Has anyone mentioned weight in this discussion? For your £ I’d expect a 29er to weigh approx 2lbs more than a 26er.

Probably though both camps claim the same facts as proof, meanwhile someone else is looking for exceptions to prove rules.

Meanwhile in the real world people are riding bikes.

So 26er rider is faster on 26″ bike, 29er rider is faster on 29″ bike. Shocker.

Yeah and the 29″ was over 5 seconds faster than the 26″ and the 26″ rider had never ridden a 29″ before but was very close to his 26″ time and couldn’t believe the grip and how stable it was. He took the words right out of my mouth…

I can’t wait to see that new Enduro shake things up in the enduro world series. With the right rider the advantage will simply be unfair and that will be that for 26″ and the heads in the sand brigade.

Therefore a very short and light rider on a big wheeled, long-travel, slack angled, long wheelbase bike will need to move a HUGE amount to make that bike to what its rider wants – ie the bike is too stable and too difficult to manoeuvre. Conversely, a very tall and heavy rider on a small wheeled, short travel, steep angled, short wheelbase bike will have to move tiny amounts to make that bike do what its rider wants – ie the bike is not stable enough and too difficult to keep balanced and controlled in the gnarr as external forces cause the rider to involuntarily move, thus destabilising the bike.

Why describe a small rider on a slack bike,long travel with a long wheelbase that they will have no control over because it’s too big next to a tall rider on a small frame with a short wheelbase,short travel and steep angles that’s too small for him?

You need to be getting a pile of the same kit for each bike build.. custom frames made to suit each rider and THEN compare what we’re talking about here.

26 v 29.

We can’t compare the difference between a short arse on a bike too big for them, next to a lanky git on a bike that’s too small. If the tall rider fall’s over the front of the bike, it’s not showing how crap a smaller wheel is. The same as the short rider overshooting corners on a bike with a monster wheelbase.It’s not showing up how a 29er is less maneuverable.

And if it doesn’t what does it do to the 29’r up their backside brigade?

Nothing much to add to this discussion as i’ve only read the posts on this page and i’ve read a few “facts” above etc and been informed of Blah vs Yadda over X terrain vs Y terrain and i have come to the conclusion that i don’t really care any more….really i don’t, although in true STW fashion i cannot leave this thread without offering something to fuel the fire so to speak so i will say that for the two fully sponsored riders that i know, one rides multi day XC type stage races with success and the other rides multi day Enduro and more gravity induced races with success, both ride 29’ers, so with that reasoning we can surmise that 29’ers are obviously better as otherwise they’d ride 26″.

I ride 26″ and i am not successful at anything, thus that proves that riding a 29’er is the path to successful living, I’m perfectly content being a failure so i’ll stick wi my 26″ wheels if that’s ok 😀

Lots of roadie types, phobic to lifting their front wheels off the ground probably think 29ers have some sort of advantage over 26 inch MTBs. Good for them..

Find me a 29er that jumps anywhere near as well as a proper bmx 🙂

Some good reading in this thread. Interesting link to pinkbike thoughts about the design and development challenges associated with larger wheels. So what I’m thunking is;

26″ bikes have a shorter ‘maximum rider height’ than 29″ bikes. The inverse being true at the short arse end of the spectrum.

29″ wheels aren’t strong enough to handle the gnarr that the bike geometry they encourage(slack, longer wheelbase) likes, combined with the weight of the larger rider.

29″ bike with no bb drop is an inherently better place to start designing a bike.

I’m going to be paying more for whatever fork I buy from now on due to the vast array of options being offered to the market. 😯 How long can that really continue before industry standards dictate a more consolidated selection? The margins must be soo much smaller on each unit due to higher tooling costs and lower sales.

Ski and snowboard industry analogies work to a point. Sidecut, no sidecut, reverse sidecut, positive camber, negative camber, early rise, magnatraction edge blablabla. Main manufacturers shifted their whole range to no camber boards for a season and then reverted, worked as a pr stunt. Now its settled down and there is an available ski/board that is best suited to any particular style of riding.

I hope not! Both my offroad bikes are 26 – I really like them and do not wish to “upgrade”. They both work perfectly, I look after things, don’t care if I’m “in fashion” or not, and I love my riding. Is the one faster than the other?
I don’t know. I think to an extent the claims are exaggerated to boost sales, I guess the vast majority of us would not see any time gains – nor care either way – as we ride for fun and enjoyment (don’t we?).
I think it’s hard to tell for sure because the ride’s input will always be variable. The same rider on the same course, same bike, same day sees different lap times. You get tired if you do the laps consecutively on the same day, and if you do them on different days the weather, conditions, your mood, health etc will be different. One ‘triathlist’ I know uses a rear hub which measures his power output because how hard you think you are working is not an accurate measure of how hard you ARE working. Bottom line? Ride what you like the look of. Of course, if you’re sponsored, you ride what you’re told to ride!

The debate isn’t 26 v 29 at all. The two are co-existing no problem, and are different enough that they make sense alongside each other to suit certain terrain, distance, rider characteristics etc.

The introduction of the third 650b size is what will kill of 26ers if anything does. Personally I hope 650b is a flash in the pan and we can get back to common sense.

It’s a bit late now mate. The fires on and I’m watching ghostbusters II, just about to open a beer.

Can’t 26″ wheels do night riding then? 😉

Am I right in thinking the only people that ride 26ers now are people who buy bikes based on what the guy stood on top of the podium rides?

