Give her a good home.
She was my daily ride for the last few years.
and has a one-of-kind 29" wide flat DH Edge(enve) bar that was made for Mitch Ropelato.
Sorry about the heavy gearing- I liked to sprint the ups for DH training.
So I got my maiden voyage yesterday on the Nimble and coming off a aluminum HT 29 Niner One 9 this thing rides twice as smooth as a aluminum frame. It absorbs the bumps like crazy The slacker HS with a 100mm fork made descending much more controlled than than the steeper 71 HS of the Niner. The short chain stay made the technical climbing great and you could lift the front end over anything without much thought, this was a little concerning coming up to a steep climb but I stood up and it dug into the hillside and flew up without any hesitation I had no heal strikes the entire ride so I was stoked on that and the sliding dropouts never moved out of position(another concern I had)
Over all I'm totally stoked about the Nimble 9 and can't wait to ride it again
Great to see another white Nimble 9 and nice to hear that you like it! I really like the white fork which I didn't think i would. Looks like you have room to remove a chain link and shorten the stays even more if you want. The rear triangle is really compliant. I was afraid it would be harsh being so short but on the hard hits it feels like a it gives a little suspension.
Its funny, I thought the N9 was pretty stiff....until I got onto my buddies Soul Cycles Hooligan! Granted, its not an apples to apples comparison, but after about 5 miles on the Hooligan, the Canfield felt like a Cadillac!
WVJon75 I was wondering on how the wheel positioning would feel?
How close did you move it inward?
Yeah the white came out pretty good but shows everything
Not to answer for Jon, but my wheel is as far forward as I could get it. Had to use a half-link to get it there though (32x22). When I put gears on it I'll shove it all the way up. I've noticed nothing but good comparing it to my long 29ers.
To add to what Bob said basically it will just increase all the positive attributes of the shorted stayed bike. It will be even easier to loft the front and wheelie, plus you may notice a difference in the handling. It will probably be a little, well.....more Nimble.
Its funny, I thought the N9 was pretty stiff....until I got onto my buddies Soul Cycles Hooligan! Granted, its not an apples to apples comparison, but after about 5 miles on the Hooligan, the Canfield felt like a Cadillac!
In my opinion, the N9 is anything but stiff. It is actually the most flexy frame I have ever owned. The reason is obvious, it is made of small diameter steel tube and is relatively light weight. Compared to my last frame, a transAM, it is like riding a trampoline.
This isn't a criticism. Stiffness can be good or bad depending on rider preference, riding style and terrain. For my local parks, the flexibility is good. I would only want stiffer if doing larger all mountain on a regular basis, maybe. Currently i am looking to stiffen up my ride with tougher handlebars. At 740mm wide, carbon whisky7 bars flex like mad. This scares me while the frame flexibility does not.
My only criticism after riding the frame for a few months is that the straight 1.25" head tube limits us to 32mm stanchion forks. I would prefer 34mm but those are only offered with tapered steer tubes. The nimble9 really deserves a 44mm head tube. While frame flex is preferable at times, fork twisting and bowing is not. 120mm 29er forks are a bit tall for 32mm and flex noticeably. It wouldn't surprise me if a larger head tube is found on the n9 in the next year or two.
Yep, my stable now includes a N9 and a Honzo - the N9 feels a little undergunned against the Honzo but what it looses in muscle it picks up in the weigh stakes. I wouldn't say the N9 is flexy, it's just flexy compared to the tank that is a Honzo. Compared to my El Mariachi, the N9 is pretty solid indeed.
I'm keen to see what the Brothers have for 2013 - love my N9 but would jump at something that could accommodate a tapered steerer (150mm rear option too please boys if you're listening).
Finally a pic of my Nimble 9 from today. Adding some blue accents but not sure how much to add and where. I'm thinking maybe the bashgaurd should be black and go with blue handlebars? What do you think?
Yeah, I want to get the crampon pedals. I really want to give up the clipless thing. I feel better on steep chunky stuff and I think my knees like it better too. I thought my bunny hopping would suffer with the flats but not really so.
I ordered some Blue raceface turbine bars. I'm afraid it might be too much blue. I'll see when the dust settles. I swear I think I like these bikes as an art piece in my living room as much as riding them...lol.
Finally a pic of my Nimble 9 from today. Adding some blue accents but not sure how much to add and where. I'm thinking maybe the bashgaurd should be black and go with blue handlebars? What do you think?
Definitely leave the bashguard blue. Remove sloppy looking chainstay protector, replace with a slice of mousepad or a bike tube (your choice, mousepad is lighter) cleanly wrapped with blue electrical tape. Then a blue headset (because the headset should match the seat clamp), and if you really want to go crazy throw on some blue grip clamps, and call it good. Failure to follow these instructions will result in an arrest by the fashion police leading to a sentence of 10 years in Detroit.
Anybody running Middleburn square tapers on their N9? I have a set to transfer from another bike, but have some spindle length & offset issues. Currently using external BB XT's, but prefer the Middleburns.
If I could ask a favor, could anyone with an XL N9 measure their top tube and down tube diameters for me? I'm trying to get a ballpark stiffness feel for this bike, since they're pretty rare around these parts. I'm a little worried it will be too rigid for my supple steel loving self.
Thanks,
Eric
WTB: 2nd gen Salsa Fargo, XL, creme, or XL Gryphon
WTB: XL gen 1 Canfield Nimble 9 or '12~'13 L Karate Monkey
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Originally Posted by natepac
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The slacker HS with a 100mm fork made descending much more controlled than than the steeper 71 HS of the Niner. The short chain stay made the technical climbing great and you could lift the front end over anything without much thought, this was a little concerning coming up to a steep climb but I stood up and it dug into the hillside and flew up without any hesitation
