PRESS RELEASE

Nicolai Launch the Pinion-Powered Saturn 14 GPI

It's not often we see a press release for a gearbox-powered bike come across our desk, so when the Nicolai Saturn 14 GPI showed up, it definitely piqued our interest. Offered with a Pinion gearbox, the Saturn 14 also comes in an ST version, with beefed up tubes and extra gusseting for extended bike park duty. Read on after the break for specs, geometry and pricing.


The NICOLAI SATURN 14 has been established in the trail and enduro market for over a year. It is diffi cult to confi ne it to a box, its wide range of capabilities makes it too versatile. As a result, the SATURN 14 has become the „egg-laying, wool making and milking sow“ for many of our customers. To suit the incoming season, NICOLAI presents the SATURN 14 in the GPI version. GPI stands for GATES PINION.

The PINION P1.12 transmission is integrated in to the heart of the frame, and the GATES Carbon Drive broaden the capabilities for the everyday rider and create a unique bike: downhill, the GEOLUTION geometry combined with the low centre of gravity as well as reduced unsprung mass at the rear wheel, provide undreamed-of downhill potential. Uphill, the combination of GEOLUTION and a full 600% gear range results in unlimited climbing ability. Upon the SATURN 14 GPI, you can be competitive in enduro races as well as having great fun on your home trails. With its low maintenance and unrivalled spectrum of use, the SATURN 14 GPI is a bike for all occasions: enduro racing, Trans-Alp or day tours - you decide!

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Continuing frame production in Lower Saxony, it is easy for NICOLAI to offer a reinforced version with full bike park approval too. This frame is given the suffix ST and has a thicker-walled down tube, seat tube and top tube as well as gussets at the head tube. What the hell is Bikepark approval? All of our MTB frames easily take the strain of everyday riding. However, a frame with bike park approval must meet further requirements at NICOLAI: It must be able to withstand loads caused by riding errors or falls. 25 years of experience in frame construction have shown NICOLAI that "riding error frequency“ is considerably higher in a bike park than on home trails or long rides. The SATURN 14 GPI ST guarantees against these errors.

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The SATURN 14 GPI can be individually specified as a complete bike in our configurator. Components from manufacturers like FOX, ROCKSHOX, INTEND, HOPE, MAGURA, TUNE, CONTINENTAL, SRAM, and LEVELNINE are available. Complete bikes are available from 6499€. The frame including gearbox, cranks, a GATES Carbon Drive weighs 7360g in Large size.

Like all NICOLAI bikes, the SATURN 14 GPI is a complete in-house development. From the first drawings, through FEM-supported optimization, to production and final assembly, all stages of the process are carried out under one roof. Of course, the SATURN 14 GPI contains all the ingredients that define a true NICOLAI: A tube set optimally suited to the area of application is combined with distinctive CNC machined parts. Experienced welders construct precisely the unmistakably wide and flat NICOLAI welding seams to create a total work of art. There are quad-sealed industrial grade bearings on all pivots of the four-bar rear suspension and ensure a smooth response with maximum rigidity and low maintenance. With a total of 5 standard sizes (S to XXL) NICOLAI has the right frame size for every rider, from 1.60 to over 2 metres.

s usual, frames can be customised in colour with robust powder coatings, lightweight anodised colours or simply in the legendary Fac-Raw finish. Coloured accents can be selected to match components using anodised "Extra Love Parts.“ Even custom geometries are possible for an extra charge with our Tailormade program.

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Geometry

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Saturn ST Geometry.jpg

Pricing

Frame only - €4,249 incl. PINION P1.12, PINION CRANKS, GATES CARBONDRIVE sprockets & belt

Complete bike - from €6,749

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Comments

DaveSmith
+4 Cooper Quinn ollyh Pete Roggeman Mark

Perry Schebel report to the Internet

Reply

xy9ine
0

i see you. have to say, my gearbox fanboyism has faded over the years. added weight, expense, drag, inability to shift under load, gripshift, service issues... current 1x is just SO damn dialed right now (and i haven't broken a derailleur in literally years), that i'm failing to see a compelling benefit of gearbox tech right now (apart from mass centralization, but that's not enough to offset everything else, for me). the conventional drivetrain iteration of this is nice, however.

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morgan-heater
0

Have you ridden a pinion bike? I have, and mine is stronger than ever.

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xy9ine
0

yes; spent a few months on a zerode. just a personal opinion, of course.

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syncro
0

rofl

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Wilson
0

Do Canadian orders go through the USA?

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craw
0

Isn't Nicolai releasing a proprietary gearbox?

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xy9ine
+1 AJ Barlas

rumors have been circulating. karl filed a patent application for a gearbox design that shifts under load: https://patents.google.com/patent/DE102014016395A1/en

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lance-h
0

That kind of looks like that crazy Ceramic Speed gear job inside the front triangle. Cool!

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