The Largest Tire Clearance on a Fat Bike Frame

From log and root covered ribbons of twisty singletrack to miles of powdery snow or sandy beaches, Ice Cream Truck can handle it all. Hell, you could probably even hop over a grizzly if the situation arises. Probably.

While we could certainly throw out terms like “confidence-inspiring” and “traction-laden” to describe Ice Cream Truck, those phrases are mostly bullshit, so we’re not going to do that. We’re not here to inspire you, and we didn’t laden it with anything. What we did do was design a monolith of a trail bike that doesn’t give two shits about what’s in front of it.

• Long toptube, short seatstays, and a 68-degree headtube angle makes it tight and maneuverable on fast, technical terrain
  
• Modern trail bike standards like stealth dropper post routing, 44mm headtube, and thru-axles
  
• Clearance for a full 26” x 5” tire on 100mm rims

Frameset

• Frame

  • Surly Ice Cream Truck 4130 Chromoly, Natch tubing, double-butted main triangle, TIG welded, ED coated

• Fork

  • Surly Ice Cream Truck 4130 Chromoly, Natch tubing, double-butted tapered fork blades, TIG welded, ED coated

Components

• Seatpost Clamp
  • Surly stainless, 33.1mm

Frame Specs

• Design Wheel/Tire Sizes
  • 26 x 4.8"
    
• Max Tire Outer Diameter
  
  • Frame:
    • 26 x 5.1" (rear axle position) 
    • 26 x 4.8" (front axle position)
    • 29 x 3.0"
  • Fork:
    • 26 x 5.25" 
    • 29 x 3.0" 
  • Different tire and rim combinations will result in different clearances. Depending on drivetrain configuration, tire clearance may be limited by the chain and not the frame. For suspension fork tire clearance, please reference the fork manufacturer's website.
    
• Frame Construction
  • 4130 Chromoly, Natch tubing, double-butted main triangle, trumpet flared tubes, TIG welded, ED coated
    
• Fork Construction
  • 4130 Chromoly, Natch tubing, double-butted tapered fork blades, TIG welded, ED coated
    
• Rear Spacing
  • 12 x 197mm (Surly axle included)
    
• Rear Brake (Rotor)
  • Disc - 51mm I.S. (203mm max rotor)
• Front Brake (Rotor)
  • Disc - 51mm I.S. (203mm max rotor)
    
• Headset - Upper
  • ZS44/28.6
    
• Headset - Lower
  • EC44/40
• Front Spacing
  • 15 x 150mm (Surly axle included)
    
• Crankset (Max Ring)
  • 1x (Fat bike 190): 34T
  • 2x (Surly OD): 22/36T
  • Listed chainring clearance is worst-case scenario. Clearances vary widely depending on components and configurations.