The Niner IMBA edition bike is back, this time with an incredible fade paint scheme up for grabs in each frame size. Three bikes, one each in Small, Medium and Large, have been delivered to IMBA, which you can bid for on eBay. All proceeds go to IMBA to further their global trail building efforts, and the bikes are built with a sick selection of parts.
From Niner: Three one-of-a-kind RIP 9 RDO frames were designed by Niner Senior Graphic Designer Nate Adams and painted by Spectrum Paint and Powder Works. Assembled with parts from IMBA supporters including SRAM, FSA, Ergon, and Maxxis, the bikes were donated to IMBA and are available now for bidding. 100% of the proceeds benefit IMBA trail projects.
“Spectrum was awesome to work with and they did a great job,” says Nate Adams, Niner Senior Designer and the mastermind behind the bike design. “I tried to play off IMBA’s recent branding and color palette update. The bikes look amazing with the masking and rainbow fade.”
Make your bid here, but hurry…the campaign ends this Sunday, November 17, 2019.
One-of-a-kind Cerakote Camo RIP 9 RDO
While they were playing with paint, Niner wanted to explore the potential for alternate coatings and designs. There are third-party coatings that you can have applied to your bike to make them all but impervious to mud and scratches, but this one builds it right into this incredible paint scheme.
Technically, it’s not paint. Cerakote is a ~1mm thick coating applied to the frame, and it’s super light weight. It’s also highly resistant to abrasion, corrosion, chemicals, UV light, and extreme temperatures. And mud and water, it hates those, too. Even decals have a hard time sticking to it, so the logos here are painted on. They’re not the first to use it…Thomson has stems and seat posts with the coating, too. But Niner is the first we’ve seen to do something with this level of artistry.
The finish was done by ColoradoKote over three days of prepping, spraying, masking, more spraying, and heat curing. It was then built with components from Shimano, Diety and DT Swiss. For now, it’s not something you can buy…from Niner, but you could get them to coat your own bike (or most any other piece of sports equipment).
MCR 9 RDO now shipping
Niner’s full suspension gravel bike is finally shipping, after about two years of teasing and hype. We’ve ridden it, and if you really like getting off the beaten path, it’s worth the wait. Full review coming soon.
