[Closed] Anybody gone 100% 29er and regretted it?

No.

Next!

Yes.
No!

No.

+1

Mind you I'm pretty talentless on any flavour of bike so the so called handling differences mean nothing to me...

Liking these answers. Straight to the point.

I saw my first 29er up at laggan at the weekend, they look odd!

All 26" now gone (apart from my old commuter, kept for sentimental reasons).

29er FS (ace at the Dyfi on Sunday), HT, SS and Drop barred Fargo. All ace and simply don't feel right on 26" bikes now.

My only change of wheel size now will be when some mad cottage industry bike builder makes an affordable 36" bike so i can scratch the itch to play with one.....

Nobody who's actually bought a 29er would admit to it being shite...

Nobody who's actually bought a 29er would admit to it being shite...

anyone who's bought more than one 29er and got rid of all their 26ers obviously doesnt think theyre shite.

Nobody who's actually bought a 29er would admit to it being shite...

I bought a 2nd one purely to make people think I didn't think they were shite

Well, I'll buck the trend.

I have a 29er Scott Scale and love it for the racing and local riding I do and tbh can't see where I'd want to race a 26er hardtail again. but, I prefer my 26" fully for when I go to the trail centres or a bit of messing about, they're just a bit more fun for me. the traits of the 29er for racing, ie. stable, smooth etc just don't exite me when I get to go and thrash about.

had 10 or so various 29r bikes.
still got one..............sometimes on certain tracks a a 26'' wheeled fs bike would be nice.

Nobody who's actually bought a 29er would admit to it being shite

The last 26er I had was shite hence the decision to try a 29er. For some reason I now own two big wheeled freak bikes and I'm keen to see what the new Boardman 29er is like when it is released.

Seeing as they're clown bikes, if you own more than one would you have to refer to them as a 'troupe'? And possibly bedeck your garage like the inside of a big top so they feel at home?

i have bought a couple of 29r's that were shyte.
both were gary fisher's.

Seeing as they're clown bikes, if you own more than one would you have to refer to them as a 'troupe'? And possibly bedeck your garage like the inside of a big top so they feel at home?

Ahh STW, the home of reasoned and well informed debate...

Ton - what was wrong with the Gary Fishers? Only asking as I fancy a paragon.

[Seeing as they're clown bikes, if you own more than one would you have to refer to them as a 'troupe'? And possibly bedeck your garage like the inside of a big top so they feel at home? ]
And the riders should wear top hats and sport waxed moustaches??

I have one bike and went 33% 29er. Didn't like the ovalised wheels so went back to 100% 26er

Big Dave - In true STW fashion I am casting aspersions on a subject I know absolutely nowt about at all. Think of me as the outraged Tory MP railing against the BBC. What do you mean have I actually WATCHED the programme in question?! I don't need to watch the programme to be outraged. ITS A DISGRACE!!!!! 😀

In reality I really fancy trying a 29er

No more little wheeled bike for me any more! 😆
Only 29er's! 😆
Geared and S/S rigid!
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[img] [/img]

Went from a [b]20[/b]" FS to a rigid 29". Never had a 26", but don't regret the choice of wheel size or absence of gears. My next bike will have front suspension, large wheels and an Alfine hub. I don't race.

I've got two bikes with grown up wheels now, a Rohloff and a single speed.
Can't think of any reason why I'd want to go back to training wheels.

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/has-anyone-gone-back-to-26-from-29

Ton, I bought a brand new Gary Fisher Rig frame.
I broke it in less than 7 months.

I've played on 29ers but don't own one. I think the main difference is chuckability (when we're talking performance). Ask yourself honestly if you chuck bikes enough or stay planted. Planted is great on a 29er, really fast (eventually) but chuck it & snap it. As always - horses for courses.

the problem with the gary fisher 29r's is that they are too long in the top tube, and also too low.
good for racing i suppose, but not very good for trail riding.
also, the bontrager mustang wheelsets are made from paper doilies.

bontrager mustang wheelsets are made from paper doilies.

rims are fine, hubs were tosh

Ton, I bought a brand new Gary Fisher Rig frame.
I broke it in less than 7 months.

musy have been purple or black then as the newer ones are very robustly built

did you warranty it?

It was a white one which I bought off a friend who got it as a warranty replacement for a purple one.
It cracked around the seat tube just above the top tube.

Just ordered a nicolai 29er.

I'll tell you what it's like in 5 months

suits me fine on a 29er. the niner mcr ive got is a great ride. nice OO's tk46!

you should have got your friend to take it back again,

the one I have looks like a EBB Paragon of the current design, very big tubes, bigger EBB, internal headset, root beer anodised finish. warranty for a purple one

still got 1 ikkle wheeled bike, which a full bouncer.I may replace the epiphany with either another salsa, or an ellsworth evolve

[img] [/img]

or

[img] [/img]

then I will be 100% big wheel and have a great collection of fugly bikes 😀

I think that this is purely preference. I've done the 29er thing and not done well with it, just didn't fit my style, at the same time there are alot of people who love them and will no longer ride anything else...but if you've got the kit, then I don't see why you couldn't use it...it's nice to have a quiver with both in them, spesh if one's a soul.

ust ordered a nicolai 29er. I'll tell you what it's like in 5 months

Lookin forward to seeing that!

