Niner RLT 9 RDO — Gravel Bike | Bike Review

Three years on the Niner RLT 9 RDO — three wheelsets, multiple tire setups, and a list of gravel bikes it’s been compared against. It’s a neutral, predictable all-rounder. Not the raciest, not the most adventure-oriented. The best gravel bike for riders who aren’t sure what kind of riding they’ll end up doing.

Drivetrain

This RLT predates SRAM’s XPLR gravel drivetrain, so it runs original Force 1x with a 10–36 cassette. Around here that gearing works fine — most of the gravel is flat unless you drop into the river valley. The 38T stock chainring is versatile for mixed terrain. The 46T was tested for flat riding and felt great for speed, but not realistic if there’s any real climbing. The Force D1 hoods are preferred over the D2s — better ergonomics, cleaner feel.

Wheels

The stock Stans Grail carbon wheels are very light and ride nicely, but they’re narrow by current gravel standards. With wider tires, the footprint isn’t as confidence-inspiring as a wider rim provides. The Grail wheels often needed re-truing after initial break-in — both on this bike and customer bikes. The HED Emporia GA Pro ended up being the favorite setup on this frame: comfortable, reliable, better handling with wide tires.

Frame Notes

The Niner bolt-in frame bag attaches cleanly, doesn’t rattle, and holds two small bottles end-to-end — very useful for long gravel days. Two bottle cage mounts inside the triangle, none on the downtube bottom — a lower cage position would be helpful. Serviceability is excellent: cables don’t route through the headset, internal routing is tubed for easy maintenance. PF30 bottom bracket — if you want threaded, Wheels Manufacturing and Cane Creek both make good thread-together options.

Where It Sits

After time on Trek Checkpoint, Salsa Warbird, Cervélo Áspero-5, TIME ADHX 45, Bianchi Arcadex, and Jamis Renegade — the RLT sits in the neutral middle. Not racy like the Áspero or ADHX, not adventure-oriented like the Arcadex or Renegade. It’s the gravel equivalent of an endurance road bike: versatile, predictable, equally at home on road and gravel. If you only have one gravel bike and don’t know what kind of riding you’ll end up doing, this is the right answer.