Nicolai Helius AC Pinion 29er

Despite having gone through a minor revision recently, Nicolai’s Helius platform still retains it’s signature four bar linkage design that soaks up everything in it’s path, a characteristic that some riders prefer over the stiffer and more progressive ride that the ION platform gives.

The owner of this bike is a fine example of one of those riders. Having already owned two Nicolai’s from the Helius platform, his love for them did not stop when it came to his next project, a tailor made Nicolai Helius AC Pinion 29er; sporting the same blue paint job as the older Gates Nicolai Team bikes, titanium anodised seatstays and extra love parts.

And when we said ‘long travel’ we weren’t kidding, a 160mm RockShox Pike up front is still pretty long even in current 29er standards.

The Pike is matched up to Cane Creek’s Double Barrel Air CS (Climb Switch) for better efficiency during climbs.

Wheels consisted of a good balance of weight savings and reliability, with Chris King’s ever so popular ISO hubs front and rear, laced with Sapim CX-Ray spokes…

…to ENVE Components AM rims with custom declas, complimenting the Helius AC’s blue paintjob.

The centrally mounted Pinion P1.18 kept the weight distribution nice and even, despite it not being a very heavy gearbox to begin with!

We’re pretty certain its full range of gears were definitely utilised when the owner took this very bike on a couple of overseas rides, including an epic one in the Himalayas!

Hope Tech’s X4 brakes definitely provided plenty of stopping power on tap.

Having already ridden his Specialized Stumpjumper 29er for quite a fair bit and enjoying the benefits of going wagon-wheeled, it’s geometry served as the base for this frame. After which, tweaks were made in order to create the ultimate long travel 29er all-mountain bike that he desired.

The sheer brilliance and evolution of the Helius platform continues to amaze us, even after all these years. The ride has never been bad, but it just keeps getting better and better. Nicolai has also continued to make little tweaks and improvements, with the up and coming 2015 Helius AC featuring one piece rockers that will be utilising a bearing system similar to the ones being used in the current ION range.

Photos via: Benjamin Teo/AttitudeBikes