Video: Morpheus VSlope 2016

Sep 15, 2015 at 0:05
by Morpheus Bikes  
Morpheus VSlope 2016

by morpheus-bikes
Views: 8,326    Faves: 52    Comments: 2


It is easy to be so close to something great; without being able to see it clearly. This may have been the case when we asked our riders to investigate what they needed in a slope style bike to be competitive and feel confident on. Most of the feedback was related to adjustments that they were being requesting to our then current slope bike; the Skyla. At a certain moment in time management had to step back and say "Guys, I think we are looking toward the wrong bike for inspiration." Once the focus was shifted toward our hardtail, the Vimana. It became clear the next slope style bike would be based around that platform. Now, after two full successful seasons on the world tour, we are in stock with a production unit that is nearly as compact the award winning Vimana.

Bring on the V-Slope.

VSlope
VSlope

Key Features:
- Shortest chain stay option of any slope bike at 14.8 inches (376mm)
- 3.4 inches/86mm travel from custom tuned Fox CTD Evo
- 44-56mm tapered head tube
- Proprietary telescopic rear dropouts (TRD) provides excellent chain tension, alignment, and precise wheel base position
- Low 2.3:1 leverage ratio provides excellent compression and reduced abuse on custom fox rear shock
- Concentric BB pivot design provides single speed compatible without a tensioner
- Proprietary Hydro Form tubing and forged bottom bracket
- ISCG05 chain guide tabs
- Value orientated pricing with frame sets including fox shocks starting at $1295
- Completes starting at $2295
- Sizes regular and Long
- Available in blue, red or black in anodized finish
- Order directly from our website, www.morpheusbikes.com / @morpheus-bikes
- Available now

VSlope

Geometry:
SEAT POST: 30.9mm
SEAT POST CLAMP: 34.9mm
HEAD TUBE: 110mm with 44-56mm cups
HEAD TUBE ANGLE: 68 DEGREES
CHAIN STAY LENGTH: 14.8 TO 15.8 INCHES/376 to 400mm
BOTTOM BRACKET: 73mm
BOTTOM BRACKET HEIGHT: 12.3 INCHES/312mm
TOP TUBE LENGTH:
- REGULAR: 21.3 INCHES/541mm
- LONG: 22.7 INCHES/577mm
TRAVEL: 3.4inches/86mm

VSlope
VSlope
VSlope

Morpheus bikes were founded in the Bronx New York in 2008. Forged from a love and passion for riding, the company strives to design and build bikes competitive on the world stage, at competitive prices.

