29er & 29+; Weekend of bicycles-but no cycling...

After some real cold days at work last week out in the bitter damp cold Easterly winds chilled to the bone on machines a couple of days my feet have suffered again from Chill Blaine's, nothing serious, just a bit red and tender, but decided to get them healed up a bit and not risk any broken skin etc and a long recovery.

So been busy spannering a couple of hours each day over the weekend in the Man Cave, mostly with my two bikes that to many cyclists seem to be both the same and one not worth having if you have the other-yet both are quite different in their ride as all other types of bicycles are...

29er, and the new boy-29+ ;
Left my Surly Karate Monkey 29er, and right my hybrid Surly KramPug...

The difference between these two are twice as wide on average rim size and and another 3/4 inches in tyre width and height on the bike on the left of the below pic, while the right is the same as a regular 26" bike but bigger diameter-around the same size as a road bike wheel...

That bigger width and height of the 29+ as Surly termed the theme with their Krampus lends to lower running pressures, increased grip, and a more comfortable ride on a fully rigid bicycle off road...

Here is the Surly`s Krampus 29+ complete bike as pictured on Surly`s website...

I have already had a few quick shots on friends Krampus`s and it is a fun bike to ride with great geometry that makes you want to ride about like a hooligan... :)

With a present of a pair of Krampus 29+ wheels and tyres built offset for a Pugsley fatbike given as a present as a thanks by Tyler from Surly Bikes after FORTH FAT i built my KramPug as i termed the theme...

Unlike the Krampus, or my own 5" tyre Moonlander with even more offset, and most other makes of 4" tyre fatbikes, the Pugsley can take these wheels-so two bikes in one...

People who buy fatbikes but have not ridden a 29+ bike- which up till now only available is the Surly Krampus;
Readers on here and various fatbike forums and facebook pages will know and read  my constant waffle about the 29+ theme being a better option for many xc riders than the currant 4" tyre fatbikes if you live here in the UK and want to ride fast trails and trail centres and have no interest to ride on the coast, sandy single track, or rocks or soft Peat moorland hill tracks and want to leave a low impact footprint of your passing..

Deft though if you want to mostly ride the excellent UK trail centres and also natural XC riding then it is better than a regular 4" tyre fatbike, as faster nearly everywhere-the exception is trail riding rock gardens where the grip of a 4" tyre with it`s lower pressure gives amazing grip.

I deft would only buy a regular 29er MTB over a 29+ Krampus or other future makes of 29+ bikes now if i wanted a front suspension fork and a wider range of tyre choice.If i wanted a rigid bike then a 29+ would be a no brainer.
The 29+ just gives such a more comfortable ride- only non available UK mud tyres in 29x3" not being available is their let down for winter xc trails in the countryside away from trail centres...

Why not more interest from manufacturers in 29+?
Why indeed?, well maybe marketing itself!, remember when Surly released the Karate Monkey 29er?
It took a while for the big manufacturers to come on board. 650b wheel size is their latest marketing theme and for some venturing into fatbikes too, give it time and they and the tyre manufacturers will bring out more 29+ stuff...
Until then as usual with anything a bit different it will be the smaller manufacturers who have a loyal following who will bring out stuff first...

Another 29+ coming onto the market;
And here in the UK Sam at Singular Bicycles who just is about to release the Puffin 4" tyre fatbike, has announced a future 29+ frame set called the Rooster...

When i saw this i thought "Oh yeah"  and "gotta get one of those" and have just spent all last week and the weekend talking myself out of the need to buy a specific 29+ frame set. Maybe i will order one, or the Krampus frame set, but not now, not for this summer, below i will explain why...

Another bike build-costs;
Even if i sold my Karate Monkey which i can honestly say i hardly use with owning the KramPug which would pay for a 29+ frame set then there is everything else even though i own the most expensive part-the 29+ wheel set which would not cost much to re lace in line, i would have to buy cranks, headset, gears and drive train, and brakes at the least, go and price all that up, i costed that at around £400+. add the frame price- £450 - £650?  and your over a grand for another bike...

