In my Hubble oppinion the KM is the ultimate do it all frame. Want racks- infinit mounting points, want suspension fork- 120 to 140 sir, 27.5 plus or 29…it's like a mirror, show me Who you are!!!
Awesome! I have a Salsa Warbird gravel bike and I love it... Now in a process to transform my MTB to a gravel bike using the Moloko bar.. thanks for the influence
I transferred components from a 2008 29er MTB onto a Salsa Fargo frame and rigid fork in 2011. Makes a great gravel bike. Still going strong in '22. Flat bars, SRAM shifters, and front derailleur are all that remain from the orignal MTB. Flat bars are definitely the way to go. More control. Also simpler and cheaper. The formula includes 3x9 gears, Shimano Zee hydro disk brakes. Tyres 700C between 42 and 54mm I seldom see bikes like this advertised. Your converted bike seems quite similar to mine. I quite fancy Moloko or similar bars, but hard to find here in France.
Turned my Solaris Max into a more Gravel oriented bike but still capable on lots of my local trails. Swapped a Fox 34 for carbon rigid fork, got rid of the dropper post and went with Schwalbe Racing Ray 2.1 tires. Left the cockpit the same but bigger chainring for higher gearing. Weight is now down to 24lbs and rolls fast and smooth.
I have a rigid mtb, I refer to it as my gravel cruiser. I will likely upgrade the flat bar to a moloko bar as well. The grip options look perfect. Tyvm for the vid.
A Jones-H doesn't have the handles off the front, but you can still reach to the mid-section very easily to stretch out a little in a headwind, or change positions. Then you don't have the extra protrusions (pfaff) of the Moloko Bar, the Jones looks cleaner, and keeps the hand position behind the brake levers in the sweet spot of your choosing, depending on stem length. Add some ESI Chunky grips and you're set. Happy trails!
I just added Moloko bars to my Kona Dew - I saw someone reference wrapping slightly differently on the web, and I think it worked out well, so I'll share it here: They suggested wrapping the more horizontal parts of the bar first, so (consider this description for 1 side) I wrapped like 4-5" inside to outside on the top bar, and similar on the bottom bar, and THEN wrapped the bar from just ahead of the brakes to the horns, covering the endings of both horizontal wraps as I went. I wasn't very familiar with drop bars, but a friend told me the tape usually ends in the drops, gets stuffed into the bar ends, and plugs tidy it all up, which is how I ended up finishing the horns, tucking the tape inside and snugging it all shut with the plugs that came with my tape. If you can decipher my writing, maybe that'll be helpful for someone!
Karate Monkey was originally a gravel bike, looks like you convert it into a MTB and now converting it back LOL, yea those swap back bars are usually design with a very short stem, good job in winging it
Great video, down to earth and to the point. I'm like you and just can't get into drop bars not matter how much I want to force myself to. I wish the usual bike brands would offer their gravel bikes with either drops or flat bars. Only critique is I wish you didn't have to speed up the video and showed the step by step installs, I'm sure it's a time thing but you seem like an easy person to learn from.
Thanks man. A lot of it was time related and trying to keep it pretty basic. There isn’t much to dropping a fork and installing a new one, but I do have another video specific to swapping forks on Surly bikes. It doesn’t cover everything but talks about how to install the crown race and things like that. I’ll keep that in mind for my next how to video.
Interesting. I would have double wrapped the horns too. But I think you're right, the second option you went with ought to work better. I'd be interested to know if you can get anything like an aero tuck position with this setup, or if it'll just suit 'hoods' and the upright wide and narrow positions.
I think getting truly aero will depend on how much I rotate/tilt the bars down. I have them fairly upright right now, but I think just getting my arms in as opposed to out so far on a flat bar will make a pretty big difference. That front position is still narrower than the hoods on a road bar, but it’s far from being tucked like in drops.
I think if you tilt the bars down you'll lose the comfortable hoods position. And comfort IS a big deal! But as we say over here... the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Looking forward to the ride review! 🙂
Hey great video! I'm actually going the opposite route, converting a gravel bike to a mtb. Can you tell me the measurements on the original fork that came on the bike?
The question becomes why??? Narrow the tires, go ridged and the way it is then set will be faster and more stable and capable than the gravel ride. Unless you go to a 2x up front.
I love the handlebar. I do gravel, but never with dropbars, and I have almost never missed them (I use short flatbars). I thought you'd reduce the tyre width and even the drivetrain.
I had some 40mm tires but they weren’t ideal for the dead of winter. I ended up getting some 50mm maxxis rambler gravel tires and have swapped between those and the 40s throughout the spring and summer. I climb a lot of very steep roads so I left the gearing the same but may put a slightly larger big chainring on.
