Many brands like to keep product development under tight wraps until one day, hey presto, their ground-breaking new bike or component arrives out of the blue. Not this time for Nukeproof.
Its new Dissent bike has been in public view for some time, but only now are its finer details being revealed.
In 2018, we saw Nukeproof’s star rider Sam Hill swing a leg over a fresh-looking prototype downhill bike for the Crankworx Garbanzo race – timed top-to-bottom on Whistler’s (Canada) famously brutal trail with over 1,000m of vertical descent.
Hill was out of retirement for one race only — the Aussie is currently focused on Enduro World Series racing — and was new to the bike, but in Sam Hill fashion, and testament to the bike, he smoked the competition nonetheless. That got ‘em talking.
The bike went back to development and, early in 2019, was again uncaged (now with a name, Dissent) as Hope Tech-Nukeproof rider Adam Brayton unveiled his new ride for the downhill World Cup season. But the name and a look around his bike were the only details we had.
Now, at long last, Nukeproof launches the Dissent and steps firmly back into the ring of downhill racing. The Chain Reaction Cycles-owned brand first started out in downhill with its original Scalp bike in 2012, and while the next generation Pulse retained the original Fallout suspension linkage until its discontinuation in 2017, the Dissent moves to a new linkage platform developed by Nukeproof.
The Dissent will be available as a frame only from November 2019 in 27.5-inch or 29-inch wheel versions. To look at, the Dissent retains a similar frame layout as the previous Pulse bike, but that is where the similarities end, according to Nukeproof.
It says there were a number of goals in mind when creating the new bike, including simplifying the design to “reduce weight and increase the front triangle stiffness”, making the suspension more progressive through a reworked leverage rate, and increasing mid-stroke support in order to “make the bike pump better, sit higher in the travel, improve stability in corners and improve the liveliness of the ride.”
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this launch (other than getting to see Sam Hill shredding to pieces dusty Australian tracks), is not immediately evident. Look closely and you’ll find a flip-chip at the main pivot that offers four different linkage settings, altering the suspension action dependent on rider preference (from position one to four the progressivity increases).
The bike is made further adjustable thanks to a chainstay flip chip at the wheel axle, allowing three length settings (435, 440, 445mm for the 27.5-inch version; 445, 450, 455mm for the 29-inch version). The 27.5-inch-wheel frame is available in four sizes, with three size options for the 29er.
Nukeproof has created a downhill bike to cater for more-or-less every rider. Pick your frame and wheel size, choose how the suspension works and alter the chainstay to your liking. That’s a decent range of options, leading us to reckon it’ll be highly popular with privateer racers.
With rumours of a downhill comeback at some point in the not-too-distant future, maybe we’ll see Sam Hill return to the podium on one too.
Nukeproof Dissent specifications and pricing
Nukeproof Dissent 275
- Wheel size: 27.5-inch
- Frame sizes: S, M, L, XL
- Travel: 200mm rear, 200mm front
- Weight: 3.95kg without shock
- Material: Hydroformed 6061 triple-butted aluminium
- Colours: Concrete Grey-Dark Grey, Black-Yellow
- Head angle: 63 degrees
- Seat tube angle (effective): 74.5 degrees
- Seat tube length: 405mm
- Chainstay: 435, 440, 445mm
- Head tube length: 110mm
- Top tube (effective): S, 590.6; M, 610.6; L, 630.6; XL, 650.6mm
- Bottom bracket height: 357.5mm
- Wheelbase: S, 1,221.5; M, 1241.5; L, 1261.5; XL, 1281.5mm (all middle setting)
- Stack: 598.4mm
- Reach: S 425, M 445, L 465, XL 485mm
- Rear hub: 157x12mm
- Chainguide: ISCG05
- Bottom bracket: Threaded 83mm BSA
- Geo change: Main linkage flip chip; chainstay flip chip
- Price: £1,999.99
Nukeproof Dissent 290
- Wheel size: 29-inch
- Frame sizes: M, L, XL
- Travel: 190mm rear, 200mm front
- Weight: 3.95kg without shock
- Material: Hydroformed 6061 triple-butted aluminium
- Colours: Concrete Grey-Dark Grey, Black-Yellow
- Head angle: 63 degrees
- Chainstay: M 445, L 450, XL 455mm
- Seat tube angle (effective): 76 degrees
- Seat tube length: 405mm
- Top tube: M, 590; L, 610; XL, 630mm
- Head tube length: 110mm
- Bottom bracket height: 357.5mm
- Wheelbase: M, 1,264; L, 1,284; XL, 1,304mm (all middle setting)
- Stack: 631mm
- Reach: 440, 460, 480mm
- Rear hub: 157x12mm
- Chainguide: ISCG05
- Bottom bracket: Threaded 83mm BSA
- Geo change: Main linkage flip chip, chainstay flip chip
- Price: £1,999.99
