Mukluk Woes

I've been less than pleased with the Mukluk lately.

Over the summer, I had modified it pretty hard, and really loved it as a bikepacking/mountain biking rig:
  • Salsa Cowchipper 46cm bars
  • 30mm stem
  • 36/24 and 11-42 cassette for huge range
  • 80mm rims and 4" Jumbo Jim tires
Last winter, I swapped from flat bars to drop bars, and it was awesome - didn't really notice any reduction in performance or steering capacity. And the reach geo spec is reasonably close to my other drop bar bikes, thanks to the 30mm stem. I was running 4.8" Maxxis Minion FBR front and rear, and I assumed that the less-than-great traction and climbing woes I had were directly related to the tires.

This winter, I made snow snow changes:
  • 100mm Whisky carbon wheel up front
  • Surly Bud 4.8" front tire
  • Same 80mm rear rim, Surly Lou 4.8" tire
  • Gooseneck stem (later removed because it added reach)
  • 30t oval chainring
The tires are H U G E. So big that I've had to shift the drop out all the way, and I barely had clearance for the front derailleur. I've removed the front derailleur to get a bit more clearance and immediately am unhappy with the lack of range and back pedaling chainline issues. Chainline can be fixed, but I may not have tire clearance with Lou.

So I'm not as happy with the bike now. It's heavier, harder to ride, and less agile. It doesn't actually feel better to ride than last year. Let's analyze. 

The tires are absolutely significantly larger - a true 4.8" vs the measured 4.4" of the Minions. They don't weigh more, though. They probably have a bit more rolling resistance from the more aggressive snow specific tread pattern.

The 100mm front rim seems to improve self-steer and tread pattern in the front. Overall I like it. But it does kind of require a fat ass tire up front to make work.

The chainstays are 17mm longer in this position (432mm vs 449mm). This put my weight more in the 'center' of the bike, as opposed to the rear. So I'd need ~17mm less reach to get my weight back over the rear wheel again, which is impossible with drop bars. If I can shift the chainstays forward, then I might be able to fix this, but I may not have the tire clearance.

The 30t oval chainring brings back all the things I dislike about a 1x on a fat bike - lack of range, and the awful tendency to dump from the easiest gear to a middle difficulty gear (and fucked up derailleur position) when backpedaling. This is way more frustrating than a 2x ever was. Flipping it should fix this problem, but it may reduce tire clearance too much.

Rear tire clearance seems to be the name of the game. So I think a strategy will be:
  1. Flip the chainring and push the dropout forward.
  2. If the Lou fits, wear it.
  3. Otherwise, investigate a smaller rear tire.
The 45NRTH Dunderbeist is appealing - 4.6" nominal width and 108mm measured width on an 80mm rim gives another 9mm of clearance from the Lou. That should give the same clearance on the chain as the flipped ring, and it will mostly cover the difference from having the dropouts in the short position. Also, my girlfriend has that tire on the rear, and she can't access her biggest cog with it (chain clearance), so I want to steal it.

Unfortunately, the tire just doesn't have enough clearance with the forward dropout position. So the geometry isn't going to get fixed there. Fortunately, the ~9mm of clearance afforded by the 4.6" tire should be perfect there.

I flipped the chainring and it's perfect now. No issues backpedaling, and the chainline is more reasonable for 99% of the cassette. Perfect middle is in the middle of the cassette, instead of the 11t cog, which makes way more sense.

I don't really want to go back to flat bars if I can help it, but maybe I can get a Moloko or similar fit going that'll help out with hand positions, reach, etc. I think I'll try the Woodchippers I have with the gooseneck stem - a position in the drops should be wide enough and comfy enough for fat biking...

UPDATE: Alright, got the woodchippers on with the gooseneck. Its only a 44cm bar, and it's a bit narrower. But I used the Gooseneck stem, and the position in the hooks is just slightly closer to the bike while the hoods are both higher and closer. So I think this will help out significantly.

I don't like the woodchippers as much as the cowchippers. So there's a chance I'll end up trying the cowchippers + Dunderbeist, depending on how this weekend's ride goes.

UPDATE: Fuck it, I threw the flat bars back on the bike. It's cool. I guess. Looking forward to trying it out on actual snow.

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