Rigid mountain bikes have been around since the first fat tire hit the dirt. Not only do they offer excellent handling, but they're more reliable and lighter than their bouncy counterparts. The introduction of carbon fiber as a medium for building fames and forks has reinvigorated the rigid ride with newfound comfort alongside the rest of the benefits. When Niner fist released their Carbon Fork it was the recipient of multiple awards and extensive industry recognition.What differentiates this fork from the rest is its monocoque design, which uses optimized carbon lay-up and weaves. The steerer tube seamlessly integrates with the lowers, creating a solid transition free of stress-prone bonds, unlike the more common three-piece forks. Niner dedicated extensive resources to optimizing the fork legs' weave to take full advantage of the damping characteristics of carbon. Impact energy is dispersed throughout the entire structure, suppressing trail vibrations without compromising steering precision.The Niner Carbon Fork has a 470mm axle to crown length. For comparison's sake, an 80mm Reba has roughly a 490mm axle-to-crown length. Factor in 20 percent sag and the axle-to-crown is about 474mm. The Niner Carbon Fork will keep your geometry similar to an 80mm suspension fork. A 45mm offset provides excellent tracking and responsive turn-in. This fork can fit up to a 180mm rotor, and does not have a rider weight limit ? reflecting Niner's confidence in their quality and design. The Niner Carbon Fork comes in ten colors -- Atomic blue, Hot tamale, Green, Licorice, Moondust grey, Nude carbon, Tangerine, Arctic white, Root beer, and Solid gold -- to give you the best match for your ride.
Strengths: I ride a steel hardtail on smooth to rock strewn single track.The Niner is a light fork ,excellent workmanship and very compliant.The fork is stiff side to side and the geometry and handling were great.I previously rode a White bros the Niner was a little more compliant but the WB feels better when braking. I went back to the WB
Weaknesses: There is a lot of chatter when braking and I had trouble keeping the steerer tight even though I followed the directions.
Bottom Line:
If you like the weight savings and don't mind the chatter go for it I'll stick with the WB.
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Submitted by
Titor Pernia
a Weekend Warrior
Date Reviewed: October 23, 2012
Strengths: - lightweight
- sturdy
- good looking
Weaknesses: - none
Bottom Line:
An excellent fork if not the best if anyone is going rigid. It's more expensive compared to the other carbon forks on the market that may provide similar performance but damn nothing compares to it's looks. Being on a 29" wheels it feels that you have some suspension on. But it is still rigid so I advise not to bomb the tracks. You would learn to choose your lines wisely going downhill. During climbs is when you would appreciate this fork. it simply is a beast in climbs. Having a niner frame as well made the combination perfect. I am a little bit skeptical on the paint job. Niners are not known for their paintjobs and i'm not sure what is the effect of painting carbon materials. And my frame already has some nicks because of chain slaps.
Bike Setup: Frame: Niner EMD
Wheels: Velocity Blunt SL, DT Swiss Comp Spoke, DT brass nipps XT Hubs, 2.0 Panaracer Soar
Drivetrain: X9 Shifters/RD/Cogs SLX Chain, Raceface Evolve XC Crank
Brake: Magura Louise w Magura 160 SL rotors
Cockpit: Easton EA50 80mm stem, 31.6 seatpost, Selle Italia, Niner Flat Bar
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Submitted by
Colin
a Cross Country Rider
Date Reviewed: September 28, 2012
Strengths: Very light. Does not "twang" like a tuning fork from bouncing off root. Corners on rails yet is very compliant. GREAT customer service!
Weaknesses: Pricey....green color is not an exact match to my Kermit green SIR9
Bottom Line:
This is the 5th rigid fork I am owned. 3 steel forks ( 1 Niner Steel fork, 1 no name and 1 Vulture cycles) and 1 other carbon fork ( Origin 8 Black Ops) The Niner Carbon fork is by far the lightest and most comfortable fork I have ridden. I have found that any of the steel forks I have ridden have a tendency to vibrate far more....which I really dislike. This fork seems to smooth out those very same bumps without the vibrations. The Black ops fork was heavier and was less compliant and caused me to loss momentum more.
Paired with my Air 9 Carbon, I don't even miss having a suspension fork. The difference in weight is huge and the ride is very comfortable. Tracks great while still being comfortable. I never feel beat up because of the fork. Amazes me still just as much as it did in the beginning.
Like someone else above said, I have a steel fork (Salsa Cromoto Grande) on a Kona steel frame that takes some speed to get compliant, whereas the Niner carbon fork is smooth at any speed.
Mine is the tapered steerer, QR model with a Salsa Flip-Off skewer.
These forks are very stiff and light. But they also absorb much of the small vibrations from the trail which I was quite surprised about. The trails I ride with these forks I never thought I would ride without suspension. Riding a rigid again is such good fun.
I only deducted a chili for cost because they are very expensive especially here in the UK.
best carbon fork i've seen on the market. It gives you the dampering affect that is like have suspension. I ride a lot of technical features and even after smashing into rocks or off small drops it has never let me down. GO BUY ONE!
Strengths: Strength. Weight. Compliance. Looks. Handling. Price compared to other carbon forks on the market.
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
I absolutely love this fork, and can't get enough of it. After about 9 months using a suspension fork, I went back to my trusty rigid carbon fork, and realized what I was missing. It almost feels more compliant than my suspension fork with small bumps and trail chatter. It is super light and stiff where you need it. Point and shoot quick handling. It has taken some serious punishment, and keeps (not)ticking.
this Fork is outstanding, supper light and strong, I feel like I am superman and can throw bike around anywhere. Even with the lack of weight I still feel stable on decedents. A+ to Niner Bikes Love this fork
Strengths: The absolute smoothest rigid for that I have ridden and head and shoulders above everything that i have tried. It even has less brake chatter than rigid steel forks, yet remains very compliant.
