Surly Introduce 145mm Hub Standard?!

Yesterday on the Singletrack forum, one of our astute readers picked up on a new hub standard that Surly has just introduced on the latest iteration of the Karate Monkey. Measuring at 145mm wide, the dropouts on the Karate Monkey are designed to offer a little more versatility, though we’re sure the news will be met with some complaining. Check out the thread to see what we mean…

But there’s a little more to it than just another hub standard. As they’ve done with other models in the past, Surly has introduced the 145mm dropout spacing to increase compatibility with multiple hub standards. On the Cross Check, Surly use what they call ‘Gnot Rite’ dropout spacing, which measures at 132.5mm wide. Because of the inherent strength and ‘give’ in the steel 4130 tubing used on their frames, the Gnot Rite spacing means you can stretch the dropouts to accommodate a 135mm mountain bike rear hub, or squish them in a little to fit a 130mm road hub.

With the new Karate Monkey, the concept is the same, but this time it has the amusing title of ‘Gnot Boost’. As the name suggests, the 145mm dropout can be pulled out to fit a 148mm wide Boost hub, or squished down to fit a 142mm hub. It actually makes a lot of sense, and it opens up a lot of wheelset and drivetrain options for the frame, rather than locking riders in to one specific standard.

The other little nugget of versatility in the dropouts of the new Karate Monkey is a small spacer that sits between the hub and the frame. This removable spacer can be fitted in order to fit in 135mm hubs as well, which basically means you can fit three different hub widths into the one frame. Oh, and they’re horizontal too, so you can set it up as a singlespeed, or utilise the built-in hanger to run gears. How’s that for a Swiss Army stabbing implement?

We only have the basic details on the new Karate Monkey at this point, though we’ll keep you posted as more information comes to hand. From the initial looks of things, the Karate Monkey will now be 27.5+ compatible, and geometry has slackened out to boost (or Gnot Boost?) the fun factor. It has a 30.9mm diameter seatpost for dropper compatibility, and you’ll be able to fit up to a 140mm travel fork on the front. Gnarly!

• added clearance for 27.5+ tires
• new trumpeted tube set (like the Instigator for added strength and stiffness)
• Frame redesigned with longer top tube and 69° head angle
• Internal dropper post routing
• 30.9 seatpost internal diameter
• New dropouts (like the Wednesday) Gnot-Boost = the dropout spacing measures 145mm and can be slightly expanded to fit a Boost hub, or clamped to fit a 142mm hub
• new thru-axle with sliding cap system to work with both 142 and 148mm hubs
• 10/12 adapter spacers to allow the use of a 135mm QR hub
• rigid fork has 110mm Boost spacing and can easily be swapped for a 120 or even 140mm fork
• Braze-ons. Lots and lots of braze-ons.
• XS/S/M/L/XL in all color Framesets and Orange 27.5+ complete and  S/M/L/XL in Purple SS complete
• Max Tire Size: 27.5 x 3.0˝ and 29 x 2.5˝, individual tire and rim combos affect tire clearance
• Frame sets available in Black, Purple, Orange
• Complete available as SS in Stand Back Purple and 27.5+ in Rhymes with Orange
• Utility. Durability. Versatility.

Surly Bikes are distributed in the UK via Ison Distribution. For more information and to find your nearest dealer, head to www.ison-distribution.com/