Coming Late Summer/Fall 2004
Our friends, Pat Irwin ( Surly-sponsored rider and owner of Pat's Bikes, in Anchorage) and John Evingson (Hydracare rep and custom framebuilder), turned us on to the eclectic world of adventure riding.
It seems there's a need for a super-wide rim for snow bikers, sand bikers, rock crawlers and downhillers who want to run some really big rubber. We decided to make some rims for the same selfish reason we have for making other Surly parts...we want some to use on our own bikes.
We introduce to you...Large Marge. Our double-walled 26" hoop is 65mm wide. It's eyeleted, because a lot of 'em will be lace to disc hubs, and hub brake systems put more stress on spoke holes. Of course, Large Marge is rim brake compatible, if you don't want use hub brakes. The cross-section profile lends itself to shedding snow and sand, to keep the rotating mass as low as possible. The black ano finish should help to melt off snow that might cling to the rim, and we think it looks cool.
We'll offer Large Marge in a few configurations: 32-hole and 36-hole downhill version, and 32-hole cruiser/cross-country version...all are drilled for a presta valve. What's the difference? The cross-country version is drilled out to shave some grams; the downhill version is not. What's the weight? At this time we don't know yet. We're still testing it to see how much material we can remove before we compromise the structural integrity of the rim. Stay tuned for updated tech info and delivery dates.
Obviously, you are going to need a non-standard frame to use this product. There are custom builders, like John Evingson, who can build a frame for you. The disc-compatible Surly 1x1 will work, if you grind off the canti bosses (that does void your frame warranty, however), but you will be limited to a 2.7" tire width. Custom frames can be built to accommodate wider (3" +) tires, if you need traction and floatation.
Our friends, Pat Irwin ( Surly-sponsored rider and owner of Pat's Bikes, in Anchorage) and John Evingson (Hydracare rep and custom framebuilder), turned us on to the eclectic world of adventure riding.
It seems there's a need for a super-wide rim for snow bikers, sand bikers, rock crawlers and downhillers who want to run some really big rubber. We decided to make some rims for the same selfish reason we have for making other Surly parts...we want some to use on our own bikes.
We introduce to you...Large Marge. Our double-walled 26" hoop is 65mm wide. It's eyeleted, because a lot of 'em will be lace to disc hubs, and hub brake systems put more stress on spoke holes. Of course, Large Marge is rim brake compatible, if you don't want use hub brakes. The cross-section profile lends itself to shedding snow and sand, to keep the rotating mass as low as possible. The black ano finish should help to melt off snow that might cling to the rim, and we think it looks cool.
We'll offer Large Marge in a few configurations: 32-hole and 36-hole downhill version, and 32-hole cruiser/cross-country version...all are drilled for a presta valve. What's the difference? The cross-country version is drilled out to shave some grams; the downhill version is not. What's the weight? At this time we don't know yet. We're still testing it to see how much material we can remove before we compromise the structural integrity of the rim. Stay tuned for updated tech info and delivery dates.
Obviously, you are going to need a non-standard frame to use this product. There are custom builders, like John Evingson, who can build a frame for you. The disc-compatible Surly 1x1 will work, if you grind off the canti bosses (that does void your frame warranty, however), but you will be limited to a 2.7" tire width. Custom frames can be built to accommodate wider (3" +) tires, if you need traction and floatation.
