RIP Changes 2008 to Present
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2009 - Complete redesign - formed tubes, tapered head tube with integrated headset. Frame got stiffer, esp in the front. Geometry stayed pretty much the same, I believe.
2011 - HT angle 1 degree slacker, changed from integrated headset to inset.
Improved significantly? Like the other fellow asked, what are you looking for? If a stiffer front end is important, then maybe. Is it worth buying an 08? Sure could be, it's a great frame. I'd recommend a thru-axle fork which ever way you go, but esp with the 08 - it will help stiffen the front end.
The ultimate deal? Get a 2010 on sale if you can find your size - not a whole lot left.
2011 - HT angle 1 degree slacker, changed from integrated headset to inset.
Improved significantly? Like the other fellow asked, what are you looking for? If a stiffer front end is important, then maybe. Is it worth buying an 08? Sure could be, it's a great frame. I'd recommend a thru-axle fork which ever way you go, but esp with the 08 - it will help stiffen the front end.
The ultimate deal? Get a 2010 on sale if you can find your size - not a whole lot left.
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Only if you consider a wet noodle and a basebal bat similar, then no change really :skep: Seriously, only deal you could get on an '08 or earlier frame, that's "worth it" would be to have it given to you 
Maybe for a $100 bucks it wouldn't be that bad a deal, since the shock is worth about $350 new and that's the only thing worth anything on those earlier frames :skep:
Maybe for a $100 bucks it wouldn't be that bad a deal, since the shock is worth about $350 new and that's the only thing worth anything on those earlier frames :skep:mhertweck said:
Thanks, all.
I consider myself a trail bike guy, but I live in the Colorado front range—super steep, rocky, technical, body beating trails—so I'm looking for a trail bike with a lot of cush. Seriously, these trails are rocky and they really work you. I was riding a Lenz Behemoth (had to sell it) but even that felt bone jarring on some of this terrain. I don't have the time to trek to the high country or the western slope—Fruita, Moab—where the trails are faster and smoother—so I'm looking for something that can climb with near XC efficiency, but downhill and soak up nasty rock sections like a DH bike. Maybe the WFO is worth looking at or the Lenz Lunchbox? Thoughts? However, it seems like the RIP really fits this bill in a lot of ways.
I found an 08 for really cheap, but after seeing how much they've improved the stiffness, I my try and find a newer one. Currently, I'm on my back up ride—old fisher sugar 293—and it's really noodle on this terrain. Got to have something stiffer for sure.
I consider myself a trail bike guy, but I live in the Colorado front range—super steep, rocky, technical, body beating trails—so I'm looking for a trail bike with a lot of cush. Seriously, these trails are rocky and they really work you. I was riding a Lenz Behemoth (had to sell it) but even that felt bone jarring on some of this terrain. I don't have the time to trek to the high country or the western slope—Fruita, Moab—where the trails are faster and smoother—so I'm looking for something that can climb with near XC efficiency, but downhill and soak up nasty rock sections like a DH bike. Maybe the WFO is worth looking at or the Lenz Lunchbox? Thoughts? However, it seems like the RIP really fits this bill in a lot of ways.
I found an 08 for really cheap, but after seeing how much they've improved the stiffness, I my try and find a newer one. Currently, I'm on my back up ride—old fisher sugar 293—and it's really noodle on this terrain. Got to have something stiffer for sure.
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FWIW... Take LyNx's post above with a grain of salt... what he didn't tell you is that he raced his 2008 Niner RIP in the Leadville 100 a few years back, so obviously, he felt it was a worthy bike to haul all the way from Barbados to Colorado, to ride trails on for a month, and then race it in Leadville. Actions speak louder than words.LyNx said:Only if you consider a wet noodle and a basebal bat similar, then no change really :skep: Seriously, only deal you could get on an '08 or earlier frame, that's "worth it" would be to have it given to you
LyNx's latest agenda is being a Paradox fanboi. Since he sold his Niner, which they warrantied for him once already, he's burned all his bridges behind him, over there.I find my RIP to be plenty Sedona red rock worthy. How you set your suspension up, and wheel weight for the wheel set, along with tire selection, will determine what your bike does best. For a trail bike, though, the RIP fits the bill. Climbs great, especially at high altitude, where weight is a huge penalty, due to lack of oxygen carrying capability. Built light, it's pretty good at XC. Built with a normal weight, it's a great trail bike. Check the Reviews here on MTBR. Read some of the older posts, where folks have had the bike a year or more.
