Two Niner Hardtails - No shocks, No Front Derailleurs Required
Niner has some fun up their sleeves this week - two bikes that are perfect for one-by-eleven gearing systems, in a new color option. Though the SIR 9 (a steel-tube Reynolds 853 beauty) and One 9 RDO (high-zoot carbon race bike) couldn't be much further apart when it comes to personal style, what they do have in common is design with an eye for detail and versatility.
Niner's SIR 9 steel hardtail (top) and One 9 RDO carbon fiber hardtail can both be configured with gears or as single speeds. An eccentric bottom bracket shell allows the chain to be adjusted while using a 142/12mm through-axle rear hub.
The One 9 RDO and SIR 9 are perfect examples of Niner’s versatility. On the outside, these bikes seem very different - the One 9 RDO is destined to be the race bike of choice for Niner’s 2014 professional sponsorships, while the SIR 9 is a bike most accurately compared to custom steel frames. What unifies them is their versatility and simplicity - both are excellent choices for single speed or 1x11 drivetrains (the SIR 9 is also front derailleur compatible).
The functionality of 1 x 11 drivetrains is addicting - this is a lesson we at Niner have learned over the last year. Our demo fleet features XX1 on several models, both full suspension and hardtail. The constant comments from demo riders about the silent operation, perfectly predictable shifting and the lack of any chain noise are one argument for this set up - the fact that the components have outlasted over 130 days of demo is another.
One 9 RDO
You’ve probably noticed we have a habit of revisiting our classic models and occasionally injecting them with a huge dose of YEAH! In the case of the One 9 RDO, we’ve created a completely new bike – melding the single-mindedness of the legendary One 9 with our award winning Air 9 RDO carbon chassis. The result is lightning quick, strong as a gorilla but sexy as they come. In other words, the One 9 RDO is going to make you forget all about your other bikes. If loving the One 9 RDO is wrong, you won’t want to be right.
Refined design: The newest member of our hardtail RDO program, the One 9 RDO is a single speed racer designed to go flat out fast. The One 9 RDO is specifically intended as a single speed racing bike, utilizing the reduced diameters and trimmed profiles of our RDO hardtail line up throughout. The rear brake mount is tucked inside the curving stays to distribute twisting forces evenly, permitting smaller caliper mounts and decreased wall thicknesses. Even the headset races in the head tube are molded carbon - we shaved grams wherever we found them. The net result? A single speed that can’t be matched for quality and weight.
Biocentric Bottom Bracket: The Niner BioCentric II makes adjustments easy across a wide range of gears and eliminates the need for adjustable dropouts, giving the cleanest possible solution for single speed use. No bolt on hubs, no chain tensioners cluttering your ride, no brake adjustments with gear changes.
One-by drivetrain ready: For those who want a little extra versatility, the One 9 RDO is compatible with Niner’s CYA bottom bracket system, enabling riders to run systems such as SRAM’s XX1 or XO1.
Real World Weight Savings: Sharing key layup and mold features with the Air 9 RDO, combined with the singlespeed simplicity of this frame, gives the One 9 RDO an average weight of 1235g. Combined with the Niner RDO fork, you are looking at one of the lightest mountain bikes available.
Hardtail Geometry: As verified over and over again in independent reviews, Niner has hardtail 29er geometry dialed. Climbing or descending, the geometry of the Air 9 is tuned for great handling and rider positioning. The One 9 RDO is intended for 80 to 100mm forks, allowing you to fine tune your ride.
Biocentric Bottom Bracket: The Niner BioCentric II makes adjustments easy across a wide range of gears and eliminates the need for adjustable dropouts, giving the cleanest possible solution for single speed use. No bolt on hubs, no chain tensioners cluttering your ride, no brake adjustments with gear changes.
One-by drivetrain ready: For those who want a little extra versatility, the One 9 RDO is compatible with Niner’s CYA bottom bracket system, enabling riders to run systems such as SRAM’s XX1 or XO1.
Real World Weight Savings: Sharing key layup and mold features with the Air 9 RDO, combined with the singlespeed simplicity of this frame, gives the One 9 RDO an average weight of 1235g. Combined with the Niner RDO fork, you are looking at one of the lightest mountain bikes available.
Hardtail Geometry: As verified over and over again in independent reviews, Niner has hardtail 29er geometry dialed. Climbing or descending, the geometry of the Air 9 is tuned for great handling and rider positioning. The One 9 RDO is intended for 80 to 100mm forks, allowing you to fine tune your ride.
Check out Niner's One 9 RDO specs and geometry here.
SIR 9
At a time when carbon super bikes (including our own flagship models) dominate the stage, why would Niner shine a spotlight on the SIR 9? Perhaps it’s better to ask “just what is it about steel bikes?” Why, when we get on a steel frame, are we instantly transported back to that first bike we loved as a kid? Why is steel just as relevant today as it was 50 years ago while other materials have come and gone?
Like other Ninerds, we ride and love steel bikes, as do bike connoisseurs around the world. But something about steel being equated with retro seems almost unfair. There is simply no reason frames built with one of the best metals on the planet shouldn’t benefit from and take full advantage of cool technologies like updated headsets standards, tapered forks and through-axles. All the fun, all the advantages, all the steel.
