New Surly Ghost Grappler Overview

The all new drop bar bikepacking bike from Surly. Could this be the ultimate do it all drop bar trail bike? The Ghost Grappler fits nicely into an emerging category of drop bar off-road ready bikes. This bike has the DNA of mountain bike geometry with drop bars.

It’s easy to say that this is a bike to do it all! Combining trail ready geometry with a “stable and comfortable drop-bar hand position” you get a bike that is built for single-track, all-day dirt rides and bikepacking adventures.

People have always been experimenting with putting drop bars on mountain bikes for years. Putting drop bars on bikes that are more designed to run flat bars isn’t always comfortable. Which is why they designed a bike around a comfortable drop bar. Surly don’t normally design a bike around a handlebar but that’s exactly what they did with this bike. The bike was designed from a given hand position with a certain type of bar.

Surly have take what they have learnt from developing drop-bar and flat-bar bikes to optimise the Ghost Grappler’s geometry. As the bike is engineered for drop bars, the reach is longer and the stack is higher. With a low standover height as this is important with off-road riding when you get ion and off all the time. Surly also dialled in the head tube angle with some tests with resulting in 69.5 degrees. Offering a good mix of nimble steering and control on descents and at higher speeds.

Surly Ghost Grappler Bikepacking

As the Surly Ghost Grappler has been designed for the bikepackers who love the feel of drop bars! Its the perfect solution for those looking for quick-and-dirty bikepacking trips, weekend excursions, weeknight romps, and spontaneous off-road escapes.

With mounts galore, there is no shortage of gear hauling abilities. As always from Surly the bike is built from steel. Making for the perfect material for bike adventures in my opinion. The frame and fork have plenty braze ons and mounting points. The Surly Dinner Fork made from 100% Chromoly steel features dual rack/fender mounts and 3-pack accessory mounts on each fork blade.

The frame features rack and fender compatibility, plus 3-pack mounts at the top and bottom of the down tube, and bottle bosses on both sides of the seatstays. Yes thats rights storage solutions on the seatstays! Perfect for storing extra water bottles or cage and drybags. With easy access and adequate foot clearance.

It lends itself to longer time in the saddle and multiple hand positions, while it has the geometry and capabilities to get into more off-road riding. Making it a great bikepacking bike.

Surly Ghost Grappler Frame Specs

Frame Construction – 100% Surly Chromoly Steel frame, Natch tubing, double-butted main triangle, TIG welded, E.D. coated

Fork Construction – 100% Surly Chromoly Steel fork, Natch tubing, double-butted tapered fork blades, TIG welded, E.D. coated

Rear Dropout Configuration – Horizontal slotted with optional vertical dumpout

Rear Hub Spacing – “Gnot-Boost” 145mm; 12 x 142mm or 12 x 148mm (Surly axle included); 10 x 135mm with Surly 10/12 Adapter Washers (not included)

Front Hub Spacing – 15 x 110mm (Surly axle included)

Rear Brake – Disc – 51mm I.S. (203mm max rotor)

Front Brake – Disc – 51mm I.S. (203mm max rotor)

Headtube – 34mm

Steerer Tube – 28.6mm

Crown Race – 30mm (1-1/8″)

Stock Headset Upper (S.H.I.S) – EC34 or ZS34

Stock Headset Lower (S.H.I.S) – EC34

Seat Collar – 33.1mm

Seatpost – 30.9mm

Front Derailleur (Clamp) – High direct mount top-pull (Ø34.9mm) 26mm offset adapter (not included) for 142 or 135mm rear hub spacing 29mm offset adapter (not included) for 148mm rear hub spacing

Max Chainring (CL) –

1x (mtn): 36T
2x (mtn): 36/26T
1x (Boost): 38T
2x (Boost): 39/32T

Bottom Bracket – 73mm BSA, threaded

Tire Clearance Frame –

27.5 x 3” (27.5 x 2.8” with fender)
29 x 2.1–2.5” with or without fender (2.1” clearance with wheel all the way forward; 2.5” clearance with wheel all the way back in dropout)

Tire Clearance Fork –

27.5 x 2.8” (27.5 x 2.6” with fender)
29 x 2.2” (29 x 2.0” with fender)

Rigid Fork Spec – 420 x 50mm

Max Suspension Fork Length – 420mm

Bottle Mounts Frame – 3-pack mounts on upper and lower downtube; seat tube bottle mounts on frame sizes S–XL

Bottle Mounts Fork – 3-pack mounts on each fork blade

Rack Mounts Frame – Yes (upper and lower threaded)

Rack Mounts Fork – Yes (upper and mid-blade threaded)

Fender Mounts Frame – Yes

Fender Mounts Fork – Yes

Other Features – Internal dropper post routing

Surly Ghost Grappler Build Kit

Frameset

Frame – 100% Chromoly Steel frame, Natch tubing, double-butted main triangle, TIG welded, E.D. coated

Fork – 100% Chromoly Steel fork, Natch tubing, double-butted tapered fork blades, TIG welded, E.D. coated

Seatpost Clamp – Surly Stainless 33.1

Components

Headset – Cane Creek 40

Brakes – Tektro Mira MD-C400

Brake Levers – AdventX Dual Control Levers

Rotors – Tektro 180/160

Shifters – Microshift SB-M100, AdventX Dual Control Levers

Stem – Promax DA-296, 31.8 or Kalloy AS-007

Handlebar – Salsa Cowchipper 31.8

Grip/Tape – Cork Black

Saddle – WTB Volt 142

Seatpost – TransX YSP15, 30.9, 100mm travel

Drivetrain

Crankset – Samox 2PCS Boost 32t

Bottom Bracket – Samox BSA 24

Rear Derailleur – Microshift M6205

Cog or cogset – Microshift 11-48t

Chain – KMC X10 Econo Black or NP/BLK

Wheels

Front Hub – Novatec 15x110mm, 32h

Rear Hub – Novatec 12x148mm, 32h

Rims – WTB ST i40 TCS

Tires – Teravail Ehline, 27.5 x 2.5″, 60tpi

Surly Ghost Grappler Geometry

About The Author

codey

Codey Orgill, a seasoned bicycle adventurer, has been exploring the world on two wheels for over 10 years. Since embarking on his initial cycling journey, Codey Orgill has traversed numerous countries, experiencing a series of epic adventures.

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