Putting lanky bean poles to one side for a moment 😀 , the debate ends with what sort of riding you’re into. I personally find head-down XC mile crunching boring as hell. MTBing to me involves the ability to jump, I need to retain the agility that smaller wheels provide and this in reality rules out *ungainly* and pointlessly-big 29 inch wheels.

It would take a brave man to bet against the marketing machine and the wheels are well and truly turning.

Mostly BS in the beginning IMO but the tide is turning and over the next year or 2 brands will need to deliver (you can see that happening already.)

IMO at the moment it looks like 26ers are on the ropes.

Isn’t this just optimists v pessimists?

As an owner of several 26in bikes and now one rigid 29er SS (which is where, for me, at the moment, I see big wheels possibly providing an advantage), I’m excited by the new possibilities that all this innovation may bring. As someone said a few pages back, the market will ensure there will always be good bikes to ride, no matter how tall/short/skilled/incompetent/jey/gnarr you are. New thinking and new solutions just help move things forward.

29 is not the end of this… Less than a month away now, this will give people something to think about.

What’s the average height of a mountain biker in the US compared to one in the UK? Probably taller, which means they’ll benefit more from 29ers. As the supply of 26″ wheels, tyres, frames and forks dwindles, and the prices gradually rise, we’ll all be forced to switch whether we like it or not.

Your only hope is to ensure that at least your children are tall. Feed them well.

Then, when almost everyone is riding 29 – 26 will become niche, cred, hip and thus have its renaissance. Ye gods! I’ll be fashionable – how awful 🙂

If, instead of reading and contributing to this thread, we’d spent our time knitting, together we could have made a lovely sweater for that whale that Somafunk rode down in another thread recently. Or a big pair of pants.

Just sayin’

Wouldn’t wolly pants be a bit itchy though?

Depends on how big the stitches are. Bigger stitches = less itch.

what like 29er stitches as opposed to 26er stitches? 😆

There was a Krampus in brixton cycles around xmas time. I couldn’t stop looking at it. They said I could take it for a ride, got flu soon after so couldn’t.

As you have less stitches to do, the 29er cross stitch is considerably faster in making your garment of choice. Not great around the neck area though, as it can get a bit draughty. 😉

Am I right in thinking the only people that ride 26ers now are people who buy bikes based on what the guy stood on top of the podium rides?

It seems that way Stu. Funny thing is the same people are also saying people riding 29ers are gullible victims of a marketing sting.

Funny thing is the same people are also saying people riding 29ers are gullible victims of a marketing sting

And don’t forget “air-phobic mile munchers” 😆

Oh yeah, and ‘AttentionSeekingWhores’.

as it can get a bit draughty.

Sounds like a + to me.

I like a bit of airflow in my pants to keep things cool. 8)

are people trying to kill 26’s? Should they now be endangered?

If not concentrate on whats between your own legs and **** off 🙂

Go ride your bike, if your faster then good for you if not ebay it and get 650 or 30″ or 28″

i’m not quite sure where all this 26ers are dieing out thing is coming from. outside of xc races and marathon events i reckon only about 1 in 50 bikes i see is a 29er and i’m yet to see a 650b bike or wheel outside of a magazine.

In all these 29er debates, it is never actually established what counts as a better bike.

What is a better bike, a faster one? a more fun one? one that jumps better? one that manuals better? one that climbs better? one that just simply feels right?

I don’t think there’s any questions in the time advantages a 29er will buy you in an xc/trail, even AM situation on the correct tracks. The 29er will be best if all you care about is time, but you will no doubt be compromising in some other aspect.

Moral of the story is you can’t have your cake and eat it. Wheel size just as suspension setup or bike geomoetry, adjust to enhance one aspect, compromise on others.

There is no best, just acceptable compromises for whatever the application happens to be.

I wonder If the walker’s have the same sort of debate on their forums every couple of weeks ….which is better trail shoes or walking boots ???? Is it the end of walking boots ??

nah, they argue over whats best to put across trails, rope or barbed wire.

Cleared every jump on my FS 29er this morning in our local woods and had great fun in the twisty singletrack mudfest.

Would also have loved it on my 26er. No more no less as I just love riding.

If you can’t do jumps on a 29er then go on a skills course, it’s you that’s lacking not the bike.

I don’t want to ride a 29er, I came from 20″ and 26″ still seems big!

I ride a bit of everything and get the benefits of 29″ on XC and trail, yes you can jump on 29″ you can jump on whatever if your good but can’t see DJ riders and 4X riders going 29″ anytime soon.

I was out over Kinver DH/Freeride today, as well as the 10 riders riding there there were about 20 XC guys come through, all on 26″ the only exception was one guy riding solo on a CX bike.

26″ Dying…maybe magazine coverage is dwindling but not in the real world!

Exactly! I’ve never seen a 650B on my local trails or on weekends away at trail centres, and 29ers are still very much in the minority. 26ers are hear to stay I think. Most of the guys I ride with have accepted 29ers as another option, and i expect to see more on the trails this year as 29er technology settles down and components have become available, but I can’t see 650B making headway anytime soon. A choice too many I think and not enough ofa difference from 26er for riders to make the investment as a second bike or replacement.

cant be arsed reading all that

but if 29 takes over with there being no choice then i might just stick to bmx and give up mtbiking 😀

29ers are ugly, they just look wrong, and I’m probably never going to buy one based solely on that half-arsed assessment. 😆

I know it’s subjective, but there you go. And I bet I’m not the only person that feels like that.

To paraphrase; the death of the 26er has been greatly exaggerated 😀

Dear 26ophiles, anyone want to buy my Soul? http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/mk2-cotic-soul-small-orange-full-build 😆