As with the rest of the 2012 Pinnacle range, the Cobalt hasn’t escaped the refresh and revisions – an all-new women’s frame, proprietary direct-mount disc brake dropout, new cockpit, and completely new geometry round up the changes. Let’s take a closer look…
Cobalt One (Men & Women’s) – £350srp
You’ll be hard pushed to find this level of range and freedom at such a competitive price anywhere else. Whilst not sporting disc brake stoppers like the rest of the Cobalt range, the mtb-derived V-brakes specced on the Cobalt One are renown for their powerful action and low weight.
We’ve put a lot of time and effort into our proprietary rear dropout on the disc-equipped models (Cobalt Two, Three & Four). Tucking the disc brake caliper neatly in the gap between the seatstay and chainstay (as opposed to on top of the seatstay) means easy, unobstructed access to the rear mudguard and rack eyelets (no bodge-it spacing needed here!)
The other bonus is the oodles of heel clearance it provides, which can often be an issue when combining a 135mm rear spaced disc frame with a road/touring chainset up front. As you can see from the photo above the rear QR skewer actually protrudes out further than brake caliper. We’re confident you could ride a disc-equipped Cobalt in steel toe-capped work boots and still not get heel rub!
Cobalt Two (Men & Women’s) – £450srp
A £100 more gets buys you the Cobalt Two and a whole host of upgrades including a Shimano 8sp drivetrain, SR Suntour NCX-D LO suspension fork, Shimano M375 cable-operated disc brakes and Alex Rims Ace 18 based wheelset with stealthy anodized black braking surface for super clean looks.
Rack’n’roll! Double eyelets on the back mean the Cobalt will take both a rear rack and full length mudguards with ease, making it the ideal option for a rack-mounted childs seat too!
All models come equipped with Suntour suspension forks with 63mm of travel to help take the sting out of blown-out road surfaces and bridleway paths.
All models also have a handy lockout function – meaning at the flip of the dial the fork transforms from active suspension to fully rigid. This neat feature comes in particularly handy on tarmac or other smooth surfaces or when climbing/sprinting so as to prevent the suspension from absorbing power applied by the rider.
Ergonomic Kraton rubber grips with lock screws feature across the range and help support the flat palm area of the hand for optimal pressure distribution and place them an ergonomically correct position. Tried and trusted - your hands/wrists will thank you for it!
Cobalt Three (Men & Women’s) – £550srp
The Cobalt Three sports a full Shimano 9sp drivetrain (27 gears) and Shimano M446 hydraulic disc brakes. When we say brakes we actually mean anchors – now the norm in the mtb offroad world, hydraulic disc brakes offer the holy grail of low maintenance and increased stopping power.
Wide and low for stable, confidence-inspiring handling. The same oversize (31.8mm) low-rise bar with a 15mm rise and 9/5 degree sweep is specced across the range for the Cobalt models (660mm width for the gents and a slightly narrower 640mm width for the ladies). We like it and we hope you will too!
Even the fork lowers have an integrated mudguard mount on the non-disc leg (for the disc side the lower brake caliper mounting bolt is used to secure the mudguard stay), again negating the need for spacing and ensuring disc brake and full length mudguard harmony.
Top of the tree sits the Cobalt Four with a lighter NCX-E LO SR Suntour suspension fork, a 9sp Shimano Acrera/Alivio drivetrain, Alex Rim DP17 wheelset with Shimano RM66 Centrelock disc hubs, Shimano Acera chainset and Octalink bottom bracket and the same great M446 hydraulic stoppers as the Cobalt Three but matched with upgraded Shimano Deore M505 levers (with reach adjustment).
The tough and hardy mtb-derived running gear doesn’t stop at disc brakes! You’ll find mtb rear derailleurs matched to wide ratio 11/12-32T mtb cassettes out back and touring-spec 28-38-48T chainsets up front for the widest possible gear range available.
The swoopy dropped top tube on the women’s models (Cobalt One, Two and Three) is designed to give the female rider a little more standover clearance ensuring that clearance isn’t compromised regardless of the bike size and riding position fit.
Neat and tidy, tidy and neat! The same butted aluminium 6061-T6 Heat-treated frame feature across the range. Stiff, lightweight yet strong the frame is made for us by a very reputable frame maker in the Far East – as you can see from the photo above the quality of the welding and manufacture speak for themselves.