Which Elves Bike Should You Choose?

There are eight Elves bikes in the current range. Eight UCI-certified carbon framesets, eight different geometries, eight different missions. The Falath EXP outperformed six bikes that competed at the 2025 Tour de France in the wind tunnel. The Vanyar Pro starts at 7.1kg. The Avari Pro fits riders from 145cm tall. The Mori Aerox is built for gravel racing. They are not the same bike, and they are not for the same rider.

Most cyclists who come to us about Elves have already done their homework. They know the frames are good. What they want to work out is which one is right for the way they actually ride, and how to spec it so they still love the bike in two years' time.

This guide is the answer. We are the only Elves Bikes workshop in London, and we have built every model in this range for real customers. So instead of repeating the marketing brochure, we are going to do something more useful: we are going to walk you through the range by rider profile, tell you which Elves we would put you on, and explain why.

Marco, our co-founder and head mechanic, is currently spec'ing a Mori Aerox for himself. So this is not theoretical advice. We ride these bikes too.

🤔 First, why Elves at all?

Quick context before we get into the models, because it changes how you read the rest of this guide.

Elves Bikes is the consumer brand of Elves Carbon Technology, who have been making OEM and ODM carbon frames for the global cycling industry since 2006. In 2016 they launched their own brand, putting their best engineering into framesets sold under their own name rather than badged for someone else.

In practical terms, that means three things:

• The carbon is genuinely high grade. Toray T800 and T1000, the same materials used by World Tour teams. No mystery layup, no rebadged bottom-end frame.
• The price is not where you would expect it to be. A UCI-approved aero frameset sits in the £2,500 to £4,000 region rather than £5,000 to £8,000. You are paying for the carbon and the engineering, not the marketing budget of a major brand.
• You can customise almost everything. Free custom paint as standard, free choice of groupset, wheels, cockpit, gearing and saddle. This is not a stock bike with a couple of colour options. This is a custom build at the price of a stock bike.

The trade-off, and the reason we exist as a workshop, is that turning an Elves frameset into a finished bike requires a real mechanic. Carbon paste torqued correctly. Cables routed cleanly through internal headsets. Hydraulic lines bled. Tubeless tyres mounted properly. Bike fit dialled in. Done badly, you have an expensive frameset and a slightly disappointing bike. Done well, you have a machine that fits perfectly and rides like nothing else at the price.

That is what we do. We are the only Elves workshop in London, and every bike we deliver is built in Bow by our Cytech-qualified mechanics. Here is how the custom build process works.

Now, on to the bikes.

🏎️ The Aero Racer: Falath EXP, EVO+ or Pro

If you race crits, ride hard in your local club run, target sportives where the average is over 30 km/h, or simply love the feeling of a bike that goes fast for free, the Falath family is what you are looking for.

All three Falath frames share the same DNA: aero tubing profiles, integrated cockpit, internal cable routing, UCI approval. Where they differ is in carbon layup, weight, stiffness and price.

Falath EXP, for the serious racer

The most advanced Falath to date. Wind-tunnel tested, and Elves report that it outperformed six bikes that competed at the 2025 Tour de France. If you are racing seriously, want the best aero performance Elves has built, and have the legs to make use of it, the EXP is the choice. Build your Falath EXP at Aztecs.

If you want to see what an EXP looks like as a finished build, we have one: read about Ben's "Stuntman" Falath EXP Sport, the most personal Falath EXP we have built so far. It is a real customer build with a real story behind it, including the spec choices we made and why.

Falath EVO+, for the competitive club rider

A groundbreaking frame that reshaped what a UCI-approved aero bike at this price point could be. Stiff, fast, and visually striking. If you are a strong club rider, you race the occasional sportive or local crit but it is not your full-time job, and you want a real race machine without paying EXP money, the EVO+ is the sweet spot of the family. Build your Falath EVO+ at Aztecs.

Falath Pro, for the rider entering aero

The original UCI-approved Elves aero bike. Lower carbon grade than the EXP and EVO+, but still genuinely aero, still UCI-approved, and significantly cheaper. If you want into the Falath family but the EXP is more bike than you currently need, the Pro is the entry point. We pair it with electronic groupsets as standard. Build your Falath Pro at Aztecs.