Author Info:
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Member since Mar 15, 2010
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87 Comments
  • 77 9
 anyone else not sure how they feel about those drop outs?
  • 25 1
 The dropouts appear to use an I beam construction, while they appear slim I'd wager that they are incredibly strong. Having an angle like an I beam creates adds substantially to resilience from bending.
  • 15 3
 Never had an issue with the dropouts. Theyre way stronger than they look. Once you ride one all your doubts will go away
  • 26 2
 i should have been a little more clear: I know they work and are strong. they just look super funky sticking that far out from the frame.
  • 3 1
 I've always thought the same thing, I don't doubt that they're strong, it's just they look like a metal extension price sticking out from the frame, but the rest of the. Ike looks sick
  • 2 0
 *piece not price
  • 7 11
flag camcoz69 (Sep 22, 2015 at 16:15) (Below Threshold)
 all i read here is : "the bike is ugly, i wont ride it"
  • 8 0
 25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m1zk5smTgR1r3p7imo1_500.png
  • 3 0
 Does the CS length calculated from rear wheel axle to BB or ?
  • 4 10
flag mixmastamikey (Sep 23, 2015 at 7:26) (Below Threshold)
 @gbruinoo That's what people say about Cannondales lefty and it still sketches me out and rides like shit. The dropout looks like a derailleur hanger notice how its bolted into place? The engineers know at some point its going to fail. They probably decided "hey lets have a bolt on dropout and disguise it as a chain tensioner so people aren't snapping frames". If they wanted a shorter chainstay they should have eliminated that ugly ass thing. Have fun with this ill ride my P Slope.
  • 18 2
 Do you really believe that we designed the dropout to eventually fail arbitrarily? You are correct about the fact that the dropout are designed to fail if the rear end exceeds its maximum stress level. It make more sense to replace a dropout instead of a whole frame. Particularly if our customer are out of warranty many years down the road a set of TRD dropout are only $35 compared to a new frame.
  • 3 17
flag mixmastamikey (Sep 23, 2015 at 9:32) (Below Threshold)
 @morpheus-bikes $35? Come on you forgot the price of a rotor, caliper, and of course spokes depending on how it fails. When your derailleur hanger breaks over half the time it takes shit out with it. You should eliminate that dropout, lengthen the pivot arms and have the axle where that goofy dropout started. Potential customers already are skeptical on the design i'm not doubting the strength of the system, but if you're trying to market this to someone whose mechanically inclined its going to be a huge turn off.
  • 16 0
 Hey Morpheus, better hire this mixmasta dude, he's totally mechanically inclined
  • 8 2
 @mixmastamikey you obviously are still living in the dark ages if you have never tried a vimana or vimana slope. Hands down the most playful bike around. And so what if you somehow manage to snap a dropout, which is near impossibke from what ive heard. The dudes at morpheus are super helpful in sending you a replacement dropout or extra parts. Id still rather break a dropout than snap a frame, axel and rim all at once. Excuse my if my math is wrong, but 35$ compared to 700$ is a price I can live with
  • 4 2
 Its nice to see how these little bike manufacturers pay attention to the comment sections and how the bigger guys never or rarely reply... Kudos on the dropout design, I like the idea of the break away dropouts! I cant help but wonder what percentage of the maximum frames stress level these little guys can endure, also will there be strain on the frame if the dropout breaks ?
  • 9 1
 In the rare instance that a dropout has broken we have never had a customer damage any other component or part of the frame. Over the last 4 years I would venture to guess we have had 6-8 dropouts damaged or broken. This is about .05% or a half of one percent of production. 90% of those incidents were from guys that ride park nearly every single day of there life. I do not think we have ever had a frame or dropout failure from dirt jumping accept when Anthony Messere bent the top tube of an early 2011 prototype overshooting the drop at bearclaw international 10 feet into the flats. The failure was not catastrophic so he just rode to the bottom and switch out bikes.
  • 3 0
 The best part about the dropouts is you dont even have to look at them while riding! I rode the hardtail on a pumptrack and it was badass especially with how much you can adjust the chainstay length. I still think its cool how the frame name came from someone on pinkbike.
  • 3 8
flag grandmastere (Sep 24, 2015 at 12:10) (Below Threshold)
 Morpheus,

A couple of things:

1) I'm going to assume that the number you quote is probably low because I'm sure there are issues that you either don't think are valid (seems to be common in bike companies...every time I've had a broken frame I get told that it's because I did something wrong) or aren't aware of
2) Even the rate you quote seems pretty high to me. There's no way I'm buying a frame with that high of failure rate no matter how (poorly) you try to spin it (park bikes get used in the park, it's not 'abuse' it's 'use')
3) What's the failure rate on the dropouts of other, similar hardtails? My hunch is that it's a lot lower than that...

E
  • 6 1
 @grandmaster,

1.We made no claim it was the customer fault the total number in 4 years almost 1000 bikes is actually 6 dropouts I just checked. Each was covered under warrenty for those who no longer had one they paid either $50 before consumer direct and $35 since

2. The number is very very low. There is not hard data on this topic because as you would imagine most companies are not to keen to divulge this information. According to our manufacturing partners in Asia in dirt jump/freeride/dh the average percent of warrenty claims for most brands run between 4-7%. Clearly our number is substaintially lower than the industry average assuming those number are correct.