Yo! How did you measure this conversion up from the suspension vs the rigid fork. Any issues with geometry changes ? What was the axle to crown length on your old fork vs the new one ?
I’m not sure on the axle to crown on the rigid vs suspension fork. The rigid fork was made specifically for this bike and suspension corrected to match a 100mm suspension fork.
Haha I mention that at the end. I was hoping for some Continental Race Kings because I’d rather have something more mountain than road and they roll great on hardpack, but they’re all back ordered in the size I want. I’ve had some on order for 3 weeks and still haven’t been updated on when I’ll have them. I just found a set of Small Block Eights in my parts that I may throw on for now, although I’ve never really loved those.
@@RideYearRound I suggest some 43mm Panaracer Gravel King SK's. I have the Kings on my full-sus XC bike that I use as a Gravelbike and they are surprisingly more grippy and capable than I would have expected on singletrack. In addition, they roll very fast on pavement and gravel. Honestly, it's not a Gravelbike unless it has fast-rolling Gravel tires. Being able to roll fast on all surfaces---pavement, gravel, singletrack---is at the very heart of what a Gravelbike is. Get tires that are too slow-rolling, especially on pavement and hardpack, and you're just riding a Mountainbike. At the very widest, get fast-rolling 50mm tires like the Soma Cazaderos.
I agree with Jennifer in that with the Ardents on it it's definitely in the "rigid mountain bike" category for me. I have two, one with straight bars one with drops, and do ride them in places where I wouldn't take a bike with smaller tires. When I want to use my drop bar MTB for a gravel-style ride I don't bother with 40-45mm gravel tires though (I have used it with 42mm, and it's fine, but I find 2" is better). I go straight for the fastest rolling XC MTB tires I can get, such as the Vittoria Terreno Dry. The 2.1" is just over 50mm wide and the extra air makes a big difference in comfort over a 42mm tire. The sidewalls are thin and pliable and they're a joy to ride. You don't give up a lot in speed either, and with the slacker geometry of this frame you'll find that it's also a lot more capable than a true gravel bike would be when the road gets lumpy. It's still a mountain bike really, but a very fast and very comfy one that happens to be better for rough gravel than your average gravel bike.
This is great! I've been searching for a way to convert my Trek Marlin 6 to a gravel type bike, I just don't quite understand which rigid fork would work. If you have any advice, I'd love to hear it.
Same concern here with my 2008 trek 4500 and rockshox dart 2 fork. I learned about geometry corrected forks to replace suspension ones, but there are not that much options on the market. Let me know if you find something!
I recently got my hands on a Giant Fathom 2 ge "2018" frame, do you think that frame would work well/okay as a gravel bike ? I am currently looking for a more standard geometry frame, but no luck yet.
It’s definitely a little more modern geo to use as a gravel bike, but you could always get a rigid fork with a lower axle to crown measurement to steepen up the angles which may help some.
@@RideYearRound Thanks for your answer, i think il try to find a 2005-2013 frame with disc brake mounting spots. I have seen alot of awesome used frames but non had disc mounting :(
I think it’ll be fine with 40s, maybe even 38s. A lower bottom bracket will make the bike feel more stable and since the main purpose of this bike will be paved/forest/gravel roads and not trails, I shouldn’t have to worry about pedal strikes too much.
If you know the current suspension fork model you have, you can look up or measure what the axle to crown measurement is. Then find a rigid fork with the same axle spacing, steerer tube (straight or tapered) and similar axle to crown measurement and you should be good to go.
@@militaryrig The sweep is super comfortable. If you bring your arms up naturally in front of you you'll find your hands are already at a pretty similar angle. It can feel a little awkward in super technical spots, but not as bad as I felt on the Jones bars which are 45 deg sweep.
![ARGENTINA vs. CHILE [3-0] | RESUMEN | ELIMINATORIAS SUDAMERICANAS | FECHA 7](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/De3AWmXzhuA/mqdefault.jpg)
In my Hubble oppinion the KM is the ultimate do it all frame. Want racks- infinit mounting points, want suspension fork- 120 to 140 sir, 27.5 plus or 29…it's like a mirror, show me Who you are!!!
Awesome! I have a Salsa Warbird gravel bike and I love it... Now in a process to transform my MTB to a gravel bike using the Moloko bar.. thanks for the influence
I transferred components from a 2008 29er MTB onto a Salsa Fargo frame and rigid fork in 2011. Makes a great gravel bike. Still going strong in '22. Flat bars, SRAM shifters, and front derailleur are all that remain from the orignal MTB.
Flat bars are definitely the way to go. More control. Also simpler and cheaper.
