CaptainMainwaring – Member
I had a look at this recently. One quanitfiable difference is that 29″ wheels and tyres weigh around 15% more than their 26″ equivalents. The tyres and rims are also further away from the hub so I am guessing that makes them around 20% harder to accelerate but that they have 20% more “momentum”.
This would suggest that a rider doing a lot of techy climbs and descents with constant variations in speed would be better off on 26″, but someone favouring smoother XC type trails would be better off on 29″
Posted 13 minutes ago # Edit
jameso – Member
^ True, but then consider roll-over and momentum benefit etc on those techy sections, and the ease of moving around a smaller wheel ..
We get to the point of Rorschach’s gif very quickly )
I agree that that there are lots of other factors, but they are difficult to quantify and in some cases could be +ve or -ve depending on circumstances.
Yet another factor is that apart from weighing more, 29″ wheels are more prone to lateral distortion under load so again MAY be an issue for techy sections or cornering hard