Components

I've now got most of the stuff together for the build. Some things I already had so I will be using them on the Disc Trucker to keep costs down. These include tyres (Schwalbe City Jets), a Thomson Elite seatpost and an adjustable handlebar stem. 

The headset was fitted to my frame yesterday at my local bike shop. It's an FSA Orbit MX one and an eighth inch. This is the only job that I can't do myself as I don't have a headset press. I briefly wondered whether to go nuts and buy a Chris King, then sanity returned - it's only ball bearings!

Dura Ace bar end shifters. I used this type of shifter on my Planet X and loved them. I especially like the non - indexed friction shifting on the front mech that gives lots of trimming adjustment that you don't get with STI shifters.

Deore hubs are pretty much bomb proof. These have 6 bolt rotor mounts for the disc brakes.

Mavic MTB rims - hopefully should be pretty strong and work well for the type of riding I'll be doing on the Surly.

The On One Midge handlebars were chosen as I also used these on the Planet X. I found them extremely comfortable - no aches and pains whatsoever after 60 or 70 miles. They offer lots of hand positions and have really shallow drops. This makes it easier to ride on the drops, and the bar-end shifters and brake levers are also easy to reach from the drop position. They are also very wide which inspires a bit more confidence on fast descents. Oh, and they look bloody weird as well!

Thomson Elite. Already had this, so might as well use it. It's only a seatpost but people do seem to get excited about them for some reason. 27.2mm and it's a nice smooth fit in the frame.

Now, these are Avid BB5's rather than BB7's. I might live to regret this money saving decision, but it's always something I can upgrade if necessary. 160mm rotors. I'm still waiting for the Tektro RL520 brake levers to arrive. I've gone for the same levers as on the stock disc trucker as they should be compatible with the Avid mtb disc calipers.

Not much to say about the rear mech. Deore. They work perfectly. Another decision based on my Planet  X experience.

Deore Hollowtech crank. Tried and tested on previous bikes, so I know it'll be good. I've gone for the 48-36-26 rather than 44-32-22. Having a 26" wheel will effectively make the bike lower geared than the equivalent set up on a 700 wheeled bike, so a bigger chain ring will compensate and hopefully mean I'm not "spinning out" at modestly high speeds. Again, this is the same number of teeth that Surly use on the stock build. It's a 170mm crank arm length. This is the length I normally go for and I'll just have a bit more mudguard / toe clearance than with a 175mm crank. (The clearance issue is probably insignificant on this frame, but I'll check when it's built up.)

Stem. Mystery brand! No name on it. It was in my parts box and it's adjustable, so I'll use it!

Selle Italia. XR XC Flow saddle. I deliberately avoided choosing Brooks as I want to avoid a contrived retro - bike look. I've had a Brooks B17 before and wasn't especially blown away by the Brooks thing. This one should be fine.

11-34 cassette.

I completely and utterly loathe and detest Sram gears. But their chains are the best!