Nick Larsen from Charge Bikes has just dropped by the office to show us a very new addition to the Charge bikes family – yup, it’s their very first big wheeled bike and it’s called the Cooker. Don’t start ringing up the shops just yet though, this is a 2012 development bike and is unlikely to be in the shops anytime before next year.
Made from a custom Tange Prestige double butted tubeset, Nick has spent plenty of time tweaking and testing the geometry to get it riding how he likes.
In fact, after originally being unsure of the 29er concept he’s now become a big fan of the way larger wheels work, so much so that his 26″ wheeled Duster is now gathering dust.
This frame pictured here doesn’t have final geometry but the finished frame is going to have a 71° head angle, corrected for the length of 100-120mm suspension forks. Seat angle is a bit slacker than most 29ers out there and the final production bikes will probably be a bit longer in the top tube than seen here. Nick’s been aiming to make the Cooker handle just like a 26″ wheeled bike and is pleased with the results so far.
The Cooker is going to be available either with a rigid fork build for around £699 or with Rock Shox suspension forks for around £1,000.
Like it a lot, tidy bike
Ooooooh – now that is very interesting 🙂
oh lordy lord, that is pretty, never really wanted a 29’er until now
I bumped into a chap I’ll assume was Nick on that there Cooker in our local woods and whilst I’m still skeptical about another standard it looks really rather tidy and appeared to handle well on little techish decent. Fast too though that could’ve been due to the cable discs
Frame weight? And frame only option/price?
Will the fork take a 36″ wheel?
I like the flexibility to convert to run with gears or single speed/Alfine without the need for a tensioner – ala singular swift with the EBB, or Salsa’s el mariachi’s alternator dropout’s…etc..
Similar plans for the ‘Cooker’ I wonder?
It looks ridiculous! Open your eyes and look past the nice paint job. 29’ers are a marketing ploy.
Taller than that building in Dubai.
Long live 26″
@ ginsterdrz – why does my 29er ride nicer than my 26
my 26er is a cotic Soul…my 9er is a bog standard Kona peace
No I don’t understand the answer either – but it does
that looks foul. those long forks make it look like a right chopper, you just need a tash!
I think it looks great maybe with a shorter fork though.
That looks ridiculous, what a gate. How tall and steep?!? As for those forks… I’m a big fan of Charge, but…
the pedal looks very close to the front wheel – is there any toe overlap or is that just the photo?
Why is it that while I am waiting for my new steel 29er frame to be delivered. They bring out something like this.
Very nice job
I was watching a talk by Cy Turner on Youtube earlier where he was saying that in order to sharpen up the steering on a 29er the best option is to increase the fork offset (like Gary Fisher does).
That fork looks like it has virtually no offset and a steep head angle which brings the front wheel in closer – exactly what Cy was saying is a bad idea for handling.
Yup -Singular has the same argument as cy.
Tidy looking bike, mind – just that head angle / fork length!
sling some 120 forks on there and it’ll be right.
want
Looks like a whole loada bike for 600quid!
As for offset, if the fork is corrected for a 120mm sus fork then offset would be less apparent, no?
after looking at the pictures of this bike i think i could design a much better version.
i have never ridden it, or even ridden a 29er but i know i could do alot better than a guy who appears to have made many prototypes and tried different geometries… he is clearly wrong and this bike is rubbish.
the geo is all wrong, the wheels too big, the forks too long and the bike i will not even bother to design will be way better in my dreams later…..