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27.5 because that's what came in the bike and I can't justify another new bike.
GF's bike is also 27.5 which makes tyre changes easier.
My mate claims to have invented the mullet trend after he blagged a 29“ Fox fork for his Nomad and then convinced the blaggeree to give him a wheel for it.... Prob around 2016/17.
Blaggeree was a bike journalist at the time with a plethora of spare parts.
I'm a 29er fan. I ride large frames, which probably impacts that choice.
I owned one 27.5 bike (after already having a 29er) but didn't really get on too well with it. May have been 'cos it was my one and only FS, but it just didn't climb as well as any of the 29ers i've owned, and it didn't seem any more nimble. Also, I hired a 27.5 last year in Wales and it was a pig to ride. Plus in the photos of me sitting on it, it looks stupidly small.
Never ridden a mullet, but can't see it making much positive difference to my riding.
I havfe to admit, when I retired my 26er full suss I went to 29er mostly because I was pissed off at the 650b fiasco and I figured if I was going to change wheel sizes I wanted to be able to at least see it. Not a good motivation, but ultimately I got a kick-ass 29er and haven't looked back.
I've got a mullet in my main bike just now, not so much because I think it's a good wheel option but because it's an older bike and so it's a little steep and a little high- the smaller rear wheel works well on it. I wouldn't choose it otherwise.
Fat 26 though is my favourite, just because it's so different. 26 or 650b or 29, there's only so much difference but stick a 4.8 on a bike and everything changes. Mostly for the worse, but that's fun too
What Cookeaa said.
I absolutely loved my Orange Alpine 160 with 26” wheels, and a 63* head angle (slack, set, better, longer fork and offset bushings), and it rode really well with a 27.5 wheel in the front. But I also loved my brother-in-law’s 275 Capra as well. And I’m currently riding a 29er Hardtail which is also great. They all had different quirks and I can tell that the bigger wheels do roll over things better than the 26. Also like the Whyte e-bikes in 275 and 29 equally.
I think if I was buying a bike I would probably go mullet (as I could always just fit a smaller front wheel if I didn’t like it) as I’m no longer after maximum speed but looking for fun on the trails now I’m in my 40s.
Bikes are fun and as long as they have a DHF on the front I’m pretty much happy to ride whichever wheelsize I have.
29er, because well... 6ft 3in. Normally on the largest size frame too.
Interestingly with I started riding a few years back I didn't like 29ers due to the slow acceleration and agility, now I don't think there's much, if any downside to them and I like going fast over rough, natural trails so a 29er is perfect for that.
Plus 29er wheels sort of go hand in hand with a 1350mm wheelbase, 170mm travel and 62.5 head angle!
I only have 26” as a reference on an MTB. I think I had one ride around a car park on a Spec Enduro with 29” wheels and it felt large and weird. My commuter has 26” wheels and make it feel nimble and agile in town and the stumpy seems to work on 26” around the local trails.
Spares are the only reason I might change. Quality tyres and rims are getting harder to find…
29 here too. I’m a relative short arse at 5ft 9” and tiny legs. I just prefer it on a HT. Also like 29+ for the giggles.
Still on 27.5 here, and for the foreseeable future as I'm just building up an Edit V4.
Over winter I've been mostly riding my Canyon Dude fatbike (29r?). Yesterday I rode my wife's Bird Aether 7 round to a mates for his lad to try for size, my god it felt flip floppy and unstable after a month or two on the fat one.
When I first start riding the Dude it feels like it doesn't want to go round corners.
I guess what I'm trying to say, is that we adapt to whatever we ride, so maybe it doesn't matter if you're not trying to win races. Oh, and as above, tyre choice really does matter.
Mullet.
29er front end feels really right to me, i like the space of the 27.5 rear.
My Trek Fuel Ex is a 29er but I much prefer riding my Trek Remedy with 27.5 wheels. Now it may be the shock that I prefer and find faster, dunno.
But also love my hardtail, Orange Crush with 27.5 wheels. I’ve never ridden a 150mm hardtail 29er to compare.
Also never ridden a mullet, and I know with the bikes and wheels that I have, I could. But I’m happy for now with the 27.5. I’m also not massively worried about being fast. Just enjoying being out.
Just to add, I’m a 5 foot 8 shorty and 27.5 has always felt right for me.
