Yesterday we tripped on down to Oxford to visit K-Nine Industries.

The DH001-S downhill bike is almost finished, with some pre-production models built up ready for testing next week. This is a pretty big deal considering the amount of development and thought that has gone into these bikes, and that they will finally be on sale in the Summer. We’re hoping to get a ride on the bike very soon, and after riding the first prototype bikes, having a production version to test is something that we’re really looking forward to. K-nine’s approach really is a breath of fresh air, with all of the design and manufacturing for the frame in the UK, only the shocks are coming from abroad.

The bike features a CDV6 Steel front end with a 7005 T6 Aluminium rear end. All the machined components are 7075 T6 Aluminium, and all of the pivots are rolling on SKF bearings. The whole frame is built around quality, and is manufactured locally to K-Nine’s HQ.

The frame will be available in 4 sizes, and all have adjustable dropouts (to lengthen/shorten wheelbase) and an adjustable head angle between 63, 64, and 65°. As most downhill frames these days, it has a 12x150mm rear axle.

The pricing for the frame hasn’t been finalised yet, but will start at around £2500 and rise to £2900 depending on your choice of shock (RockShox Vivid, Bos Stoy, and Cane Creek Double Barrel). The frames will come packaged with a custom MRP chain device using wider plates to facilitate the idler roller, and a Cane Creek headset. All the frames will be sent out with the shock tuned for the frame, and the correct spring weight for the rider. The frames will be available in White, Black, Blue, Red and Grey. All the colours look amazing, and the redesigned graphics set the frame off perfectly.

We were also lucky enough to take a trip into Oxford Brookes University, and have a look around their Autolab, where Luis spent a lot of time whilst doing his degree. After having a look around you really can see where Luis’ eye for perfection and attention to detail stems from. Massive amounts of research and development go on at the Autolab, and you can definately see this reflected in the work that goes on at K-Nine. The bikes have been in development for over 2 years, and only now are they at a stage where Luis is happy with them.

We also spoke to Shinny and heard some news about some other products that K-Nine will be releasing in the near future. We can’t say much about them, as they’re still in development, but there are a couple of things we can say……

A direct mount stem is in the pipeline.

And here are some of the new Angled Reducer Cups (ARC). They will be made to fit specific frames, with the ability to slacken/steepen your head angle. The first ones to be released will be for the Iron Horse Sunday and the Intense Socom/6.6. The press release is already here.

Here’s a quick video which gives you an idea of the place…..and Shinny values Jonesy’s Car!

http://mpora.com/videos/LpS7OkpMR
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Watch out for more on K-Nine soon

Words and Video: Jake Ireland
Photos: Steve Jones