Mixed wheel sizes?

Why do some bikes have a larger front wheel than the back (mullet?)?

Thanks

Bigger front wheel rolls over stuff easier, smaller back is more nimble. Along those lines. Oh and fashion probably plays a part too.

Bigger front wheel rolls over stuff easier, smaller back is more nimble. Along those lines. Oh and fashion probably plays a part too.

plus on longer travel bikes and shorter riders, less chance of catching your arse.

Liteville tried it for years and were pretty much ignored. Then they became race legal* not too long after 29ers became popular in downhill and enduro racing.

*side note, apparently the Mojo team did it earlier, having got their hands on the first gen 29er downhill forks, but not able to get new frames so kept running the 27.5 back end; didnt bother to read the rules, and nobody checked either.

It became popular in downhill because lots of the world’s fastest riders are well under 6′ and didn’t like the 29ers which were being pushed by the manufacturers.

A rule change gave them the opportunity to try it out and it stuck.

I’ve recently built a mullet and there’s a huge difference in the handling between that and my 29er trail bike.

If you have short legs the rear tyre is less likely to buzz your bum/balls

Do they sell well? Seems to be being heavily pushed by manufacturers but I don’t see many out and about?

What they said.

They are better at some things, worse at others. Arguably more fun overall though.

My main MTB is a dedicated mullet now :)

It started way back because using a much bigger front wheel meant that you would go further for each turn of the pedals, the little wheel at the back was just for stability. And then someone invented chain-drive and you could have equal sized wheels, and sit between them rather than perching on top of the massive front wheel and they just took over

My new full sus bike is a mullet, not a deliberate choice but because it was significantly cheaper than the full 29″ version. At 6’5″ I thought it might feel a little compromised but tbh it feels fantastic and at no point do I feel like a bigger rear wheel would be a benefit.

I ride a mullet. Test rode a few bikes and bought the one I liked. I think for most of us and most of our riding, there’s not as much difference as the legions of marketeers and copywriters tell us there is.

Since I mulleted my ebike it feels more agile but doesn’t roll over stuff as well as a 29″ back wheel, noticeable if you ride rocky stuff. Being over 6′ I was happy with the larger wheel but love the liveliness of the mullet

Do they sell well?

Best selling e-bike, the Levo has them… I changed from a full 29er Levo (previous gen), as the handling was much  nippier on the new Mullet version

I have ‘mulleted’ my 29er to see how it rode. The change was to put the flip link into high and hope for the best!

Drawback #1 – I know I get more pedal strikes when I’m climbing now. Hardly surprising on a bike that’s not designed for it and already has a fairly low bottom bracket.

Drawback #2 – It feels ‘odd’ while in the saddle pedalling. Couple that with a lighter front end while doing steep climbs… all down to the fact that it is not designed for it.

It does, however, feel a lot more fun on descents. I feel like it takes flight a little easier and popping the front wheel is positively encouraged. In the air the bike moves differently and again – I like it. Is it better? No. Is it different? Absolutely.

Same reason so many dirt motorbikes have bigger front wheels, the 2 ends do different jobs and have different packaging constraints.

TBH I like 29/29 best overall, it works and it’s got advantages for tyres etc and I’m 5’10 so clearance sin’t really a problem. Only time I ever felt 29 rear was a disadvantage was at the mega, where the big tyre was a big disadvantage for cowardly tyre-sitting on the glacier.

But I stuck a 650b wheel into my older 29er enduro bike and that was great- lowered the BB, slackened it off. The actual wheel was worse at pretty much everything but the bike’s overall better. Needless to say that’s something manufacturers can achieve without wheel shenanigans but it can be a brilliant way to breathe new life into an old dog

Wouldn’t mind trying a mullet for my next bike. Spesh Status looks like a lot of fun. Currently on a full 29er hardtail. It’s great for general riding and xc/trail centre wheels on the ground type riding, but I do find it a bit much downhill and on jumps. I still feel like I’d have more fun on a mullet or even back down to 27.5 both ends. May still try a 27.5 wheel on the back of my hardtail but think it’d mess with the geometry too much.