Moulton is a niche but much-loved British bike brand, which produces small-wheeled bikes with suspension that stand out thanks to their lattice frames.
At Eurobike 2023, the brand displayed the Moulton NS Safari, the first of its bikes to feature disc brakes on the front and rear wheels.
The small-wheeled bike is said to be suitable for “all kinds of terrain”, ranging from tarmac to gravel.
The bike packs intriguing suspension technology and is built with a Campagnolo Ekar groupset.
Space-frame design
The NS Safari’s frame is what Moulton calls a ‘space-frame design’.
This design was first released in 1983 after Alex Moulton, the originator of the Moulton, conceptualised the idea six years prior to achieving a lightweight frame that also provided lateral stiffness and torsional rigidity.
The frame has a fillet-brazed construction and uses Columbus Spirit, Kaisei NiCrMo and Reynolds steel.
The frame can be split into halves to make it easy to transport. Unlike folding bikes, which are hinged, Moulton bikes can be divided into halves to make them easy to transport.
Moulton suspension
Alex Moulton was an engineer and inventor renowned for his suspension designs, notably rubber suspension systems for cars, including the Mini.
He began using rubber suspension systems on bicycles and the NS Safari features this technology.
Moulton’s international sales executive, Steven Harvey, explained to BikeRadar that rubber suspension relies on shear rather than compression.
Harvey provided the analogy of twisting the muscle on your arm, where resistance increases as you twist.
The fork of the NS Safari features Moulton’s Flexitor suspension, which uses rubber. This design does not have bearings or friction and doesn’t need servicing, according to Moulton.
The NS Safari features Moulton’s Hydroelastic suspension with a sealed rear-fork pivot.
The Moulton NS Safari spec
The Moulton NS Safari features a titanium seatpost and handlebar stem.
With its eyes on gravel riding, the bike has a 13-speed Campagnolo Ekar groupset. The groupset has a 44t front chainring and a 9-36t cassette.
The 20in Moulton DTR20 wheels are held in the frame with 12mm thru-axles and shod with Schwalbe G-One Speed tyres.
The NS Safari can fit a front pannier rack, rear platform carrier and a rear day bag carrier.
The bike has a claimed weight of 10kg.
When will the bike be available?
Harvey said the brand hopes to have the NS Safari available for purchase before Christmas.
Moulton builds its own jigs for production in-house and is still refining some of the bike's features. So producing the bikes by the end of the year is dependent on the brand finalising its production line.
The Moulton NS Safari will retail for £10,950.
