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The Salsa Fargo Thread

2M views 6K replies 794 participants last post by  hankj 
#1 ·
Here's the Fargo in action. post yours when you get it here...



 
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#177 ·
ATXSS said:
In this thread alone there is a decent spectrum of different applications of this bike being represented. Good stuff all in all. Great info to base a new build on for future riders.
That's what I think makes the Fargo so exciting. How many other bike threads do you see where one bike is being used for so many applications and doing it so well. Hats off to Salsa.

ATXSS said:
Incidentally, we just sold our 4th Fargo in as many weeks from my shop down in Austin. I can't believe how popular this bike is with people at first site. I thought my tastes were farther from the mainstream than that. Oh well :p
Greatness always catches on. Are you selling completes or frames mainly?

And on that note and not to deviate but what is the front derailluer clamp diameter for the Fargo?
 
#178 ·
chumbox said:
That's what I think makes the Fargo so exciting.
Greatness always catches on. Are you selling completes or frames mainly?

And on that note and not to deviate but what is the front derailluer clamp diameter for the Fargo?
Get you one already. ;)

28.6 clamp. All completes so far. A couple to folks who had not heard of the bike before coming into the store. I found that interesting, not necessarily just people "in the know." Like I said, it has appeal to a certain type of person at first glance despite whether you've heard of it or even Salsa before.
 
#179 ·
chumbox said:
That's what I think makes the Fargo so exciting. How many other bike threads do you see where one bike is being used for so many applications and doing it so well. Hats off to Salsa.
Yes, hats off to Salsa for sure!

Interestingly, Jason Boucher, the head honch at Salsa, said as much to me when we were first discussing the Fargo last year. He said that he fully expected to see a multitude of set ups, some that he probably would never had guessed at.

I suspect that will play out in the coming weeks and months here.

I just wanted to point out that Jason and JMKM are also playing with flat bar set ups on Fargo bikes, so I think that even here you will see set ups expressed to suit certain personal preferances that preclude the use of drop bars at all.

In some ways, there is a too big a "dust up" about these drop bar set ups. I mean, look at road bikes these days. Hardly any consensus there, other than the Pro racer set ups.

But to get to a point made earlier about all the "complexity" in setting up for drops that provide only "one" hand position, all one has to do is look back to the earliest drop type bars to see that one hand position was really all that was intended to be used on rough, unpaved roads. (See the old bars with the cork grips at the ends of the drops as an example) That said, I find that several positions exist and to say that they are not "useable" is really only in the eye of the beholder.

I mean, an argument could be made the other way, had drop bar mountain bikes been the norm, rather than the exception. ;)

It's all perception and personal preferances. That's why the Fargo is such a hit, because it can support so many different interpretations of what is "right" to ride and for "where". No other 29"er, and maybe no other bike can lay claim to this today.
 
#180 ·
ATXSS said:
...Incidentally, we just sold our 4th Fargo in as many weeks from my shop down in Austin. I can't believe how popular this bike is with people at first site. I thought my tastes were farther from the mainstream than that. Oh well :p
Yes, one of them is mine. The word is my medium complete will be here next week. I just couldn't pass up the BSS Annual Spring sale. ;)

-mud
 
#181 ·
MudInMyEars said:
Yes, one of them is mine. The word is my medium complete will be here next week. I just couldn't pass up the BSS Annual Spring sale. ;)

-mud
Ah good for you! Lucky timing eh? Just tracked it. Looks like you'll we'll have that guy tomorrow just in time for the weekend if UPS holds up their end of the deal.

Hope to pass you on the trails one day :thumbsup:
 
#182 ·
Greetings all. Amazing pictures - thanks for the inspiration. I've a medium S Fargo frame on order. I plan to put this bike to work hauling me arse and gear on tours. Touring both paved and gravel with sprinkles of off road now possible. Am a little concerned about the front pannier position, I've low rider tubus duo's on order. Judging from the pictures, seems to me I need to get the front load down lower because of the wind we have around here. Am having sscouplers installed after taking a cue from the seditious canary. Thanks guys for the pictures with racks and fenders . I'll post a picture when I get it put together and loaded up. Be back soon.
 
#183 ·
The Fargo is definitely trail-worthy--I cleaned a nasty, loose hill yesterday on the first attempt of the season that I had never cleaned before on my old hardtail, even when in much better shape than I am now. I'm using the Bell Lap bars, and after riding on the road a lot during the winter it's mostly going to be a trail bike until I can get some gravel exploration done this summer.