https://www.mtbr.com/cat/bikes/29er/niner-bikes/r-i-p-9/PRD_413465_1548crx.aspx
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BTW, the original poster is asking about my RIP, available for sale on Craigslist in the Ft Collins, CO area. It's available, in the original box and packaging, and can be shipped at buyers expense. Frame and FSA The Pig headset only, Atomic "Glow in the Dark" Blue, in Large.
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I loved my '07 RIP, until the rear triangle started flopping around, then the front triangle cracked.
The 07 RIP was a great XC bike, but marketing it for anything technical was silly.
The 09+ is a completely different level of technology, stunning toy.
There is a reason the 08 is so cheap, if you want an XC race, go for it, otherwise 09.
The 07 RIP was a great XC bike, but marketing it for anything technical was silly.
The 09+ is a completely different level of technology, stunning toy.
There is a reason the 08 is so cheap, if you want an XC race, go for it, otherwise 09.
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Ha! The reviewers of the early RIPs were the basis that I used to buy mine. No payola was involved.mhertweck said:
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A stunning example of Cave Giants rig, note the attention to maintenance and detail in a thread started by him.CaveGiant said:
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=507765
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183 Posts
The 08 is still a good frame and is as good or better than many similar frames on the market today. Its not the latest and greatest, but still pretty good. I've owned the 08 and the 2010 rip 9. the 2010 is stiffer and better, but the 08 is still a great ride if the price is right. Just go read the reviews of that bike from 3 years ago.
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I didn't realize Randy was selling his, so I should point out the issues with the '7 are partly fixed with the '08.
They thickened up the seat tube so they stopped snapping.
Not sure if they stopped the flex on the back end.
With the kind of riding you say you do, I do think you should look for a '09+ or a WFO.
The WFO (my current bike), is only half a pound or so more than the RIP but stiffer and with more travel.
The WFO is a VERY fast bike.
They thickened up the seat tube so they stopped snapping.
Not sure if they stopped the flex on the back end.
With the kind of riding you say you do, I do think you should look for a '09+ or a WFO.
The WFO (my current bike), is only half a pound or so more than the RIP but stiffer and with more travel.
The WFO is a VERY fast bike.
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Yeah, I raced it a whopping 2 months after I got it, so big deal, I was riding XC on it and still enamored by the big hoops. Yes it brought me into 29ers and rode great for me, or at leats that's what I thought until I started to push the limits of XC and started to feel the flex in the frame and I only weigh 170lbs.
When mine broke, as did most every single one of the original ones they gave me an "improved" '08 model, only thing "improved" about it was a thicker wall diameter for the ST to stop the breakages, they did absolutely zero in stopping the nasty flex the frame has - wet noodle I call it.
Before they had fixed the issues with the RIP9 they intoduced the JET9, took peoples money on pre-order and then had issues with the rockers as soon as they were released after being over 6 months late to deliver, because they decided last minute to try some new coating/proceedure on them and they broke.
Then after months of having no bikes the rockers were finished and then the frames started to break left, right and center, despite the frame being about a pound heavier than their claimed weight - they did the right thing by the JET9 owners and recalled them (most likely because someone contacted the CPSA) and everyone got sweet deals on hold over frames and new hydro formed JET9s.
Oh and ALL the while with the early versions of the RIP9 when Steve and Chris were questioned about the frame they insisted that this was absolutely the best bike they could build and then they introduced the absolutely, completely redsigned hydroformed version while still selling the POS wet noodle, round tube versions. Niner is a marketing team, that used paying customers to do their product testing for them when they brought products to market that just weren't ready. They may have got their $hit together after the CPSA was called in on the JET9, who knows, all I know is I will never own, nor rrecomend them to anyone.
