Are 26" tyres really dead?

Apologies for the wheel size thread.

I prefer to buy locally rather than online, so this weekend I went to two LBS looking for new tyres for my 26″ Orange five (I’m a luddite, I know). Worryingly:

(a) Neither of them had stock of any decent 26″ tyres; and

(b) Both of them told me that manufacturers were increasingly restricting their 26″ offerings to “canal towpath” type tyres rather than the more aggressive tread patterns.

The question is whether the shops were just trying to get me to buy a new bike (which I can’t afford!) or whether it’s true and I should really start stocking up on tyres before they all run out….. 😯

In the meantime I bought online where there is still plenty of choice, for now….. 😕

Currently running some fairly new Maxxis rubber on 26″, minions, HRII’s, Ardents

Not struggling (in Oz)

love buying 26 tyres at the mo so so cheap…. racing ralph evo dd tlr £14 a pop on-one (and they sold out pretty quickly).

Who knows! I can’t see me changing wheel size for a few years yet and I can easily find the tyres I need online.
If the bike shops want to do themselves out of business then let em.

Pop into Halfords. They only seem to stock 26” tyres! Good selection too.
Very little 29er choice and I’ve yet to find one stocking 27.5”.

They will gradually be wound down until everyone is on 27.5 and 29″. Then they’ll be re-introduced as the next great thing.

only a couple of new tyres have’nt come out in 26 but most companies do release them in 26 as well. some don’t make 29er versions. My barons don’t come in 27.5 or 29 but the newer ones will come in all three sizes. Your LBS talk sheite.

I get my tyres from bike-discount.de for good prices.

as tyres are one of the most consumable items on a bike, it would make no sense for manufacturers to stop making them in the short / medium term whilst there is money to be made with such a residual customer base. i’d be surprised if you saw many ‘new’ 26 inch tyres, but if a manufacturer has a popular tyre design and the molds, why would they not produce them. i can see lbs’ stopping stocking them though

Cokie – Not sure Halfrauds counts as “buying local” 😉 but glad to hear they have lots of stock!!

DebZ – kind of agree. Why would a shop stock stocking something that all the mtb they sold prior to 3 years ago would need? Seems crazy!

26″ tyres are nowhere near dead and all the tyres I am interested in are available.

However, new models may not be offered in 26 so over the years the choice will become limited to older models and down to whether shops stop stocking due to less demand.

If there is a particular tyre you really love then may be worth buying a few just in case but I wouldn’t fill the cellar with them.

I bought two (online) over the weekend, but from a retailers perspective – what actually sells in an LBS I’ve no idea.

Slowoldman – love that way of thinking. It’s a bit like keeping your flares in the cupboard for 50 years until they come back into fashion! At the current rate of change it should be less than 2 years before they are the next big thing again (27 minus….?)

I can see MTB-focused LBSs keeping stocks limited to a very few that sell well. Online though there are loads. 26″ wheels represent a lot of bicycles.

I expect that fancy new tread designs and compounds will likely focus on 650b though.

Finding a decent stock of tyres in any LBS is quite awkward, even the good ones will only stock a couple of brands and a limited selection even if it’s the right wheel size it might not be the model you want, or the right casing, or the right width etc.

It’s one of those things that is really hard to stock for (in any wheel size) as everyone has their own preference, beyond certain

There’s certainly still plenty available, if your LBS are *really* having a hard time finding decent ones to stock they need to try a bit harder and look at their suppliers.

Presuming that a certain huge online bike bits retailer knows their stuff as to what sells, in the tyres section…
26″ = 277 to choose from, 650b = 90, 29″ = 100.

Yep, very very much on their last legs are them 26s…

is there a new wheel size?

It’s a bit like keeping your flares in the cupboard for 50 years until they come back into fashion!

How did you get to look in my wardrobe? I like the idea of “27 minus”. Marketing genius.

Perhaps the presumption is that if your shopping in your LBS for parts and tyres you’re more of a “high price point” customer, and as such will be keeping up with the latest in wheel sizes…

LBS’ have to stock whatever sells to their main customer base, so it’s most likely people who walk through the door will be after new, shiny and expensive weekend toys, or a commuter hybrid… 26″ MTB’s no longer fit in either category I’m affraid

Dare I say it, Online is your friend in this instance:

Start here?

Just picked up a pair of Mountain kings at just over £10 each!

No, it would be insanity – I can understand why they might stop stocking 26″ bikes, if there were any still being made – but the huge, vast majority of MTB bikes being ridden today are 26″ – why would they stop making spares for them?

Anyway, personally I was looking for some tyres last week, I wanted Maxxis HR2 2.4 26″ 3C tyres, but everywhere is out of stock – or to put it another way “sold out” – but they’ll be back in stock in the next week or so. I bought some 60a instead.

I’ve tried 650b and 29 and I just prefer 26 inch. The fact manufacturers don’t offer 26 as a choice any more proves to me the philosophy behind the change in wheel size is only down to one thing, manufactures want you to spend your cash.

