Impressions of Moots Vamoots?

[pdonk]

I recently purchased a used custom vamoots sl. I've put about 500km on it since I got it and really like it.

My only complaint, and it may be because it is custom, is this is the first road bike I've owned with toe overlap, which makes tight turns and weaving in traffic harder.

I've never owned a high end road bike, but do own multiple high end mountain bikes. The details on such a simple looking bike are amazing.

[Ahneida Ride]

In 10+ years ...

Never heard a complaint about a Vamoots ...

[misterha]

I've had my Moots Vamoots CR for about 4 months and love it. What drawn me to Moots is that they know what they're doing with Ti and its going to last forever. Obviously all frame material will last forever if taken care properly even CF. People said that the shelf life if CF is only a couple years but I'm seeing some pretty old frame out there.

Another aspect that drawn me towards Moots is that this is practically the same bike that they made when it first came out, though with some revision to a compact geometry and the newly double butted on the RSL model. I can say 10 years from now they're still going to make the same great bike that I have now. My bike won't be "outdated" by next year when they make the SL5 EVO nano 62.3 thats stiffer, lighter, and more aero.

[Matthew]

Got a 2009 Compact and love it. Great all around bike. Mine is built up with Dura Ace 7800 and a Kestrel fork. The only nit pick I had was with the Alpha Q built Moots branded fork I got with the frame. Steerer tube just seemed to flex a bit too much for my liking. I also have a Ti Serotta Concours that has a Kestrel fork with an aluminum steerer tube that had virtually no flex. So I picked up a brand new fork for cheap on ebay and am thrilled with it. Improved the stiffness yet still has a smooth ride. Could not be happier with my Moots. And as mentioned by others they have improved the decals by using a more durable/thicker material. No issues with mine in 4 years.

[SteveV0983]

I bought a 2012 Vamoots last year as a 50th birthday gift from me to me and it's fantastic. I'm not one to change bikes often (for the 20 years prior to this I rode a 1992 Serotta Colorado tg) so I took a long time deciding on this one. It really is as good as everyone says. It's quick and responsive if you want to push it yet it can just float along perfectly for a lazy afternoon ride. Mine is built up with HED Belgium C2s and I use 25c Vredestein Fortezza TriComps. Those tires measure about 26.5 across on those rims and they fit fine. I have about 3000 miles on mine and I have never once felt it wasn't the right choice. I did get the straight seat post because I really wanted the ability to change fore-aft and angle separately. It functions great and it looks fantastic, but as others have said, it's a seat post. That being said, I'm glad I have it. The company was fantastic to work with and they are very environmentally conscious, which was important to me. Mine is a stock 58 with a 1cm taller head tube (no charge for that) and a pump peg and it did indeed take every bit of 9 weeks from order to door. But it was well worth it. I still smile when I look down and see the sun glisten off that finish. I feel fortunate that I was at a point where I could afford one and have zero regrets.
I like the fact that it has a classic look with the just slightly sloping top tube and I also like that, aside from mine, I've never seen another one. Granted my nearest dealer is 150 miles away, but Moots helped out with that also. Because the closest dealer is over 100 miles away, Moots spoke to my local shop and arranged for a demo to be shipped to them in my size which they let me keep for a week. After approximately the first 30 feet of the first ride, I knew I wanted one and they let my LBS be the middleman. So I got the bike I wanted from my favorite shop. That to me was going above and beyond what you expect from companies nowadays.

[bshell]

Could someone educate my on how this is possible?

I've felt flexy fork blades and I've felt underinflated tires before but I can't imagine a steer tube flexing. Are we not talking about a super strong carbon/steel/aluminum tube, heavily supported at both ends of the head tube(5-8" apart)?

When people speak of flexy steer tubes are they talking about at the crown of the fork or what? I can't see any way there is flex taking place inside the frame.

Super curious, thanks.

[gearguywb]

My wife and I are lucky enough to have a couple of Moots. I tend to try out different bikes for 6 months to a year and then move on to something else. In all of that time, my RSL has been with me 3 years or so now (one of the first made) and my MootoX has been with me 5 years.

You couldn't pry the wife's Vamoots away from her. I bought it for her several years ago as a demo from the factory and she is still loving it.

[martl]

Originally Posted by bshell

Could someone educate my on how this is possible?

I've felt flexy fork blades and I've felt underinflated tires before but I can't imagine a steer tube flexing. Are we not talking about a super strong carbon/steel/aluminum tube, heavily supported at both ends of the head tube(5-8" apart)?

When people speak of flexy steer tubes are they talking about at the crown of the fork or what? I can't see any way there is flex taking place inside the frame.

