Mountain Bike Reviews Forum banner

No comments on the new 2014 29er Ti ??????

18K views 70 replies 18 participants last post by  Alin 
#1 ·
Has anybody check and commented about the new 2014 Motobecane Ti options or is just that the activity on this forum is so high that the post got lost and I didn't noticed?
 
#42 ·
I'm seriously considering this bike and yesterday I saw a guy with the old frame bike. He told me that he bought the frame with Bike Island and build it himself and he was very happy and the frame looks solid. I told him about the new frame and seemed interested.

My concern is about selecting the right size. It happened that back in 2004 I spent $1,600 on a Gary Fisher bike just to find out that the size wasn't right for me. The top tube was too long and after riding it for 30 minutes I got very pronounced pain in the base of the neck and rhomboids. I'm 6' 33.5" inseam and I think that the 17.5" will be the best option for me. The Gary Fisher was 19".
 
#43 ·
A 17" for someone 6 feet tall...? I'm 6'1" about the same inseam and I hopped on my buddy's medium Trek Fuel EX 7 the other day and it felt like I was riding a little kid's bike... FWIW I ride an XL Fly Ti 29er with a 90mm, 0 degree Thomson stem and 730mm Thomson carbon bars and I couldn't be more comfortable. YMMV.
 
#44 ·
My old 26" was a 20" large with a 24" ETT.
My current 2014 fly team 29" is 17.5" medium has a 23.5" ETT roughly.
Both fit me about the same. Don't look at the bike size. Ultimately the ETT is the best indicator of the bikes fit. The fly teams tend to be longer than most bikes ETT wise. I'm 6' 33" inseam and my 17.5" fits perfect. Ie.. ETT= effective top tube
 
#45 ·
That's what I'm talking about and I was looking for that advice. Later on I will post the measurements of the GF for you to compare and advice. I did as althatisman, change the stem for a shorter when more raise, move the saddle all the way to the front, etc but it didn't help at all and I had to sell the bike at a bargain price loosing money in the process.
 
#47 ·
FYI in case anyone is considering the 19" since the 17.5" is sold out. The 19" is only an inch longer ETT than the 17.5". You can shorten that in a number of ways if you really wanted to. Shorter stem, move seat up, a riser bar would even help feel more upright. The fly team seat post actually curves backward. A strait seat post would probably be an inch further forward.
 
#50 ·
Edil: I should have mentioned my inseam is 33" and for a long sleeve shirt, I buy a 35" sleeve. At 5-11, a 19" 2014 Moto Ti 29er is barely big enough. The bike has a mix of quality, but the high quality Ritchey PRO 4-AXIS stem is fairly long, fits perfectly.

17 1/2" is too small for your dimensions. The BD size recommendations are rough, relative leg and arm length are the drivers.
 
#51 ·
Here are the measurements of the 2004 GF X-caliber 19" frame bike that I had:

Head tube angle
71.0mm - 2.78"
Fork offset
38.1mm - 1.5"
Trail
80mm - 3.15"
Seat tube angle
73.5mm - 2.89"
Effective top tube
628mm - 24.72"
Seat tube standover
479mm - 18.86"
Wheelbase
1108mm - 43.62"
Bottom bracket height
270mm - 10.63"
Chainstay
445mm - 17.52"
Head tube
90mm - 3.54"

All I know is that those numbers doesn't work for me, strong pain in the neck and rhomboids no matter how many changes of stem and movement of saddle.

Later on I will be posting my full body measurements.

Anyways I did ask this already. I was waiting for a lower cost package to came out with the new frame, for example the $1,799. Now you are telling me that the 17.5 is gone so Does that means that it won't be available anymore?
 
#52 ·
I think the smaller 2014 Ti frame sizes will be available again. It just means they've sold out of all those size frames in the first batch. But I can't say when they will get those sizes again. You could try emailing them, they're usually pretty prompt with responding. Unless it works differently with these Ti frames...

I also imagine they will phase out all the old Ti frame models, and introduce more models with the new 2014 Ti frame.
 
#53 ·
Bike direct restockes fly team twice a year spring and fall. I don't expect that they will have more till march ish. This is what I ve gathered through my research. I have been in the hunt for about six months myself and just finally got one. The fantom ti 29 er similar bike but with x9 package will be restocked in October and is only 1800. That's what I was gonna get myself but couldn't wait till October so I sprung for the fly team. I would expect that they will be using the new frame also for the fantom. If your old bike was giving you problems you should talk to some bike techs at a shop to figure out why. Your old ETT was about the same as the fly team large 19". If the problem was a bike that was too big the 17.5" might be the solution, but it could be something else.
 
