Motobecane Fantom Team, Nice Parts!!!

I wanted to talk a little about the parts that come on the bike and the fact they really impressed me. First lets talk about the suspension which are both Rockshox products. The rear shock is Rockshox's top of the line air unit called the Monarch 4.2. So far I have really liked this shock due to the awesome adjustment to the lockout mechanism. The lock out is what RS calls the Floodgate allowing you to adjust how much the suspension moves while the switch is activated(locked out) There are numbers printed on the stanchion tube showing you what the sag should be depending on the riders specific weight. This an awesome feature allowing a rider to very quickly adjust the suspension properly. I love the sag numbers printed on the shock because I can not tell you how many time I have seen people riding full suspension bikes set up wrong. Here is the classic comment, "I am supposed to put air in there". People think that the air pressure in the fork won't change making their bike maintenance free. Well these sag percentages are super helpful and make it so easy for people to set there bike up. Keep in mind your weight and ride preference will change depending on where you are riding and with how much gear. The front fork is the top of the line Reba Team fork. I like the handle bar mount lockout a lot and use it frequently. Here is a little secret a lot of people don't know. The suspension that comes on a bike can and usually is different internally that one that you would buy by it self. The reason for this is when a large bike company calls a suspension manufacturer and say they need 10,000 of a particular fork and want a cheap price, something has to give. That give is a plastic washer vs the normal metal one. The suspension manufacturer will change out the internals to make the suspension cheaper. The bottom line with the Fantom is the suspension is good stuff. All the Ritchey WCS parts make me happy because when parts come from a company that sell only specific item such as handle bar, seat post, and stems they better be good or that company will go out of business. I worked at a shop that did a LOT of pro builds and we used Ritchey components on most of the builds. Great company that stand by their products.

I kept the saddle for now. I pulled it off and it weights 213 grams which is light. The FSA Team crank is 2nd from top of the line and I already spoke in length about that. The Vuleta XRP Team SuperLite Disc wheel set seems like a great set up so far. The wheels are strong and super light. There have held true through some really rock trails. You can buy these wheels separately for $300 buck which makes me consider buying another set as a backup/ tubeless set up. We will see. I will talk more about the wheels at a later date. So far I love the Avid Elixir CR Carbon brakes on the bike from a braking stand point. I will report later on the long term stamina of the brakes. So far though they stop really well and they have a nice smooth confidence inspiring feel with sweet look carbon levers. They are also Avid's top of the line brake out right now boasting new technology to the disc brake market. Motobecane has come a long way with their bike specs and the 2009 Fantom Team proves it.