The snappy handling and demeanor of the FLX Babymaker 2 isn’t just due to its frame geometry. The ultra-stiff aluminum fork and the relatively narrow 28mm-wide tires contribute to the bike’s zippy feel.
Added up, these features along with the aluminum frame mean that the FLX Babymaker 2 isn’t the most comfortable bike to ride. Think of it as the stiff suspension of a sports car. It’s hard to make a bike that has the lightning-fast behavior of a racing bike and give it the comfort of a cruiser. Those qualities are essentially opposites. For anyone wondering what to expect in comfort, the key is to look at tire width—the wider the tire, the more comfortable the rider will be because bigger tires can be run at lower pressure and these are narrow tires.
With a short stem and a 620mm-wide handlebar the steering is as precise as it is immediate. The ergonomic grips sport a faux leather covering.
Now, a word on the saddle: Most saddles we encounter on e-bikes are on the large side, full of padding and reasonably comfortable. The saddle on the FLX Babymaker 2 typifies what we find on fixies—a racing saddle with less padding than a startup’s budget. For long-term comfort on the Babymaker 2 the trick here is to buy actual bike shorts—not just stretchy Lycra shorts, but ones with the pad sewn into the shorts. The idea is to put the padding right where it needs to be—under the rider’s caboose.
The FLX Babymaker 2 is offered in two different sizes and normally that excites us, but in this case, even more, sizes would have been nice. The issue is that in this style of bike, the two tubes that determine a bike’s size (the top tube and seat tube) are rather long. While the Large/XL is likely to fit many taller men, the Small/Medium is unlikely to be comfortable for anyone shorter than say 5-feet-7 or so. That’s largely attributed to the 31″ step-over height of the top tube even on the smaller frame.
One of our few criticisms of the FLX Babymaker 2 is the tiny display. It’s mounted out near the grip and the farther from the stem the display is, the harder it is to read. Compounding that is that other than current speed almost nothing else can be read while riding (despite the presence of battery, odometer, and PAS level).
Provided the buyer is well-suited to the size, the FLX Babymaker 2 is comfortable enough for the style of bike that it is, and a very exciting ride.
Source link