The formula includes 3x9 gears, Shimano Zee hydro disk brakes. Tyres 700C between 42 and 54mm
I seldom see bikes like this advertised.
Your converted bike seems quite similar to mine. I quite fancy Moloko or similar bars, but hard to find here in France.
Turned my Solaris Max into a more Gravel oriented bike but still capable on lots of my local trails. Swapped a Fox 34 for carbon rigid fork, got rid of the dropper post and went with Schwalbe Racing Ray 2.1 tires. Left the cockpit the same but bigger chainring for higher gearing.
Weight is now down to 24lbs and rolls fast and smooth.
Very sturdy, and easy to clean.Excellent product
I have a rigid mtb, I refer to it as my gravel cruiser. I will likely upgrade the flat bar to a moloko bar as well. The grip options look perfect. Tyvm for the vid.
A Jones-H doesn't have the handles off the front, but you can still reach to the mid-section very easily to stretch out a little in a headwind, or change positions. Then you don't have the extra protrusions (pfaff) of the Moloko Bar, the Jones looks cleaner, and keeps the hand position behind the brake levers in the sweet spot of your choosing, depending on stem length. Add some ESI Chunky grips and you're set. Happy trails!
I just added Moloko bars to my Kona Dew - I saw someone reference wrapping slightly differently on the web, and I think it worked out well, so I'll share it here: They suggested wrapping the more horizontal parts of the bar first, so (consider this description for 1 side) I wrapped like 4-5" inside to outside on the top bar, and similar on the bottom bar, and THEN wrapped the bar from just ahead of the brakes to the horns, covering the endings of both horizontal wraps as I went. I wasn't very familiar with drop bars, but a friend told me the tape usually ends in the drops, gets stuffed into the bar ends, and plugs tidy it all up, which is how I ended up finishing the horns, tucking the tape inside and snugging it all shut with the plugs that came with my tape.
If you can decipher my writing, maybe that'll be helpful for someone!
Karate Monkey was originally a gravel bike, looks like you convert it into a MTB and now converting it back LOL, yea those swap back bars are usually design with a very short stem, good job in winging it
Haha actually mine was the Karate Monkey Ops so it came with a suspension fork, but yeah I basically turned it back into more of the original KM.
Super video, Thank you mate!!
Nice vid. Just doing the same so very helpful
why change the fork? To make it lighter?
Great video, down to earth and to the point. I'm like you and just can't get into drop bars not matter how much I want to force myself to. I wish the usual bike brands would offer their gravel bikes with either drops or flat bars. Only critique is I wish you didn't have to speed up the video and showed the step by step installs, I'm sure it's a time thing but you seem like an easy person to learn from.
Thanks man. A lot of it was time related and trying to keep it pretty basic. There isn’t much to dropping a fork and installing a new one, but I do have another video specific to swapping forks on Surly bikes. It doesn’t cover everything but talks about how to install the crown race and things like that. I’ll keep that in mind for my next how to video.
Interesting. I would have double wrapped the horns too. But I think you're right, the second option you went with ought to work better. I'd be interested to know if you can get anything like an aero tuck position with this setup, or if it'll just suit 'hoods' and the upright wide and narrow positions.
I think getting truly aero will depend on how much I rotate/tilt the bars down. I have them fairly upright right now, but I think just getting my arms in as opposed to out so far on a flat bar will make a pretty big difference. That front position is still narrower than the hoods on a road bar, but it’s far from being tucked like in drops.
I think if you tilt the bars down you'll lose the comfortable hoods position. And comfort IS a big deal! But as we say over here... the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Looking forward to the ride review! 🙂
Hey great video! I'm actually going the opposite route, converting a gravel bike to a mtb. Can you tell me the measurements on the original fork that came on the bike?
The question becomes why??? Narrow the tires, go ridged and the way it is then set will be faster and more stable and capable than the gravel ride. Unless you go to a 2x up front.
I put some ergon GC1 swept bar grips on my moloko bars, really comfy. Wish I could ride your area, Austin doesn’t have nearly as nice of trails.
I grew up in Dallas so I know how you feel!
I love the handlebar. I do gravel, but never with dropbars, and I have almost never missed them (I use short flatbars).
I thought you'd reduce the tyre width and even the drivetrain.
I had some 40mm tires but they weren’t ideal for the dead of winter. I ended up getting some 50mm maxxis rambler gravel tires and have swapped between those and the 40s throughout the spring and summer. I climb a lot of very steep roads so I left the gearing the same but may put a slightly larger big chainring on.
Good job 😃👍
Yo! How did you measure this conversion up from the suspension vs the rigid fork. Any issues with geometry changes ? What was the axle to crown length on your old fork vs the new one ?
