Surly cross check

[jazzkat]

I'm succumbing to the N+1
again!
I'm after a comfy (steel), winter bike that will take 'guards and most importantly big tyres so I can fit winter spiked tyres so I can hopefully stay shiny side up this winter and...... it'll be fixed
I'm hoping to do some audax events on it too.
I've done plenty of research and there's little to touch the cross check with my list of spec's.

Reviews on the web seem positive so it seems like a good bet.....

But

Sizing seems a bit weird, I'm still comparing my other bikes with the sizes on surly's web site.
I'm 5'11" with a longer torso to leg ratio. My heart says go for the 56 with it's 57cm Top tube (same as my Dawes galaxy) but my head says that the 54 with it's 56cm TT might be better with a longer stem.

Any cross check owners here? What are your experiences?
Thanks in advance.

 

[John the Monkey]

Thought about the Long Haul Trucker? Same big clearances (I'm running 42c with mudguards at the moment) but a bit more road focussed.

The Surly LHT/CC owners group on Google Groups has a sizing spreadsheet that might help;
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AjcKyUe3m-FlcGRiNXJsTDFuczBYTHhNMzFXcHZrQ3c#gid=23

If you've got a Surly dealer nearby, it might be worth taking a look at the frame - I bought mine from Sideways Cycles, and they let me hold a couple of frames against my current bike to get a feel for the geometry & sizing. (At 6'2" with 33" trouser inside leg, I went for a 58cm frame - 100mm stem).

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Straggler. Cross Check with brakes that work.

 

[jazzkat]

Thought about the Long Haul Trucker? Same big clearances (I'm running 42c with mudguards at the moment) but a bit more road focussed.

The Surly LHT/CC owners group on Google Groups has a sizing spreadsheet that might help;
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AjcKyUe3m-FlcGRiNXJsTDFuczBYTHhNMzFXcHZrQ3c#gid=23

If you've got a Surly dealer nearby, it might be worth taking a look at the frame - I bought mine from Sideways Cycles, and they let me hold a couple of frames against my current bike to get a feel for the geometry & sizing. (At 6'2" with 33" trouser inside leg, I went for a 58cm frame - 100mm stem).

Thanks for the link.
I didn't think of the LHT thinking it was too much 'tourer' but thinking about it, it might be worth a look.
Cheers!

 

[jazzkat]

Straggler. Cross Check with brakes that work.

I don't fancy disk brakes. I'm no luddite, I've got disks on my Mtb. I have no problem with 'old fashioned' brakes and I'd be able to swap wheels between the surly and my dawes (eventually looking to build a dyno front wheel).
I must admit the sparkly purple of the straggler does appeal to my ABBA tendencies.
Thanks anyway.

 

[jazzkat]

Thought about the Long Haul Trucker?

Ahh, LHT doesn't have the horizontal drop-out for riding fixed, that's why I didn't go that way.

 

[John the Monkey]

Ahh, LHT doesn't have the horizontal drop-out for riding fixed, that's why I didn't go that way.

Ah, fair dos - I was always going to ride the bike geared, but I did consider both - for my purposes, the LHT won out (just b/c I'd be using it on road 95% of the time).

 

[Sillyoldman]

I am 5'10" and ride a 56 Cross Check. Lovely.
With decent cantis it's a great bike IMHO.

 

[jazzkat]

I am 5'10" and ride a 56 Cross Check. Lovely.
With decent cantis it's a great bike IMHO.

Thanks for the reply.
Do you feel stretched out, the 56 has a 57" top tube, How long a stem are you using?

 

[Sillyoldman]

using a 90mm stem. Just right for me.

 

[Crankarm]

Surly Troll? Can take very big tyres with mudguards as well and also 700c up to 35c. Lots of bosses for racks and bottles front and rear.

 

[Hicky]

I've got a cross check I'm 5'9, I've got a 52(got a 54 Van Nicholas now).
I've done everything on it, 600km in 4 days ride...smashed up n down the cobbles on the canal...commuted with guards n carradice, still use it for family duties.
Everything it says on the tin and comfy but heavy.

 

[jazzkat]

Surly Troll? Can take very big tyres with mudguards as well and also 700c up to 35c. Lots of bosses for racks and bottles front and rear.

That is definitely a 'function over form bike'! It only says 26" wheels on their site, but I did only do a quick glance. Good that it takes disks and has bosses for cantis/V brakes, but it doesn't float my boat.

I've got a cross check I'm 5'9, I've got a 52(got a 54 Van Nicholas now).
I've done everything on it, 600km in 4 days ride...smashed up n down the cobbles on the canal...commuted with guards n carradice, still use it for family duties.
Everything it says on the tin and comfy but heavy.

Thanks for the feedback Hicky, it's the kind of thing I want, a do it all, not too fancy, ride it through crappy weather, comfy, mile eater. I wonder sometimes whether a slightly heavier bike makes it a bit more comfy - not quite so flighty perhaps.

 

[Hicky]

Then it sounds just the trick, mine is custom so depending on the specifics you want from the bike consider it...the only thing I'd change is to a compact as I have a 52/38....would have liked a 34 in hindsight....cant remember what the standard setup is.
I got downtube shifters(dura-ace,cables too.In two years they've never needed adjusting) as I kept banging my knee on the bar end shifters on the test ride.
The colours can be ropey, I got a duck egg blue......might strip it n powder coat it soon.

 

[jazzkat]

Then it sounds just the trick, mine is custom so depending on the specifics you want from the bike consider it...the only thing I'd change is to a compact as I have a 52/38....would have liked a 34 in hindsight....cant remember what the standard setup is.
I got downtube shifters(dura-ace,cables too.In two years they've never needed adjusting) as I kept banging my knee on the bar end shifters on the test ride.
The colours can be ropey, I got a duck egg blue......might strip it n powder coat it soon.

I'm going to buy a frame and build it as a fixed, so gearing won't be an issue. In what way are the colours ropey? I'd read the paint was tough. I'm tempted by the 'hospital green' one (I like colour!), but the black might be more 'functional'.