Tazzy, What do you thick of that Salsa Big Mama frame on the Ebay thing?

yeh I'm keeping an eye on it but it's a wee bit lardy for my liking 😕

Tang, please don't massage TK46's ego anymore regarding his helium filled, attention seeking trail mincing clown bikes. 😀

29er fan here. Mine might well have been the odd looking one at Laggan, was there on saturday.
I quite enjoy freaking people out by riding fast on stuff which isn't smooth tracks, think some folk genuinely believe that is all 29ers are for really.

Chainslapp,

Get back on Bike Radar! You need more hits on that dull looking 29er thing you've posted! 😆

You're still there then, I thought you had gone to sleep. 🙄

I've only ever ridden a 29er once which was an Ellsworth Evolve with Stans 29er wheels and Specialized Fast Trak 29 tires

was very surprised how capable it was in the mud at the Forest of Dean, considering the 'bald' Fast Trak tires (which I always used on my 26" for dirt jumping and pump tracks)

would be keen to try another 29er soon??

I am currently riding a Specialized Crosstrail as a commuting bike (700c multi-use hydrid) and once I dump the shitty Suntour pogo-stick fork for a proper air sprung, oil damped fork...

I am going to stick some big volume knobbly cyclocross tires on there and see what its like off-road (its been customised with Thomson / Pro WTB / Shimano SLX / Sram X-9 kit already)

[b]esher shore[/b] I do like the way my (FS) 29er rides with 'bald' tyres, makes for some fast rolling.

To the OP I'm keeping my 26 FS for the time being, just about to take it on a weeks riding in the Basque country, don't feel the need for the big wheels there yet, it is still a fun bike.

I am thinking about getting a hard tail to go with the two FS bikes, and I can't see that being 26 inch wheels, I even switched my commuting bike to 700mm wheels to get the same feel.

Went fully 29er, (Kona Unit, Gary Fisher Paragon and On-One Ti) liked them but didn't really rate them. Front end was great but the back end felt a bit barge like.

Now on 69ers - best of both worlds. Front end rolls great, back end nice and short, feels very nimble. Sweet!

69ers and 96ers like the carver are for the indecisive and ladyboys 😉

I have two 29ners now and 'sprog' James calls the garage the 'Circus'.

Mostly riding the Pardox at the moment, really interesting bike so different from any thing else I have ridden. Not sure I would want to ride it all day (the other is good for that) but it is great hooning about the woods and on the DH tracks. Its very keen to be in the air, comes off every thing.

But at the weekend it was off to more serious tracks and I took my (mini-DH bulid) Heckler - its sooo small now, every thing about feels little!

Clearly this needs extensive research and testing, so in a few weeks after lots and lots more riding I will get back to you with some thoughts....
😀

tazzymtb - Member
69ers and 96ers like the carver are for the indecisive and ladyboys

I'm no ladyboy, I'm a boy-dy-lay. My wheels are on the other way 😉

LOL

Two 29er hardtails and two 26er full sussers here. Am keeping the 26ers for now: Really like riding the Santa Cruz superlight around local trails. Have just ordered a Titus FTM carbon as a longer travel away days bike. Did seriously think about the 29er Titus Rockstar, but the all carbon of the FTM swung it for me.

I'm not quite convinced 29er full suspension bikes are quite there yet. There are some great ones out there no doubt (Tallboy, Sultan, Anthem), but they are all pretty pricey for now. I'm sure in a couple of years 29er full suss will be the way to go though.

They're laughable, obviously, but essential. Innovation in the bike industry is so difficult, every one real advance (workable disk brakes, suspension etc) comes at the expense of twenty ersatz innovations like 29'' wheeled bikes.

But if you didn't have these marketing chimeras, the whole industry would just grind to a halt. So the next time you pass a 29er on the trail, give him a pat on the back. His credulity is powering the next real breakthrough in mountain biking.

Big Dave - In true STW fashion I am casting aspersions on a subject I know absolutely nowt about at all. Think of me as the outraged Tory MP railing against the BBC. What do you mean have I actually WATCHED the programme in question?! I don't need to watch the programme to be outraged. ITS A DISGRACE!!!!!

In reality I really fancy trying a 29er

Go on, you know it makes sense. The strange thing about 29ers is that they ride just like bicycles.

I still find one of the funniest things about riding the big Ventana is people's reaction when I get close, esp other cyclists. At distance, just looks like a guy on bike, as i approach there is always a whoooaaaaa reaction when they appreciate the scale of rider and bike! "Jesus, you and that bike are massive!" 😯

A real "small. far away." moment. 😆

Also, my bike (with 780mm bars) on roof abrs beside my mates cube hard tail does make it look like his is a kids bike. 🙂

Move out of the way small biked people, big person coming through! 😀

I built up a scandal 29er. rigid and SS.

