Pinarello marks its return to cross-country mountain biking with the Dogma XC
Having taken both Tom Pidcock and Pauline Ferrand-Prevot to the top step of the podium several times already, it was only a matter of time before the Dogma XC and Dogma XC Hardtail were available to the public. We already know a lot about these bikes but Pinarello has unveiled the build kits, prices and even more details than before.
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Making its first appearance at the 2023 MTB World Cup in Nova Mesto was the Pinarello Dogma XC, a full-suspension mountain bike that's built specially to win races, and we all know the result of that particular event. With this bike, the brand had four key objectives to hit, those being stiffness in the rear triangle and bottom bracket, a simple but progressive suspension kinematic, the ability to increase suspension travel for each circuit and of course, a light weight.
To address the bike's stiffness, Pinarello has put in a lot of work around the seat and chainstays, as well as the bottom bracket, the latter of which is the most striking feature of the whole bike. It uses a triangular design that not only boosts stiffness under high pedalling loads but also fits oversized bearings for the pivot.
That rear end is split so the rear triangle is built up of two halves that are connected inside the main pivot where two pins are moulded into the carbon frame. Pinarello promises that this has allowed the designers to do away with the bridge or arch that's often found joining the seat stays while shortening the chainstay and boosting tyre clearance. There are also fewer surfaces for mud to cling onto.
The bike's 90mm of rear suspension is driven by a flex stay platform that saves weight and improves stiffness. Pinarello also says that this heightens the connection between the rider and the rear wheel. The suspension kinematic then uses a combination of bearings and bushings in a bid to reduce friction at each pivot point while balancing durability by reducing energy dispersion where needed.
There's then the subject of adjustable travel, which is a real trick up the Dogma XC's sleeve. Modern cross-country courses are rarely similar, so this bike allows the rider to pick from two travel settings to help the bike and rider perform their best through more technical courses or those that are heavier on pedalling.
As standard, the bike will come equipped with 90mm of rear suspension paired with 100mm at the front but thanks to a moveable mount on the frame, the bike can accommodate a larger 210x50mm shock that bumps the travel up to 100mm at the rear which can then be paired with a 120mm fork. We're told that this shouldn't affect the bike's geometry.
Speaking of geometry, the bike steps away from the likes of the Specialized Epic 8 and Yeti ASR, keeping things firmly in cross-country territory. It gets a 68-degree head angle and 425mm chainstay. A large frame benefits from a 480mm reach and a 1,178.6mm wheelbase.
Finishing off the bike is a custom one-piece, fully integrated cockpit that's been chosen for its steering precision. It also gets a headset that's equipped with a stopper that keeps the bar from rotating over 60-degrees in a bid to protect the frame from being damaged in a crash.
The Dogma XC Hardtail gets a lot of the same technologies and designs but does away with the rear shock. This bike pushes the asymmetry of the rear end, overbuilding the left-hand stays to counterbalance any forces being applied to the right-hand side through the drivetrain.
With the hardtail, its geometry changes a little, ushering in a shorter 470mm reach on a large and a shorter chainstay at 424.3mm.
Both bikes are built around a posh Toray M40 J carbon fibre frame and the specification is shared between the XC and XC HT bikes. Present is Fox's latest suspension in the form of the 32 Factory Step-Cast fork which is paired with a Fox Float SL Factory shock on the Dogma XC. Each of the bikes gets a SRAM XX SL Transmission drivetrain, DT Swiss XRC 1900 Spine wheels, Shimano XTR brakes and Maxxis Rekon Race tyres.
The final weight for the Dogma XC is 10.45kg, claims Pinarello and the XC HT is set to be 9.2kg.
Also in the range are regular, non-Dogma XC and XC HT models. These bikes get Toray T900 UD frames with SRAM GX Eagle Transmission shifting, Fox 32 Performance Elite Step Cast forks and Float SL Performance Elite suspension, DT Swiss XR 1700 Spline wheels and the rest are the same as the Dogma builds.
Weights for these are 11.3kg for the XC and 10.2kg for the XC HT. Prices then start at £4,500 for the XC HT, then £6,200 for the Dogma XC HT. The XC will set you back£5,300 and the Dogma XC is £7,000.