Category: Moulton AM / Esprit

Esprit reviewed in Velovision

Issue 28 of Velovision magazine has a Moulton Esprit on the cover and contains a 4 page review inside.

Velovision Issue 28

This review was done by editor Peter Eland. This contrasts with the review of the TSR 8 in Issue 21, which was done by a Moultoneer. Now I'm certainly not saying that the TSR 8 review wasn't a very fine review, but it's always interesting to read about the experiences of a non-Moultoneer on our favourite machines. I also think the reader is likely to be less skeptical of such a review.

The bike reviewed was a separable 9 speed (Capreo rear block and single chainring) with adjustable stem (not a wishbone stem) and Mosquito bars, which Peter described as his favourite position for a town bike.

Non-moultoneers are often unnerved at first by the handling, but Peter describes this well thus

It's a bike which reflects your inputs; ride it with a calm upper body and it'll track straight and true: twitch around and it'll twitch right back.

Some comments were slightly disappointing such as

This isn't the bike to choose for a hilly camping tour.

which is an astonishing comment to make considering some of the epic tours that have been undertaken on essentially the same bike. Maybe the comment was directed more at the gearing of the test bike (33" - 100" with a single chainring).

There were also some slightly negative comments on the position of the gear shifter and the lack of ability to shift and brake at the same time.

Perhaps the factory would have been better supplying the double chainring model with drop bars and STI shifters.

There was also the usual comment about climbing hills out of the saddle, and getting left behind by "roadies". People seem to forget that a certain American multiple Tour de France winner climbed many a col while sitting in the saddle.

In conclusion, the review comments that the Esprit was "light, rigid and responsive"... "like riding a finely-tuned musical instrument", and that it seemed to be a "hedonist's bike".

Elsewhere in issue 28, the Esprit was used to demonstrate the pitlock system, and Alex Moulton bicycles have taken a quarter page advert.

If you're not already a Velovision reader, I thoroughly recommend it. Annual subscriptions cost from £20 from www.velovision.com. Alternatively you can just purchase the current issue.

AM Esprit Specification

The website of Alex Moulton Bicycles is now showing the Esprit, complete with specification.

The specification is as follows:

Frame: Manufactured to Moulton specifications, as used on Moulton Double Pylon, for the lightest stiffest frame.
 
Components: Front Rim: Velocity 17" silver 24h Central spoking
  Rear Rim: Velocity 17" silver 24h offset spoking
  Rim Tape: Bridgestone IRC
  Tube: Schwalbe 17" presta valve
  Tyre: Schwalbe 17" Stelvio l00psi high pressure
  Handle Bar Grips: "Grab-On" foam grips
  Mudguards: Alloy polished silver or black
  Saddle: Fiz'ik Aliante Gamma
  Bottom Bracket: Shimano 105
  Crankset: Shimano 105 52/39 t
  Headset: Shimano 105
  Rear Derailleur Shimano 105 Short cage
  Front Derailleur Shimano 105, double changer only
  Chain Shimano 105
  Brakes Shimano BRA 550 long reach
  Rear Hub Capreo 24/32 hole
  Front Hub Capreo 24/32 hole
  Cassette Capreo Cassette. 9, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 20, 23, 26/28 teeth
  Handle Bar Stem Kalloy adjustable quill
  Pedals MKS Detachable, flat
  Seat pillar Nitto, diameter 31.6mm, with integral 5mm Allen key for seat pillar and frame separation
  Handle Bars Nitto Drop Bars 380/400mm width or Nitto Mosquito bars.
  Gear Shifters Drop bar Shimano STI 105 or Rapidfire gearshifter with Crane Creek levers.
 
Suspension: Front: AM Stainless Steel leading link with Adjustable damping and preload. Choice of soft, medium or hard coil spring.
  Rear: AM Rubber cone spring. Choice of Standard or hard. High tensile cold drawn seamless 9.5mm tube.

BoA 2007: Demo bikes

After the meeting, members could try out any of the Moulton models.

There were three samples of the Esprit, a Bridgestone, a Double Pylon and an older New Series...

The test track was just too small for the Metro...

This NS had nice narrow flat bars and indexed trigger shifters...

The Double Pylon looks even more exquisite in real life than in any photo you've ever seen...

Two Double Pylons in a corner...

New Style Flexitor unit of the Double Pylon. Having the forks outside the Flexitor unit (instead of inside as with earlier New Series models) gives more steering rake for a more stable ride.

The Demo bike had the softest of the available rubber compounds, so the soft lockout was engaged for demo riders...