New Tubeset and Award Winning Geometry: All steel is not created equal. The SIR 9 tubing is a custom selected set that utilizes the best tube options for each application within the frame. For the front triangle, we employ new Reynolds 853 DZB (double zone butting) tubing. Developed for mountain bikes, and specifically 29ers, Reynolds 853 DZB offers two significant advantages:
Down tube Clearance: Fork/frame clearance for 29ers presents unique obstacles because of the relatively high head tube to bottom bracket height. A straight down tube needs to be welded high on the back of the head tube to achieve fork clearance, often requiring either a gusset between the head tube and the down tube or a thicker heavier down tube to achieve desired strength. We worked with Reynolds to bend the 835 DZB down tube expressly for the SIR 9 so the tube can attach lower on the head tube without interfering with the fork crown.
Increased Precision: A lower attachment point for the down tube improves front end rigidity. The Reynolds 853 DZB down tube further differentiates itself from others by incorporating two different butting profiles on the same tube – extra strength at the head tube to reduce torsional flex combined with a butting profile in the rest of the tube that maintains ride quality and avoids weight penalties Strong where we need it, compliant where we want it. For the stays, we incorporate steel, custom-bent in three dimensions, with investment cast bridges and dropouts for ride quality and tire clearance. This shaping is proprietary to Niner and is notfound on other steel mountain bikes. When combined with the new 142 x 12mm axle, the rear end of the new SIR 9 provides superior power transfer while preserving the smooth ride quality expected from a steel frame.
Complete the package with Niner’s hardtail geometry expertise and the result is a new frame that is sure to win as many rider’s choice awards and great reviews as has the original SIR 9.
New Tubeset and Award Winning Geometry: All steel is not created equal. The SIR 9 tubing is a custom selected set that utilizes the best tube options for each application within the frame. For the front triangle, we employ new Reynolds 853 DZB (double zone butting) tubing. Developed for mountain bikes, and specifically 29ers, Reynolds 853 DZB offers two significant advantages:
Down tube Clearance: Fork/frame clearance for 29ers presents unique obstacles because of the relatively high head tube to bottom bracket height. A straight down tube needs to be welded high on the back of the head tube to achieve fork clearance, often requiring either a gusset between the head tube and the down tube or a thicker heavier down tube to achieve desired strength. We worked with Reynolds to bend the 835 DZB down tube expressly for the SIR 9 so the tube can attach lower on the head tube without interfering with the fork crown.
Increased Precision: A lower attachment point for the down tube improves front end rigidity. The Reynolds 853 DZB down tube further differentiates itself from others by incorporating two different butting profiles on the same tube – extra strength at the head tube to reduce torsional flex combined with a butting profile in the rest of the tube that maintains ride quality and avoids weight penalties Strong where we need it, compliant where we want it. For the stays, we incorporate steel, custom-bent in three dimensions, with investment cast bridges and dropouts for ride quality and tire clearance. This shaping is proprietary to Niner and is notfound on other steel mountain bikes. When combined with the new 142 x 12mm axle, the rear end of the new SIR 9 provides superior power transfer while preserving the smooth ride quality expected from a steel frame.
Complete the package with Niner’s hardtail geometry expertise and the result is a new frame that is sure to win as many rider’s choice awards and great reviews as has the original SIR 9.
Check out Niner's SIR 9 complete specs and geometry here.
Niner Biocentric II Installation from Niner Bikes on Vimeo.
Author Info:
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
Is it bigoted to want a site that focuses on kinds of riding that I like? Does anyone know a good DH/FR focused site? I used to know one, but it became a generalist site that occasionally showed me interesting stuff, but more often began to show me whatever was trending generally, just like MTBR.
How long before a road bike review comes up? I am not knocking this or any other bike, but I was under the impression that PB was a site that focused on a different kind of riding than mtbr.
I feel good.
And yeah, who am i to say what PB should or shouldn't cover. At the end of the day i am just another weeny whining about how I want more of this or that covered.
I just say it in a more convoluted fashion.
I wish pb didn't have like 5000 kids reposting the same questions under 4 different screen names, but hey..what can I do?
Just because it doesn't have absurd mounts of travel does not mean it's not mountain biking. I have a friend who has a SIR 9 and he is one of the best riders I know- he rips FR on it regularly.
Am I wrong or has there been a very significant change in what PB covers? If I am wrong I'll sit down and shut up but look at the content:
When was the last time they covered a DJ or 4x bike? They used to do it all the time. They didn't even cover the huge change in DJ geometry that has happened over the last year.
How many full on DH bikes have they reviewed compared to trail or xc bikes this year? What was the ratio last year? How about the year before? Don't tell me what is popular has changed. XC has always been a bigger market than DH. They used to just make the effort.
They haven't started covering xc races yet, but is that next? I like enduro. It is my kind of riding and retired DHer's do it all the time. It seems like a logical step for PB, but when a third of the products they show anymore are for the XC crowd I wonder why we aren't all watching the xc races.
