Van Nicholas Yukon Disc review

Van Nicholas Yukon Disc review

Is this another modern Dutch master from one of titanium’s stalwarts?

Our rating

3.5

3911.00

David Caudery / Immediate Media

Published: December 10, 2019 at 7:00 am

Our review
Quality, customisable all-rounder with a firm ride in this build

Pros:

Superb handling; high-quality groupset and wheels

Cons:

Perhaps overly firm saddle and seatpost pairing

Van Nicholas – and its predecessor company Airborne – has probably done more to popularise titanium bikes in the UK than any other outfit. The Dutch-based company makes nothing but titanium bikes, from high-end racers with super-light kit to full-on expedition bikes, including belt-driven tourers, hub-geared bikes, mountain bikes and even mixte frames in its extensive titanium catalogue.

Its Yukon Disc falls somewhere between the extremes of heavyweight tourer and lightweight racer, Van Nicholas describing it as "perfect for commuting, touring and everything in between".

And while the type of tourer I first traversed Australia on would have weighed nearer 15kg than 10kg, this very 21st-century take is a willowy 9.67kg and that’s with Van Nich’s neat own-brand mudguards. This puts it very much into sportive, mile-munching and training territory as well as touring.

Shimano Ultegra groupset on Van Nicholas Yukon Disc road bike
The impeccably behaved Shimano Ultegra setup. David Caudery / Immediate Media

As with all Van Nicholas bikes, the Yukon has numerous build options. In the Yukon Disc’s case this starts at €3,499 for Shimano 105. I went up a notch, plumping for a full Shimano Ultegra hydraulic groupset, Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheels and their companion 25mm Yksion tyres.

This being 2019, the Yukon Disc can accommodate 28 to 30mm tyres with mudguards and 35mm without – an ideal width for loaded touring and all-road riding. There are fittings for 'guards and racks, of course.

The geometry isn’t sit-up-and-beg upright but it does have slightly slack frame angles, my 54cm/medium-size model having a 543mm top tube and a pretty laid-back 71.5-degree head angle.

The long, 1,005mm wheelbase also emphasises the Yukon’s endurance aspirations. In spite of that, there’s a great feeling of efficiency from the Yukon and it works excellently as a fast, comfortable, long-distance commuter and I breezed pleasingly and pacily along bike paths, which isn’t surprising given that Mavic’s Ksyriums are essentially a set of lightweight racing wheels.

Acceleration was excellent and if anything, the Yukon is on the stiff side for a tourer, but Van Nicholas has gone with a PressFit bottom bracket, which won’t appeal to the traditionalists. I also found that the Cambium saddle on the Yukon felt firm, which is possibly down to the use of a titanium rather than carbon seatpost. But other seatpost, saddle and tyre combinations are possible if you’d like to soften the ride a little.

It’s also worth noting that I was running my Yukon Disc with narrow 25mm tyres, fitted with inner tubes. You could easily up the comfort by fitting wider tyres, going tubeless – the Ksyriums are tubeless-ready – or doing both of these things.

Van Nicholas Yukon Disc
Slightly slack frame angles mean comfort for longer. David Caudery / Immediate Media

Van Nicholas has gone fully modern with the Yukon Disc and fitted 12mm thru-axles to the frame and the carbon fork. With both gear cables and hydraulic discs routed internally the looks are kept very clean – and the performance from the Shimano Ultegra setup is all you’d expect, impeccably well-behaved braking and smooth, accurate shifting.

The 34x34 bottom gear meant even steeper hills were tackled in the saddle, while the 50x11 top allowed me to power down the descents, assured by the quality of the disc braking, whatever the conditions.

This really is a machine for big days out. I reckon that slightly wider tyres would get much more comfort from the bike. As it stands, Van Nicholas’s Yukon Disc straddles the light- to middle-weight touring/audax/commuting and sportive spectrum pretty well. It’s not super-light – though nine kilos or so is far from heavy – but the slightly relaxed geometry means you stay comfortable hour after hour.

And not only does the frame have a liftetime warranty, Van Nicholas is aware of the issues of buying a bike online, so it offers a 14-day money-back guarantee on the complete bike. The price shown may also be subject to exchange-rate fluctuations.

Van Nicholas Yukon Disc
There’s a great feeling of efficiency from the Yukon. Russell Burton

Van Nicholas Yukon Disc geometry

  • Seat angle: 73.5 degrees
  • Head angle: 71 degrees
  • Chainstay: 42.7cm
  • Seat tube: 50.5cm
  • Top tube: 53.5cm
  • Head tube: 16cm
  • Fork offset: 4.55cm
  • Trail: 7cm
  • Bottom bracket height: 26.8cm
  • Bottom bracket drop: 7.3cm
  • Wheelbase: 1,008mm
  • Stack: 56.7cm
  • Reach: 37.4cm

Product

Brand van_nicholas
Price 3911.00 GBP
Weight 9.6700, KILOGRAM (M) -

Features

Fork Van Nicholas ADX carbon
br_stem VNT Elements
br_chain Shimano Ultegra HG X-11
br_frame 3Al/2.5V Titanium
Tyres Mavic Yksion UST 25mm
br_brakes Shimano Ultegra hydraulic discs
br_cranks Shimano Ultegra 50/34
br_saddle Brooks Cambium
br_wheels Mavic Ksyrium Elite Disc
br_headset FSA
br_shifter Shimano Ultegra
br_cassette Shimano Ultegra 11-34
br_seatpost Van Nicholas titanium 27.2mm
br_handlebar VNT Elements 42cm
br_bottomBracket Shimano
br_availableSizes XS, S, M, L, XL
br_rearDerailleur Shimano Ultegra