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Jet9 RDO woe

26K views 106 replies 37 participants last post by  hydrogeek 
#1 ·
Got my RDO back in January, moved my nearly new Shimano XTR drive train 9sp, triple over and had one good ride so far where the shifting wasn't a complete nightmare. The front derailleur shift is a manual-matic process of moving the shifter, then dismounting the bike to manually lift the chain to the next bigger chain ring.

The rear dérailleur just ghost shifts constantly, my shop has tried all new cables and housings twice and shortening and lengthening the housing to no effect. <sigh>.:madman:

I am actively trying to sell my XTR drive train to replace it with SRAM as that seems to work for the other RDO owners in my area.

Good news is that last night Niner responded that there is a shift upgrade kit available for the RDO to address issues.

Has anyone had similar issues? How did you fix it? Did you install this kit?
 
#83 ·
I agree that the external housing on top of the chainstay looks lousy. Especially with the new derailleurs that don't require much in the way of chain slap protection on the frame. Unfortunately it's the only reliable set up I've found with this design.

My plan for next year is to go back to the internal full length housing from the bb chuck to the r. der. The problem with that set up was that the housing tended to move around shortening the crucial bit between the chuck and chainstay and causing shifting issues for some. As well, the plastic frame inserts would pop out and allow the housing to start sawing into the carbon chainstay....

To remedy this I'm going to run the housing through the chainstay using the original plastic sleeve inserts and then create "bumps" on the housing that would prevent it from sliding around. I'm thinking it wouldn't take much (maybe a few wraps of hockey stick tape on the housing?) The housing is anchored securely at the bb and derailleur end and these two points take all of the force from shifting. The "bumps" on the housing just prevent gradual migration from suspension movement.

Can't see why it wouldn't work. The shift kit -- at least in my experience -- is prone to failure and I no longer want to risk using it. The external routing is ugly. Hopefully this will solve both issues.
 
#84 ·
Seems like a good remedy but you're still going to have the added friction caused by the corkscrew between the chainstay and the chuck. I also would anticipate rapid wear of the housing liner in the corkscrew. What price beauty?
 
#87 ·
True. I do think the external run on top of the chainstay lightens the shifting somewhat by taking out some of the kinks. It would be nice if the housing could somehow run on the underside of the chainstay. The lower linkage gets in the way though.

If my " bump" on the housing strategy does end up being reliable I think I might drill out the headbadge/BB chuck and run one big piece of housing. This would make cable changes a simple task. As it is now I dread doing it. Especially during a stage race or something. Lose a cable endcap and a frayed cable turns into a major overhaul...
 
#85 ·
I had the full length housing until a few weeks ago and switched to the shift kit. Have had shifting issues since. The mechanic that installed the full length did not use plastic sleeve inserts and the housing started wearing away the carbon (I also don't know if they were thrown away or not). I will try setting the shift kit up properly again. Hopefully it works.
 
#88 ·
I keep looking at that lower link and wondering if it would be possible to machine a slot for the housing to pass through. That would make it possible to route the cable on the bottom of the chainstay. Not willing to risk it, though.
 
#92 ·
I have a new XL with XTR 2x10 set up. followed routing instructions exactly and have a couple issues. 1) dropping down into the 11 tooth on the cassette is very difficult. 2) Also, seems i have chainline issues with the smaller two cogs in back and the small ring up front. the actual angle causes the chain to hit ramps on the larger ring up front. finally. planning to swap drivetrains with my hardtail to put sram on here and the shimano on the hardtail. please advise if anyone has had the same issues resolved with a drivetrain change. i know it sounds crazy, but i am a pretty decent wrench and have never had this issue with any other set ups and am simply stumped.
 
#93 ·
Every 2x10 set up I've ever used (on a variety of bikes) has had issues with using the bottom couple of cogs while in the small ring. Chain rubs big ring, sometimes the big ring will try to pick up the chain etc. They aren't really "good" gear combos anyway.

As for you having trouble dropping to the 11 cog... not sure... I'm thinking you've already checked the usual stuff like: hanger alignment, high limit screw etc. Must be a chain tension issue somewhere.

Either way - I wouldn't scrap the XTR stuff just yet. It's definitely workable. I have two friends running XTR double set-ups on RDOs with no problems. It's winter here so their actual riding has been minimal but initial set up and shake-down rides went just fine. Have faith!

Question: which PF30 adapter are you using?
 
#94 ·
I just built up my new frame and am having some issues as well. Went with the jagwire L3 housing. First off this housing does seem larger as I cannot match it up into the niner ferrules. Second I went with just under 120 of housing length, probably closer to 115, as I could not get it to bend at the 120. I finally got it all set up and set the whole drivetrain up. It wasn't terrible, abut it definitely was not smooth. I took it for a quick ride and shifting was not great. Figured the new system needs to seat correctly. I have all 10 spd xt with xtr rear mech and a triple up front.

