NEW BIKE DAY! Niner Air9 with Shimano XT

This is starting to become a recurring theme around the shop, and I couldn't be happier.  Niner bikes have been rolling out of the shop with regularity and each one keeps getting better.

For this build we went to our go-to component gruppo, Shimano XT.  Performance, looks, and weight, XT has it going on.  It's not quite as light as some of the other gruppos on the market, but with brakes that cannot be matched and smooth shifting as good or better than anything else available, a price that's perfectly competitive, and good looks to match, it's the gruppo we've used as our standard to which other gruppos are measured.

Beautiful build, eh?  The white/raw color combo on the new Air9 PF30 is incredible and really draws a lot of attention.  No denying this thing looks good.

NoTubes Arch EX stock wheelset is a great value and adds a great amount of stiffness over the Crest wheelset while being only slightly heavier.  The big bonus: NoTubes has the best bead hook out there allowing just about any tire to be easily set up tubeless.

The Rock Shox SID fork used on this bike isn't the high-zoot XX World Cup version we've been using so much lately.  This SID RL still has very smooth travel, uncompromising light weight, and looks great with this frame.

Sag measurements printed on the stanchions make setup easier than any fork out there.

XT cranks have legendary Shimano front shifting.  Also legendary from Shimano is not being the lightest, but not sacrificing stiffness to anyone.

Shimano XT brakes have more power and better lever feel than any brake on the market today.  They aren't the lightest, but they do perform the best.

Shimano ICE Technology rotors keep things cool and performance fade-free no matter how you ride.

Looks are personal, but damn these levers sure are sexy.  The single-lever braking can't be beat.

No mistaking the model of this frame!  Niner never wants to leave anyone guessing, but most of their graphics tend to be subtle, or at least in small numbers.

NEW BIKE DAY! Niner Jet9 RDO with Shimano XT

I'll cut to the chase: 23.7 lbs without pedals.  Now, get the details.

Builds like this just don't come along that often.  It's not every day we get to build the dream bike of a seasoned mountain biker.  When we were asked to build a Jet9 RDO, I was nervous.  Back order lists are incredibly long, this one was ordered the first week of December.

Once the frame had been acquired, everything else was easy.  The frame received a SID XX World Cup 100mm fork with a 15mm thru axle and Cane Creek headset.

The build kit was simple: full Shimano XT.  Every time I ride it I become more and more impressed with the quality of the shifts, but more-so the braking.  Best braking I've ever used.

Wheels where another spot where we knew exactly where to go: Stan's NoTubes.  The stock Crest wheelset came to use 30g LIGHTER than advertised and perfectly round and true.

Thomson post and silver stand-in stem to be replaced with the correct size (and color) once the fit is dialed.  EDGE carbon bars, ESI grips, Maxxis Aspen 2.1 tires set up tubeless.

Lynskey Cooper - Stars and Stripes Edition

This is a special build that we partook in, though we can't lay claim to the entire bike.  You may recognize the wheels from a few weeks ago, which we were thrilled to be a part of building.  Rims are Velocity A23, hubs are White Industries H2/H3.

Let's backtrack a little.  This bike belongs to a friend of the shop who has served out country in the Army.  From the get-go this bike was to be loud and scream patriotism.  But at the same time, we didn't want to go down a route that lead to a bike that crossed a line TOO far into being gaudy.

The fork was painted locally by a great friend of ours, Duane over at Chester Cycles.  If you need something painted, this is your dude.  Turnaround has always been totally acceptable, his pricing is great, and his work is top-notch.

It's clear that in as many areas as possible, choices were made to stick with US companies, and preferably US-made products.  Of course, it's pretty much impossible to completely pull that off, but Ryan got damn close.

The frame is one that hits close to home for us, a Lynskey Cooper.  I've spent a ton of time on an identical frame, Chase still sports his, and we have a few more team people riding theirs, check them out here, here, here, and here.

The drivetrain is a mix of SRAM Force and Red.  The headset is a Chris King, the stem and post are both Thomson, tires are the wonderfully plush and grippy Vittoria EVO CS.

While the Cooper is considered by some as the "budget" Lynskey, it's far from it.  The tubing is still shaped, the frame is light, and it has one very nice feature some of the other Lynskey frames don't: a replaceable derailleur hanger.  Don't take that the wrong way, a Ti derailleur hanger makes for excellent shifting, but in the case of a serious crash isn't it nice to know that hanger is replaceable?

Nothing "budget" about this bike.  Built with care, each part chosen for a very specific purpose.  I can't help but to assume this bike rides as well as it looks.  Enjoy it, sir.

Independent Fabrication SSR - Rapha-inspired

Does it get any classier?  IF SSR, black/pink/raw Rapha-inspired paint, Lightweight wheels, SR11.  Grabbed this one from 34x18 blog.

Another ride in the books on my 2012 Niner EMD9 ....

Lumberjack is only 8 weeks away at this point, and today wrapped up a pretty big (for me) 3-week training block.  Building from 10-11 hours per week up to a high of about 16 this week, I was lucky enough to get a really nice chunk of those hours on single track.

It's pretty incredible how great the trails are right now, especially Palos.  This time of year we're usually sitting around grumbling about how the trails are closed because they are too wet, but after a few trips to the trails I'm psyched about how dry they are.

This weekend as well as last weekend were about as good as they get, today had only 3-4 spots of mud in the 55-ish miles of trail I traveled.  Anyone who has hit Palos in the spring knows the lack of mud in April is very welcome.

After these three weeks I'm ready for a little time off of the bike.  A couple of rest days thrown in this week, maybe even a massage, will hopefully leave me ready for another big weekend next week.

