Mondraker Crafty Carbon R Long term Review

Spanish Sauce

The Mondraker Crafty Carbon R is a mid-tier option on a six-bike lineup from the Spanish company. It’s a 160/150 travel, carbon front and alloy rear trail eMTB that might be the perfect recipe for a good time on a bicycle. Crafty models have a few differences in travel numbers and battery size options. The Crafty R is the latest model in the lineup with an 800Wh removable battery and the newest Bosch Kiox 400 top tube display. The Crafty XR with the Ohlins suspension front and rear is compelling, but the real-world performance of the Crafty R may not be as far behind as one might think with its seemingly pedestrian spec list.

The test bike arrived a few days before Whistler Crankworx, and the Bosch eMTB challenge that Cam, Tim and I participated in. Having done a couple of shorter shake down rides on home turf before the main event, the Crafty R was easy to set up and get comfortable on. Turns out, comfort is important when it comes to results and the Bosch eMTB chalenge went really well for me. On paper, the Crafty R was familiar: 460mm reach, a 64.5° headangle and 638mm stack for the size medium were within the circle of my daily driver, the 2024 Orbea Rallon. On the trail however, something interesting happened. The 56.5lb bike rode like a butterfly on crack. I’d like to point out that 56.5lb is 1/3 my body weight. So compared to the 35lb bike I usually ride, my center of gravity lowered significantly.

The ‘Aha’ moment would come a few weeks into our relationship. Hang around for that.

10,700 CAD / 7,800 US is not pocket change when you consider some of the parts on this bike. But somehow the charming Spaniard makes up for it on the trails. The Crafty R is dressed with SRAM’s base level drivetrain and brakes. On shifting duty, you have the S1000 OEM-only derailleur. Not only does it get the job done, it does it in such a seamless fashion that you start thinking, “Why am I still paying for XX or even XO level stuff?” The all-steel cassette is indestructible and should last a few centuries, even if you try your worst, and I believe you will.

The Gen 5 Bosch CX motor unleashes all the fury going uphill as you mash through the gears. The S1000 doesn’t care. Nor should you. When it comes to slowing the caballo down, base-level SRAM Maven brakes do an outstanding job on 200mm Centerline rotors. Many have noted SRAM’s base Maven levers to have a lighter, crisper feel under the fingers, and it remains true here. Unless I was given the Ultimates for their pad contact adjustment, the base-level Mavens are winners.

The carbon front triangle looks a little bloated and outdated compared to much of the current eMTB field. But there aren’t many that offer an 800Wh option, let alone one that drops its battery with the turn of a 5mm Allen key. It has a dual-stage bolt that secures it to the frame, which is handy for a bike of this weight that needs to be hung from a hook in the garage. Drop the battery and save yourself 8.6lb of weight. Since the battery is not structural, you could technically ride without it. There is no blanking cover that I am aware of, but the Crafty descends well without its battery baby. This would also help with travelling to and from Europe with the Crafty. Just arrange a battery on the other end of your trip, either via shipping or through a Mondraker dealer. I imagine these battery rental businesses will be booming in the next 5 years.

Geometronomics

After a few weeks on the Crafty, I started noticing a habit I was developing. After every ride, my face would hurt from the massive smile that would splatter all over it. I was really getting along with this thing. The Salsa Notch that came before it was no slouch. With 180mm of travel front and rear, that thing went down whatever I pointed at without an issue. The Mondraker just fit me like a glove. On the climbs, the 456mm rear end would keep the front planted while the magical Zero Design suspension would sit at sag and move in and out of travel just enough to create traction without wallowing. This allowed me to maintain a better fore and aft balance for optimal climbing. I managed to climb things I previously couldn’t on a variety of eMTBs. Big praise for a hobby climber. Climbing talk rarely makes you any friends, so I’ll talk about the reason you are here. The Downhill.

Riding Down on the Mondraker Crafty R

I stand 5’9 (175cm) tall. I have long arms, shorter legs, and a hairy torso. I share similar-length arms to a man of 6’1″ in height. This allows for a tall stance on the bike. I cut my bars to 780mm and soft-lock my knees as often as I can. When it is time to get low on the bike, my shorter legs allow for a fast transition, but I can save a ton of energy by locking my legs out. I developed this technique due to my lack of general fitness earlier in my biking days. The less work the quads are doing, the longer they can work for. This stance also allows me to drive the bike from my feet whenever possible. Light on the hands, heavy on the feet, I keep telling myself as I hurl down the hill. The size medium Mondraker, with its 638mm stack and 25/30mm BB drop, puts me in the perfect position. I imagine I can push the limits of this stance with even taller bars at some point, but the magic spot is pretty damn close. For comparison, I made this sweet GIF overlaying my stance on the 170mm Rallon and the 160mm Crafty. The weight shift is drastic. Should I run out the door to buy 55mm rise bars tomorrow? While I think this would negatively affect the climbing character of the meat bike, the descending might be elevated.

