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Moots announces new geometries on their Gravel frames.

Ron

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since @Tom K. brought this up, I figured I would post this. Moots, based in Steamboat Springs, CO has done a great job on this new iteration. Modern geo featuring slacker head, longer reach with shorter stems (yay) and tire clearance up to 50 (while still running a 2x). my only beef is they kept the BB drop at 6.9. the old Geo was based on a 32 tire and the new builds are fitted with 43 Gravel King SK's so Im not sure if they lowered the BB since the drop would certainly be different now. IMHO, nothing matches the ride quality on gravel with Titanium,

 
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Ski&ride

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nothing matches the ride quality on gravel with Titanium,
Really?

I would have thought the fat tires totally muffles the ride characteristic due to frame material
 
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Ron

Ron

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yes really, you need to ride a Moots or Bingham with a Ti seaptost (significant difference in ride quality on gravel with a Ti Post) not sure what you consider fat tires but with 38's (not fat) the ride is incredibly smooth and road chatter is muted.
 

Ski&ride

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yes really, you need to ride a Moots or Bingham with a Ti seaptost (significant difference in ride quality on gravel with a Ti Post) not sure what you consider fat tires but with 38's (not fat) the ride is incredibly smooth and road chatter is muted.
“Fat“ to me means anything wider than a typical road tire width.

Probably more due to the low tire pressure, I do feel the ride characteristic is muted on the wider tires than on standard road tires.

I have 2 sets of wheels on my gravel frame. One set a standard 25mm slick. typically pumped to 90~100psi. I felt the frame compliance quite a bit. But on the 35mm cross tires, at 35-45psi, not much at all. The tire compliance totally masked the frame response from road surfaces.

Granted, I typically switch to my mountain bike when the off-road trail get to a certain degree of “roughness”.
 

princo

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Interesting that the Moots geo chart has a 54,55, and a 56 (i.e. 1 cm increments in the middle of the range). Not that I'm looking at a new bike, but I think it's great to have options to help dial in the fit. From 54 to 55 pretty much the same reach but with a higher stack and the other way when going from 55 to 56. So you can have your cake and eat it too if you are in that range.
 
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Ski&ride

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Interesting that the Moots geo chart has a 54,55, and a 56 (i.e. 1 cm increments in the middle of the range). Not that I'm looking at a new bike, but I think it's great to have options to help dial in the fit. From 54 to 55 pretty much the same reach but with a higher stack and the other way when going from 55 to 56. So you can have your cake and eat it too if you are in that range.
I’m older enough that my memory isn’t what it used to be. But I seem to remember vaguely in the “good old days” road bike frames comes in 1cm increment!

Of course I may be remembering things completely wrong. But I do remember having written down my “perfect” top tube length as 52.5cm for one particular brand. And I had always used that number as a starting point even when shopping for other brands.
 

cantunamunch

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From 54 to 55 pretty much the same reach but with a higher stack and the other way when going from 55 to 56. So you can have your cake and eat it too if you are in that range.

Yeh, it's not so much about fit there as it is about feel - especially on downhills. Notice the wheelbase shift.

Take the 56cm and 58cm sizes for comparison. The 56cm has 1052mm wheelbase whereas the 58cm has 1065.

That's a noticeable handling difference on downhills - 624mm front center vs 637mm. The 56cm Routt has a front center comparable to old Italian road bikes whereas the 58cm Routt has a longer front center than a nominally-slacker 57cm Salsa Journeyman and is directly comparable to a 56cm Koga Beachracer (except the Koga only has a 60mm BB drop, because sand and because <8psi tires)

I see the sizes posted there as much about intended use and trail choice as about stack and reach. Want tight and nimble on flats - get the smaller one and work with the S/R numbers for comfort. Want stabler and faster on dowhills - get the bigger one and work with the S/R numbers for comfort.

Of course, if you really want to take that downhill/pump track feel to an extreme, just get a new Diverge E5 EVO (674mm front center in Medium) or Bivi Bunker (662mm front center in Medium) - or put drop bars on a Trek X Caliber (677mm front center in Medium). Or just buy Evil.
 
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EricG

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Really?

I would have thought the fat tires totally muffles the ride characteristic due to frame material

Even on my 26x4.8’s I prefer the ride of Ti. Luckily I have a choice of Ti or Carbon when I ride everything but FS.
 
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Ron

Ron

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frame sizes are a relative guide for sure. these are designed to be setup with shorter stems which Im a big advocate of. I haven't gone through every dim yet to see the extra length
 

Ken_R

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since @Tom K. brought this up, I figured I would post this. Moots, based in Steamboat Springs, CO has done a great job on this new iteration. Modern geo featuring slacker head, longer reach with shorter stems (yay) and tire clearance up to 50 (while still running a 2x). my only beef is they kept the BB drop at 6.9. the old Geo was based on a 32 tire and the new builds are fitted with 43 Gravel King SK's so Im not sure if they lowered the BB since the drop would certainly be different now. IMHO, nothing matches the ride quality on gravel with Titanium,


I though Moots was for the most part a custom frame builder nowadays?
 
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Ron

Ron

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they will do custom but the vast majority of work is not. Bingham Bikes is all custom. He's a 5 person shop. Brad is a master welder and left Moots to buy out Eriksen, they are still close though.
 
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Ron

Ron

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Want tight and nimble on flats - get the smaller one and work with the S/R numbers for comfort. Want stabler and faster on dowhills - get the bigger one and work with the S/R numbers for comfort.
:thumb:

one thing I realized after a few true gravel rides is having a nimble bike is helpful since you are often shifting left/right to get on the right line. however, its certainly a lot of added comfort and peace of mind to have stability on rocky, loose descents too. I think you need to find a bike that will optimize where and how you ride.
 

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