If you happen to’re a superfan of Intend’s uber trick and uber costly inverted forks and rear shocks, then you might already concentrate on the brand new One Piece fork. The model already teased it on the Riva Bike Competition, however now they’re formally asserting it and making it out there for buy throughout a restricted pre-order window.
What’s the One Piece?
To many, the identify One Piece would possibly sound fairly acquainted. In spite of everything, One Piece is a much-loved Japanese manga — aka comedian or graphic novel — sequence that follows the likeable Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, as they sail the Grand Line looking for the One Piece treasure. The comedian was later tailored into an anime sequence, a online game, and, in 2023, a live-action sequence on Netflix. I’ve watched it and it’s truly fairly entertaining. Apparently, there’s a second season within the works, too.
The Intend One Piece, nevertheless, is an inverted suspension fork aimed toward all-mountain and enduro riders. Because the identify suggests, the One Piece includes a absolutely machined fork crown and uppers created from a stable block of 7075 aluminum alloy. Like different fashions in Intend’s lineup, the machining and end of the fork have a uncooked but refined industrial attraction, and the one-piece crown/uppers take it excessive. The “Tech Taupe” crown and black lowers mix for a decidedly stealthy aesthetic.
Apparently, it’s one thing that Intend’s Cornelius Kapfinger has been pondering of for years, however till working with Spantech GmbH, no producer was prepared or in a position to make it. This fork is ostentatious if nothing else, and admittedly, utterly pointless. Intend is effectively conscious of that, too, saying: “There’s no rational justification for it. If you happen to’re asking your self what the purpose of this fork is — it’s most likely not for you.”
Tech Particulars
- Utility: All Mountain / Enduro
- Journey: 140-170mm
- Axle: 110x15mm
- Damper & Air Spring: Optimized Damping & Travelizer Airspring
- Brake Mount: 180 / 200 / 203 / 220 oder 223mm
- Weight: 2310g
- Lowers: Blackline incl. Decrease Blades
- Coloration: (Solely) Tech Taupe
With a claimed weight of 2310g, the One Piece weighs greater than Intend’s different all-mountain and enduro forks, just like the Important, Edge, and Hero. It might seem that badass appears and weight financial savings don’t essentially go hand-in-hand.
Non-compulsory Hover Monocoque Shock
On the time of pre-order, patrons can even be given the choice to order the soon-to-be-released Hover Monocoque air shock in the identical “Tech Taupe” coloration because the One Piece fork. This new shock, which Intend claims will formally be unveiled earlier than the forks ship, will solely be supplied within the matching colorway to One Piece patrons on the time of pre-order. Realistically, when you’re shopping for a $3,299€ fork, you would possibly as effectively pony up for the matching shock, too.
The main points on the Hover Monocoque are sparse at greatest, however Intend tells us will probably be supplied in all metric lengths and stroke choices as an air shock solely — no coil model. Do you have to select so as to add an identical Hover Monocoque shock to your One Piece pre-order, you’ll be able to count on to pay 1199€ (incl. VAT).
Authentic Comedian Strip
In line with the One Piece comedian theme, Intend can be releasing a customized comedian accompanying the fork. It tells the story of the seek for the One Piece, with a really main plot twist. Spoiler alert: the fork is the treasure. Since I don’t converse German, I uploaded the six-page comedian into Google Translate to comply with the adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates with Cornelius on the helm.
The comedian delightfully parodies mainstream suspension rivals with pirate gangs just like the Foxxies and the StoneShockers battling for supremacy. In the meantime, the Straw Hat Pirate crew carries on to the Spantech GmbH field/head thingy, which produces the One Piece and ends Cornelius’ search. It’s a reasonably compelling story.
Intend One Piece: Pricing and Availability
Just like the legendary treasure within the comedian sequence, the One Piece fork can be fairly treasured. Actually, it’s among the many costliest suspension forks in the marketplace at its preorder value of three,299€ (incl. VAT). That’s effectively over 1,000€ greater than any of the opposite forks in Intend’s present lineup, that are already a few of the costliest fashions you should purchase.
Given its excessive value and area of interest attraction, the One Piece is simply being supplied to severe patrons for preorder throughout a two-week window that begins at the moment and ends June fifteenth. In accordance with Intend, “Demand is tough to foretell. We don’t wish to restrict each product — we’d moderately give anybody who’s actually the prospect to get one.”
Fortunately, you don’t want to affix a pirate gang and sail the Grand Line looking for this One Piece. These fascinated about buying an Intend One Piece fork can accomplish that at intend-bc.com/store/onepiece now by June fifteenth. Potential patrons needs to be conscious that Intend says actual supply is tough to foretell. They’re estimating anyplace between 3 and 6 months, relying on the quantity of pre-orders.