Its was ace - With weirwold tyres it rolled and rolled and the thing felt bloody fast and genuine fun.

So good it was, that I broke up parts of my 26" full suss to buy Forks, gears, Maxxis Ardent tyres, stans wheels etc etc etc. And in doing so, completely spoilt it. It was never the same as the rough rigid SS and I didnt really like it too much after that.

I ended up in the ridiculous situation of converting my Meta to a 69er with 100m forks. It actually went well, but it had a really slack angle and was more than sluggish in the steering department.

I sold all the remaining 29er stuff to fund some forks and wheels. Back on the Meta now - heavier than before and with a lower spec

(I have built an ACE stw/ parts bin XC 26er though so its all good 🙂

My only regret is all the money I wasted on 26" bikes.

As for 29er being a recent thing, this chap may disagree:

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Arthur Richardson - 1st across Nullarbor 1896, 1st round Oz in 1899-1900

Any argument that small wheels are better means this full suspension job must be the duck's nuts 🙂
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Clearly. You're basically riding a flat-barred cross bike - and that's always wrong.

First 29r was a geared Kona Unit as a trial type thing.
Loved it !

Now have two 29r's, one SS and one alu/carbon geared.

Never go back to mini 26" wheels - like riding a BMX now.

29r's will take over the world - 'it is your destiny young skywalker'
😆

Been 29 only for six years.
No regrets regarding ride quality, components, or anything.

Now that we have a choice and I have bikes where ALL the components fit me (big bars, tyres, cranks, wheels, grips and a wide saddle) I have no need for 26ers.

Been using a rigid niner sir9 ss. And a salsa dos niner soft tail 1x9.
Salsa Fargo due soon

26ers just look silly in large sizes.

Switched to a singular swift about 18 months ago and can't see myself ever buying a bike with little wheels again.

I have a trek fuel ex and a scandal 29er - to be honest I like riding them equally. The scandal riding position seems to pitch you further forward than the trek, but still great fun to descend on. I would love to try a full susp 29er

100% 29er here. Salsa El Mariachi (HT) and Niner RIP 9.
I have a 6 month old Pivot Firebird top spec that is gathering dust in a shed. Totally regret buying it now but I originally subscribed to the idea that 26ers were more playful. I don't believe that anymore and have lots more fun on my 29er.
I think the RIP9 is the ideal trail centre weapon.

I'm a half way house man - 29er alfined steel hardtail for winter and 100mm marathon/xc full suss.

My only regret with this setup is being a bit of a fettler and mincer who is prepared to swap bits around on a whim for the conditions is the lack of transferability of wheels between the 2.

I have ridden 3 29ers - the Niner sir9 I own, a carbon Scott Scale top of the range hardtail for a 1 hour test ride and a quick spin on someone's tallboy. Obviously ridden tons of 26" jobbies. My verdict - they are all bikes, and ride like er...... bikes! I honestly think the difference when you hop on one can be as much about the other aspects(gearing, suspension, bar width etc, etc, etc the list is endless) of their make-up as they are about the wheel size. It is interesting watching people ride one for the first time; I think most folk come to the experience with a preconceived idea of either a positive or negative experience and almost always their ride affirms their thoughts simply because the difference is pretty marginal. They will feel what they want to feel*. Unless you are in the privileged position of riding every day, riding lots and lots of similar bikes back to back and skilled and fit enough to ride close to their limits, they are all just bikes.

* this is not just limited to bikes - human nature. In my youth I ran a sailing centre in Turkey for a big uk company. At the beginning of the season we put a hole in the hull of a Laser dinghy. Needing the boat to make up the advertised racing fleet we patched it up the best we could and because we had no matching gelcoat I got the boys to paint a stripe on the hull to cover the repair. Boys being boys and rigging boats for wealthy plump middle aged weekend warrior punters who thought they knew a lot more than they did (the exact mtb demographic?) be boring the lads on the beach made up a story to pass the time about this hull being a Laser test boat (we were a test centre) called the Laser twist designed to flex in gusts to smooth out power transfer. Punters would take it out and come back raving about the difference. Come the night before regatta day these daft men (always men) would waste their holiday and queue up for an hour or more before we opened to make sure they got the laser "twist"for the race. Others would complain that there was an unfair advantage.

That boat story is ace 😆

xiphon - Member
Nobody who's actually bought a 29er would admit to it being shite...

i had 2 29ers, a scandal geared, and an inbred ss.
personally, i thought both were shite, so i sold them on. one of them is pictured back on page 1. new owner tk46hal obviously thinks it's great, and we're both entitled to our differing opinions on the very same item.

i reckon it's a personal thing, 26ers are no better or worse than 29ers, both are just different ways of enjoying riding our bikes.

I'm 100% NOT 29'er and planning staying that way - because I don't have the inclination to by another bike and not sure I believe the so-called benefits. Sure, if you're a big chap, it makes sense - but if you're 5'5" - thats just stupid.

Do you think there's loads of roadies out there saying "We told you so!"?