Moots Custom Build

Buying Custom from Mellow Johnny's

As active Moots and Seven Cycles dealers, we have a lot of experience guiding our clients through the custom bike buying experience. While lengthy and much more involved than buying an off the shelf option, going custom can be a rewarding choice for the discerning customer. The benefit is a bike built for your specific desires. Each part handpicked. Every angle adjusted to meet your exact needs. The risk is that the more details involved exponentially increase the chance of mistake. We've designed this system to eliminate as much of that risk as possible, and provide the best custom buying experience in the industry.

A select group of our customers are forced into the custom bike arena due to their specific genetics. Those customers are quite simply unable to find a stock manufacturer making a bike that fits them correctly, and in order for them to enjoy the sport going custom is really their only option. Overwhelmingly though, the custom bike client is simply someone looking to create an item unique to them. Someone who appreciates craftsmanship, and someone who is excited by the details that go into that process.

As mentioned above, our full custom partners are Moots and Seven. Both of these companies exclusively manufacture Titanium bicycles. If carbon is more your style, Trek's Project One is a great semi-custom alternative. While you won't be able to change the geometry of the bikes, you have the ability to customize every other detail, from paint to parts.

How the process works:

You know you're interested in a custom bike, you just aren't sure where to begin. The first thing to do is to swing by the shop and talk to one of our sales staff, and quite possibly one of our service members as well. Even if you know that you want a Moots Psychlo X RSl, you may not know that it comes with a Press Fit 30 bottom bracket that doesn't fit the crank you wanted to use. Our staff can be a great sounding board and help point you in the right direction. We have real world experience with all the new products and can help separate the quality products from the over hyped ones.

Once the details are sorted and the parts are picked, the next, most crucial stage will be determining your custom geometry. While you can always swap seatposts or wheels, the geometry of your bike is set. These measurements will dictate your overall comfort, efficiency and power production. This stage is always handled by one of the qualified coaches from Pedal Hard, our in house Training Center.

Bike Fits at Mellow Johnny's

The coaches from Pedal Hard will look at your current fit using the RETUL system, which is widely regarded as the finest in the world, and have a long discussion with you concerning your riding style and habits, as well as what you would like from your new bike. After your fit is dialed, the Pedal Hard coaches will then send these measurements to your chosen manufacturer. The manufacturer then turns those measurements into your specific geometry. In a world where a few millimeter change in saddle height can solve a chronic hamstring issue, these measurements are important.

This is a stage where working with an experienced shop pays dividends. Quite often, custom manufacturers will balk at measurements or change geometry to better suit their manufacturing process. Having a fitter in your corner with enough confidence to know that their measurements are correct is important. They can handle the details and present you a set of plans based upon what was discussed. After you sign off on these, the geometry is set and the build enters the manufacturers queue. Turnaround can vary greatly between companies, but seems to average out at around eight weeks.

I'm gonna be honest, those are a long eight weeks. Customers often swing by weekly to chat about their parts selection, and second guess their decisions. That's OK. So much of buying a custom bike is the experience and often we're just as excited about the builds as you are.

Once the bike arrives, our Service department lovingly builds your dream machine. It's not uncommon for a Pro Build of a custom bike to take eight hours. The care put into these builds is quite amazing, and our mechanics are some of the best.

For the final step, it's back to the fit room to make sure that all the details are set. Because the bike is built specifically for you, this final fit is more about fine tweaks than major changes. Confirming measurements and making sure that the saddle, bar and stem are comfortable is the order of the day.

And that's it, our exhaustive custom bike buying guide. Exceptionally thorough, and honed over the years to provide you with the best possible experience. Swing by if any of this piqued your interest and we can go into more detail about any or all aspects of the process.

RETUL Measurements

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