3. No other company has a similar dropout since it is our patent and we do not license it out as of now. Again our industry knowledge shows that 4-7% can be average so again we are clearly allot lower than that.
  • 16 0
 I've been saying that slope bikes make excellent trail bikes for a while now. Some of them allow you to ride casettes and a derailleur, I know a lot of people use the Ticket S for an all around AM bike with a dropper post, but still got sweet geo to jump tons of shit. I use my P-Slope for just about everything but downhill. Bike rides with my dog, dirt jumps, local trails (Duthie is excellent on a PSlope!), and a lot of free ride. Hats off to Morpheus for picking a pretty sweet price point, bike looks great guys.
  • 8 1
 I had a p-slope and couldn't even pedal sitting down on that little nubbin of a seatpost they give you. Would have needed like a 400mm dropper. Using a DJ as a trail bike would be great but it's not for tall guys
  • 2 0
 I have a Morewood Ndiza 4x bike that I use for all mountain. More fun than any long travel rig.
  • 1 0
 In my more twisted dreams, I've wondered the same thing. I can see it being great for people who really like to throw the bike around, too, a la BMX. As for pedaling, there are some 200mm droppers that might be up to the task. Even apart from the cable, though, a lot of slope bikes don't have enough straight seat tube to fit one. Bent tubes, pivots, shock tunnels and the like - consequences of trying to fit suspension in such a short wheelbase, I guess.
  • 2 1
 @tttyyler nubbin
Didn't know anyone else used that word, really made me laugh when I saw it. Also, the point of a nubbin seatpost is to have the seat as out of the way as possible. On a jump bike, the only things the seat is used for is keeping the rear wheel from hitting your ass and to rest on while not riding.
  • 1 0
 @tttyyler I personally don't want/need a dropper on my Pslope, I'm 5'8 so pedaling around has never been a problem for me, I don't typically do really long uphill routes, I'd say the Ticket S with a dropper and a casette seems to satisfy people more in that realm.
  • 1 0
 I agree. I had a GT Distortion as a trail bike. She was a bit heavy, but a great all rounder, pretty burly and reliable, even if I did need to tighten the pivots rather frequently...
  • 1 0
 I have a Trek Ticket S - it is the only FSuspension bike I have , and it is so awesomely agile when riding down an X C trail , as well as awesome riding off a big ladder bridge or taking jumps.
  • 1 0
 MaxDeutsch you forgot about grabbing doing super men etc. and pinching with your legs while doing anything no handed.
  • 2 0
 The thing that sold me on the Morpheus Skyla was the straight seat tube... Using a long seatpost I get full leg extension for pedaling in/out/around the park, and I can drop it all the way down for the fun stuff. Win-win. Pry it from my cold dead hands. :-)
  • 1 0
 totally agree. Slope bikes setup with a rear mech, and other stuff are easily adapted to most riding styles. I have Corsair setup and currently at any moment, I can ride it on XC trails, free ride stuff, bmx-ey dirt jumps, and fast through pumpy/flowy stuff. The trek ticket S is probably the best bike out right now to do it all.
  • 1 0
 Hadn't noticed the Ticket S has a straight seat tube. With a QR collar and a dropper post I might just be able to swing it. Now you got me thinking bad thoughts ...
  • 15 1
 Aaaannddddd.... Now I regret the last three bikes I bought. This thing looks insane!
  • 11 0
 Great pricing, now if only Morpheus did a 160mm Enduro bike of similar price
  • 10 1
 Just wait!
  • 5 0
 @mitch1616, are you allowed to say that?
  • 29 1
 There is very little he is not allowed to say
  • 1 0
 yeeessss!! I want a loki and think it is the strongest contender for the frame I will be saving for, but non replaceable derailleur hanger freak me a bit
  • 8 0
 A non replaceable hanger on 27.5 Loki may seem unconventional and in retrospect not our best marketing decision yet we have never received a customer claim surrounding the hanger/chainstay. In the meanwhile we will always cover a customers claim so if something happens to your frame we have you covered.
  • 1 0
 I have no doubt that you all put good work into it, that zero claims prove it, just a bit freaky haha maybe overthinking, but the loki in frame numbers seem perfect for my needs!
  • 1 0
 I bought a loki, blew me away. Absolutely bomb proof (which is what I was expecting) but so light and nimble it can dance up climbs as easy as it bombs down the mountain
