PINNACLE DOLOMITE 4
£1450 › Does Pinnacle’s smooth riding practicality take the prize?
The Dolomite frame isn’t new, but the 4 gets the benefit of the latest Shimano Ultegra 8000 gears and disc brakes mounted to a thoroughly practical frame. What you can’t tell from its stealthy looks is that it’s a really smooth yet encouragingly responsive ride.
At 160mm the tapered head-tube is tall enough for extra lift and comfort, but not so tall you can’t get a more race-style position if you pull out the spacers. The top-tube is double butted, having thicker ends than the centre, and the down-tube is triple butted, with the brake and gear cables routed internally into it. The outward angle to remove the chance of paint rub means the cables can rub your knees when you’re out of the saddle, but that can be sorted with a well-positioned zip tie. The barrel adjusters to alter cable tension on the fly are a nice, practical touch.
That’s far from the only element that comes under that practical heading. The slim seat-tube carries a 27.2mm seatpost that provides a useful amount of flex and comfort. It sits on top of a conventional bottom bracket with screw-in bearings that are likely to last longer than a pressfit setup. The rear brake is flat mount to keep things tidy but the rear wheel uses a quick-release axle. It’s the only disc bike here that doesn’t have a bolt-thru axle, but we didn’t have any problems with the wheel shifting while riding.
The carbon fork legs extend past the 12mm thru-axle mount to give room for mudguard mounts, and the crown is drilled for a ’guard clamping bolt. The back end has bolts for mudguards and a four-point rear rack. You can fit full ’guards with a 28mm tyre or go up to a 32mm tyre without them.
It’s surprising that Pinnacle has only fitted 25mm Continental tyres, but at least the 19mm internal width Alex Draw rims stretch them to
You can fit full ’guards with a 28mm tyre or go up to a 32mm tyre without them
26mm and give them an impressively smooth ride. They’re tubeless compatible too if you add tape, valves, sealant and tubelessready tyres. Despite 32 spokes in each wheel to shrug off regular rough use, the wheels still come in pretty light at a fraction over 3kg. That’s significant as it helps the Pinnacle hide a slightly higher than average weight when you’re accelerating or hitting the climbs, and mass never became an issue however long or lumpy the test route.
While it’s not as visually complex as some of the other alloy frames on test, the understated Pinnacle frame has possibly the best balanced ride here. While it doesn’t shrink from adding speed whenever you want, you’d never suspect it was running some of the smallest volume tyres from the way it glides over rougher sections. That translates into really good speed sustain on the kind of belligerent back roads that are often a big part of UK sportive challenges, and a big part of daily commuting. The fact you can add larger volume and/or tubeless tyres means that ride quality can only get better.
Handling is really well judged for the type of bike it is. The 72-degree head angle stretches the wheelbase out over a metre giving an extra sense of stability that flatters the smooth, relaxed ride. The Grand Sport tyres can take an aggressive lean angle in all weathers too. It’s also got Shimano’s latest Ultegra shifters, gears and brakes, making it an excellent package for the money.