Strangely enough, I ran into another Fargo owner in town. His is set up with some kind of moustache-like bars and looks really great.
 
#184 ·
I guess I'll add another point of information to the bar discussion.

I've got my medium currently setup with a high midge setup, hooks of the bars right about at the saddle. Pretty comfortable in the drops, but I'll say that the top and the hoods feel really high. Almost uncomfortably high. There's a little bit of a stretch to reach the brake levers, which I'm not sure I can eliminate, plus with the bar end shifters there's a slight shift of the hands required to shift. The bar end shifters are super accurate though, better than triggers or the floppy shimano sti shifters.

I've still got a set of titec jones bars with the XTR floppy shifters in the garage, which I was using before on my 29er. I find them pretty nice for commuting and general off-road use and even some short duty touring (75 miles or less). The single shifter/brake position is super convenient for commuting and the hand position is pretty close to the drop bar position. Plus the middle section is great for lights and a bell.

Long story longer, I might end up going back and forth on this bike. The jones/floppy shifter setup is hard to beat for all-round type use. The drops are certainly comfy, but I don't feel that all the positions available are really that comfortable for me, as I have them up high enough to really utilize the hooks.

I'll have to get some pictures up soon, pretty plain jane setup though, XT with Avid Mechs, currently sporting 2.35 big apples, midges, etc. Super commuter mode...

Plum
 
#1,555 ·
I discovered I have a similar deal with my Fargo fork as well. And my fork I bought three months ago from Bikeman. Unless my fork is a two Y.O. new fork, they're still having issues with Q.C.

I ran into this problem with my fargo. I called Salsa and was told to do one of two things:

1. Return the fork to your Salsa dealer to get a new fork.

2. Bolt on a brake adapter and use pliers to bend out the disk brake mount. (This is the method I chose and it worked just fine. The advantage of steel frames.)

Salsa is aware of the problem and said that it was a hiccup in the production run. They said they are doing method two above when assembling the complete bikes.

Hope this helps.
I'm going to take your advice and try that.

.
 

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#188 ·
Yes...

I ran into this problem with my fargo. I called Salsa and was told to do one of two things:

1. Return the fork to your Salsa dealer to get a new fork.

2. Bolt on a brake adapter and use pliers to bend out the disk brake mount. (This is the method I chose and it worked just fine. The advantage of steel frames.)

Salsa is aware of the problem and said that it was a hiccup in the production run. They said they are doing method two above when assembling the complete bikes.

Hope this helps.

papajoe said:
has anyone else encountered this problem?


everything else is ready, i just can't mount the front brake without the washer grinding on the disc. no idea what to do... :/
 
#189 ·
I ran into the same problem. Put some tape over the jaws of a crescent wrench, then tighten it down on the brake mount. Pull to the outside just a little bit, and it comes into alignment perfectly. No scratch to the paint, and everything will bolt together nicely.

I was wondering if Salsa knew about that, but it was an easy fix, so I didn't raise a stink about it.
 
#190 ·
How do I go about sizing for the Fargo? I’m 6’3”, 36” inseam, ride a 61 cm road bike. I haven’t ridden an MTB in ages, but when I did I was on a 21”. I see using the Fargo for long dirt road rides, as a well as on- and maybe off-road touring.

My current bike is a mid-80s Novara Strada road sport/touring, and I am very comfortable on it. Is has relatively upright geometry. Here are the specs, as I have been able to measure them:
Top tube 570mm
Saddle height 810mm
Top of saddle to handlebar 680mm
Height difference between saddle and hbar 0mm - however, I am fine with a bar a 4cm or so below the saddle
Standover at ctr of TT 890mm

Comparing these specs to the Fargo’s it seems that an XL Fargo is the right choice – but because my Novara is more of a road sport frame, I am not sure if that is an ideal comparison. Any ideas?

Thanks,
Sean
 
#191 ·
Fargo - The Perfect Mutant Road Bike?

My friends and I have been getting into mixed rides (on/off-road with as much offroad as possible)... we call them "mutant road rides", mainly because we transformed (mutated) bikes from the 80s that were originally intended for MTBing (e.g. Trek 950, Giant ATX770 and Specialized Stumpjumper), into "all-road bikes" with Schwalbe Fat Frank slicks or Big Apples on em... These bikes were BORN to be mutant!

My Fargo is the ultimate mutant... It goes everywhere... I am planning to ride it on a "mutant century" from High Point to Central Jersey over mostly trails and dirt roads. (That's right, Jersey's got some awesome back roads, paths and trails that few people ride)... I rode a 30 mile section of the course a few weeks ago... it included a steep trail climb and a tight, technical single track descent... the Fargo handled both like a champ, and with the Big A tires, it was super comfortable!