BoA 2007: More details on the Esprit

The wider frame and narrower tubing give a frame that's lighter, yet stiffer...

HED aero wheels only 2 ozs heavier than standard wheels...

Shimano 105 chainring and rear mech, Capreo freehub and cassette, Ultegra front mech (except on the model with the Mosquito bars which had a single chainring)...

Mosquito bars, Shimano Dura Ace downtube shifer (used as a thumb shifer), Cane Creek reverse action brake levers and a newly blackened stem...

Tapered forks, but not like the 1980s...

The fixed frame frame was not on show... all three demo bikes were separable...

BOA 2007: Esprit details and demo

The new Esprit was finally unveiled to the MBC, and there were no major surprises.

Photo: Flickr user Group51uk

Most of it was reported previously here on Moultonbuzz, so much of the following is a recap:

  • It is lighter than previous AM models, due to the lighter Kasei tubing. It has the narrowest tubing of any non-stainless steel AM.
  • It is stiffer than older AM models due to a slightly wider construction.
  • Hairpin construction (as on the ATB and APB), where the narrow tubes wrap around the headtube and seattube.
  • The Esprit will be available in a variety of headtube lengths and seat tube lengths, and a choice of either standard (27.2mm) seat post diameter, or the larger diameter Moulton 31.4mm seat post.
  • Choice of headsets - threaded for quill stems, threadless / Ahead or the Moulton wishbone as per the New Series.
  • The separable model looks quite familiar, but the fixed frame model has a straight bottom tube, similar to the TSR / FX8 / Pylon, etc. Shaun indicated to me that the separable model is more torsionally stiff (due to the angled bottom tube).
  • The wishbone stem is now available in black.
  • Frame skins are available, so you can dress your bike, and change it's dress if you don't like it! Alex Moulton's words, not mine!
  • The HED wheels weigh only 2 ozs (which is about 50g) more than a standard wheel.
  • The Esprit will be available as a frameset at around £1200.
  • Three grades of front suspension are available: soft, medium and hard. The hard is equivalent to a New Series with the soft lockout engaged.
  • A number of racks will be available - if I remember correctly a large platform rack, a day rack and a front rack. The existing AM racks will not fit due to the hairpin construction.
  • The "standard" colour is a the commonly photographed grey, but a choice of colours will be available.
  • Orders are being taken now, and they expect to deliver in around 2-3 months. New manufacturing capacity has been added to facilitate the Esprit, so that Esprit production won't impact on New Series production.

Alex Moulton said that he was pleased that the availability of HED wheels and frame skins would improve the aerodynamics of the bike.

Photo: Dynavector

Shaun mentioned that the reason for the revamped AM was a request from several overseas Moulton distributors. I can guess that these are Japan, Germany and possibly Switzerland. This seems to indicate that the AM is still very popular in these areas, perhaps more so than in Britain.

Three demo bikes were available for testing, and I had a go on all three around the new test track.One demo had the wishbone stem and Mosquito bars. Shifting was via a Shimano Dura-Ace 9 speed bar end-shifter down-tube shifer used as a thumb shifter on the flat of the mosquito bar. I really like this setup. The friction option of bar end shifters is an excellent feature to have when indexing becomes less than perfect on the road. Incidentally, the indexing on one of the New Series demo bikes was terrible!The drop bar models were both equipped with Shimano 105 Sti shifters, double chainrings and Capreo cassette hub.All three models seemed fast, comfortable and light. The suspension was extremely smooth, but plenty firm. Logic was telling me that I should like the New Series more, but the Esprit always felt better. The Double Pylon demo bike was using the softest of the available rubber compounds, so it felt spongier and bouncier than the Esprit, and perhaps with a harder compound I might feel differently.I rode a TSR 27 just afterwards and it felt heavy and sluggish by comparison to the Esprit, though I think it's perhaps an unfair comparison. The TSR was on Marathon Plus tyres, while the Esprit was on Stelvios, and tyres have a huge effect on how fast a bike feels.Also, the flat bars were wider on the TSR, and made it feel less stable. Alex Moulton believes that narrower bars are better on Moultons and I tend to agree.

One of the New Series demo bikes was set up with flat bars, but with a slight angle backwards and felt like a perfect setup for town. Though in what town could you lock up a New Series!

The test track is quite lovely - every garden should have one. There are a number of short sharp inclines and declines, and tight corners. Though a bike cannot be fully evaluated on a short test track, it does give plenty of opportunity to see how a bike feels climbing, descending and handling in tight spaces.