Frame NICOLAI S14 ST

S14

THE UPGRADE

NICOLAI’s interpretation of the radical trail bike is the S14 ST. With its modern and balanced GEOLUTION TRAIL geometry it’s perfect for a lap from home, around a trail centre, or bikepark. Agile, stable and easy-climbing, that’s what GEOLUTION TRAIL brings to the party. You can say goodbye to going ‘over the bars’ and the front wheel ‘wandering’ uphill. Just get on with riding! The S14 ST has a reinforced tube set, making it strong enough for the bike park, whilst the S14 is still available for those that might not be pushing the limits quite so much. With two possible wheel sizes, geometry adjustment and water bottle mounts, it is the most versatile NICOLAI trail bike we have ever built.

NICOLAI S14 ST has a thicker down tube, seat tube, and top tube, as well as gussets on the head tube. We also use stronger rear dropouts and chainstays to increase stiffness.

The frame travel is still set at 138/130mm, but can be fitted with a burlier fork up to 160mm travel.

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The S14 ST frame is the basis for a 27.5″ or 29″ setup. The 29″ frame can be easily converted to 27.5″ wheels with a deeper lower headset cup from CANE CREEK or RESET RACING and longer Mutators. With 29″ wheels and a metric 210x50mm shock, the rear suspension gives 130mm travel, with the smaller wheel size and a 210x55mm damper, 138mm travel is possible. To adapt the S14 ST further, you can use our Mutators. Head angle too steep or bottom bracket too low? Easy. With a total of 5x frame sizes we are sure to have the right bike for every rider, 1.60 or 2m tall.

#GEOLUTION TRAIL

The roots of the Geolution concept lie in enduro racing, and even if trends in frame geometries are slowly approaching a similar concept, Geolution can still be seen as a radical design in which performance is top priority. But not all of our customers also put the emphasis here or strive for the top steps at enduro races. They are more interested in a well-rounded bike that can climb well, master any trail and has strong downhill potential. Our Geolution Trail geometry appeals to exactly this clientele by taking the basic characteristics of the Geolution concept, such as the slack head angle and long reach, and transferring them to a more moderate, less race-oriented geometry. The seating position is more upright, the bike is more agile and responsive, but the Geolution DNA remains.

REINFORCED TUBESET + GUSSETS

NOW EVEN MORE STABLE WITH THE ST UPGRADE

We offer the S14 in two versions. The S14 with the suffix ST is manufactured with a reinforced tube set. This gives the bike clearance for forks with an length of up to 570mm and a diameter of 36mm. The standard S14 has no approval for the bike park and the fork length is limited to 550mm. The frame weight increases by about 300gr depending on the frame size.

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6 FRAME SIZES

Most NICOLAI models are offered in 5 or even in 6 frame sizes, from XS to XXL. This provides customers between 1.55m and 2.10m with their perfect fit, a range that few other brands provide. A sizing chart for body and frame sizes can be found in our detailed Tech Sheets for each model. Building a perfectly fitting frame means much more than just extending it for each size. We take various factors into account here with regard to body proportions and rider weights, for example adapting tube cross-sections and thicknesses, modified geometry and particularly low standover heights for smaller sizes, or frame reinforcements that take into account higher weight and greater strength of XXL frame riders. Saddle position, stem height and shape, handlebar width and height serve to fine-tune geometry - albeit within a relatively limited range.

NICOLAI WELDING TECHNOLOGY

CRAFTSMANSHIP AND ENGINEERING IN PERFECTION

We weld all of our frames by hand using the TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) method. Our specially trained welders have many years of experience, our lead welder has worked in-house for over 20 years. For each model and frame size we build a precise welding structure called the frame jig. In this jig, the CNC-cut tube sets are precisely assembled and fixed in place with all turned and milled parts of the frame to be welded. The frame components are first tacked together with individual spot welds at precise points in a defined sequence, and then, to minimize distortion and stresses, welded in several passes.

7020 ALUMINUM

We manufacture all NICOLAI frames from 7020-T6 aircraft aluminum and are convinced that this alloy is the superior material for mountain bike construction. Compared to the 6061-T6 (AlMg1SiCu) alloy normally used in bicycle construction, 7020-T6 (AlZn4.5Mg1) has about 30% higher tensile strength and about 20% higher elastic limit. Where carbon frames can spontaneously fail in the event of an overload, NICOLAI bikes are calculated and designed to deform in a safely defined area of the frame in the event of an overload, significantly reducing the risk of serious crashes and injuries. A NICOLAI aluminum frame is designed to withstand many years even under severe competition conditions.

COLOR SELECTION

EXTRA LOVE

Thanks to our own powder coating facility, local anodisers, and our in-house production line, every NICOLAI frame can be customized to meet your individual needs. We process over 50 powder coat colors applied in high-gloss or semi-gloss finish, as well as fades and our classic ‘camo’ options. Customers can even choose a separate color for each welded frame component. Our frames can also be anodized with a glass-peened and durable black, bronze or titanium finish. For turned or milled components such as rocker linkages, bearing covers, or cable guides, we offer an extended ‘Extra Love’ range of anodized colors that allow color matching with your favorite branded components. We also offer an uncoated aluminum finish as "factory raw". To finish, add your choice of decal style, location, size and color to guarantee a unique, personalized and truly custom bike.

HORST-LINK

S14 ST

Our suspension systems pursue the goal of combining competitive performance and maximum fun on the trail, as well as high pedaling efficiency by kinematically decoupling the rider’s movements from the work of the suspension. For this reason, we design our 4-bar link rear triangles according to the proven and timeless ‘Horst-Link’ principle. The Horst Link describes the pivot point that sits at the end of the chainstay and just in front of the rear axle which counteracts the shortening of the wheelbase during compression. Through years of racing experience and with the help of simulation software, we have succeeded in further optimizing and refining the Horst-Link technology on our bikes. In particular, this has allowed us to significantly improve the anti-squat (pedaling) characteristics of the suspension.

The frames are manufactured based on the customer's personal configurations. It is possible to configure not only the colours of the frame and its parts, but also configurations for the geometry of the frame itself.

Due to the variability of the configuration of NICOLAI frames, it is necessary to tune the exact specification by phone and email!

Technical specification

Geometry by frame size

Delivery

Nicolai frames are built to order to your configuration and delivery takes ten to twelve weeks. The price shown is the starting price for the base build — we will confirm the final price by e-mail or phone, together with the delivery date. If you would like a different configuration, please add your requirements to the order note.