  • 2 0
 It's a shame the Loki doesn't have the Vimana's good looks. Something about the line continuation between TT and Seat Stay.
  • 2 0
 This will all be addressed in the near future. In the meanwhile we dropped the price over $1,200 on the current Loki since we went consumer direct so for the moment its a real bargain based on the frame and components.
  • 1 0
 Ohh yes! Is a bargain one of the best deals out there. Better hurry up haha
  • 4 0
 @morpheus-bikes nice to see a company pushing so hard to right the ship. I expect good things from Morpheus in the future. Keep it up!
  • 2 0
 Had one of the first vimana's after production for the first time. Loved it. Loved Mike. Loved the vibe of the company. Bike had no problems. When I spend my money, I want it to go towards a good bike and a good company. Not a huge corporation. I always wished that my DJ had a rear shock. Well now here it is. Looks like I know what I'm getting next. Shout outs to Morpheus bikes from west Seattle! Cheers! Lewi!
  • 6 1
 Fine, I'm selling my Ticket
  • 1 0
 I want it, that paint job tho.....
  • 9 4
 Kudos for Blk, Red, or Blue NOT Neon, Crazy, and Trendy.
  • 3 0
 The cable stays are bonded with body filler- nothing wrong with that but I am fairly certain those are the only hardened anodize colors that match up with the filler. Although if there is a neon ano somewhere... I would totally ride that.
  • 4 0
 Might have to sell my Streetsweeper and Double frames to fund this.
  • 2 0
 I have one hanging in my barn waiting to be assembled. I can't wait to roast it next weekend
  • 2 0
 I have one hanging in my shed waiting to be assembled. Won't be this weekend though, hahaa.
  • 3 0
 I wish I could try this out!!
  • 4 2
 also apparantly both builds weigh the same despite one having a way lighter fork
  • 3 1
 How adjustable are those chainstays? Could I run 27.5 wheels?
  • 8 0
 Yes you can though we prefer it with the 26. Technically you could run gears, 27.5, and a remote seat post
  • 1 0
 How do they get the chain stays so short when the old Lepink had 388mm using 24" wheels? Could you use 24" wheels and further decrease the chainstay length?
  • 5 0
 I would say about 375mm is going to be the absolute shortest even with 24s since the dropouts bottom out and the bike is designed to be its stiffest in the shortest position with the 26 " wheel. We have not tried our Vimana or V JR. dropouts on the slope but that might get you a shorter 24 inch cs if you so desire however we would have to check a couple details on dropout to ensure that this is a safe option.
  • 6 1
 @morpheus-bikes you guys are all over this thread! I dig it!
  • 1 0
 You wouldn't force a 27.5 into a slopebike because the chainstays are supposed to be short... There is a reason why slopebikes have BMX-influenced geometry
  • 1 1
 You might force a 27.5 into a slopebike if you were a short person (5'5") riding it with a dropper post as a trail bike.
  • 1 0
 Looks and probably rides amazing imo
  • 4 3
 Looks beautiful, please tell me its 26"!!!
  • 11 1
 For dirt jump and slope style we don't forsee switching to a larger wheel size anytime soon. So yes it is 26
  • 1 0
 holy fuck chubes get a haircut!!
  • 1 0
 2:29 flip double whip ? looks like a masive trick
  • 1 0
 Can you run 24s with the frame?
  • 1 0
 yes
  • 1 0
 looks so sick!
  • 1 1
 I don't think it has the boost. I wonder if it can fit + tires.
  • 5 5
 Sounds like a P-Slope
  • 3 9
flag NWuntilirest (Sep 22, 2015 at 14:43) (Below Threshold)
 They're ljke the complete opposite bike.....
  • 4 2
 Not sure how two full suspension slope bikes with concentric BBs can be the complete opposite of each other.
  • 6 1
 I've ridden both... P-slope feels like a low mtn bike, Vimana Slope feels like a whippy dj. Big difference!
  • 2 1
 Maybe they feel different, but they're not the complete opposite of each other.
  • 2 1
 I thought the P-slope felt like a bmx bike... coming from a p3.
  • 1 0
 Not opposites, but do feel very different. I also rode the regular Vimana, not the long which maybe similar sizing to the P-slope.
  • 2 4
 Should have made one with a Pike DJ
  • 13 0
 They have this really neat option where you can just buy the frame and pit whatever fork you want on it!
  • 4 7
 lol at backwards rear tire
  • 4 1
 That's how Table Tops are..........it says on the sidewall to run the tire the directed direction on the front and then the opposite direction when it's on the rear.
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