26" 27.5" and 29" Wheels and mtb's.

[Tumbleweed]

Here's sauser's take:

 

Sauser

[AndreZA]

You mean in the same gear right? Of course a 29er will go faster if you pedal the same gear at the same cadence - you go further per pedal stroke. Silly statement though - it's like saying "you'll go faster in a 53x11 than a 39x23 if your cadence is the same".

 

Faster sure but you'll be bleeding out of both ears.

 

Read the heading again "26" vs 29" - want to know which is faster?". Where does it say anything about changed gearing or tyre tread or anything else 29er riders do to make their bikes faster.

[Eldron]

Read the heading again "26" vs 29" - want to know which is faster?". Where does it say anything about changed gearing or tyre tread or anything else 29er riders do to make their bikes faster.

 

I agree with your "29er are faster" statement but the gear spreadsheet confused me - not sure what you were trying to show/prove with it other than that gears get effectively longer when you move fro a 26er to a 29er?

[Karakoram]

Started cycling again last year after a number of years lying off. Unhooked my dusty fully rigid 1995 steel Gary Fisher (21 speed) from the garage ceiling, had it serviced and regained some level of cycling fitness again.

 

Then got hooked by the 16 years of "bicycle progress" and bought a GT 29er Karakoram 1.0 (29 speed) as a second bike. Both bikes are entry-level machines, but the GT has front suspension.

 

During the past few months I’ve ridden both bikes over my normal practice route, which is a mixture of some tar and mostly dirt service roads amongst our local vineyards. The service roads are rocky and sandy in patches and also offer a good deal of corrugations.

 

I ride for the enjoyment of cycling and mainly for the exercise and have no intention of entering races. I've been tracking my training times on SportsTracker on my phone and noticed that my average speed, when riding my 29er is marginally faster, compared to my 26er. (about 0.3km/h faster)

 

The 29er is a much more comfortable bike to ride, probably because of a combination of the front shock, bigger wheels and different gear ratios. The big wheels definitely feel more secure in the sandy patches.

 

I still like to ride my old bike on occasion though; it feels more compact and in direct contact with the buzz of the trail but is a little twitchier than the 29er. The ride becomes quite harsh over corrugated patches.

[Eldron]

 

I still like to ride my old bike on occasion though; it feels more compact and in direct contact with the buzz of the trail but is a little twitchier than the 29er. The ride becomes quite harsh over corrugated patches.

 

A rigid SS should be next for you. The ultimate no frills, no extras, no high tech marketing crapola, suspension flouting, mile wide smile ride.

 

Buy one. Now

[GF29er]

A rigid SS should be next for you. The ultimate no frills, no extras, no high tech marketing crapola, suspension flouting, mile wide smile ride.

 

Buy one. Now

 

couldn't agree more

[RodTi]

All I'm interested in, all I've really ever been interested in knowing, is....

[GoLefty]

I agree with your "29er are faster" statement but the gear spreadsheet confused me - not sure what you were trying to show/prove with it other than that gears get effectively longer when you move fro a 26er to a 29er?

 

You gonna argue with a Mampara?

[bassasdaindia]

couldn't agree more

 

couldn't agree more : +

[Eldron]

You gonna argue with a Mampara?

 

Debate dude debate - the purpose is to enlighten and educate*

 

*I hardly ever follow my own advice.

[thezula]

I own a 2011 Giant Trance X and a 2011 Giant XTC 29er 1 - both excellent bikes in their own right.

 

I bought the XTC 29er for an upcoming long distance solo tour - and for cross country

touring (ie. mixture of flat and hilly tar and gravel roads) a 29er is a good choice.

 

I expected to use the 29er for 90% of my riding expecting it to be more than adequate on the single tracks.

 

However, after recently buying a Trance X I find the 29er stays behind 90% of the time and is only used for the odd commute to work and or cross country style riding. (Which to be honest doesn't happen all too much).

 

After riding both bikes my experience is that on the single tracks (Tokai, Contermans etc.) the 29er is far and I mean really far inferior to any 26er. If you ride a 26er full suspension the full suspension will leave the 29er hardtail even further in the dust on single tracks.

 

I recently took the opportunity to go to Tokai with my 29er and a friend who has the exact same 2011 Trance X bike as me so that we can ride both bikes and compare back to back - doing the same section on the 29er then on the 26er.

 

29er pros :

- Everyday cruising it's great.

- Quite a bit faster on the flats than my 26er

- Excellent for cross country or XC events.

- Quite good for climbing moderate hills.