I am running the Titec H-bars... they're awesome. I just swapped out my friction Suntour XC thumbies (sad to say), and went with SRAM XO Gripshifters... Doesn't look nearly as cool, but too many mis-shifts when I least needed it...

Will post pics from the mutant century ride. The RAGBRAI and Trans Iowa.... Now THOSE were made for the Fargo (especially if you get to weave in a little dirt along the way)....

Peace,
BB
 
#192 ·
montclairbobbyb said:
The RAGBRAI and Trans Iowa.... Now THOSE were made for the Fargo (especially if you get to weave in a little dirt along the way)....
I fully expect that DP and GT have thrown more than a fair share of dirt our way on this year's TI route based on comments and photos that have been posted. If there was a "Level D" road in the state, I'm fairly certain those two would have found it by now. :D

SFuller
 
#193 ·
montclairbobbyb said:
My Fargo is the ultimate mutant... It goes everywhere... I am planning to ride it on a "mutant century" from High Point to Central Jersey over mostly trails and dirt roads. (That's right, Jersey's got some awesome back roads, paths and trails that few people ride)... I rode a 30 mile section of the course a few weeks ago... it included a steep trail climb and a tight, technical single track descent... the Fargo handled both like a champ, and with the Big A tires, it was super comfortable!
Now that most of the ice is gone up here, I switched my tires over to the big Apples too. On my other bike, they were great off-road, as long as I stayed on the hardpack. I plan on doing a couple of trips this summer with the Apples too. Have to love the cush ride on the rough roads. It reminds me of my first bike, a banana-seat number with round, bouncy tires. What a ride!
 
#195 ·
Anyone have any updates on doing any serious single tracking on the Fargo or are we just talking dirt/gravel here all the time? I suspect GT might have (I have read your previous off road post on twentynineinches). That would be one of my main purposes for a Fargo.

Sure it's a mountain bike but not seeing a lot of reports of moutain biking being done on it so far, although I'm sure it will hack the abuse.
 
#196 ·
Hi, ive been trying to find a pic online of a xlarge or xxlarge Fargo, but with no luck. Anyone got a pic, or know where i can find one? Im a tall guy and i wanna have a visual look before i get more serious about buying one. I have no local dealer who can bring one in, unless im in the market of actually buying one.
 
#197 ·
grimm said:
Hi, ive been trying to find a pic online of a xlarge or xxlarge Fargo, but with no luck. Anyone got a pic, or know where i can find one? Im a tall guy and i wanna have a visual look before i get more serious about buying one. I have no local dealer who can bring one in, unless im in the market of actually buying one.
I asked a similar question in another post. I haven't found an XXL but here's a 22"/XL
 
#199 ·
Rack question

I've been using the Surly nice rack. Beautifully designed and functional but heavy for my (non-transcontinental) needs. Anyone tried that Civia rear alumium rack on their Fargo yet? Just concerned about the fit on the bike.

I need something extremely wide to support my Arkel trunk bag properly. I'm aware of the Tubus cargo for similar weight, just figured the Civia was cheaper and I like the Company.
 
#200 ·
grimm said:
Hi, ive been trying to find a pic online of a xlarge or xxlarge Fargo, but with no luck. Anyone got a pic, or know where i can find one? Im a tall guy and i wanna have a visual look before i get more serious about buying one. I have no local dealer who can bring one in, unless im in the market of actually buying one.
mgersib has a big one. Here's a post from his blog that shows it well: http://dirtstories.blogspot.com/2009/03/return-of-allergy-season-and-new-wtb.html
 
#201 ·
chumbox said:
Anyone have any updates on doing any serious single tracking on the Fargo or are we just talking dirt/gravel here all the time? I suspect GT might have (I have read your previous off road post on twentynineinches). That would be one of my main purposes for a Fargo.

Sure it's a mountain bike but not seeing a lot of reports of moutain biking being done on it so far, although I'm sure it will hack the abuse.
I'm riding my Fargo pretty much exclusively as a singletrack bike right now. I bought it with the intention of doing gravel exploration, but that just hasn't happened yet.

I think it makes a great singletrack bike, but my previous experience is exclusively on older hardtails, nothing high-end. I like it enough that I don't ride my other bike anymore. The only problem I see is the low bottom bracket. The trails here are rocky, and pedal strikes aren't uncommon for me. I have done a little damage to the big chainring too, but I've since learned when to dismount, which doesn't really bother me much.
 
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