"Most riders we put on a Falath do not need an EXP. The EVO+ is the smart buy for 80% of competitive amateurs. Save the EXP money for better wheels, a power meter, or your next bike fit."

⛰️ The Climber: Vanyar Pro

Some riders live for the climbs. If your favourite ride is up Box Hill (or further afield, the Alps, the Pyrenees, Mallorca), if you watch the mountain stages of the Grand Tours rather than the sprints, and if every gram on the bike feels personal, the Vanyar Pro is your bike.

The Vanyar Pro is a UCI-approved lightweight climber that weighs from just 7.1kg in Team size 47cm. That is genuinely light, especially for a frame that is also surprisingly stiff and aerodynamically sound. Elves has spent serious effort making sure this bike does not flex when you stand up out of the saddle on a steep ramp.

It is the choice of pro-riders globally for a reason. And if you live in London but plan your holidays around mountain rides, you want this geometry under you. Build your Vanyar Pro at Aztecs.

🪨 The Gravel Racer: Mori Aerox

Marco's next bike. So we have a lot to say about this one.

Gravel as a category has split in two over the last few years. There is gravel as adventure cycling: bikepacking, all-day rides, comfort-first geometry. And there is gravel as racing: aggressive, drop-bar fast, designed for events like Unbound, the UCI Gravel World Championships, and the growing UK gravel race calendar.

The Mori Aerox is firmly in the second camp. It takes the sharp geometry of the Falath Pro, cranks up the attitude, and gets dirty with unapologetic speed. UCI-grade carbon construction. Aerodynamic profiles you do not normally find on a gravel frame. Race-ready handling.

If you want a comfortable bike for canal-path coffee rides, this is not it. (We can recommend other options if that is you, just send us a message.) If you target gravel events, ride hard on mixed terrain, and want a bike that is genuinely fast on the lanes as well as off them, the Mori Aerox is the answer.

Marco is currently spec'ing his own Mori for the 2026 season. Once it is built, we will document the full spec and the reasoning behind every choice on the blog. Build your Mori Aerox at Aztecs.

🌄 The All-Rounder: Eglath ARX

If the Falath is "race", and the Mori is "race off-road", the Eglath ARX is "everything else, fast".

It tips the scales from just 7.3kg in Team size 46cm. The 2026 model brings genuine all-road versatility to Elves' carbon engineering, with clearance for wider tyres than a pure road frame, slightly more relaxed geometry, and the kind of feel that lets you ride a 200km audax without your shoulders complaining at kilometre 150.

If your typical week is: long club ride at the weekend, a midweek faster session, the occasional sportive, an audax in the diary, and you want one bike to do all of it without compromise, the Eglath ARX is the answer. It is the most versatile bike in the Elves range. Build your Eglath ARX at Aztecs.

🏊 The Triathlete: Amanyar 1.0

Triathlon is its own world, and the Amanyar 1.0 is built for it. Purpose-built. The geometry, the tube profiles, the aerodynamic priorities and the adjustability all assume you will be in TT position for hours, not minutes.

It is optimised for torsional strength and power transfer, the two things that matter most when you are pushing hard at constant intensity in a non-natural riding position. The frame's adjustability means it can be dialled in for sprint-distance racing right through to Ironman. We pair it with full custom paint and a complete build service, so the bike that arrives is ready to race.

If you race triathlon and you want a serious TT bike without paying Cervélo P5 or Canyon Speedmax money, this is the conversation to have. Build your Amanyar 1.0 at Aztecs.

🚴 The First Carbon Bike: Avari Pro

Not every Elves customer is a racer. The Avari Pro is the most accessible bike in the range, and it is genuinely excellent for what it is.

It is designed for riders of all genders and ages, with a sizing range covering heights from 145cm to 188cm. That sizing range matters. A lot of carbon brands make bikes that genuinely fit riders 165cm and up, and "size XS" is an afterthought. Elves takes small riders seriously, and the Avari Pro is the proof.

The geometry is more relaxed than the Falath or the Vanyar. It absorbs the miles in comfort without giving up the carbon performance. If this is your first carbon road bike, if you want quality without being shouted at by aggressive race geometry, or if you are a smaller rider who has struggled to find a bike that fits properly, the Avari Pro is where we would start the conversation. Build your Avari Pro at Aztecs.

