with drop bars. My only gripe with it (aside from it being essentially similar to my Disc Trucker, is that rear wheel removal with the horizontal dropouts was a HUGE PITA with the fenders. I liked the disc trucker better primarily due to the dropouts, so I sold the troll. Disc trucker tires only go up to 2.0 with fenders. I might be able to pull off a 2.1 without the fenders.
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I would probably vote Disc Trucker if it were here.
Of the two options, Straggler 650b.
650b isn't really a "solution" for smaller riders because a wide 650b tire is just as tall as a skinny 700c. 26", or more correctly, 559, is the answer for smaller riders.
Anyone who tells you that the trucker will be heavy/slow handling is bsing you as well; I rode a 200k on mine and I regularly take it on metrics and longer.
Of the two options, Straggler 650b.
650b isn't really a "solution" for smaller riders because a wide 650b tire is just as tall as a skinny 700c. 26", or more correctly, 559, is the answer for smaller riders.
Anyone who tells you that the trucker will be heavy/slow handling is bsing you as well; I rode a 200k on mine and I regularly take it on metrics and longer.
#19
Senior Member
I have a Gen 1 Troll and World Troller. I like 26” wheels for packing the travel bike and for high volume tires on trails. Wheel size is overrated. Fit is far more important.
#20
Senior Member
Troll is a great bike. I had one a few years ago that I had built up with drop bars. My only gripe with it (aside from it being essentially similar to my Disc Trucker, is that rear wheel removal with the horizontal dropouts was a HUGE PITA with the fenders. I liked the disc trucker better primarily due to the dropouts, so I sold the troll. Disc trucker tires only go up to 2.0 with fenders. I might be able to pull off a 2.1 without the fenders.
#21
Slow Rider
As I was reading this thread I was thinking the same thing. The Disc Trucker is extremely versatile; it is certainly an all-rounder bike. Here's my set for bikepacking with Schwalbe 26" Big Ben 2.1 tires. There is room for fenders too, if desired.