I’m happy on 27.5 or 29 or mullet but wouldn’t choose to go back to 26
If I was buying, 29 because I think that will have best tyre and fork availability
If I was racing, 29 because they appear to have been proven faster
26" and 27.5" on newer bike. Rolling resistance is down to tyres more than wheel size.!
How many of you folks now loving 29ers were in the "they're shit and will explode" camp a few years back?😉
I ride 27.5, 27.5+,29 and mixed.
Geo/ suspension setup makes a bigger difference than wheel size.
They all have a slightly different feel but none are "better" than others.
Two of my bikes are almost identical geo wise. Geometron G13 with slackset and Geometron G1.
One is short travel with 29 wheels the other long travel and mixed.
The only noticeable difference is the long travel bike allows me to go faster on really rough trails.
Nothing to do with wheel size.
How many of you folks now loving 29ers were in the
Yeah sort of... I'd not got on well with 29ers... but i think from when i rode 29ers to when i recently bought 29ers, they'd moved on a lot in the years. When i was riding 29ers they were mostly 27.5s they'd wangled 29er wheels into. Whereas now, they're actually made for the wheels in terms of riding and geometry. My Slayer doesn't feel cumbersome or slow at all and inspires confidence.
, they’d moved on a lot in the years
Or maybe it's because the internet now says it's cool to like 29ers.😉
Surprised at the amount of folk still on 26", thought I was the only one still hanging on!
i was 26inch until i die... then went 27.5. But that was alright, as i was 27.5 until i die.... then went 29.
I had a mullet for a while (Specialized status) and enjoyed that.
But current bike is a 29er and i dont think i would want anything else.
Although i am eyeing up a Vitus Sommet as a cheap enduro bike, which i can get in 29 or mullet.... decisions decisions!
Surprised at the amount of folk still on 26″, thought I was the only one still hanging on!
There is a guy who does some cool rebuilds of old 26" hardtails into bike packing bike with his custom fork. It's similar as to how I run my very old 26". https://www.stridsland.com/
Bit harder for a good repurpose with 26" full Sus not because of the wheel size but the shorter frame IME. (Only just retired mine)
Its very easy to make a shit 29er, get the bottom bracket in the wrong place and it just won't corner or ride right (Cube is a great example of this). 29ers always feel more lazy and will stand up in corners if you grab the brakes, for me its tidied up my riding no end.
Couple of weeks ago a mate shoved 650b wheels in his kenevo SL, was interesting to see on the rougher sections of trails, the 29er Kenevo SL rolled up behind the 650b bike.
I ran my G1 full 29 to start with, then went mullet in winter 20/21, swapped back to full 29er and then 650b wheel hasn't been on since. It feels odd going back to mullet as the other two bikes I ride are 29 all the time.
If you were on a medium and below frame, mullet makes a lot of sense for ass clearance.
Pick a wheel size and be a dick about it 😉
How many of you folks now loving 29ers were in the “they’re shit and will explode” camp a few years back?
I'm normally a huge cynic and hated the wheel debate when 27.5 appeared as i knew it would devalue my then pride and joy (Yeti 575 in 26). Which it did. But 29 made sense as soon as i saw it explained with the "big wheels not falling into the hollows as much over rough ground" diagram. So simple even my addled brain managed to conclude it was obviously a significant improvement. Which it is.
But if you ride in areas that are not that rough and the singletrack is mega twisty i can see why a smaller wheel size might be preferable.
How many of you folks now loving 29ers were in the “they’re shit and will explode” camp a few years back?
Well, yeah sort of - when I was still enjoying my 26er (fab Yeti 575) I really didn't see the point in bigger wheels at all. Then when I had to get rid of the 575, I tried a 29er and loved it. So been on them since. Must be 8,9 years now.
29er cos I'm tall. Prefer it over 26" and was a reasonably early adopter with a Gary Fisher Rig 29 SS in 2007. Plenty of clown wheel jokes from riding 'mates' at the time.
Can't say if I prefer 29er over 650b/27.5 as I've never ridden one. I do, however, have my first mullet to try out: long-shocking my Geometron for extra rear travel and swapping 29er to 650b rear wheel to bring the geometry back in line. Who knows, I might hate it.
29er for me.
I prefer its stability and surefootedness for the kind or rough, natural, marginal traction woodsy stuff I like to ride where you have to make flow through the tech. I think it matters less for man-made or steeps.
