Even though the range of attractive e-bikes is constantly increasing, the differences between the bikes are often limited. Similar components paired with largely familiar frame shapes often lead to a certain randomness. So it’s a refreshing surprise when someone breaks new ground. Mokumono from the Netherlands is one of these companies and with the Delta S we are testing a special bike, which is not only different in design, but also in the drive system and production.
Design
The most striking feature of the Delta S is undoubtedly the bike’s frame — and there’s a lot more to its shape and manufacturing process than meets the eye.
The original idea behind Mokumono was to bring bicycle production back to the Netherlands. After all, the Netherlands has a long tradition as a bicycle nation and the production of bicycles was correspondingly large in the past. With time and growing cost pressure, this changed and now almost all bicycle frames are produced in the Far East — especially in Taiwan. In the search for a solution to produce bicycle frames at the most competitive costs in their own country again, they found what they were looking for in automobile production. And similar to car body parts, the frame of the Mokumono Delta S is pressed from two aluminum plates and then welded. This automated production thus not only saves costs, but also results in a visually unique bike frame!
The construction principle of two aluminum parts can be seen directly on the frame and the internal cable routing makes the wheel appear even cleaner. Especially interesting is the integration of the rear wheel, which does without the usual frame triangle. Thus, this bike was also allowed to be one of the few that manages without a frame opening for the belt drive.
Even if the frame is already the star in this ensemble, all other components are visually subordinate in matte black well-behaved: The electric drive system is inconspicuously integrated, as are the lighting system and the pannier holders on the rear mudguard. The bike lock and the kickstand stand out the most — and also show that in the Netherlands such a bike must not only look good, but also be practical!
Equipment
Let’s stay with the equipment: Basically, the Delta S is designed as a singlespeed e-bike without gears. The electric drive comes from Hyena from Taiwan and is rather unknown here in Germany — so Mokumono also goes its own way here! Positive to mention is definitely the control of the motor via a torque sensor, which achieves a particularly natural driving feel. The battery offers 250 Wh capacity and is firmly installed in the frame above the bottom bracket. The already mentioned Carbon Drive belt drive from Gates then completes the drive train.
The hydraulic disc brakes are from Magura, as tires WTB Horizon with a width of 47 mm are used. High-quality and beautiful to look at are also pedals, handlebar grips and the saddle. The former are from Acros, the latter two from the weatherproof Cambium series from Brooks.
The very sturdy mudguards from Pletscher, which are equipped with a holder for panniers on both sides at the rear, ensure the aforementioned suitability for everyday use. A bright Supernova rear light is also mounted on the rear mudguard, which is made complete with the v521s headlight from the same company at the handlebars. The pictured bike lock is not part of the stock equipment, but it finds a permanent place on the frame. Always included, on the other hand, is the side stand and the compact Knog Oi bell on the handlebars.
Operation
Since Mokumono relies on a rather unknown system for the electric drive, the question of function and operation is of course particularly interesting here. Basically, a conventional display is completely omitted, so the drive system should be as invisible as possible. Thus, there is no classic display on the handlebar, but only a compact control element on the right side of the frame. This can be used to switch the drive on and off and the remaining battery capacity is displayed in three stages by a LED bar. It can also be used to control three drive modes. Thanks to the built-in torque sensor, the pressure on the pedal always determines how strong the support of the motor is. However, the individual drive modes can be used to determine how much electric power is needed in each case.
The advantage of such a system is that you don’t actually have to switch between the drive modes very often. This is a good thing with the Delta S, because the laterally positioned button is naturally rather difficult to see from the driver’s perspective. And even if you keep a close eye on the control element, you often can’t see much: the brightness of the LEDs is so low that you can’t really see them in broad daylight. Mokumono’s smartphone app could soon remedy this, but it was not yet available for testing. It should then also be possible to separately control the bike’s lighting system, which is currently always switched on automatically with the electric drive.
The battery is charged via an opening above the bottom bracket on the left side, which is closed with a magnetic lid. A small but clever detail! The charging plug itself is also magnetic and can thus be coupled particularly easily with the bike.
Riding impression
The Delta S already provides decent boost when starting off — even in the lowest drive mode, whereby the motor can be heard humming a bit. However, this is only noticeable at low speeds and disappears with increasing wind noise at higher speeds. All in all, this motor is inconspicuous in the field of already quite quiet hub motors and does not emit any annoying noises even under load on hills. The control of the electric drive is as you would expect from a system with a torque sensor: natural and following the rider’s effort — here, too, this system proves to be good! The transmission in the Singlespeed always in some compromise, but succeeds well with the Delta S: starting is largely effortless thanks to the electric support and even above the 25 km / h can still be driven with a pleasant cadence.
Even though the bike looks quite sporty in the photos, the seating position on the Delta S is quite comfortable. The frame geometry ensures that you are not too stretched out on the bike despite the long stem, and the handlebars are slightly bent backwards and the Brooks Cambium All Weather saddle contribute to the comfort. The same goes for the wide tires, which can be ridden with relatively low air pressure and thus cushion small bumps well. And despite their low profile, they offer surprisingly good grip. The Magura braking system, which really packs a punch and can always be dosed sensitively, was also a surprise.
Despite its full equipment with a correspondingly large number of attachments, nothing rattled on the Delta S during the ride, which also speaks for the high manufacturing and assembly quality of Mokumono. With a weighed weight of 17 kg (without lock, but with its holder) the Delta S weighs more than Mokumono itself states on the website (there they refer to the “naked” bike without commuter-components). In view of the equipment and stable components this ist still a decent value however, especially since the bike still feels quite quick thanks to electric assistance. Thus, in combination with the quiet belt drive, you glide along almost silently, but is always pleasingly fast on the road!
Conclusion
With the Delta S, Mokumono impressively proves that it can be worthwhile to think outside the box: although the Dutch do many things quite differently, the end product is convincing in almost all respects!
The ride quality, equipment and build quality are excellent and on a high level. And the so far rather unknown electric drive also makes a positive impression — only its control element with the LEDs, which are hardly visible in sunshine, offers room for criticism. However, those who want to attach their smartphone to the handlebars anyway could compensate for this flaw with the upcoming app from Mokumono.
The Delta S is priced at 2,990 euros in the Frozen Silver color shown. For an extra 250 euros, the bike can even be ordered in the personal color of your choice, which could make it look even more striking.
However, the standard color is also enough to get people talking — a surprisingly large number of passers-by inquired about the bike with interest. This is probably another sign that the Delta S is no ordinary bike!
More info on the Delta S and the new, very similarly built, Delta C can be found on Mokumono’s website.
2 thoughts on “Special through and through: Mokumono’s Delta S singlespeed e-bike in the test”
Curious how you attach the lock to the frame. The mokumono website does not show this as an option and there are 2 rings in the frame but in my experience the abus locks can only be fixed with bottleholder connection points. Is there a special trick?
Hi Wilhelm, this is Tom from Mokumono. Thanks for the question! We’ve made a special adapter to make a bottleholder connection point just in front of the battery. With it, you can mount an Abus folding lock like on the bike in this review. We are yet to launch an accessories page that will include the adapter but we can already include the adapter with new orders.