Bikes in the 750$ to 1500$ range have never been so good. However, on many of these bikes a suspension fork from one of the major manufacturers is too expensive, and the cheaper alternatives don't quite pull their weight. They tend to be poorly sealed and before long become almost rigid, hefty lumps of metal attached to your frame.
Rather than blowing a chunk of its component budget on a questionable fork, Pinnacle has taken the sensible step of going fully rigid, although with a different headset the 44mm headtube would allow a tapered suspensionfork to be fitted. The double-butted frame tubing of the 750$ Ramin One shaves some grams, and at the other end the subtly tapered blades of the chromoly fork give nothing away to suspension forks in terms of looks. With a single ring up front, the wide-range 11-34 cassetteout back is a must, but Shimanooffers an 12-36 nine-speed cassette that would have been nice to see.
The ride was lively, with a shedload of the 'grin factor' rather than outright speed, and certainly rewarded careful line choices. Without the bulk and maintenance needs of a cheap fork the Ramin could make an excellent off-road commuter. Loaded with frame bags though, it might just as easily make a great introduction to off-road touring.
+ The cost savings of the fork allow nice touches like the single-ring Truvativ Firex chainset, which further lowers the overall weight.
+ Wide 720mm bars paired with a 70mm stem allow for a more aggressive riding style, and make it easier to take control of the unsuspended front end.
* The Sunrace cassette has a 34-tooth sprocket, but with no granny ring up front a 36-tooth Shimano cassette could make a difference on steeper climbs.
* We liked the ‘nuclear bogey’ frame colour (a lot) but bad news if you don’t: there isn’t a classy black option yet.
- Pinnacle’s missed a trick by not speccing the 2.4in version of Continental’s X-King tyres. Given the rigid fork they would have provided a degree of extra comfort.
- Higher speeds might loosen your fillings. The ride is great fun, but don’t expect warp speeds on rougher trails.
Fantastic value and sensible speccing make the Ramin a top training or budget adventure bike.
Price 750$