I'm 182cm and strong-ish so the extra bit of muscling around the bigger wheels doesn't really bother me, in fact making 'journo-shapes' is kinda part of the fun.
Been on 29 since 2011 after a buddy rolled away from me on a rough double track. He was on rigid SS 29 and I was on a 26 140mm dw 5 spot made me realise there was something in it.
Also at 182cm, the question of arse clearance and mullet isn't really much of an issue, and I'm not especially interested in schralping, so I've stuck with 29 front and back.
29 front and rear for me. I don't like how the mullet set up still feels like it hangs the bike up more on the rough stuff because of the smaller wheel. I don't feel any difference in manoeuvrability and I've never buzzed the rear tyre when full 29 so I see no need to go down a wheel size.
Most of my gains come from skill gains rather than mixing and matching wheel sizes.
27.5 on my HT because I like it
27.5 on my FS because I like it.
I think I might like Mullet, but I guess I won't know until I try it but I'm happy with my current choices!
Lanky git here so 29"
How many of you folks now loving 29ers were in the “they’re shit and will explode” camp a few years back?
Nope. I liked the sound of them, so bought an Inbred 29er as a commuter and liked it. Then sold it, for a full suss 26". Then bought another 29er HT and preferred it to the FS 26". So got rid of that and have been 29er ever since.
I'm 5'9" (very ish...) just never really got round to trying a 27.5 bike. Could try my sons but it's a size small so I might not get the proper experience.
29”
I’ve had a gazillion 26” & eventually went to 27.5” - couldn’t tell difference.
Then went to 29” - still struggle to feel difference but it seems more future proof.
I think any difference in how my bikes feel has been more dictated by how frame design & philosophy has changed, the quality of suspension & tyre choice.
I think many of the "I am tall and 26" didn't fit" are more to do with the shorter nature of old bikes. The rolling over things is different but the fit was just the all bikes were short rut (arguably gone too far the other way now but that's another thing).
26" on the RUNE V3.2 - im clearly in the minority though - but then im cool and coold kids ride 26.
anyway the real why
1. Slightly stubbon
2. Surrey Hills Massive - so it's all twisty stuff and small wheels are better
3. Im not a lanky sod (though frankly my short arse mates ride 29ers and they do OK)
4. Tight arse - got a lovely set of wheels
5. like to be different
26" as they roll over things great and have amazing grip. But that is with a 4.8" tyre fitted. My Fatbike is my favourite bike and just makes me smile riding it.
Otherwise 29". Just because it was the first mtb I'd bought in around 20years and for the price it was a great deal, the bike suited my needs and I couldn't afford anything else.
Have never tried a 27.5", and certainly cannot afford to buy another mtb.
Another 26 inch luddite here. Can’t say I’ve tried larger wheels so I may be missing out admittedly. I also have an alpine 160 and just love the way it rides, the bike wants to go way faster than I do anyway, so I don’t feel it’s the wheel size holding me back, I’m the wrong side of 50 now so slowing down and getting less and less gnar, not that I was particularly gnar to start with. Local trails are really tight too (Minley)
Although apparently the weight of bikes doesn’t matter anymore, I do like a light bike and have this one under 30lb. To get a new bike with carbon wheels and a similar spec would also cost silly money, so no plans to change anytime soon.
29er here. I was waiting for a particular bike to be released in 27.5" but got bored of waiting and demoed the 29" version and loved it so bought one. Now both my MTBs are 29 and wouldn't go back, plus both being 29 means tyres and wheels are a straight swap.
The other halfs main bike is 29 but she's keen to try it with a small back wheel, the manufacturer are hopefully getting some demo bikes.
@thebrick been following Stridsland for a while, one of a few breathing new life into old bikes.
I'd like a 29er, in fact I'm planning on getting one soon but only for the fact it's "easier" and probably more suited to long-distance stuff. My other bikes are all for messing about on and you can't pop off stuff if you can't hit it. I've seen a few going back to 650 and even 26 (on the Tora EVH) for that reason, sometimes it's not about getting down in the fastest time but having the most fun on the way. Obviously everyone has adifferent idea of what the entails.. M
Another in the "I'm tall so 29er" bucket here.
Felt right as soon as I swung my leg over one and also for the vain reason that the bike actually looks in proportion rather than having stupid tiny wheels and a massive gate of a frame!
Would like to have a go on a mullet tho.