It’s only one small factor of many, It wouldn’t be my main driver.

If, however, all things are absolutely equal, I’d choose 650B. They are lighter, stiffer and a better choice of tyres.

So far I prefer 27.5 as the 29s I’ve tried felt a little ponderous to me. I’d be test riding to decide if at all possible though

Depends what you want the bike for and also how tall you are. Short folk on long travel 29ers is an obvious conflict.

Having never owner a 27.5er, I’m going to say 29er all the way.

Tried both and went for 650b. The 2 x 29ers I tried felt a bit more dead than the 650b. Mind you – the comparison was on fairly cheap (maybe £500) Scott hardtails I think.it was at a sporting event.

I still think my current 650b steers slower than my previous 26er. Although I suspect that’s more down to geometry than wheel size.

As already mentioned, depends on where you’re likely to ride and how tall you are. I’m 5’8″ and had a Scott Spark 29er and have changed to a Whyte T130 (27.5) the Whyte seems so much more fun to ride/chuck about and changes direction so much easier than the Scott did. They are different bikes though so it could well be the different geometry as much as the wheel size that made the difference for me. On place the Scott did have the advantage was on straight but rocky decsents (peak district), the large wheels just seemed to roll over everything really well.

Test rides are the way forwards, I’ve a 27.5 and a 29er, the latter (Stumpy 29er Evo) is an amazing bike mainly because it fits me perfectly and the balance is absolutely spot on. There are occasions during the driest of summer days when it feels slightly less rapid than my other bike (Norco Sight Carbon), but I never really notice the wheel thing otherwise.

I’ve timed my local loop on both bikes, the Stumpy is a whisker faster (even when it feels slower), the Norco is slightly more involving, but I don’t know whether that’s partly due to the suspension with its noticeable ramp-up. The Norco is easier to get off the ground, though, but that’s not really my style.

Tried both a Spark in 29 and 27.5. Bought the 27.5.

Disclaimer – I’m 5’10 and I did have a lot of nice wheels already in the garage.

like many have stated, its different for everyone / height / type of riding but for me 29″ wheels are probably the single biggest difference to biking for me in the last 6 years. munched the miles, extended the time im out, generally feels ‘better’, more stable, smoother, faster.

totally not scientific but i still love the difference the big wheels have made after 20+ years previously on 26″.

29er for me, absolutely everytime… almost.

I made the switch from 26 on a whim, and loved the way the bigger wheels rolled – and the speed I was picking up added to the grins. That was on a Whyte T129, which for other reasons I fell out with. I decided it was time to trade up for something new just a few weeks ago and the Fuel EX just fitted the bill, although I went b+ on that one, then stuck some 29er wheels in anyway 😉

Everyone is different though – perhaps my choice would have been different if I lived somewhere else?

the solution is, of course, a 27.5 rear and a 29 front.

But that’s not going to happen soon…

2 years ago I went 27.5 but if I was buying again it’d be a closer fight.

I had that decision and went 29er, partly for cantankerous reasons, partly for good ones

Good reasons- the 29er Remedy knocked me out and the 650b left me pretty cold- it was slow and unimpressive frankly, good fun but not actually that good at the job. But that’s not a wheelsize thing, it’s just that the 29er Remedy is bloody awesome- the trailbike that accidentally became the most succesful enduro race bike ever made, and now has spawned the awesome looking fuel ex and slash. It suits me so well.

Performance? Well, the best trailbikes I’ve ever ridden are all modern 29ers. It’s taken a long time for 29ers to overcome conservatism, in fact lots of manufacturers still haven’t, for so long people seemed scared of the difference so we had all this ridiculous “2 degrees steeper so it feels more like a 26er” “Less travel to do the same job” thing- only a few have really embraced the whole “big mad bike with big mad wheels and lots of travel and wheelbase and slackiosity” which is where they naturally shine. Why go 29er and not embrace it?

The B+ thing leaves me cold but it’s another advantage, the ability to stick 3 inch tyres in my bike was pretty interesting, even if I did find it pointless and inferior in the end choice is good.

Lastly… My 26er was old and tired and I wanted a new bike. And I thought, if I need to replace my beloved Lyriks, and my carbon wheels, because of all this new wheelsize bobbins, I want it to be a difference I can actually see 😆 The sizes of the logos on all the first crop of 650b stuff said it all, tyres marginally bigger, logos massively bigger, they had to spend so much time telling you to be interested. Why spend the same amount of money for about 1/3d of the change, I figured.

Now, I’d buy a 29er again, just because I have the infrastructure- wheels, tyres, etc. (Boost can **** off) I do prefer it but even if I was agnostic about it, that’d still put me off switching to another size.

Just gone to a 650b after 18 months on a 29er.

Main reason for me was that the 29er was a bit of a monster truck. It was fast, especially in a straight line. But I don’t race a lot, am not that fast, and prefer to spend riding time having fun with trail features. The new bike is much more playful, with an emphasis on going over things rather than through them.

My new bike is better for me with the smaller wheel size, but there’s a lot more than the wheel size that makes it that way. Many reviews seem to suggest the right 29er can also be playful, but I fancied a change.

Perhaps think of how you want your riding to progress and the direction you want to take it in during your ownership of the bike, and feed that into your choice. There’s no wrong one really – I still had a blast on my 29er.

Fully 29 convert – I find them awesome and easy though I am 6’2″ and 90kgs! The idea they are not playful is personal. And I reckon you can have fun on both. For a hardtail though I reckon 29 wins out. I have a Solaris2 and that is quick and fun!

For hardtail I definitely prefer 29, but I couldn’t tell you why though. Only really ridden hardtails (all 3 wheel sizes) and the Trans AM 29 I’ve got at the moment is just great at a multitude of different things. I’ve never felt under or over biked and despite weighing more than a small planet it doesn’t half shift and I’ve ridden long distances with no ill effects. Kinda reminds me of the Bfe I used to have.

Hardtails just seem to benefit from the larger wheel in my opinion. I had a 2014 Trek Fuel Ex 29, but got rid as it was boring as all hell to ride. Just lifeless and mundane. That was my only foray in to full suss though. Need to try again at some point.

I’m 5ft 8″ and built like a racing snake, ride a medium with a 50mm stem and it fits great. All personal choice though. Can you test ride a few in different wheel sizes and see what floats your boat?

Which ever rode better for me, wheel size is near the end of the factors that bother me these days. Even bikes where they have 650/29 variants are not the same bike.

I’ll happily take the blame if you go 29er – 650b your on your own 🙂

Which is all fine but iun reality reading some of the stuff above doesn’t really give me much of a clue, we don’t even have an idea of what sort of bike your looking at. My personal opinion still is the wheel size is lower down the list than a lot of other factors. Whats on your short list?

Every time someone says 29ers are harder to throw round corners, I think of this:

29ers can’t do corners

I take your point, I meant more like switch backs, I find them easier on my 650b. Not that the guy in the video would have much prob doing it.

To be fair my 29er was really good cornering generally.