After about 5 weeks of training on this 2012 Niner EMD9, I'm in love.  While the lust for carbon MAY overtake me before Lumberjack hits, this is the perfect bike to train on.  The least expensive frame in Niner's lineup means I don't have to sweat a dent or scratch the same way an AIR9 Carbon would probably bother me.  It's light enough, it handles very neutral, and is an absolute rocket.

If you want to get into a Niner, or maybe you've been riding a 29er but want to go with something new, this is it.  The EMD9 has a tapered head tube for perfect steering, and comes out of the box finished like all Niners: faced and reamed head tube, faced and chased bottom bracket, and faced disc brake mounts.  This may not mean a ton to you, but it means quality and time savings to me.

Niner has the geometry dialed, their fit and finish is second to none, and their pricing is hard to beat.

OK, enough of the sales pitch.  Go ride your bike.

On test: 2012 Niner EMD9

It's no secret I've been a fan of 29ers for quite some time.  My first one dates back to roughly 2006 with a Salsa Mamasita, and I was instantly in love.  That bike was built with an entry-level REBA, X9, and some cheap wheels.  I can't say I remember for sure, but I'd guess it was north of 27-28 lbs.

29ers have changed quite a bit since then.  I'm still riding alloy, though I've ridden plenty of titanium and carbon since then.  At the end of the day, I have a tough time faulting aluminum for it's killer price point, relatively light weight, durability, and great looks.

For 2012 Niner has updated the EMD9.  It may be their entry-level frame, but the specs are right.  It's ready for a tapered steerer tube, which I took advantage of with a SID XX fork.  The standard 73mm English bottom bracket was a welcome spec as I was planning a the use of Shimano cranks.

Like all other frames from Niner, the EMD9 came out of the box perfectly prepped.  Bottom bracket threads were tapped, the bottom bracket and head tube and rear brake mount had been faced.  All great touches that save us a ton of time.

The finish on the frame is a really nice semi-matte black with white logos.  Totally understated and certainly my style.  Add in a few orange touches and this becomes the perfect Iron Cycles team mountain bike, which would explain the abundance of them on our team.

Specs on this build:

Niner EMD9 frame, black, large
Rock Shox SID XX World Cup tapered fork, 15mm Maxle
Shimano XT drivetrain
Niner RDO carbon seatpost
Thomson Elite X4 130mm x 0* stem
Niner RDO carbon handlebars
Fizik Aliante custom saddle
Stan's NoTubes Crest wheelset, XTR 15mm front hub, PowerTap rear hub
King Cages stainless cages
Maxxis Aspen tires

In the first week of having this bike built, I've logged roughly 8-9 hours on the trails.  Comparing this to the Air9 Carbon I recently rode the EMD9 performed admirably.  The AIR9 Carbon's head tube MAY be a hair stiffer, and the BB junction MAY be a hair stiffer, but in all the EMD9 was right on par with the AIR9 Carbon at roughly 1/3 the price.  The EMD9 does give up to the AIR9 Carbon in the weight department, but this built built to only be 2 lbs heavier with a heavier gruppo on it as well.

One worthwhile upgrade that I can't recommend enough is the 15mm Maxle fork.  Be it a suspension fork or a rigid one, if you have the option to run a 15mm Maxle, DO IT!  The stiffness increase was immediately apparent and totally welcome.  The weight penalty is minimal, and is more than made up for on the first rock garden or errant root you come across.

I plan to put plenty of trail time on this frame and fork, and I'll be sure to report back often on it.  So far, I'm blown away that a frame that retails for $550 can be so good.  Yes, it's aluminum, so it may not be as sexy as the newest carbon offerings.  But the weight is reasonable, the ride quality is great, and the price is nearly impossible to beat.

Time to get out and ride some more....

Niner EMD9 w/ 2012 Shimano XT

This one was a pleasure to build, because well, it's mine.  I previously had built an EMD9 but it's since been sold.  I loved the frame enough that I just replaced it with an identical one.

For the first time for me, I decided to build it with a Shimano build kit.  I spent some time chatting with some mountain biking friends who do some "real" riding, you know, in the mountains.  The consensus was easy to gather: Shimano XT brakes are the best.  I heard from many of them that XTR works just as well, but at a far higher cost.

Since I was going with XT brakes, I stuck with the full XT kit.  Shifters, derailleurs, cranks, chain, and cassette are all XT.  The fork is a Niner carbon unit, bars and post are also Niner carbon, the post is the RDO version.  The stem is ole faithful, a 130mm Thomson X4.

Wheels were hand built Stan's NoTubes Crest laced to DT Swiss 240s 6-bolt disc hubs with DT Swiss Revolution spokes 3x and DT Swiss ProLoc brass nipples.

Price as built?  $3700 out the door for a pure-bred race bike.

Independent Fabrication SSR Max

Main details:

Independent Fabrication SSR, Max tubing, internal wire routing
ENVE 2.0 fork, custom IF crown paint
Shimano Ultegra Di2
Rotor 3D Quarq
Chris King R45 to NoTubes Alpha 340 with DT Swiss Aerolite spokes
Thomson Elite and X2

The Max tubing is incredibly limited.  As of right now, only 6 tube sets were made available.  One set was used for the Abarth-inspired NAHBS show bike, one set is here on this bike.

Ride review coming, but let me spoil it a bit: this thing is fast.  What makes it fast?  It's stiff, but still rides like steel.  That means you can put some power down and it rockets forward but glides over the rough stuff.

Enough for the spoilers.

Better pictures coming soon....