Weaknesses: Has a carbon steer tube that limits the amount of spacers you can run under the stem to 40mm.
Bottom Line:
Overall a really good fork, that should be priced about a $100 less and be available with an aluminum steer tube.
Weaknesses: Like 90% of Niner products, it's grossly overpriced.
Bottom Line:
When I was doing some research some months back about what Niner fork owners felt about this fork, I came across one very significant review which mentioned something to the effect of "The magic is to pair the Niner fork to the Niner frame. When I rode the Niner bike without the Niner frame, the magic disappeared".
Lets face it... I do not want to want to try pairing my SIR9 with another fork to find out if there is truth to that claim but I do know that the current combination is keeping my smiles broad everytime I ride my bike.
Strengths: Super light, stiff, absorbs chatter bumps, looks slick
Weaknesses: Needs to be used with a really good front skewer to prevent creaking.
Bottom Line:
This is an amazingly light carbon fork. I was a little concerned about breaking it, but it has held up under a solid year of abuse. It helps smooth out trail chatter, and it is very stiff keeping the bike going in the direction its pointed. This is the best rigid carbon fork on the market imho. I have heard of people have issues with obtaining these due to back orders, but I had no problem getting mine last Spring from my lbs.
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Submitted by
rlpavlik
a Cross Country Rider
from Monument CO
Date Reviewed: April 7, 2012
Strengths: Very stiff, light, and compliant. Great for technical climbing. Improved maneuverability in tight turns. Lots of fun to ride. Breaking is chatter free.
Weaknesses: Still a little worried about catastrophic failure see http://forums.mtbr.com/29er-bikes/catastrophic-failure-niner-carbon-fork-745314.html. Hoping Niner provides more info on what happened here.
Bottom Line:
I'm an aggressive XC/AM rider who rides all the trails on the front range of CO, Moab, and NM. Started riding SS rigid and just loved how much better my bike tracked. Wanted to try this carbon fork for a while and finally found a decent deal on Craigs List. This fork is everything I had hoped for. It tracks way better than my Reba which was very flexy (9mm QR version). With the Niner fork I've dropped nearly two pounds and added stiffness up front. This has made my Dos Niner faster on the climbs and single track and and much more fun to ride. With such precise steering and such a light front end my Dos Niner climbs like nothing I've ever ridden before. If you want to ride this fork like an aggressive trail bike, I highly recommend wide flat bars and a high volume front tire. I love my new Ardent 2.4 (running it at 190lbs and I weigh 190). You will need to use good finesse and pick a good line on the downhills, but technical climbs and fast single track will be better than ever!
Similar Products Used: Reba set at 80mm, Salsa Moto Grande Steel, Other steel forks...
Bike Setup: Salsa Dos Niner, Arch Rims, Salsa Pro Moto flat bar, Maxxis Ardent 2.4 up front, Geax Sagauro in rear
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Submitted by
Goldsbar
a Cross Country Rider
from NJ
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2011
Strengths: Flexible yet stiff, mega light.
Weaknesses: Typical Niner product delays. Took 5 months to get.
Bottom Line:
Using to replace a Niner steel fork but I've had plenty of suspension bikes from a mid 90s HT with a 50mm(?) fork to a 6" Enduro SL F/S. The Niner steel fork was very good and certainly a much better value. This fork is simply great. The steel fork required some speed before it became compliant. This fork feels compliant at 2 mph. When things get faster, this fork really comes alive and dampens up the rock hits very nicely. It feels like a low travel suspension fork. Yet somehow, during slow climbs, it still manages to turn on a dime. Really impressed. Rigid and 29ers go together well. Many of the trails in the area are rocky - not downhill style rocky but certainly what people used to call technical. My hands are still able to function after a couple of hours on this fork. Not so much the steel fork.
Similar Products Used: Various over 20 years. Replacing a Niner steel fork.
Bike Setup: SIR 9, 2.4" Ardent up front at 23-25 psi. Don't try to run rigid with a thin racing tire at 40 psi!!!
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Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from Rotorua, New Zealand
Date Reviewed: September 22, 2011
Strengths: Light weight, looks great, absorbs smaller impacts well, excellent on high speed sketchy tracks, stiff enough to steer great yet enough flex give comfortable ride
Weaknesses: None so far
Bottom Line:
Only just had the fork fitted but absolutely love it. Steel feels great but never thought carbon rigid to be that much better, but it is. Single speed 29r rigid matched with carbon is the way to go. Will seriously be looking at an Air9
Similar Products Used: GT Steel and original Salsa steel
Bike Setup: 2011 Salsa El Mariachi in blue, Nude carbon Niner fork, Chris King headset, Thomson 100 stem, Niner flat top bar 710 wide, Ergon grips, Thomson 410 seatpost, Flite titanium saddle, Truvativ Stylo BB and crank (32-18), mavic 719 rims, DT Swiss SS spokes, Hope hubs front and rear. Rides fantastic.
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Submitted by
tmcgreer
a Cross Country Rider
from Keene, NH
Date Reviewed: May 15, 2011
Strengths: This fork is so resilient! Super strong, yet not harsh. Great design!
Weaknesses: None.
Bottom Line:
Being over 210lbs and over 40 yrs old, I was a little aprehensive about going to a rigid fork. After 2 rides, I decided to sell my Reba Race! I put a 2.4 tubeless up front, and took 2 lbs off the bike! It is so responsive, steering is more precise, and the ride quality couldn't be better!