Flow is a UK bike manufacturer that takes pride in all of its products being ‘designed, developed and tested’ in the UK. Flow bikes are divided into three distinct categories, with some bikes fitting into two or more of these.
Dirt: these bikes are used for jumping, tricks and in much tougher terrain. For this reason they are robust and built from the strongest materials to make them last longer.
Street: these bikes are also designed to be tough as they are intended for use in urban areas, performing stunts and tricks on purpose-built structures.
4x: this stands for 4 Cross racing, a popular and tough racing circuit in the UK. All of the bikes designed for this category have an emphasis on lightness for increased speed in the races, as well as being strong and robust.
The company’s philosophy is to produce ‘clean, light and durable products’, with the aim of avoiding all unnecessary gimmicks in order to reduce the weights and increase the longevity of the products.
Each product is specifically tested by riders in each discipline, meaning they are always designed with the expert advice of those who will be using them.
Products
The products are divided into the bike frames and the complete models. Flow also produces a range of clothes and extras that are not specifically linked to bikes.
Frames
Drift
The drift is the flagship frame, and is essentially designed to be used for any purpose. It is light enough to race, but it is also tough so it can be put through its paces.
The bike was designed to fill the gap that was left when the Moe frame was redesigned. A few features were taken out of the Moe, such as the sliding dropout system, and the Drift was designed so that these features were not lost for good.
The Drift is a single-speed bike, and can therefore be used as a street bike or a jump bike. It contains tough dropouts, good quality butted tubing and a reinforced head tube. It also restricts the use of gusseting to where it is absolutely necessary, a feature found across the Flow range.
It is adaptable so that it can be fitted with gears if required, and it comes with a stainless steel head-badge. It is available in a 24 inch or 26 inch size, and is constructed using double butted 4130 chromo for added toughness. This does not impact on the weight, however, and it comes in at just 5.9 lbs. In 2008 it was released in a high-gloss black colour
Moe
The Moe has been designed specifically with dirt and street riding in mind. It comes in a double triangle design, and sticks to the company philosophy of fewer gimmicks and more attention to detail.
Similar to the Drift, it too only has limited gusseting, restricting it to the head and down-tube junction. It also comes without a wishbone, and features clipped cable guides for the rear disk brake. The bike aims to be ‘stiff, strong and responsive’, and in order to do this it has full CNC 3d dropouts, a straight seat stay and a tapered chain stay which all add to the performance value.
The Moe frame is for serious riders and racers who need a quality model that will last, as well as aiming to be stylish at the same time. Made from double-butted 4130 chromo, the Moe is certainly tough, and it is also versatile in that it can be used with 24 inch or 25 inch wheels.
Weighing in at 5.9lbs – the same as the Drift – it has also been released in three colours for 2008: light green, chocolate and mid grey.
Myth
The Myth frame is, according to the official website, the ‘most accomplished purpose built 4x race frame currently available’. This is only the company sales pitch, but it certainly seems to fit the bill, as it is very light and rigid at the same time.
Again the designers at Flow have focused on a simple design that puts a greater emphasis on function. The bike only really has one essential aim, and that is ‘to win races’.
It features an internally-machined head tube which is 5mm thick, as well as 3D forged dropouts and a disc-only setup. It is also hydro formed for strength.
Although it is not a suitable bike for Street or Dirt jumping, the makers claim it will be durable enough to last for two seasons on the 4x circuit. It is made of aluminium which is light and stiff, but it is not as durable as the chromo used in the other frames.
The Myth is the lightest frame from Flow, weighing just 4.2lbs, and it comes both in dark green and light blue colours.
Ting
Although the Ting frame is not available to buy at the time of writing, it has been based on the Drift 24-inch frame, with small adjustments being made to make it more suitable for parks and trails.
Its main features include a mid-size BB shell, an integrated headset and numerous changes to the dropouts, chain stays and cable routing. It is billed as Flow’s most up-to-date product, and will go into production shortly.
Complete Models
Drift 24-inch
The Drift 24-inch is a single-speed system designed for durability. Flow makes no grand claims about the model, simply stating that it is a bike designed entirely for jumps.
The frame is not quite the same as the Drift frame previously described, as it has a head badge and uses a BMX size BB shell. It also includes 3-piece chromo cranks to make use of the additional strength that comes from the larger bearings.
Coming in a single-speed format for increased simplicity and durability, it is intended to be used for dirt, street and park riding.
Drift 26-inch
This is billed as a dirt bike that can do anything. It is light enough to race on the 4x circuit, yet it is also strong enough to dirt jump.
The frame is almost the same as the Drift frame described earlier, but the laser-cut stainless-steel head badge has been converted to a standard type sticker badge instead. Comprising a large number of high-quality components, this bike is the best model available from Flow.
Moe
The Moe is based on the Moe frame, and for that reason it is a race and a jump bike. For this it comprises the main attributes of being light and stiff for 4x racing, as well as being strong enough to jump.
Although it comes across as a very basic model, this is Flow’s intention. By minimising lots of additional extras and add-ons, the weight can be significantly reduced to get a lot more speed out of it.
The frame is not quite as fast as the Myth, but its strength means that it is suitable for long-term trail riding. It comes with the same emphasis on high-quality components as the Drift, and is available in a baby blue colour.