SS better on 26 or 29?

Does wheel size make much difference for SS duties?
Thinking of Cotic Soul v Solaris. ( not the Simple as I may want gears in the future)
Would one give a better SS experience over the other?
Thank you.

I’ll let you know. I’ve just changed my 26in Inbred SS for a 29in Inbred SS. First ride coming up…

I can tell you that a 29in front wheel makes a big difference if you’re riding rigid forks. I ran the old Inbred as a 69er for a while and really liked it

I’ve done both (Dialled Love/Hate and a Singular Swift. I have a geared Soul too). 29 because it rolls better, unless you must have the flickability of 26.

As far as I can tell, 29ers seem to have been almost universally accepted as best for SS racing.

I’m just in the middle of a comparison between a Kona Unit 26″ and a 29er Kona Unit, both SS, both rigid and lastly both the same weight to within 1/2lbs

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IMAG0226[/url] by eastham_david[/url], on Flickr

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P1040954[/url] by eastham_david[/url], on Flickr

Initial thoughts are that the 29er does take a bit more to get rolling and TBH seems hardwork in comparison to the 26″ one. It does roll a bit better over rough terrain, such as the cobbled roads up Rivington.

I have not really seen much difference in the muddy stuff, except the 26″ Unit seems easier to pick up and move about. I’m also struggling to get the front wheel up easily on the 29er, but thats probably because i’m crap at manualling. 🙁

I think the SS bit is not influenced by the wheel size as much as the fork type ie as stated above 29er is probably better with the rigid fork.

29 because it rolls better

I should have phrased that as “holds momentum better”. IMO I do notice the difference and for SS it’s a big win.

I went 26 to 69 to 29 and 29 is where its at.

yeh 29ers are harder work vortex. i’d stick with the 26er if i were you and i can take that cumbersome 29er frame off your hands ; )

26er does actually look better of the the 2 IMO

Canal towpaths – the ideal place to test singlespeeds 😉

Canal towpaths – the ideal place to test singlespeeds

🙄

Just replaced my 26 with a 29 – up-geared slightly and seems to climb better/faster but that also might be because it has rigid forks and/or new bike syndrome 😮

Canal towpaths – the ideal place to test singlespeeds29r’s

Feel how it just rolls right over the dog eggs

SS makes no difference.

It’s just the usual 29 vs 26 debate.

Rocketdog off here once used the phrase “sitting in rather than sitting on”, & for me it summed up how it felt. I like climbing out the saddle & the 29er seems to handle that better. In terms of traction it’s better on a 29er, I rarely spin out with bigger wheels, & this is important with my immense power. 🙂

I have both, I haven’t used the 26er since I bought the Karate Monkeys. I ride 1 fixed, now that is nice………

A better 26″ will outride a crap 29″ anyday.

Buy the bike that rides the best not because of the wheel size.

26er does actually look better of the the 2 IMO

On small or medium frame yeah, but larger frames 29er looks right.

I think there is a bit more to it than the usual 26/29 debate. Riding a single speed effectively means carrying momentum as much as possible. As that’s one of the things 29ers do best I think they make particularly good single speeds.

SS makes no difference.

It’s just the usual 29 vs 26 debate.

Wrong.

Sam has it.

Sam – Member
I think there is a bit more to it than the usual 26/29 debate. Riding a single speed effectively means carrying momentum as much as possible. As that’s one of the things 29ers do best I think they make particularly good single speeds.

+1
many a confirmed 26er rider surprised by a try on a 29er SS

A 29 front wheel also works well with rigid forks, it’s smoother than a 26. And SS rigid is a natural combo I find.

I’m also struggling to get the front wheel up easily on the 29er

I’ve got a Unit 29er and was disappointed at how difficult it was to get the front wheel up. A cheap and cheerful shorter stem made it much better, but it’s still not a patch on my old rigid for manualling. Whether that’s the fact it’s a 29er, it’s steel, the forks are heavy, the chain stays are too long or what I don’t know. It did a decent job on the snowy hills yesterday though.

What I’m trying to say is that I really don’t know 🙂

Try a jones- really easy to pop a wheel up- bit pricey mind!