#58 ·
I saw the first photo of the Sram XO 2X10 Moto ti 29er, sent by my request by BD to my email, before it was up on the BD site, because I wanted to see the new frame: that photo originated from Taiwan manufacturer and had custom components on it not applicable to the one for sale. The actual components are per BD's list and same as on the one I bought from them, though they first sent the wrong bike, then, with PayPal's intervention, I got BD to swap for correct bike.

Always use PayPal to buy from BD.
 
#62 ·
What situation caused your flat tires?
Sometimes I will ride on the roadside to the trails. Got a flat on the front from some glass on the roadside. Got a flat on the rear from a small thorn on the trails. I'm not really blaming the tire for what it is, light & fast, but seems a little delicate. I've rode my other bike (WTB Prowler SL 29x2.1) many times over the same route and have never had a flat. Could be just luck.

I weighed my SB8 tire on a kitchen scale at 600g. I like the SB8 OK for the right conditions, fast dry hard pack trails.
 
#65 ·
Mountain King 29 x 2.4

I won some new tires at my last race event. A lower cost Mountain King 29 x 2.4 with wire bead! Not what I would buy myself, but for free I thought I'd try them a while. I weighted them 880g each new, vs the Kenda SB8 which were 600g.



Been riding them a few weeks, no rubbing but close:





For comparison, just MK on back and SB8 on front:



I feel like I'm riding monster truck tires compared to the SB8.
 
#69 ·
Just received the new 2014 Moto Fly Team 29er from BD last week. First 29er and was hesitant because of short leg syndrome but having it my entire life, I can deal with no clearance between my crotch and cross bar on the 15.5 inch frame.

Shipped and arrived when stated and assembly was an hour and tweaking adjustments over the next couple days for another hour or so. Almost sent it back for one reason and one reason only. --The bottle holder bolts are very poorly positioned. The 15.5 size frame states that it will have only one bottle mount. Fine. Mine came with two and they are welded way high on each bar. The seat tube mount is so high that its top bolt prevents my seat post from lowering to my ideal height. The fix was to turn the Ritchey post backwards (it has a mitered cut on the bottom that makes it drop about an inch lower.

Had already ordered a KS LEV dropper post so when that arrived was ready to send back because the dropped height was at around two inches lower than my ideal ride height. Not worth the $360 for only a two inch dropper.

My first mod (besides Reflector tape for my nightly commute) was a cold chisel, a two pound hammer and a few mean swings to bust the upper water cage bolt out from inside the tube. Weld did not want to crack at first (hence the 2lb hammer) removed the nut weld, caulked the hole and wallah a tube that would accept the full lengths of my seat posts.

The other bottle mount is just too high and limits the type of bottles you can use. Not the deal breaker as the other one. BTW I did not send it back because I have been waiting anxiously for this bike and just to repackage and put it in the box would have been a challenge.

Performance and finish are what is expected at this price point and components. 29 inch wheels, rock gardens that would have been walked through with the 26 are just rocks in the trail now and I am still amazed what this goes over. Hills… What hills? clipped in and full power circles are effortless on short climbs and you have all the gearing needed for the long climbs.

My daily commute is 1.5 mile neighborhood streets 5 miles pre road (graded with 6 inch and smaller rocks) BUMPY but 90% downhill and finish with about 1.5 miles highway shoulder and 1.5 miles resort road shoulder. A blast to get there but a bugger to climb at 11:00 pm after 8 hours on the feet.

Haven't had the fun leisure ride with the gang yet but I am enjoying every time I straddle that brick of a saddle for my off road commute.

Overall, I am very happy with the bike and will consider them for FS when the time comes.
 
#70 ·
Just like to give an update on my ti 29er.
So far everything has worked perfectly. I have upgraded and replaced various parts over time to better suited my riding style which is less XC and more trail or even AM.
I did get an annoying creak but solved it after reading a similar story where the problem was where the rear wheel mounts and not the crank that I'd thought. Actually, the crank has impressed me last g through a wet muddy BC fall and winter. I destroyed my front wheel doing something stupid and heading straight into a pile of boulders and so upgraded to Hope hoops crest. The rear I'd already upgraded to Italian Formula Volo which has proven to be smooth and tough.
I tweaked my stem and bars with a 60mm stem and 720mm bar for better downhill performance but this change hasn't caused the front to pop up either which is nice.
I'm still improving as a rider on this thing. It's easy to go up hills being so light but I wouldn't say it jumps with every pedal stroke like a stiffer carbon frame but it's smooth through even rough gullies take g out the ping of hits allows better control and last all day without being beat up. It also loves being popped into the air over obstacles. Very toss able for a 29"er. Been trying g some fast drops on a particular trail that aren't high just sketchy on windy single track with freaking trees everywhere. Been thrown a few times but thankfully no direct tree hits.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top