I’ll be sticking with 26 for as long as I can

The fact manufacturers don’t offer 26 as a choice any more proves to me the philosophy behind the change in wheel size is only down to one thing, manufactures want you to spend your cash.

Quick check tells me Maxxis still make nearly everything in 26″
http://www.maxxis.com/catalog/tire-294-121-ardent
Maybe the hype is bigger than you think for the death of 26″, try asking your LBS to get the rubber in you want.

OK. Panic over then!

I got what I was looking for on CRC last night so all’s well. LBS didn’t even offer to order tyres for me which was pretty unhelpful – the guy was focused on trying to sell me a 650b bike for my son and telling me you couldn’t get 26″ tyres anymore. Won’t be going back there in a rush.

beardo74 – Member
The question is whether the shops were just trying to get me to buy a new bike

Did they try to sell you a new bike?

beardo74, my lbs just asked what I wanted and got in in later that week.

Just because they make it, doesn’t mean that the importer has them- though to be fair that’s the case for 650b and 29er tyres not just 26. (for that matter, just because it’s on the website, doesn’t mean it exists)

There’s basically 2 separate issues here… Choice will decline- new tyres won’t be launched in 26, but also older designs are being withdrawn. But mostly it’s going to be about stock and availability.

Which ones Northwind? People keep saying this but really can’t find many solid examples?

cynic-al No he didn’t. I told him I was off to look on the web and he must have realised he was going to get found out!

I’ll start worrying when wiggle and CRC stop selling them.

Am tempted by a 29″ but I think I’ll have to break one of my current bikes first.

Try and find a specialized slaughter in 26, for a new one. For old ones, look at Conti, big clearouts on many of the 26 inch models and no sign of restocking. Once the stock lag is cleared and shops and distributors get rid of what they already hold, they’ll have no reason to restock a full range.

I think anyone who thinks 26 will disappear entirely is just as daft as anyone who expects to have the same choice the other sizes have, though.

I only have 26 inch wheels on my MTBs and have no issues getting tyres; I tend never to buy tyres from physical shops though as they simply can’t maintain the selection of tyres to keep all their customers happy.

Quick check tells me Maxxis still make nearly everything in 26″
http://www.maxxis.com/catalog/tire-294-121-ardent
Maybe the hype is bigger than you think for the death of 26″, try asking your LBS to get the rubber in you want.

Mike I was referring to new bikes, sorry for not making it clear. Off the top of my head I can’t think of anyone who makes a 26 inch bike at the moment

What the LBS was trying to tell you “You need a new bike”

Probably repeated above but I haven’t had any issues buying 26″ tyres. If anything theres a lot more choice in 26″ than any other size- last time I looked anyway(start of the year). I buy all mine from one of the German online retailers. Much cheaper than anything I’ve seen in an LBS, but even all of my LBS’s carry stock of decent tyres

My LBS doesn’t keep a stock of any high end tyres. Well, thats an exageration, they will always have a few, but they may not be the ones you want. What they do stock is the run of the mill tyres that will go on the vast majority of bikes they service and repair. So that will be 26″ or hybrids then. They will gladly order thwhat ever you want though.

Speaking to the owner recently, his biggest moan was not that nearly every manufacturer has gone 27.5″ 650b, but the fact he struggles to get a decent range of tyres to fit them. He can get high end tyres at £50 a piece, but he struggles to get cheap £15 tyres that the average bod will want to fit to their £350 starter MTB.

In contrast to the “26” is dead” contingent, 4 of the last 5 high end custom builds they have done have been 26″. The other one was a 29er. Oh, and 3 Ti Tripsters.

And because I’ve just posted on a wheel size thread I’m going to go and shoot a kitten.

Tyre choice in my LBS has always been dire, I go online and have managed to get some of the new 2015 Nobby Nics in 26, some Magic Mary’s in 26, an Ardent 2.4 in 26, the new Minion DHR-2 in 26 etc etc….all pretty cheap too, keeping my HT 26 for the foreseeable future.

If/when I change it will be to something like the Dartmoor Hornet that can take both 26 and 27.5 kit….and only costs £180 for the frame, who says MTBing has to be expensive?!

More to do with shelf space, I reckon. My LBS is quite small and does road and MTB, and there is about a 6ft length of wall for MTB tyres. That used to be a small selection, until there are now suddenly three sizes (never mind plus) so if they want to stock a choice of mud and dry, cheap and expensive then something has to give.

Online should be ok though.

The choice of 27 inch road tyres is limited but not zero. They were on the way out 30 years ago

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tyres-27-630-dept203_pg1/

Choice if you decide to use you 650b bike as a commuter is still very limited

Interesting thread. I had heard rumours that specialised had dropped at least one model of 26″ tyre from further production (the captain). Another couple of years of half decent ones would suit me at which point I suspect most of my 26″ great will be seriously tired