Small Frame....29" or 27.5" wheels ?

[johnson]

I Am searching for a bike for my wife. Her length is 1,64 and inseam is 73cm.

Her current bike is a Medium 26" hardtail and it fits her quite good. I Want to upgrade her bike to a dual suspension.

What would the better option be: 

(1) Small frame with 29" wheels

or

(2) Medium frame with 27.5" wheels ?

Would like to hear some of the shorter riders opinions.

Thanks.

[Disher]

I would say 27.5 - My lady is also tiny 5ft3 or thereabouts, 29 just proves to be a little challenging to handle where the 27.5 is the biz.

 

For a nice budget friendly 27.5 look at the Giant Lust. - Google it.

[eddy]

Wheel size and frame size are separate and unrelated.

 

Get the right size frame and pick the wheel size that suits her riding application.

[vinylguy]

depends what type of riding you want to do... 

 

my wifes rides a 26" small dualie and kicks my ass downhill on the technical stuff!! 

[V12man]

You could go either way depending on how her measurements look.

 

I am 1.67 and generally ride small/medium 29ers - but it is very specific on some bikes - so my Scott spark was a small (and I sometimes thought it was a touch too tall) and I have just swapped to a spez epic in size medium - rode the small and the medium several times and prefferred the handling of the medium.

 

My sister is about the same height as your wife - and she has a small epic 29er (BUT - note the small standover height on the epic is only 4mm lower than the medium - so there is really nothing in it)

 

I also spent some time with cyclefit.co.za who offer a bike sizing service - they may be able to help you some.

[Eldron]

Wheel size and frame size are separate and unrelated.

 

Get the right size frame and pick the wheel size that suits her riding application.

 

Amen brother.

 

Wheel size is decided by type of riding, riding style, technical proficiency - it has nothing to do with frame size.

 

Let us know how she rides and what she intends riding and we'll offer some advice.

[JohanC]

Also check the crank arm length..

 

I'm 1.68 and ride a small Epic WC. Fits me perfectly.

[johnson]

She's not a hardcore racer. Ride for fitness and fun with the occasional local race or maybe a Trailseeker or two. Our local conditions isn't very technical. Mostly dirt roads with some occasional short single tracks.

 

I Am curious why Scott for example make the woman specific Contessa models only in 27.5" wheels and Specialized has the Rumor and Era in 29".

 

Have done some research and all three of those models seem to be very good and capable bikes ?

[FuyanGuy]

She'll feel more in control of the 27.5, which translates to more comfortable, which means more fun!!!
if she is not a racer, don't go clown wheels.
I'm 5'4" and after a year on a 29er, I went down to 27.5 and started enjoying the trails a lot more

[DR ◣◢]

She'll feel more in control of the 27.5, which translates to more comfortable, which means more fun!!!

if she is not a racer, don't go clown wheels.

I'm 5'4" and after a year on a 29er, I went down to 27.5 and started enjoying the trails a lot more

 

Geometry and setup of the bike affects control, not wheel size. 

 

You switching to the 27.5" wheel size means you switched to a different bike. Different, different geometry. 

 

I tested a Spez Stumpy 29" and the handling was spot on compared to my regular bike. The only things I wanted to change were wider bars, shorter stem and different tyres. All because of personal preference. 

[DR ◣◢]

She's not a hardcore racer. Ride for fitness and fun with the occasional local race or maybe a Trailseeker or two. Our local conditions isn't very technical. Mostly dirt roads with some occasional short single tracks.

 

I Am curious why Scott for example make the woman specific Contessa models only in 27.5" wheels and Specialized has the Rumor and Era in 29".

 

Have done some research and all three of those models seem to be very good and capable bikes ?

 

 

Based on this information I would look at a 29er. Don't look at just the womens specific bikes either. They tend to be more marketing and less performance. Please note not all brands do this but some do. 

 

A "mens" bike with the correct setup will in a lot of cases be a better option.

[mtbsmurf]

I'm a lady, 1.64m tall and ride a small Scott Contessa Spark 700 RC 27.5.  Took some getting used to from the 26 as I found the ride higher (like why is the ground so far away) than before (26" extra small).

 

Finding my balance was a challenge initially but pleased to say we have become one.  I do however like the technical stuff and think that a 29er would give me more pace on the district road sections but definitely more agile than my mates on their big wheels in tight turns. 

[Rocket-Boy]

Wheel size and frame size are separate and unrelated.

 

Get the right size frame and pick the wheel size that suits her riding application.

And standover height?

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

And standover height?

not affected by wheelsize. Affected by geometry ONLY. Unless, of course, you stick 26" wheels on a niner frame or vice versa, etc. 

[Katy]

I am 1.68m and ride a small scott spark 29er... works for me and I love twisty single track.

[Eldron]

Opinions are like chocolate starfishes so here's mine:

 

29er.

 

The roll nicely on open ground and inspire confidence on the rougher stuff (by being smoother over the bumps and less twitchy than 650B/26).

 

Oddly enough I'd only recommend 650B wheels to more advanced technical riders. Beginners/recreational riders I'd put on 29er wheels every time.

 

Just remember to keep dropping a gear or two into corners. 29ers tend to be a little harder to rev up out of corners and a higher cadence helps.

 

Depending on price range I'd probably recommend a hardtail over a duallie. A higher spec hardtail is better than a lower spec duallie up until around R23k in my books. Lower than that and the duallies are heavy and no fun to move around.