Including kiddies bikes 3 million units were sold in 2012.

Most of those were under £150. The UK MTB market at the level where you’d be looking at wheelsize options is relatively small and the majority of the growth in the last 5 years has been road, and commuter/hybrids.

Giant’s take on it may be to do with how many bikes they sell in Asia. I’m guessing though.

I’m covering all bases by having a 26, 27.5 and 29er mtb.

Rode enduro today so pulled out the 27.5 and my bright yellow jacket.
Will do xc tomorrow so Lycra and 29er.

Not dead here all the guys I ride with are all on 29er’s. Best thing I’ve done with regards to MTB’s ,now enjoy riding again

I remember the minidisc it is probably the greatest invention that should have come ten years earlier (we would all be still buying them from amazon rather than the awkward cd)and to be honest the analogy of the minidisk compared to to wheelsize is about right for me ive had such great fun on 26ers and they taught me all I know about trail fun but when I realised that I only needed a “one bike to rule them all” an sc highball was an absolute revelation!!!! im a big guy who commutes on a ss 29er and could never feel comfortable on a number of 26ers (9 to be precise majority fs) but my latest 29er as I age still keeps me smiling both xc and trail
I suppose my next fs build will be27.5 and I’m looking forward to it but more of an intellectual exercise but I’m ready to be dazzled!!!!
Betamax rules!!!!!!

29ers never really took off outside of murica, the inflated sales figures for 29ers are because everyone and their dog buys them on cycle to work schemes to plod up and down cycle paths, outside of xc races and surrey they are a bit of a rarity among proper mountain bikers.

Loving my 29er for what I do (XC mincing) and who I am (6 foot bloke). Think it is great there is a choice in wheel size now, hope that there always is TBH. Feels like we are coming out the dark ages TBH!

FIFY

Pick a wheel size and be a dick about it.

So are 29er’s for tall guys/gals, or are some of you average height (5’9/10″), or shorter ?

With Giant (allegedly) dropping 29er’s, i was curious as to whether other manufacturers will follow suit ?

IIRC Giant ‘clarified’ that statement to say they wouldn’t be dropping 29ers, and one of their marketing people had been misquoted.

I always say oooo clown bike good naturely when I see one. Scarily on natural/rocky trails I dont see many.

b45her – Member
29ers never really took off outside of murica, the inflated sales figures for 29ers are because everyone and their dog buys them on cycle to work schemes to plod up and down cycle paths, outside of xc races and surrey they are a bit of a rarity among proper mountain bikers.

Quite the opposite for me, there’s loads of them where I ride and with who I ride and we’re not all XC junkies

ratherbeintobago – Member

IIRC Giant ‘clarified’ that statement to say they wouldn’t be dropping 29ers, and one of their marketing people had been misquoted.

Yep, it’s fairer to say that they said their 29ers aren’t that good, and that all the marketing push to get you to buy them over the last few years was cobblers… but you can still buy them if you want.

29ers never really took off outside of murica, the inflated sales figures for 29ers are because everyone and their dog buys them on cycle to work schemes to plod up and down cycle paths, outside of xc races and surrey they are a bit of a rarity among proper mountain bikers.

That’s not actually true though, is it?

Taking a stroll through Cannock today and saw more 29ers and fat bikes than anything else really.

Taking a stroll through Cannock today and saw more 29ers and fat bikes than anything else really.

Does that mean I’m “niche” on my 26″ wheeled bike ?

26 may well be all but dead for new bikes, all the 2014 Carrera MTBs (inc. Subway) are 27.5, and Halfords already do a £150 29er. I know you lot don’t care about such things but if the biggest bike retailer in the country is going 27.5 then it says a lot. 26 will still be supported obviously, there’s so many of them about.

Bloody hope not, just spent 1500 quid on my first 29er. Had a 26 before but didn’t and still don’t see much point in 650b/27.5’s

Interesting times. The 26 everyone generally feels warm and fuzzy over. 29 has polarised the market. 27.5 who knows really what people think? They all have their intended application.

Just made the leap to 29 wondering where it’s been all my life. Interesting thing is what I like about it so much is what is supposed to put people off – no more bloody trail buzz 🙂 I now only feel what I need to not every little root branch & pebble. Also Epping forest was almost all 26 but out walking the trails with the kids today seen at least half & half on 26 & 29

hora – Member

I always say oooo clown bike good naturely when I see one. Scarily on natural/rocky trails I dont see many.

they are great on the pebbles at Cannock though

Fizzles, sizzles, smokes aargghh dont mention my Kryptonite

Rode my 29er FS (Trance) into the top 25% of my second ever Gravity Enduro last weekend. It was ace and very much alive.

All my mates ride 29ers, none of us want to go slower so they’ll be here to stay in our west country enclave.

Got a Rigid 29er. Would only choose 29 for a rigid.