The steerer tube *of a fork* can and will flex. It has contact to the frame itself only where the bearings are and is free in between. A buddy has a 1" CFK Mizuno Alpe d'Huez in his 64cm Klein Quantum where the effect is actually visible when one pulls the front brake and rocks the bike back and forth.
Obviously, this will impact the way the ride feels more than any gimmick designers pull off on their frame designs.

About the main subject: I love(d) my Moots Vamoots. Had it for a couple of years, it was a trusty companion on many miles. It is a very understated bike due to its optics, the Gentlemen's choice.

[Matthew]

I could see and feel a fair amount of flex when I would straddle the bike and pull/push on the ends of my handlebars with the carbon Moots fork. When I did the same thing on my Serotta I detected very little flex. The Kestrel fork with the aluminum steerer on the Serotta was noticeably stiffer while riding too. In fairness, I did have a bit more steerer tube exposed on my Moots but not enough to make that much difference. Both bikes feel the same now in the front end/at the handlebar.

[tuscanyswe]

Since its on the subject. Anyone ever saw a seattube extraction like this on a moots before ? Is it a really old custom bike that someone put some new decals on or similar?

The measurements listed are ofc wrong which seem to be a common thing on mootses on ebay?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-SHINY-M...item3cd643bff5

[texbike]

Originally Posted by tuscanyswe

Since its on the subject. Anyone ever saw a seattube extraction like this on a moots before ? Is it a really old custom bike that someone put some new decals on or similar?

The measurements listed are ofc wrong which seem to a common thing on mootses on ebay?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-SHINY-M...item3cd643bff5

I haven't seen a seatpost collar on a Vamoots like that before, but the bike does appear to be older due to the downtube shifter bosses. It definitely has newer decals and the headbadge wasn't there originally either. My guess is that Moots refinished the bike at some point and added the mid 2000s era decals and headbadge.

As for the geo, mine is an early 2000s and it's measurements are different than those on the mid 2000s geo charts (although it's close). The ebay bike could be a custom or just a different stock geo that was offered at the time that it was built.

Texbike

[marle]

I would recommend a demo ride. I'm 6'3" and 215. In the past I demo rode a 62cm Vamoots and found it too 'soft' In Nov I got a rock stock 60 cm Vamoots RSL based on a long demo ride of a 58 cm RSL.


The RSL combines the nice feel of Ti while being light and stiff.

[texbike]

Originally Posted by 1centaur

I got a Vamoots (custom geo same as my Parlee Z1x) a few years ago to see if there was anything special about it to make me want to ride it sometimes instead of carbon fiber. In general, the answer to that question is no. Metal is metal, as I like to say. Nice welds, well aligned, good look, but I never understand smoothness when talking metal vs. CF, and it does not have "resonance" as one poster back then noted which was the hook that sucked me in. Not snappy enough, nor light enough, nor smooth enough to compete with a good CF frame. I won't persuade people who ride metal and prefer it to CF, but just wanted to note this for CF riders who wonder when they hear people wax poetic.

If it's a winter's day when I'll be all bundled up and know I won't enjoy the ride that much but want to get out for exercise, I'll pick the Moots for some variety, but I never pick it if the weather is nice. That was the bike that persuaded me I would never buy a metal bike again. If an archetype of the best of metal doesn't do it for me, nothing will.

I think it really comes down to what you like in a bike. Happycampyer seems to like bikes that aren't as stiff, which would explain his love of the Vamoots.

I've had my Vamoots for 5 years now and didn't really like it at first. It felt soft and mushy compared to the MX Leader and C40 that were getting most of my miles at the time. After several rides I was ready to sell it but decided to keep it around a bit longer. It turns out that I wasn't any slower on the Vamoots than on the other two bikes and didn't feel as fatigued after long rides. For some reason, the negatives of the bike kinda vanished and it's become my primary ride. I love the simple, understated, industrial look and the bike delivers that low frequency hum/resonance that others have noted with Ti bikes. As mentioned before, it's a keeper.

Texbike

[gearguywb]

Originally Posted by Matthew

I could see and feel a fair amount of flex when I would straddle the bike and pull/push on the ends of my handlebars with the carbon Moots fork. When I did the same thing on my Serotta I detected very little flex. The Kestrel fork with the aluminum steerer on the Serotta was noticeably stiffer while riding too. In fairness, I did have a bit more steerer tube exposed on my Moots but not enough to make that much difference. Both bikes feel the same now in the front end/at the handlebar.

There are a lot of variables involved here. Handlebar type, mfg, size, clamp diameter, stem, etc all of the way down, and including wheel, skewer and tire.

[tuscanyswe]

Im pretty lightweight for my length and size but ive never felt the moots compact to be soft. Ive had other ti bikes that were very soft in comparison.