The new Arkose models are due to land a little later than the rest of the new, James Olsen-designed Pinnacle range (July delivery). It took a little longer to get right but judging by the sample pictures below, boy does it look like the wait will be worth it!
There’ll be x3 models all featuring the same butted 6061-T6 Heat-treated Aluminium frame, tapered 1 1/8″ > 1 1/4″ full carbon fork (yes, full carbon fork even on the £750 Arkose 1!) and 34/50T compact chainsets throughout, which, combined with the wide ratio cassettes out back, should give ample gear spread for either greenlanes or tarmac usage.
Arkose 1 (£750srp) will feature a Shimano Sora 18sp drivetrain and Tektro Mini-V’s.
Mini-V’s are flavor of the day with us (see them specced throughout the Neon models too) and give a greater stopping power than traditional cantilever brakes and make the fitting of mudguards, racks or different tyres is simple through retaining ample tyre clearance – ever increasing the scope of this uber versatile ride.
Rolling fast over tarmac, towpath, woodland trails and country bridleways, the Arkose models take influence from CX race bikes without compromising their intended use as an all-round efficient high-mileage, cross-terrain machine. The geometry is relaxed enough for high-speed off-road use in wet conditions as well as retaining a neutral feel on tarmac.
Arkose 2 (£900srp) features Shimano’s excellent Tiagra 10sp drivetrain matched to an FSA Omega 34/50T compact chainset with external bottom bracket for a stiffer interface. Avid BB5 mechanical disc brakes are a nice upgrade too – powerful, confidence inspiring braking in all weather conditions.
We’ve not overlooked the current CX bike-to-commute trend either – rear rack eyelets, mudguard eyelets front and rear and ample space leftover to accommodate different size tyres feature across all x3 models.
Top dog. Flagship. Top of the tree. The Arkose 3 packs in the spec but still scrapes in @ the £1k pricepoint making it a prime candidate for that Cyclescheme/Ride To Work voucher!
Shimano 105 shifting, Avid BB7 mechanical discs (regarded as the best on the market) and some nice sleeve joined Alex CXD-26 470g rims round out the spec upgrades over the Arkose 2.
Vital statistics. See how the Arkose models stack up geometry-wise above.
Keep your eyes peeled over the coming week or two for the full product pages to be added to our website.