- If you're an epic rider this must be a top choice.

 

29er cons :

- I don't like the fact that everything has a delayed reaction - Big and slow like a bus, everything feels indirect - even on one of the most resposive 29ers currently avail ...the XTC 29er

- Toe overlap

- Not good for bunny hops or any kind of tricks

- Much slower than 26er on technical single tracks

- 29er a fair bit more expensive than equivalent 26er

- Slow accelaration

- Heavy wheels

- Wheels tend to buckle easier, especially on the single tracks, so be prepared to fork out 5k for a custom all mountain wheelset if you are a regular on the single tracks.

 

A further note : 29er is not better for taller people - it has bigger wheels yes but the

standover height remains the same. Don't buy a 29er if you think you're tall - it won't make a difference. There's plenty of short girls racing competitively on 29ers. Buy a 29er if what you do is cross country, not for other reasons.

 

26er pros :

- Excellent direct feel. Nippy. Handles much much better. THe difference between a sports car (26er) and a bus (29er).

- Much faster on single tracks. 29er simply cannot keep up on anything twisty. Period.

- No toe overlap. Turn and you go.

- Same spec bike in 26er a fair bit cheaper than equivalent 29er.

 

26er cons :

- A bit slower on the straights

- A bit more effort to climb (but then again I have 27 speed with a dual suspension on my Trance vs a 29er hardtail without dual suspension)

 

Conclusion.

 

Contrary to all the hype and magazine reviews and forum reviews of 29er owners who state

that 29ers are the way forward, my experience has been somewhat different.

 

29ers are great for the epic riders. They're good for those thos XC time trial events cause they're a bit faster. And for those who like to race, but to whom single track performance aren't really important. You know ... the cross country types dressed in full cycling kit who race to the top of tokai and race back on the double tracks instead of the single tracks. ;-)

 

However, if you're not a XC style rider who trains for 2 hours on double land dirt roads for next year's epic, or who spends his weekends doing XC style events, then think hard before you buy a 29er.

 

I like to ride single tracks on weekends. I like to use a mountain bike like a mountain bike should be used (off road on single tracks, gunning down and having fun.) I also like my bike to be responsive and able to perform well on single tracks.

 

Doing bunny hops and mixing it up on the 29er feels downright awkward (ever tried to bunny hop a road bike?)- it's just so much easier on a 26er.

 

The biggest drawback for me of all is the fact that 29ers feel less responsive and so slow compared to a 29er. Most people try a 29er on it's own without comparing it back to back to a 26er. When they first get on it they think it's not that bad, eventually getting used to the slow responses and getting used to it.

 

It's also for this reason that I wouldn't likely consider a 29er full suspension. A full

suspension would take away even more of the little direct feeling that is left in a Hardtail 29er. So if you want a real slow coach, go for a 29er Full suspension.

 

For most types of riding - single tracks, All mountain, trails etc 26ers in HT and more so 26er Full suspension are much better suited than 29ers in HT or full suspension.

This is not a HT to full suspension comparison, but a 29" to 26" comparison - the responsiveness, steering, overall handling etc. If anything I compared the less responsive 26" (full suspension) to the most responsive 29" (a HT)

 

I know there's a lot of hype out there around 29ers at the moment. Yes, 29ers are a little bit better for racing, But how many of us purely do racing, and how important is it for you to be a minute faster over a 2 hour event. Which do you do more - racing or having fun at your local single track?

 

I'm not saying 29ers are bad. I'm saying they're great for racing and err... they pretty much suck for everything else.

 

26ers are better in just about every other respect.

 

My 2c based on actual experience and owning a 2011 29er and a 2011 Full suspension 26er.

Edited April 11, 2011 by thezula

[Big J-WP]

Nice read, I just feel that yo must ride what you want and or what you can afford.

 

Enjoy the bikes to the max.

[nickc]

Thanks thezula - nice to read a review where you ride both bikes back to back for comparison.

 

All this hype around the two sizes and now I see a couple of pros overseas are using 650b (27.5) wheels on their 26ers with good results - kinda the best of both worlds.

Edited April 11, 2011 by nickc

[ivan888]

Thanks for the feedback. Great to read something that is truly unbiased.

[Skott5]

Oh boy, you've just been scratched off the 29er Christmas card list

[white tiger]

Hi

 

Thanks for the nice report!

 

But after reading this and some of the other posts on 29'ers

I'm even more confused. In the meantime I'll enjoy my old bike

and it gives me more time to save for a new one!!!

Edited April 11, 2011 by white tiger