Would quite like a 650b trail bike though…

29ers never really took off outside of murica, the inflated sales figures for 29ers are because everyone and their dog buys them on cycle to work schemes to plod up and down cycle paths, outside of xc races and surrey they are a bit of a rarity among proper mountain bikers.

it is where i live and ride, and just about every distributor i spoke to at corebike and bikeplace last week said the same thing, 29er trail bikes above about £1000 simply dont sell outside of the south of england.

Got three 29ers, one of them is geared ht,the other two rigid single speed, love big wheels. Haven’t used geared one since October.

South of England are either early adaptors or buy the next fad-types.

Who knows which. Time will tell

Scarily on natural/rocky trails I dont see many.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Manchester, I see increasing numbers grinding up the hill past my house, in the general direction of Lee/Cragg.

Seen a lot up here tbh- I think once everyone got over the “they’re for XC” thing and realised they’re good for smashing over rocks. Watching the MTBCut guys on their Five 29s is just ridiculous.

maico – Member
dantsw13 – Member
Remember the uk is quite a niche market. In the USA 29 is king.

The UK bike market is one of the biggest in the World. Including kiddies bikes 3 million units were sold in 2012. In Europe only the German market is bigger.

But compared to the USA?

Been out on my 29er HT today, long uphill drags and fast rocky descents both dealt with easily. I still love my Cindercone and Reign 26ers. Don’t think i need or want a 650b.

Plus i am average height 5/10 and fits me fine 🙂

it is where i live and ride, and just about every distributor i spoke to at corebike and bikeplace last week said the same thing, 29er trail bikes above about £1000 simply dont sell outside of the south of england.

I live in the south of England, and i only know 1 person with one….. ?

29er’s, Clown bikes… Proportions all wrong, just don’t look right..
650b… Coz that’s what the manufacturers/media folks “reckon” we need !
26…ain’t much wrong them is there ??

Ive seen a few out in the wild, but not that many, out of a group of 20 or so riding mates I only know 1 person who had one (rumblefish) and he sold it for an SB66C Id quite like to try one, maybe a nice fast hardtail for xc type stuff.
Trouble is my new 650b bike is so much fun Im in no rush to do so
infact my poor 26in dh bike is not seeing any action these days either
with 2 kids my commuter sees the most action and off road ive committed to a lot of enduros, megavalanche etc this year

my rambling point is that my mtbing time is relatively restricted and a tweener [shudderrs] bike seems to fit the bill even if it might be compromised for some stuff

who needs wagon wheels!

saying all that I reckon i might look out for a s/h dh bike and 29 hardtail on the cheap

it is where i live and ride, and just about every distributor i spoke to at corebike and bikeplace last week said the same thing, 29er trail bikes above about £1000 simply dont sell outside of the south of england.

Good for you.

I live in the North and can confirm that there’s plenty of 29er trail bikes above about £1000 on the moors and at the trail centers round here.

Don’t confuse me with a fan boy either. I have 29er trail bikes above about £1000 as I fancied a change from my 26″ and was bored of getting dropped by my friends on 29ers. I’m yet to be won over as it’s brilliant 95% of the time but I miss the 5% where the 26″ was better.

I use to look at 29ers and think they looked all wrong, but I really rate my Unit. I also enjoy razzing about on my Pitch.

Wheel size alone does not maketh the bike.

650b won’t kill 29ers if it takes off as a wheel size . It will be mostly replacing 26″. I suspect that Giant going into 650b so heavily was because the major US brands all had been doing 29ers for a fair bit longer and had better and easier to sell 29ers than Giant who then had the choice to play catch up or roll the dice with 650b .

A 650b will always be a compromise to a 29″ so if common sense prevails they’ll be around for good,

Mine’s in the shed. It’s not moving but I don’t think it’s dead. I think it’s hibernating, while the fatbike takes over for the winter.

Well done you, what’s your next pointless buy that’ll revolutionise your riding going to be?

Just seen this topic 8 months on from the last comment. It’s easy to be smart in hind sight, I can see where the majority are coming from when looking back. Just wondering where attitudes stand now when it is obvious that 650b (whether through clever marketing by the manufacturers or because we the buyers did find them to be to our liking) is now 9 months on from this debate kicking off, very much the “here and now” wheelsize.

Being completely honest 2 years ago I had a 26″ and bought a 29er, ran the two, loved the scenario and thought 650b fell between the two stools so not for me. Two years on I have sold the 26″ (no surprise there I can here a few of you say) but I have also sold the 29er, a Santa Cruz Tallboy LTc, very much the dogs do-dahs 2 years ago and now run just the one bike. After attending a demo day I was instantly taken with 650b and still love the wheel size. Will I go back to 26″? never! Will I go back to 29? maybe but only as a short travel hardtail I suspect.