These kinds of discoveries may be nails in the coffin of long-travel pedal bikes. As the needle moves towards electric-assisted climbing for risky descents, the popularity of analog big bikes begins to wane. At the same time, the short travel category is booming with capable yet light and efficient bikes. Where does this leave us in the eMTB sphere for the 160/150mm bike? Does it make sense to offer these beasts with as much travel as possible and skip this mid-travel bracket? It is hard to say, as the Crafty blends the agility of shorter travel bikes with the stability and poise normally found on longer rigs, perfectly. It’s a platform that can hang with the DH bike crowd on the rowdiest of trails. I think the Ohlins version-the Crafty XR-could be the perfect blend of spice for that!

Suspension

As I mentioned earlier, the Crafty R is a modestly specced bike. This includes the suspension components. Up front, we have a 160mm Fox 38 Performance Grip, and out back, a base level Fox Float X in 185x55mm size. There was not a moment when I wished I had a more adjustable, higher-end damping suspension on there. Not once! The kinematics are on the side of progressive out back but suit the small air can of the Float X perfectly. The chassis is responsive. It initiates travel easily but never wallows. Once at sag, which is happy at 30% (190 psi for this 160-lb rider), there is plenty of support to push off. The Crafty never feels big despite its weight. It rides light and changes direction in a slightly different manner than some other bikes. I found the best way to ride the Crafty is to stand tall and lean the bars, pivoting from the ankles and knees. The bike will then carve a perfect line like someone who knows what they are doing in waist-deep powder. When steered from the bars, like you would most bikes, the Mondraker oversteers. The feeling is initially strange but not too hard to get used to. After a couple of rides, you’ll start to wonder how you rode all your other bikes.

Mavic E-Deemax Wheels

These wheels have been stirring up mixed emotions for me. On one hand, the ratchet hub-driven, bladed spoke-laced, eMTB strong wheelset has been putting in the hard work trying to stay true and dent-free. On the other hand, the spokes kept loosening, and the 56lb bike driving down onto the DD Maxxis DHR II finally gave up its air after 590kms of abuse. There were a few bumps and bruises on the rim and 3 rounds of spoke re-tensioning. I’ve also discovered that if you are going to give us straight pull spokes, make them bladed. A quick grab with the Knipex pliers makes them much easier to true than round spokes. I would also recommend running a DH casing tire on the Crafty Carbon R and possibly with an insert. I cannot fault the EXO+ / DD spec here.

Nuts and Bolts

Frame hardware is another interesting talking point for the new Mondraker. The cable routing is through the headtube. This makes me happy. But if you wanted to clean up your cockpit, you can run your hoses and cables through the headset, too. Options are nice. The suspension hardware is robust and, for a dual-link bike, easy to access for the most part. The main pivot bolt on the driveside hides behind the chain guide and chainring. It came loose on me a couple of times, and I managed to undo the forward guide mounting bolt and rotate it out of the way to get the 8mm Allen key in place. Not impossible, but I would have liked cleaner access. You can remove the chainguide entirely if you want. I have many bikes without guides doing just fine.

The rocker link is aluminum, beefy and welded in the middle for a medieval look. The rearward bolts are impossible to access without removing the trunnion shock bolts. This is a huge miss for me. They haven’t loosened up on me, but I’ll take a better user interface over an aesthetic look here. All the bearings on the suspension are 3802 size, which makes shopping for replacements easy. I don’t see them fouling prematurely either.

The interrupted seat tube and the dropper insertion will be an issue for many people. For me, the provided 160mm dropper post has been fine, however. The in-house ON/OFF dropper and lever have been smooth, fast and trouble-free. They never affected my riding, but long dropper fans will have to look elsewhere.

The Bosch Gen5 CX motor is a star here. We’ve talked about it countless times. It is quiet, powerful and damn reliable. It comes programmed for 85Nm 600W from the factory, but you are able to access 750W 100Nm from your app, and it makes a difference. If you are riding solo most of the time, I don’t see a huge benefit to running 100Nm of torque. But if your mates are on Avinox or Rocky Mountain bikes, you will appreciate the power on hand. So far, the Bosch motor has been reliable even with the power bump. The SRAM Transmission components are keeping up just as well. I don’t think we need more power for bicycles, but we will see what the next few years hold.

Verdict

The Mondraker Crafty Carbon R is a surprising bike with an appetite for fun. The 30mm stem paired with a 456mm rear center helps keep it planted and sets the rider up for a unique and exciting riding stance. It makes riding faster and safer, if that makes any sense to you. The supple and supportive suspension makes me want to try everything in the Mondraker lineup. The hype is real, and it is fast. There are full carbon models of the Crafty with 600Wh batteries if you want a lighter bike, but the externally removable battery is a brilliant piece of engineering in this age of integration; you get to decide how you store and charge your bike. The Crafty R is one of the most exciting bikes I have ridden lately. The geometry and the trail feel are something I will try to replicate on my other bikes, even if that means strapping weight to the bottom of them.

10,700CAD / 7,800US

Mondraker Crafty Lineup