Sorry, missed a few posts here, been away all of Sept so far.
Ramin 3+ / SS rigid – no current plans for a return sorry. It was a nice bike but always a fringe model and it’s getting harder to get bikes like that into buy plan of a bigger company. Though there has been a lot of interest in Arkose bikepacking set ups in store and I keep saying that the Ramin 3+ was the best ‘packer we made.. so maybe. If we can, we would.
Thanks though festivebonce, keep a few good people (plus me!) busy and paying bills : )
Arkose framesets – all diverted to full bike orders this year sorry, we couldn’t keep the bikes in stock that long. Demand higher than forecasts. Maybe summer 2020.
suggests 5 years frame and forks, or even lifetime frame and forks
5 years is probably lifetime if you read the small print on an alu frame if pinnacle is similar to most manufacturers
Yes, ‘lifetime’ means warrantied against any flaws in manufacture for the realistic life of an Al frame that will fatigue to failure naturally eventually, as they all will. Thing is that timeframe and use is not something we can define or measure, no-one can, so it basically means we’ll look after you if you’ve not abused it, haven’t neglected something, have had it serviced resonably along the way and aren’t trying to fob off the shop guys with a JRA that was really an RTA, etc.
I like the lighter weight of the X, the simplicity of the 1x drivetrain and the comfort of the flared bars, but am I limiting myself too much on the road with the smaller wheels?
The 1x drivetrain is more limiting at speed on the road IME than the tyres – feels gappy and harder to hold a pace if riding with others. But no real problem, the range is good and I’m not too worried about keeping an ideal cadence anyway. I do 100 milers on an Arkose X happily and I doubt my time would be more than a few mins different/quicker if I rode the D series with a 38-45mm tyre. Pop a 32mm road tyre on a D series and it’s a better road bike though, marginally. I really like the flared bars, both widths – the narrower ones are a great all-road compromise and no hindrance at speed on road, the wide ones are my choice for long rides, anything over a full day or 2.
There are some Arkose LTD frameset at sale.
They are stated to be DI2 only but does anyone know if there is a way to get a mechanical groupset on the frame? Perhaps through widening the cable port a bit with a drill?
And what’s the tire clearance with 27.5 tires on this generation of Arkoses? Will these fit something like a Race King 2.2, Ikon 2.2 or similar?
Clearance is ~52mm tyre max but if you’re prepared to go to under ISO tyre to frame clearances some 2.2 XC / minimal tread tyres will fit. The Arkose has about as much space F and R as any bike with that chainset spec short of the carbon drop-stay bikes, but they tend to be shorter in the rear anyway. It’s got generous clearances.
What are my chances of getting a D2 spec on a D1 or D3 coloured frame… with a long steerer.. and on bike to work?
Low, to be honest. Stock bikes are as they are and the only way to do it would be beer/biscuit bribery of your local store manager maybe, it’d be for them to balance up and sell the non-std spec bike created by the swap over – something else that a bigger company can struggle with. You may get a fair price for a from-new spec swap though, worth asking.
