Once you’ve swapped the back end are you goin to need a 29er fork?

Once you’ve swapped the back end
are you goin to need a 29er fork?

fox and rs have 650ml b forks on the way iirc

Once you’ve swapped the back end
are you goin to need a 29er fork?

fox and rs have 650 forks on the way and magura have 3 for 2013

http://m.bikeradar.com/mtb/news/article/magura-offering-29er-and-650b-suspension-forks-33409/

white bros already do one
as seen on the jamis dragon 853 framed beast , personally is go for one of these !

The difference in rim diameter is 1″, so a 1/2″ bigger tyre on a 26er would have the same rolling diameter – ie a 26×2.5″ is the same diameter as a 650bx2″.

Personally I really don’t get it – is it just because it’s another niche to be a part of?

My Ardent tyre only just fits with minimal mud room, so how on Earth you’d be able to fit a larger wheel in god only knows.

I have a set of 650b wheels that I have ran in various frames and forks.

Fork wise I have ran them in Fox, Deville and some Rock Shox, bare in mind that whilst they fit I believe they would not be covered by the warrenty.

Frame wise I have ran them in a few different ones both FS and HT, you don’t just have to fit them in but also check to see if they foul on the seat tube at full compression on FSers.

As to whether they are bigger than a 26 with a big tyre, it is all relative, 26 plus big tyre cannot be bigger than 27.5 plus a big tyre!!

Why bother at all??? Good question and at the moment the biggest problem is there are very few bikes designed for them which means running them in 26” frames so the greatest downside is the higher BB.

They do roll better and grip better but the higher BB takes some getting used to but once you get your head around it they work great.

Downside for me is that they tend to tame things down and I like drifting and being on the edge so these are good but bad… hey just like all the other things about mtbing…

I suspect that bikes designed for them will become the dominate force over the next few years as they offer high speeds for less skill which is what seems to sell bikes.

So why not a 29er? They presumably roll better and grip better than a 650b? Is the improved grip down to the increased contact area? 😉

You’ve been taken in by the 27.5 marketing then? 26″ is 559, 650b 584 (29er 622), so 1″ difference between 26 and 650b, 2.5″ difference between 26 and 29 – they should really be described as 27 and 28.5.

I considered it as I have a 29er and love it, so was thinking of putting them on my 26″ bike. They fit in pretty much all Fox forks and obviously the White Bros. They don’t fit at all in Rebas or SIDs but they apparently do (just) fit in 15mm Revs.

Turned out they wouldn’t make that much of a difference as the rim size is not that dissimilar. That said, if anyone wants to lend me a set of 650b wheels I can try…

GB