Mr. G Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 I ride the Giant XTC 29er up in Pta area and thought the thing was awesome - until I did some single track at Jonkershoek (described at the time as mountain biking nirvana!) and Lourensford. I fully agree with the sentiment that the single track, specifically where there are a lot of switchbacks are difficult with the 29er and the bike appears to be less responsive than okes asking to come past on their 26er. 29er is great for going over things (great momentum with the big wheels) but the technical stuff for guys like me that's not a pro - not so easy... +1 That's so true and I think a lot of guys were thinking that when buying a 29er, how much technical single track with switch backs will we be doing 5-10% of our ride if we are really lucky.Well then 29er just makes more sense as it suits 90+ % of our ride.
Eldron Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 +1 That's so true and I think a lot of guys were thinking that when buying a 29er, how much technical single track with switch backs will we be doing 5-10% of our ride if we are really lucky.Well then 29er just makes more sense as it suits 90+ % of our ride. It would be interesting to plot a graph of pro versus anti 29er against location. It seems the Cape crowd are mostly anti 29er - perhaps because they have the mountains/trails/single track where us joburgers eat a lot of dust on dirt roads with only the occasional single track to spice things up. Perhaps it's a 26 for the Cape/Durban and a 29er for Jhb?
patches Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 I heard 29ers cause global warming and are largely responsible for the worlds human trafficking issues
Eldron Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 I heard 29ers cause global warming and are largely responsible for the worlds human trafficking issues The extra rubber needed for the tyres is depleting plantations everywhere and the extra aluminiun in the frame is responsible for the crazy eskom tarrifs!
Caerus Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Does a 29er help to pull girls? Only if thats a girl elephant
grumpy Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Guys I am a 26er.. , been keeping track of the discussion and is slowly coming the the conclusion that the move from 26 inch to 29 inch may be premature, there is an trend developing in Europe where the cyclists are fitting 27.5 inch wheels on their bikes, the 27.5 inch wheels seem to have the advantages of both the 26 and 29 inch wheels, exactly why size frame they are using is unclear at this stage. Think we are going to see a move towards the 27.5 inch wheels soon, so I will wait and enjoy my 26 inch DS bike, at least I don't have to creep up steep hills in the process
Mr. G Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Hey Grumpy There has already been a 27.5" tested here and basically it was said that there was not enough benefit over the 26" wheel to justify a change.
Mr. G Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 It would be interesting to plot a graph of pro versus anti 29er against location. It seems the Cape crowd are mostly anti 29er - perhaps because they have the mountains/trails/single track where us joburgers eat a lot of dust on dirt roads with only the occasional single track to spice things up. Perhaps it's a 26 for the Cape/Durban and a 29er for Jhb? Eldron That sounds good to me, but even more interesting would be a graph that I spoke to Dangle about, the one that shows people who swore off 29er's and have now converted... I know of plenty!
Eldron Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Guys I am a 26er.. , been keeping track of the discussion and is slowly coming the the conclusion that the move from 26 inch to 29 inch may be premature, there is an trend developing in Europe where the cyclists are fitting 27.5 inch wheels on their bikes, the 27.5 inch wheels seem to have the advantages of both the 26 and 29 inch wheels, exactly why size frame they are using is unclear at this stage. Think we are going to see a move towards the 27.5 inch wheels soon, so I will wait and enjoy my 26 inch DS bike, at least I don't have to creep up steep hills in the process Or, alternatively 27.5" wheels only have half the benefit of 29" wheels Compromise is such a drab thing - I mean the 29" only makes the radius 38.1mm bigger - the 27.5" wheel will only make the radius 19.05mm (5.8%) bigger - will you even notice that? I can't see 27.5" wheels catching on - the industry has just spend a wad of cash changing dies, jigs, etc for the 29" phenom - do you think they'll do it all over again before recouping some of their costs? The advantage of not having to buy a new frame&fork for the 27.5" wheel is nice - the reduced clearance issues and altered geometry not so much.
Stevief Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 It would be interesting to plot a graph of pro versus anti 29er against location. It seems the Cape crowd are mostly anti 29er - perhaps because they have the mountains/trails/single track where us joburgers eat a lot of dust on dirt roads with only the occasional single track to spice things up. Perhaps it's a 26 for the Cape/Durban and a 29er for Jhb?Spot on Eldron youve hit the nail on the head. 26fs for Jonkers/tokai, welvenpas etc and 29er for the endless dirt rds up in Gauteng. Good is everyone happy now. Great lets move on.
Eldron Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Eldron That sounds good to me, but even more interesting would be a graph that I spoke to Dangle about, the one that shows people who swore off 29er's and have now converted... I know of plenty! Indeed! I know of more than a few myself that have had to eat some humble pie to get the 29er benefits. Welcome to the club!
Yellow Zebra Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Guys ...there is an trend developing in Europe where the cyclists are fitting 27.5 inch wheels on their bikes, the 27.5 inch wheels seem to have the advantages of both the 26 and 29 inch wheels, exactly what size frame they are using is unclear at this stage. Think we are going to see a move towards the 27.5 inch wheels soon, so I will wait and enjoy my 26 inch DS bike, at least I don't have to creep up steep hills in the process They are using stock 26" frames, as MOST 26" frames front shocks will clear the slightly bigger wheel, and MANY (not most) 26" frames will accept the rear wheel, as long as you do not fit a tractor tire or ride in mega-mud... It does not affect the handling much, and nowhere near the handling change as when fitting a 29" front wheel on a 26" inch frame.
The Drongo Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 (edited) Hello Fubbers Have you solved it yet? Just had lots of fun on my 26err. I did XC ? on the way up the hills, 'cause I stood up and cranked it. Then I did AM? on the rooty bits 'cause I screamed all the way, wif no breaks.Then I did Freeride? on the Single track 'cause I used all the berms, rocks, roots and bumps, oh, and a rock drop off. Scheme if someone gives me one of these 29er unicorns, I would do it all over again! :clap: :clap: Edited April 13, 2011 by The Drongo
Eldron Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Spot on Eldron youve hit the nail on the head. 26fs for Jonkers/tokai, welvenpas etc and 29er for the endless dirt rds up in Gauteng. Good is everyone happy now. Great lets move on. Right - next question: What size wheel do you think would be best? Ultimately 26 and 29 were based on industry norms not science and 27.5 is just half way between the two... Given the choice - what wheel size would you like and why? Perhaps there is a mech eng student on the forum who would like to do a thesis on "performance" versus wheel diameter?
TNT1 Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 Hello Fubbers Have you solved it yet? Just had lots of fun on my 26err. I did XC ? on the way up the hills, 'cause I stood up and cranked it. Then I did AM? on the rooty bits 'cause I screamed all the way, wif no breaks.Then I did Freeride? on the Single track 'cause I used all the berms, rocks, roots and bumps, oh, and a rock drop off. Scheme if someone gives me one of these 29er unicorns, I would do it all over again! :clap: :clap: XC? Or XCM, XCO or XCS? WTF is AM? You ride so fast that you go back in time, so a ride that started in the PM finishes the previous AM?
The Drongo Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 They are using stock 26" frames, as MOST 26" frames front shocks will clear the slightly bigger wheel, and MANY (not most) 26" frames will accept the rear wheel, as long as you do not fit a tractor tire or ride in mega-mud... It does not affect the handling much, and nowhere near the handling change as when fitting a 29" front wheel on a 26" inch frame. Ahh. Now if you do THAT, then you are SILLY! The geometry of 29er is not the geometry of a 26err, with bigger wheels fitted. If it was, then even decent riders would battle on tight single track - with or without Bar Ends.
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