Fat Bike Upgrade: 2017 Salsa Mukluk Carbon

Last updated on December 17, 2016

I’ve had my Salsa Blackborow for a year and loved riding it in all seasons, but thanks to Tree Fort Bikes I got a line on the brand-new 2017 Salsa Mukluk Carbon frame and decided it was time to upgrade. I love how the Blackborow rides, but a carbon frame with a 100mm threaded bottom bracket is what I’ve really wanted and until now it wasn’t practically available. In designing the 2017 Mukluk Salsa made some slight tweaks to the outstanding Blackborow geometry, named it the Mukluk, added some nice options (dropper post routing, new style Alternators), and built it out of carbon. All parts (except crank and headset) will swap over from my Blackborow, so there was no way I could say no.

Complete, with pedals, bottle cages, Garmin Edge 520, rear blinky light mount, bell, all sensors, and 4.8″ Schwalbe Jumbo Jim tires set up tubeless the complete bike weighs in at 26.48 pounds.

Almost all the parts are the same as the Blackborow build, save for the wheels (upgraded at the end of my time with the Blackborow), stem, crankset, bar, and headset. The crankset on the Mukluk ended up being a unicorn SRAM XO1 fat bike crank which I fortuitously found as a brand new take-off from a Bucksaw Carbon XO1. Fitted with the non-standard 0mm offset chainring (intended for Boost 148 spec bikes), two non-drive side spacers (none on the drive side), the chainline moves to 71.5mm, which is just about right for a 190/197mm rear end fat bike. It was necessary to put both spacers on the non-drive side to get even spacing between the crank arms and chainstays.

On the first couple rides there was occasional heel rub, so I fitted a set of extended spindles for Eggbeater pedals. This is minor and only seems to happen with larger shoes on technical corners, so the extra 5mm Q-factor should help.

Due to a slightly different geometry on the bike and a wider bar (carbon, to hopefully keep my hands warmer in winter) I went with a 90mm stem, which results in the same saddle-grip reach and feels good.

Full photo gallery can be found here: 2017 Salsa Mukluk Carbon

Here’s how the build ended up:

Frame / Fork: 2017 Salsa Mukluk Carbon Frame (Medium) / Bearpaw Carbon Fork
Wheelset: Hubs: DT Swiss 350 Big Ride (Front, Rear, Center Lock, XD Driver) / Rims: Hed B.A.D / Spokes: DT super comp / Nipples: DT Pro Lock (built by Mike Curiak)
Freehub Ratchets: Bontrager HUB51312614R (54-point for DT Swiss)
Summer Tires: Schwalbe Jumbo Jim HS466 26 x 4.8 (Snakeskin, TL-Easy)
Winter Tires: 45NRTH Flowbeist / Dunderbeist
Brake Calipers: TRP Spyke
Brake Rotors: Shimano SM-RT70 (180mm front, 160mm rear)
Front Brake Spacer: Shimano SM-MA90-F180P/P2
Brake Levers: Avid FR-5 (Black)
Brake Lever Insulation: 18mm 3:1 Heat Shrink (Generic)
Handlebar: Salsa Salt Flat Carbon (750mm)
Grips: Ergon GP1 (Large)
Headset: Cane Creek 40 Tapered IS41/IS52/40 Short Top Cover
Stem: Thomson Elite X4 (SM-E132 0° X 90mm X 31.8 1-1/8 X4)
Spacers: Generic Aluminum
Stem Cap: Niner YAWYD w/ Ore Dock Brewing Company Bottle Cap
Seatpost: Thomson Elite (SP-E116SB 31.6 X 410 Setback Black)
Seatpost Clamp: Salsa Lip Lock
Saddle: Specialized Phenom Expert (143mm)
Crankset: SRAM XO1 Fat Bike, SRAM Carbon Crank Boots
Bottom Bracket: SRAM GXP (100mm)
Pedals: Crank Brothers Eggbeater 3 (Blue) w/ Long Spindle Kit
Chainring: SRAM X-SYNC Direct Mount (30t and 28t, 0mm offset)
Cassette: SRAM XG-1150 FULL PIN Cassette
Derailleur: SRAM GX 1×11 X-HORIZON Rear Derailleur
Shifter: SRAM GX 11-speed X-ACTUATION Trigger Shifter
Chain: SRAM PC-X1
Cables/Housing: Jagwire LEX (4mm shift, 5mm shift for brakes)
Chainslap Protection: Scotch 2228 Rubber Mastic Tape
Bottle Cages: Specialized Zee Cage II (Left and Right)
Rear Light: Planet Bike Superflash Stealth
Bell: Mirrycle Original Incredibell
Sensors: Garmin Bike Speed Sensor and Cadence Sensor