I own a 51 cm Soma San Marco and I love it I have wide drop bars set up ~3 inches above my saddle with a 50 cm stem and I love it. I haven't ever ridden a Straggler but there are a few things that keep me from pursuing it. 1- the geometry is quite different, seat tube angle for Straggler = 74 San Marco = 71.5. The slacker angle allows me to ride a Brooks saddle without issue and I find it a little kinder to my knees. Reach for Straggler = 383 San Marco = 356 even though the San Marco's top tub is 2.1 cms longer. BB drop for Straggler = 54 San Marco = 65. which means the San Marco has a low bb ht. Stack for Straggler = 523 San Marco = 576. Chainstay for Straggler = 405 San Marco = 455. Front center for Straggler = ? San Marco = 591 and I have not experienced any toe over lap. The Straggler's geo is fairly typical for a smaller modern bike. San Marco's geo is fairly typical for Rivendell Bicycle these days.
2. Threadless stem vs threaded, I prefer the threaded it allows me to get the bars higher without having to use an ugly stem extender and personally I like the aesthetics of the threaded stem better. Another difference is the steel, Soma uses Tange and Surly uses 4130, draw your own conclusions. As far as using the Soma for touring, I have done it. Granted I never carry more than 20lbs. but I have hauled loads of grocery's without any issues. Small frames are inherently stronger than larger frames due to the smaller diamond. On Wednesday, January 6, 2016 at 1:43:13 PM UTC-5, Kieran J wrote: > > +1 on this. The Straggler/Cross Check is not optimized with high bars in > mind, and that aspect is complicated by a threadless steerer design. > Considering you would likely go with swept-back bars, the San Marcos > appears to be the better match of the two for your needs. > > KJ > > > On Wednesday, January 6, 2016 at 11:55:36 AM UTC-5, Tim Gavin wrote: >> >> >> Compare the geometry closely. The San Marcos has more stack, but a >> longer top tube for roughly the same size. You could fit an upright >> cockpit easily with a tall/short stem, like a dirt drop or Technomic 7-8 cm. >> The Straggler has less stack, so a funny stem or a steerer extender may >> be required to get the bars really high. But, the Straggler does have a >> shorter top tube. >> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
