Surly Karate Monkey

Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things

anyone own one?

On Apr 12, 2:09*pm, wrote:
Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things


It doesn't have braze ons for front or rear racks, has too short of a
chainstay for practical road use with bags, anyway, and doesn't look
to be easy to fit a kickstand to. So useful as a mtb, but little else.
A LHT complete costs $100 less and has an excellent multi-speed
drivetrain. Swap out the silly drops for a trekking/Milano/riser bar
and appropriate shifters--and you got yourself an upright do anything
bike.

landotter wrote:

wrote:

Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things

It doesn't have braze ons for front or rear racks, has too short of a
chainstay for practical road use with bags, anyway, and doesn't look
to be easy to fit a kickstand to. So useful as a mtb, but little else.
A LHT complete costs $100 less and has an excellent multi-speed
drivetrain. Swap out the silly drops for a trekking/Milano/riser bar
and appropriate shifters--and you got yourself an upright do anything
bike.

The Surly LHT doesn't take tires as fat as the Cross Check can, let
alone 29er tires. And it has a nice touring-appropriate low BB. So
it can do a lot of things, but not MTB things.

Chalo

wrote:
Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things

anyone own one?

Yep. More or less as described. I'm running a Rohloff on mine with
700c wheels. Seems bullet proof, quick enough geometry, no
complaints. No brazeons for racks or mudguards, the mudguard issue is
easily solved but lack of rack might be an issue.

My soon to be buildup will be a Cotic Roadrat. Will let you knowhow
that goes.

wrote:

Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things

anyone own one?

I don't own one, but I took a long hard look at it while picking out a
29er upon which to base an electric-assist city bike. I used a Karate
Monkey fork on the testbed machine.

Ultimately, I went with a Redline Monocog 29er frame instead. There
were several reasons why:

- The KM has chainstays that are a little too short for luggage (and
tall people), and that's why it has a queer squiggly seat tube. Good
for branding, but not for much else. The Monocog has stays that are a
little longer, allowing a straight seat tube with plenty of tire
clearance.

- The KM fork was nicely made, but maybe a little light for my
application. The Monocog's fork was burly.

- The Monocog frame was sturdier overall, with a gusseted head tube
and thicker tubing. It was also significantly cheaper.

- The largest Monocog 29er frame was effectively bigger than the
largest Karate Monkey frame, with a longer top tube. That doesn't
matter for everybody, but it mattered to me.

Landotter notes that the KM isn't kickstand-friendly. Well, neither
is the Redline Monocog 29er. It has a sheet metal plate for a
chainstay bridge, leaving no place for a kickstand bolt to pass
through. Either one of these bikes could be fitted with a rear axle
mounted kickstand.

Like the KM, the Monocog lacks basic brazeons. Gene Daniels
(datakoll) has added them to his Monocog, as has a friend of mine here
in town. The same would be possible for the KM. It would be feasible
in either case to use P-clamps instead of brazeons, at some reduction
in rack load capacity.

To be honest, neither of these bikes is as close to a do-all machine
as a fat-tire Sakkit or Bruce Gordon bike would be. But they are
adaptable, and far more cost-effective than the bespoke versions.

29er geometry is uniquely well-suited to changing roles, because
narrow tires give it road-bike-like BB height, and 29er tires give it
MTB-like BB height.

Chalo

On Apr 12, 4:20*pm, Chalo wrote:
landotter wrote:

wrote:

Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things

It doesn't have braze ons for front or rear racks, has too short of a
chainstay for practical road use with bags, anyway, and doesn't look
to be easy to fit a kickstand to. So useful as a mtb, but little else.
A LHT complete costs $100 less and has an excellent multi-speed
drivetrain. Swap out the silly drops for a trekking/Milano/riser bar
and appropriate shifters--and you got yourself an upright do anything
bike.

The Surly LHT doesn't take tires as fat as the Cross Check can, let
alone 29er tires. *And it has a nice touring-appropriate low BB. *So
it can do a lot of things, but not MTB things.


Ya know--mtbs are dirt cheap on Craigslist. If you actually wanna ride
some singletrack, get one. An LHT--or any number of aluminum hybrids
can do just about anything with the right tires. *Most* will fit a set
of Panaracer 37s--and that's plenty to float you on fire roads. I do
the local ones on 32s.

Cross check is fine--just a little short if you're mounting bags with
big feet. Or in that vein, for the same price, you can get a Bianchi
San Jose and throw a gearhub on it and a Jtek shifter. ;-)

Chalo wrote:

29er geometry is uniquely well-suited to changing roles, because
narrow tires give it road-bike-like BB height, and 29er tires give it
MTB-like BB height.

That was my thought as well after reading review of the
KM..... but you guys have brought up some negative
points abt the KM

So its not so much that 29ers are bad for touring but
that THIS 29er the KM is bad?

If yes, what abt some of the 29ers sold by BikesDirect?
I don't have local bike shop for MILES

On Apr 12, 6:03*pm, wrote:
Chalo wrote:
29er geometry is uniquely well-suited to changing roles, because
narrow tires give it road-bike-like BB height, and 29er tires give it
MTB-like BB height.

That was my thought as well after reading review of the
KM..... but you guys have brought up some negative
points abt the KM

So its not so much that 29ers are bad for touring but
that THIS 29er the KM is bad?

If yes, what abt some of the 29ers sold by BikesDirect?
I don't have local bike shop for MILES

The Motobecane Outcast SS could be a fun hub gear project. It's got
braze ons for a rack and fenders and a rigid fork, also with fender
eyelets. For $350 you get a fun project bike.

The Fantom Cross looks to be the best bet for an all-rounder out of
the box. It's really just a touring bike with short stays, even with
low rider braze ons.

On Apr 12, 7:09*pm, wrote:
Looks like an interesting bike capable of all things

anyone own one?

Don't own one but gave it a hard look last year because it is a
genuine 29-er frame and was instantly available.

Surly's Karate Monkey has three advantages. It is very sturdily built.
It can handle 622-60 tyres and still take fenders (you have to make
your own brackets...). It is much nippier because of the short
wheelbase than your general run of 29er.

There are also major disadvantages for a utility bike. The short
wheelbase -- so short the seat tube has to be bent around the wheel --
makes carrying stuff in panniers a bit problematic. Not that you'll be
able to carry a lot of weight anyway, as there are no rack braze-ons.
But racks have been fitted to the KM. I saw several KM on the net that
had been turned into credible credit card tourers, though not campers.

Thing is, the Surly Long Haul Trucker, the obvious do-everything
alternative if you're already into Surly, won't take balloon tyres. I
think that today a utility bike just about has to take 622-50 and
preferably -60mm, which made the LHT less attractive to me than the
KM.

The short wheelbase, and its consequences, was one of the reasons I
decided against the KM. But if nippy handling in traffic is more
important to you than the ability to carry a lot of stuff, the KM
could be a decent semi-utility town and country bike. And it has to
have better offroad capability than the LHT.

Watch out in some of the frames competing with the KM for the top tube
height. The KM top tube slopes so it doesn't slam into your family
jewels whatever size tyre you fit; some of the others may claim to
take 60mm tyres but they would raise the top tube into the danger
zone.

Andre Jute
Visit Jute on Bicycles at
http://www.audio-talk.co.uk/fiultra/...20CYCLING.html

landotter wrote:

The Motobecane Outcast SS could be a fun hub gear project. It's got
braze ons for a rack and fenders and a rigid fork, also with fender
eyelets. For $350 you get a fun project bike.

What do you mean by project bike?

What modifications would you have in mind?