There is a reason the WC races and rampage get live coverage on PB: that is what we all came here for originally. But do those bikes get much coverage anymore? Nope. we are too busy looking at rigid ss bikes.
PB is selling out. What you see above you is purchased add space.
Besides, it's foolish to think the DJ/DH articles/reviews were any less advertisements than this article. They're made by companies trying to sell products too.
Pinkbike is a site for mountain bikers. All mountain bikers. Except guys on fixies. Screw those guys.
From Pinkbike:
"Check out PinkBike.com for the latest in cycling and mountain biking news, freeride videos, photos, events and more."
Close mindedness did not come into this.
Also for the record I have a 29er. I haven't gone singlespeed because my wife uses it too.
Get off the high horse, examine the argument and argue IT. If you look at the rules for intelligent debate you will learn that you have committed a fallacy: (personal attack and strawman). Very rude things to do in polite discussion. Keep it clean.
No neutering of existing trails please
Take a lap on something that doesn't have 8" in the rear and see if you can have a new opinion form in your tightly wadded little mind.
The only style where 29" hardtails are used is fast XC racing, however if you want to race, a single speed bike is totally useless.
Maybe because 26 is not 29...
Similar here
Chris Sugai (Niner founder) is like that, but about 29ers. We get it, you like 29rs because its all that you sell and thats how you make a living. But dont hate on 26 and 27.5 bikes as somehow inferior.
He went all in and painted himself into a corner. The irony is that at his height, a 650b probably is a better fit, assuming he does't have to rely on the rollover to clean stuff.
He's entitled to say whatever he wants...we're entitled to buy other brands (which IMHO, there are better, less hyped options) that aren't owned by him.
The point of a single speed is simplicity but they can be surprisingly problematic and frustrating to work on at times.
www.ninerbikes.com/ros9
p.s. everyone keep complaining about anything that is different from what you ride. Its funny to laugh at ignorance
Seriously!?! That's not even a word! Without correct use of English, journalism is nothing. Sort it out. PLEASE!
Don't get me wrong. I love PB and will continue to read and visit daily, but too often lately I find myself looking at the main page and saying "nothing for me today" and moving on.
Something has changed, and I think we need to just be friends now PB. With benefits of course.
I personally like seeing a little hardtail/trail/xc type stuff on here, and so far I don't think there's been enough of it to really dilute the front page.
bikeradar.com (generalist, covered as many aggressive bikes as PB in the last 10 days, even though they cover road bikes too)
I will dial back my rhetoric a bit.
Doing that search was educational for me. There are more freeride focused sites out there than I thought, and less xc focused sites.
It does seem like pb has changed its focus, but maybe it was to fill a need.
If there was an XC/Trail type of site with PB's format (lengthy articles, good writing/photography, solid user-submitted content, coherent site layout, frequent updates, strong user community, etc) I would agree with you 100%. From my perspective PB just has a winning format, and is consistently a day or two ahead of the curve vs any other site out there (especially mtbr, who often reposts PB links from the day before), so maybe it was just bound to get more popular and more general. I'd probably be irritated too if I thought the focus was shifting away from what I like (same thing has happened to most of my favorite subs on reddit), but the fact is no other mtb sites out there can really step to PB for quality of content, user community, etc. Maybe if it gets big enough it can split into a gravity page and an general mtb page, but for now I'm just happy to see the diversity in the content. Maybe if the focus shifted less toward 'edits' and more toward competition coverage in general there would be room for everyone (DH, XC, enduro, slopestyle, whatever), but the site might also lose some of the fun factor, idk. Or just have the articles more compact on the front page so there can be more of them. Either way, it's kinda the gift and the curse of having a fantastic site.
I wouldn't have to say "don't get me wrong" it people didn't jump to conclusions and insert their own meaning into other people's statements: ie. If they didn't get me wrong. . .
Above for a similar statement one guy accused me of hating on 29ers, even though I ride one when I ride certain trails certain times of the year. He got me wrong.
You thought I was using it as some sort of apology so you got me wrong too.
Jeeze. I didn't realize I was giving everyone a chance to say they were a fine upstanding citizen. This is like when politicians say they have a black or gay friend.
I don't think diversity is the issue here either. Just putting that out there. Nothing to do with it. It was really more of a organizational complaint. I was saying I wanted this particular drawer to only house wool socks, not that I hated cotton socks.
Just another person "getting me wrong".
Really though, totally with you on the sock drawer analogy, I just think the other drawers in the proverbial dresser suck, so I'm keeping my favorite undies and pj's in this drawer now too. If the other drawers were of similar quality I'd happily put em all back where they were.
@tjet seems like you might be confusing "don't get me wrong" with "with all due respect"?
They shoulda named it the F.U.N...cuz they look like a freaking blast!!
(sarcasm off)
WAIT.
Do you have anything to say about people with dark skin while I'm asking....?
Now you're starting to look a racist, togood2die
and from the movies I've seen, dark people tend to be well endowed
@bigwheels29er
no, but I hear that's how your maw likes it
right
/s