TimothyH

Jason and the Gravel Cyclist crew are not easy on equipment. Did you ever see video's of JOM descending? Madman.

Some people report pulling drive side spokes out but I think they are mostly MTB guys and I do question how exposed the bearing seals are. But they ride sweet. I've been riding them on pavement every night this week and they are amazing for their width. Only 100 grams heavier than Dura Ace 9000 road wheels and within 35 grams of ENVE SES 4.5 wheels. They accelerate really nice, especially now that I don't have tubes.

The HED Ardennes are really nice too but only 21 mm inside with, not 24 like the American Classic, and lower spoke count. Lots of guys ride those too. I would have them on my road bike if they fit between the chainstays.


-Tim-

TimothyH

LoL

Squeezebox

Hey ! Thanks for seeing the thread about carbon in the touring section. Can your bicycle handle front and rear racks. I imagine a bikepacking set-up would be more reasonable. Very nice bicycle. Would a triple crank be possible/reasonable with the electronic shifting?

TimothyH

Shimano doesn't makes Di2 for a triple that I am aware of.

The front of this bike will accept a rack. The Niner fork is made for it and user @Marcus_Ti has the post-mount brake version of this fork with a Tubus rack. Here is a closeup of the mounts with the little rubber plugs installed.



I'm not sure about a rear rack. There are mounts near the maxle and again up high on the inside of the seat stays. I know these will work for fenders but I've little knowledge of how rear racks attach and so couldn't say for certain.






-Tim-

Marcus_Ti

Shimano ceased (roadie) triple-support following 10 speed. The only way to have brifter-based triple today is by running old equipment. In the case of Di2 that means running 6700-series derailleurs, battery, junctions, and brifters.

Another option is to use an "adventure" 46/30 crankset of which there are half-dozen in the wild to varying degrees.


This fork takes racks fine....but be warned, if you're using the aftermarket-version you will have to buy a 3rd party aftermarket bolt-head thru-axle for it. The axle and the low-rider mounts are too close to permit spinning of the axle when a rack is mounted.

JHwick

Awesome thread.
I notice your 35c tyres actually measure 38mm wide with the AC wheels.
How's the rear wheel clearance down at the chainstays?
I'm looking at a similar build but hoping it'll still offer some clearance with a 40mm (actual width) tyre.

Also curious about how tall you are to be riding a 53cm frame.
I'm 176cm (5' 9" with a 33.5 inseam) and stuck halfway between the 53 and 56 sizes.

Cheers!

TimothyH

@JHwick

I'm 5' 8" and also stuck between a 53 and 56. I was lucky enough to see a 56 in in the shop and ordered a 53.

40's should be no problem but I'll try to get some photos of the underside of the bike later today.


-Tim-

JHwick

Thanks Tim, Currently thinking I'll jump other way as I'm a fraction taller (5' 9" and a bit) with a longish 33-inch inseam.

Reckon I'll wind up with too many spacers under the stem with the lower stack of the 53 and maybe too much seatpost with my 75cm saddle height.

Thanks for offering to check out the tyre clearance!

tangerineowl

I can't see why too much seatpost would be an issue, if the post has a long enough insertion allowance; say 75mm. You're going to end up with the same seat height/fore-aft poz, regardless. Depending on the post type, a greater exposed length could have greater flex/add to compliance, for a gravel bike.

I run a 75cm seat height also; at 5' 9.5"/34". Arms a bit on the shorter side though > Curve Grovel v2.

JHwick

I realise it won't change the saddle to BB relationship with a longer post but I'll wind up with a whole lot of spacers under the stem and I reckon that starts to look a tad unattractive.
Been on a Norco Search loaner bike for a while and need to replace it with something of my own.
The Search was a 55.5 and I thought it was reasonably well proportioned for my setup (see the pic).

The RLT RDO 56cm is only a fraction bigger than the Search while the 53 RDO is a fair bit smaller.
Was just questioning my options to ensure I make the right call in the end.

tangerineowl

Yeah, I don't like a huge stack of spacers either.

Before I realized you were looking at the RDO, I was going to suggest there's a two-ride 53cm 4 star RLT over on the PacelineForum for 2.5k at the moment.

Was considering a Search, myself, at one time.

Happy hunting.

TimothyH

@JHwick, here you go.

Again, tires are Schwalbe G-One 35 mm which measure 38 mm actual.


Looking at the underside of the chainstays...




Drive side...




Non-drive side...




This was taken withe the iPhone zoomed and so perspective is a little distorted...



Hope it helps in some small way.

-Tim-

gsa103

That looks like a 40mm (actual) tire would fit, 42mm may get rubbing under cornering, or with stuff stuck in the tread.

JHwick

Awesome! That's better than I expected.
Thanks for posting.

TimothyH

I would not hesitate with the 29er wheels on this bike.

halo777

Awesome build! I have the exact same frameset on order, and your writeup and detailed pics answer so many questions for me. Thank you!

One question... do you think that there is any more clearance to be gained at the rear wheel by running 650b? I was planning on 650b (27.5) wheels with 2.1 tires, if they will fit. Front looks no problem, but I cant tell on the rear.

TimothyH

Hello @halo777

I don't think you will fit 53 mm tires on this bike, especially on the back.

The fork legs are slightly angled in relation to each other and you will gain a few millimeters with a smaller wheel in the front but a 53 mm tire will be really close.

Chainstay clearance is actually less the further back the wheel/rim sits. The space between the chainstays is lightbulb shaped, if that makes sense. This is where I'm pretty sure a 2.1 will not fit.

Your best bet is going to be measuring before you commit to wheels/tires but my gut is no.

Please let me know if I am wrong. I actually hope I am because tires like that sound like fun.


-Tim-

halo777

Hey TimH,

Thanks for the tip. From the pics, that is exaclty what it looked like. I know that Niner markets this frame as Race Day Only, with a smaller tire clearance. Just, I got a deal that I really couldnt refuse. I will have to make due with what I have, or build another frame up.

Thanks again!!!

cheers!!!

shoota 

I'd have to agree. In fact, just about every proper gravel bike I've seen uses the "lightbulb" chainstay approach to gain the ~40-42mm clearance.

Maelochs

Just want to say "Awesome Thread!" or some such. I have looked at the generic version of this frame (didn't realize what it was until I saw this ... and I have been wondering about hydro-discs )doing them myself, not buying them.) It looks like the kind of project I would be able to do ... after the first five failed attempts. But with your step-by-step breakdown i would at least no I was failing while trying to do it correctly.

Great build, cool bike.

TimothyH

Don't sell yourself short.

Thanks for the kind words and don't think that it wasn't a learning process for me either.

Brakes were the most tedious part of the build. Not difficult, just time consuming. Bleeding was trial and error. The perfectionist in me was challenged to let go at 99.5% accuracy.

-Tim-

bnelson

anyone using mechanical dis brakes on their niner

JHwick

Been collecting parts for a while and finally pulled this together.
RLT RDO (56cm) with Force 1X, Bontrager 29er XC wheels and 40mm tyres.
Complete build is 7.9kg with pedals.

TimothyH

I'm jealous of the weight!

Nice clean lines without a front derailleur.

Mine is no longer that pristine.

athrowawaynic

My brother just ordered one with mechanical disc brakes. What do you want to know? (I can ask him about it after he gets it.)