Why not one frame for both?;
And now for my biggest question?
If i was moving into this whole fatbike/29+ market thing i would be building  a steel in line-that's a 170mm rear hub 135mm front symmetrical frame set that takes 4" tyres on 80mm rims and also 29+ tyres on 50mm rims...

Oh and two options;

Reynolds 520 steel...

And a bit more bling Reynolds 853...

But essentially one frame set for both wheels-two bikes in one, saves you a lot of money-and room for some, less explaining to other haves why you need two new bikes! :)

Moving forward from the original;
So back to what i currently own and to date, their is nothing available in steel that takes both wheel sizes except the Surly Pugsley- a 10 year old design now!...

If you can really, really feel the difference in handling between a Krampus and the likes of my Krampug then as i can you then can tell their quite different to ride;  the Krampus is deft more "out of the saddle ragging it"-while the KramPug hybrid is more "All day relaxed xc riding"...

Maybe you need two bikes, fair enough, i do and i don't, or should say i don't need the cost of two bikes...

Back to the good old 29er;
Or to be exact my old Karate Monkey.
There is something great about the Karate Monkey. No other 29er frame set has seen so many variations and different roles over so many years  yet continues to sell sell and have a loyal following.
If you want to see the following of this bicycle have a look through the owners thread on the USA MTBR forum thread;
Lets see your KM builds

I bought my first Karate Monkey 5 years ago and later fitted wide 47mm Kris Holm uni cycle rims after reading about and seeing 50mm rims on the KM of Eric of Epic designs then-now Revelate back packing manufacturer, of the increased grip and comfort from lower pressures on wider rims. a glimpse of things to come. Here is my first bike which friend Colin now owns...

The fat rims...

Lack of use;
Since the KramPug came to life my KM has lost its gears, becoming single speed and despite a promise of using it for night rides around the slop of the local woods as a dirty bike it has never really happened, it has been to work a few times!

So what to do with it?, well make it a proper commuter!, it`s ideal!, Although single speed-which is not a bad thing for simplicity and reliability the KM can be fitted with full lenght mudguards, and this leads to why i need a winter commuter that does this. My old Peugeot can not do this unless with 25mm road tyres.
And i am getting filthy on mud covered roads despite the MTB and home made guards of the old bike...
Filth...

The old bike had a new wheel and cassette (£26 on eBay!) last week as after 29 years the original rear hub had started to slip...

Ooh shiny-until tomorrow night!...

And so i have decided that the Karate Monkey will replace the Peugeot next winter as the winter commuter.
It will get full lenght mudguards, and  i have already de tuned it again down to cheaper parts.
It may well get semi drop bars but as now it is of a Hybrid set up-albeit single speed.
As it stands this bike only costs me £350 with existing parts after i bought the frame set reduced as a demo bike of ISON the UK Surly distributors...

Bars and stem from the Moonlander and never used. Old grips from the Pugsley, levers were free...

Halo Twin Rail tyres from my first KM, also on the Salsa Fargo, back in service again...

Plastic £20 Slim Jim flat pedals, old bash ring from parts bin...Chain tug was free gift...

 Already have spare Electron  light mounts...

 So can fit my new Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op light, and the old Electron i use as a flasher...

Spare tube and basic tools in seat bag and old pump fitted along with LED rear light...

And so this will be cheap enough to leave locked up outside places as i do with the old Peugeot but also have disc brakes and off road ability-as you know i like the odd off road detour after work...


When is a 29+ not a 29+? ;
When you fit regular 29er tyres to it!...

With the 29x2" Surly Knard tyres not much use this now i fitted the 29x2.35 Gato mud tyres to the 50mm Rabbit Hole wheel set-this is the set up i had on the previous Red Karate Monkey...

No worries about tyre clearance!

This is a fast rolling Pugsley!, and the BB is now dropped from an inch higher than stock with the 29+ to a half inch with these tyres- that's good...

It still wheelies like a Krampus too... :)

Got the Phil Wood BB,Square Taper Middleburn cranks and Problem Solver direct mount front mech to fit, cannot find the crank bolts!, but they will turn up!...

 Also sorted out a pile of old tubes, bagged and ready for spares for all the bikes. none of these wheel and tube sizes existed until 10 years ago!...

Back soon...