Decided to take it out for a quick trail ride to see if I could get it to set right. Could not go into big ring out back without shifting and grinding problems. Kept out of that for awhile but keep trying to get into work occasionally. Pedaling very lightly uphill and snapped my brand new xt chain. Not sure where the torque came from but it definitely ripped it apart. Coasted home and here I am today.

Put a kmc quick link in and am trying to figure out the shifting again. It seems very violent on the up shifts and just really jerky. Perhaps this is where my new chain snapped? Still in stand and scratching my head.

Do you think that I just have a shifting setup issue outside of the cable routing? Will try and align der. Hanger and set up rear dérailleur again. Any thoughts on what is going on here? Have not had any ghost shifting issues yet, probably due to lack of use more than anything. Thanks for the help.
 
#95 ·
It sounds more like a gear setup problem than a cable one.

I just built up my new frame and am having some issues as well. Went with the jagwire L3 housing. First off this housing does seem larger as I cannot match it up into the niner ferrules. Second I went with just under 120 of housing length, probably closer to 115, as I could not get it to bend at the 120. I finally got it all set up and set the whole drivetrain up. It wasn't terrible, abut it definitely was not smooth. I took it for a quick ride and shifting was not great. Figured the new system needs to seat correctly. I have all 10 spd xt with xtr rear mech and a triple up front.

Decided to take it out for a quick trail ride to see if I could get it to set right. Could not go into big ring out back without shifting and grinding problems. Kept out of that for awhile but keep trying to get into work occasionally. Pedaling very lightly uphill and snapped my brand new xt chain. Not sure where the torque came from but it definitely ripped it apart. Coasted home and here I am today.

Put a kmc quick link in and am trying to figure out the shifting again. It seems very violent on the up shifts and just really jerky. Perhaps this is where my new chain snapped? Still in stand and scratching my head.

Do you think that I just have a shifting setup issue outside of the cable routing? Will try and align der. Hanger and set up rear dérailleur again. Any thoughts on what is going on here? Have not had any ghost shifting issues yet, probably due to lack of use more than anything. Thanks for the help.
 
#96 ·
The shifting should be smooth. It will require more force at the shift lever than some set ups and the ferrules may fail, but it should smoothly shift into whatever gear you select if you've set it up correctly. The routing sucks, there's no denying it, but it can be made to work acceptably. I also can't see it having anything to do with your chain snapping.

I would start by checking the Jagwire housing. They do make a 4.5mm diameter housing (I think it looks "braided") that would cause seating issues with the ferrules and inconsistent shifting.

Also, did your chain break at the connecting pin? Could be that it wasn't installed correctly (they can be tricky.)

Lastly: order the new shift kit. You're running the set up with the proprietary ferrules and exposed cable in the chainstay right? The new solution looks like a winner.
 
#98 ·
I know I don't have the braided lines and it is just the generic shift housing I bought 10' at the lbs. I do have the special ferrules and have tried to set up everything according to the niner tech video and all of the great tips on here about the 110-120 length. Will try and see if hanger is straight and everything else as it seems to be unrelated to the cables but rather with the shifting itself.
 
#101 ·
Finally Working Properly!



I can tell you that before I knew of the specific section and length for the linkage I eyeballed it a few times. Too short, too long, nothing worked. When I came across their install video I followed it precisely at 110mm. I also used a short aluminum ferrule from Jagwire instead of the longer plastic ones that often come with bulk cabling. I also used a Jagwire housing because it was softer and more flexible than the bulk Shimano housing I typically use. Once I did that all was well and has worked flawlessly for about 500 miles now, knock on wood. So in summary, short aluminum ferrule and exactly 110mm of a soft flexible cable housing and it was good to go! Here is a pic of my steed too.
 

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#99 ·
The internal cable routing sucks and the kit is a PITA to install. Niner needs to dump the internal cable routing and go with external so us garage mechanics don't have to fight our bikes to get it to shift correctly. Niner needs to throw in the towel and run the cables externally!
 
#104 ·
I just picked up a '13 Jet 9 Carbon and had ghost-shifting problems when my rear suspension was going through its' travel on medium and large bumps. I followed the directions for the bottom bracket to chainstay housing, even measuring the 110mm length with digital calipers.

The ghost-shifting disappeared when I lengthened it to 120mm. I noticed with the 110mm housing, that the cable stop entering the chainstay would slide out of the opening when manually moving the rear triangle through the entire range of the travel. FWIW, it's an XS sized frame.

Bottom line, cutting the housing a bit longer than the recommended 110mm eliminated any ghost-shifting, or any other shifting problem for that matter
 
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