I’m also struggling to get the front wheel up easily on the 29er

Do you mean just to lift it over roots etc (I have no problem) or for wheelies and bike park tricks (in which case you’re on the wrong bike)?

As tortoise says a short stem will help, or perhaps your frame is too big, but it’s never going to handle like a BMX.

I’ve had very similar set ups on 26 and 29 SS rigid bikes, while the 26 was an ace little bmx of a bike, the 29 is more suited to the purpose and may just take a bit more attention to get it balanced. ss-rigid-29″ is a great combo.

Try a jones- really easy to pop a wheel up

and they have 445-450mm stays. Bar to rear axle distance gets overlooked while people obsess over chain stay length.. I don’t hop/pop the bike up with my feet, if I did I’d not be able to do it on flats.

A cheap and cheerful shorter stem made it much better

Exactly )

Things I have noticed since I went from 26 inbred to 29 scandal…..

It’s lighter – but I’ve ditched suspension other than than that all things are pretty equal. Except I have noticed that I am braking more on the runs I am familar with – and I do think that’s because I am going faster.

If I could be arsed at some stage to use this strava thing to do some objective testing I would know if this is true – but in the meantime I think I am a bit quicker. However, add cake stops, faff, and other trail related nonsense I am still out for the same amount of time……..

I’ve got 2 Inbreds in 26″ & 29″,had them for a few years & have tried both in many guises..
My thoughts…
Rigid – 29er hands down,just rolls over everything better
SS – Swings & roundabouts here, 26 picks up speed quicker,29 holds speed better.
MTB Gears – Pretty much as above really
Road gears with slick tyres – 29″ wheels just work much better when churning tarmac miles out imo.Rode both for a few 100 milers & the big wheel felt better for comfort & was always a bit quicker overall.
With bounce on the front – 26″,don’t really know why but it just rides/feels better than the bigger wheel with bounce.
Rigid 69er – only tried the 26″ one with this but it rides loads better than with a smaller wheel on the front.

69er.

Front wheel rolls over the lumps better.
Rear wheel spins up easier.

More niche too!

Fair point Sam et al *resolves to think more before posting*

WorldClassAccident – Member
69er.

Front wheel rolls over the lumps better.
Rear wheel spins up easier.

More niche too!

This ^^^

So does this mean there should soon be an influx of quality 26″ ss wheelsets in the classifieds? Ace!

*rubs hand together excitedly*

So does this mean there should soon be an influx of quality 26″ ss wheelsets in the classifieds?

Just got my hope SS rebuilt onto a 29″ rim cos there were a couple of folds to the rim surface anyway! Front has gone onto the ‘bay as noone seemed to want it on here.

Both can work really well but I think it depends on the terrain and whether you’re running suspension or not.

I run a Surly 1×1 and a Karate Monkey.

The 29er rolls faster and is better able to ride out the bumps in a rigid SS setup but is slower to get up to speed and hence as a singlespeed is a bit more of a handful on techy, thrutchy climbs than a 26er in my experience. Downhill its pretty much unstoppable though!

The 1×1 requires a bit more management over fast rocky descents but is generally a lot more chuckable and better able to cope with steep techy climbs than the 29er.

I’d say the benefits of 29ers match a single speed very well.
It all depends how you define “better”

I’ve got both. The 29er’s the race bike, the 26er’s the ‘pratting about in the woods’ bike. They’re both fantastic in the right situation.

the 26er’s the ‘pratting about in the woods’ bike

If you can call a custom DEAN titanium a pratting about in the woods bike 😉

I take my ‘pratting about’ very seriously.

You need to do some demo rides to answer this question, 26 v 29 on here just rattles cages 😉

I’m actually quite surprised the usual suspects haven’t turned up here to rattle on about lack of choice and how some photogenic French teenager wins Enduro on a 26 so it’s a closed book for them.

Maybe they’re not cool enough for SS.

It all depends how you define “better”

I built my cheap 26″ Rigid SS for chopping out offroad winter miles while requiring me to do a minimum amount of maintenance, given the efficient rolling of 29″ wheels I can see me building a replacement rigid SS 29er in the next few years… Right tool for the job really innit…

You need to do some demo rides to answer this question

Then he will be able to come on here with factual evidence, which as you know is completely against STW rules 😉