I’m not sure on the axle to crown on the rigid vs suspension fork. The rigid fork was made specifically for this bike and suspension corrected to match a 100mm suspension fork.
You missed one thing! Putting some gravel tires on that bike???
Haha I mention that at the end. I was hoping for some Continental Race Kings because I’d rather have something more mountain than road and they roll great on hardpack, but they’re all back ordered in the size I want. I’ve had some on order for 3 weeks and still haven’t been updated on when I’ll have them. I just found a set of Small Block Eights in my parts that I may throw on for now, although I’ve never really loved those.
@@RideYearRound I suggest some 43mm Panaracer Gravel King SK's. I have the Kings on my full-sus XC bike that I use as a Gravelbike and they are surprisingly more grippy and capable than I would have expected on singletrack. In addition, they roll very fast on pavement and gravel. Honestly, it's not a Gravelbike unless it has fast-rolling Gravel tires. Being able to roll fast on all surfaces---pavement, gravel, singletrack---is at the very heart of what a Gravelbike is. Get tires that are too slow-rolling, especially on pavement and hardpack, and you're just riding a Mountainbike. At the very widest, get fast-rolling 50mm tires like the Soma Cazaderos.
I’ll look into those, thanks for the suggestions!
I agree with Jennifer in that with the Ardents on it it's definitely in the "rigid mountain bike" category for me. I have two, one with straight bars one with drops, and do ride them in places where I wouldn't take a bike with smaller tires.
When I want to use my drop bar MTB for a gravel-style ride I don't bother with 40-45mm gravel tires though (I have used it with 42mm, and it's fine, but I find 2" is better). I go straight for the fastest rolling XC MTB tires I can get, such as the Vittoria Terreno Dry. The 2.1" is just over 50mm wide and the extra air makes a big difference in comfort over a 42mm tire. The sidewalls are thin and pliable and they're a joy to ride.
You don't give up a lot in speed either, and with the slacker geometry of this frame you'll find that it's also a lot more capable than a true gravel bike would be when the road gets lumpy. It's still a mountain bike really, but a very fast and very comfy one that happens to be better for rough gravel than your average gravel bike.
Why change the front suspension to rigid?
Weight reduction and no need for suspension when riding mostly on maintained gravel/paved roads.
@@RideYearRound I wonder if about 2Kg weight would make any difference? Since you have swapped the fork, did you notice?
This is great! I've been searching for a way to convert my Trek Marlin 6 to a gravel type bike, I just don't quite understand which rigid fork would work. If you have any advice, I'd love to hear it.
Same concern here with my 2008 trek 4500 and rockshox dart 2 fork. I learned about geometry corrected forks to replace suspension ones, but there are not that much options on the market. Let me know if you find something!
I recently got my hands on a Giant Fathom 2 ge "2018" frame, do you think that frame would work well/okay as a gravel bike ?
I am currently looking for a more standard geometry frame, but no luck yet.
It’s definitely a little more modern geo to use as a gravel bike, but you could always get a rigid fork with a lower axle to crown measurement to steepen up the angles which may help some.
@@RideYearRound Thanks for your answer, i think il try to find a 2005-2013 frame with disc brake mounting spots.
I have seen alot of awesome used frames but non had disc mounting :(
Is the surly frame light? it looks really light by it's look.
Surly’s aren’t known for being the lightest out there. It’s not a tank though, I really enjoyed this set up but I’ve sold it.
Wouldn't 40mm tires lower the BB too much?
I think it’ll be fine with 40s, maybe even 38s. A lower bottom bracket will make the bike feel more stable and since the main purpose of this bike will be paved/forest/gravel roads and not trails, I shouldn’t have to worry about pedal strikes too much.
Can you tell me what fork you used please?
It was an unused Surly fork made for the Karate Monkey.
How do you find the correct rigid fork?
If you know the current suspension fork model you have, you can look up or measure what the axle to crown measurement is. Then find a rigid fork with the same axle spacing, steerer tube (straight or tapered) and similar axle to crown measurement and you should be good to go.
Hi, what model of your handlebar?
Surly Moloko, 735mm wide!
@@RideYearRound Do you like the sweep? Seems to extreme to me. I do like that it has two bars making securing a bag to it easier.
@@militaryrig The sweep is super comfortable. If you bring your arms up naturally in front of you you'll find your hands are already at a pretty similar angle. It can feel a little awkward in super technical spots, but not as bad as I felt on the Jones bars which are 45 deg sweep.
couldn't you keep the front sus?
Yeah you could...it's just kind of overkill most of the time for gravel/dirt road exploring.
More like a rigid mtb.
change that nice fox shock to an ugly rigid fork is kinda ......why....
I’m not planning on using it for anything that would “require” a suspension fork.
Yawn...