📊 The quick comparison

If you are a "just give me the table" person, here it is.

🛠️ Why the build matters as much as the frame

Two riders can buy the same Elves frameset and end up with very different bikes. We see this every time someone brings us an Elves they bought elsewhere and ask us to fix it.

The frame is the foundation. After that, every choice matters:

• Frame size and bike fit: The wrong size kills any frame's performance. We do a full fit consultation before confirming any size, even when you think you know what you ride.
• Groupset choice: Shimano vs SRAM vs Campagnolo, mechanical vs electronic, 11-speed vs 12-speed, gear ratios. Each choice has implications for the rest of the build and for the way the bike feels.
• Wheels: The single biggest performance variable on a finished bike. Rim depth, weight, hub quality, tubeless setup. We help you match wheels to your terrain and budget.
• Cockpit ergonomics: Bar width, stem length, reach, drop. A frame that fits your torso can still feel wrong if the cockpit is generic.
• Tyres and pressures: Carbon performance depends on what touches the road. Tyre choice and tubeless setup are the easiest place to get a 5% gain in comfort and speed.
• Custom paint: Free, but it requires conversations with you about colours, finish (matte or gloss), and personalisation. We help you finalise the design before placing the order.

This is the work. It is what separates a custom Elves built at Aztecs from a frameset shipped in a box. We won the BikeBiz Independent Bike Dealer of the Year 2025 award for exactly this kind of thing.

💷 What about Cycle to Work?

Yes. Every Elves we build is eligible for Cycle to Work, with savings of up to 49% on the full retail price depending on your tax band and employer. We accept all major schemes: Cyclescheme, Bike2Work, Green Commute Initiative, Cycle Solutions, Gogeta and Vivup.

There is no upper limit from us. (Your employer may set one, but most large employers do not.) That means a £4,000 or £5,000 Elves build is fully realistic on Cycle to Work for the right rider.

We guide you through the entire process, from quote to bike collection. Read our full Cycle to Work guide if this is the route you are considering, including how the scheme works, eligibility, and what "owning the bike" really means at the end of the hire period.

❓ Quick FAQs

How long does a custom Elves build take?

Typical lead time is 6 to 10 weeks once spec is confirmed. This includes paint production at the Elves factory and final assembly in our Bow workshop. We confirm a delivery window before any payment is taken.

Do I need to come to London to buy one?

Ideally yes, for the bike fit and the handover. But if London is not realistic for you, we have two options. Standard UK-wide delivery, fully insured, your bike race-ready and packed by professionals, with a video walkthrough before it ships. Or, on quote, a white-glove delivery via our specialist partner where the bike arrives at your door already fully assembled and ready to ride. Tell us where you are and how you would like to receive it, and we will quote the right option for you.

Can I see one before I commit?

We do not keep the full Elves range on display. Carbon framesets do not work that way, and "stock" defeats the point of custom paint. What we do is talk to you, sometimes for an hour, sometimes more, and we have built enough Elves bikes to walk you through what to expect. If we currently have a customer build in progress, we are usually happy to show you, with that customer's permission.

What if I am between two models?

Send us a message on WhatsApp. Tell us how you ride, where you ride, what you are trying to achieve, and what your budget looks like. We will tell you what we would put you on. We do not have a sales target on any specific model. We have a target of building you the right bike.

🎯 So, which Elves should you choose?

Here is the short version, in case you skipped to the bottom.

• You race seriously: Falath EXP.
• You are a strong club rider: Falath EVO+.
• You want into aero on a budget: Falath Pro.
• You live for climbs: Vanyar Pro.
• You race gravel: Mori Aerox.
• You want one bike to do everything: Eglath ARX.
• You race triathlon: Amanyar 1.0.
• This is your first carbon, or you are a smaller rider: Avari Pro.

The longer version is what we are here for. Browse the full Elves range, or skip the website and message us directly. We will work out the right bike with you, talk through the spec, and build it properly.

Visit Us in Bow

We are London's only Elves Bikes workshop. Come and have the conversation in person, or message us on WhatsApp and we will start the build process from wherever you are.

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Visit Aztecs Bikes in London today and ride home with confidence.