As to buying Randy's old frame, don't waste your money, they're wet noodles, Niner never fixed anything more than the ST breaking with the "revisions" on those round tube frames, so save your cash and buy something new. As to "Fan Boying" ask him where he lives and how regularly he passes by Niner HQ and what deals they've cut him on his current bikes.
When mine broke, as did most every single one of the original ones they gave me an "improved" '08 model, only thing "improved" about it was a thicker wall diameter for the ST to stop the breakages, they did absolutely zero in stopping the nasty flex the frame has - wet noodle I call it.
Before they had fixed the issues with the RIP9 they intoduced the JET9, took peoples money on pre-order and then had issues with the rockers as soon as they were released after being over 6 months late to deliver, because they decided last minute to try some new coating/proceedure on them and they broke.
Then after months of having no bikes the rockers were finished and then the frames started to break left, right and center, despite the frame being about a pound heavier than their claimed weight - they did the right thing by the JET9 owners and recalled them (most likely because someone contacted the CPSA) and everyone got sweet deals on hold over frames and new hydro formed JET9s.
Oh and ALL the while with the early versions of the RIP9 when Steve and Chris were questioned about the frame they insisted that this was absolutely the best bike they could build and then they introduced the absolutely, completely redsigned hydroformed version while still selling the POS wet noodle, round tube versions. Niner is a marketing team, that used paying customers to do their product testing for them when they brought products to market that just weren't ready. They may have got their $hit together after the CPSA was called in on the JET9, who knows, all I know is I will never own, nor rrecomend them to anyone.
As to buying Randy's old frame, don't waste your money, they're wet noodles, Niner never fixed anything more than the ST breaking with the "revisions" on those round tube frames, so save your cash and buy something new. As to "Fan Boying" ask him where he lives and how regularly he passes by Niner HQ and what deals they've cut him on his current bikes.
RandyBoy said:FWIW... Take LyNx's post above with a grain of salt... what he didn't tell you is that he raced his 2008 Niner RIP in the Leadville 100 a few years back, so obviously, he felt it was a worthy bike to haul all the way from Barbados to Colorado, to ride trails on for a month, and then race it in Leadville. Actions speak louder than words.
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Go directly to the 2009 - 2011 models. It'll feel like your Sugar 293 has swallowed a handful of Viagra pills. I own and ride the Sugar 293, JET 9, and RIP 9 (beefy and stiff version). Move to one of the newer RIP frames for where you ride andmhertweck said:
.BB
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So, who did you sell your wet noodle to, if they are so bad, and for how much?LyNx said:
How do you sleep at night?I remember not long ago, when LyNx couldn't afford a new frame either.
The OP has options, but a bike that climbs well in high elevations in CO, will be light in weight, and not be suitable for down hill riding chunk. A Downhill bike will be very heavy to pedal uphill to earn your turns. Bike frames are about compromise, pick what is most important to you, as one bike can't do it all. If a Lenz is still bouncing you around, then this Niner RIP is not for you.
If you don't have the money for a hydroformed RIP, get another job, work some overtime, save, scrimp, whatever it is you need to do to get a frame that fits the job description for the worst case scenario style of riding you do.
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My guess is the OP did not have one of the newer Behemoths that can be ordered with a tapered HT. So he would benefit greatly with a tapered HT and tapered steerer fork - be it with a new Behemoth (for the $250 upcharge to have tapered HT) or the newer RIP. Either bike could be built with anywhere from 120 - 140mm up front and the taper provides a lot more stiffness up front and mitigates the getting bounced offline scenario.RandyBoy said:
One could keep things light with component spec and not lose anything performance wise going down the hill by running a 27-28.x lb build. Or, as CaveGiant says, go directly to the WFO.
A demo/test ride ought to confirm things for the OP.
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