Are 26ers dead?

[PhilipV]

Mine must be a bit more than 10 years old by now. I still ride it often. Albeit as a 27.5 singlespeed with 150mm travel. Bit of a Frankenstein but a smile a minute. 

[Jewbacca]

Yes.. 

But necrophiliacs exist

[danthunders]

26er are still alive and probably makes up most of the sales in countries like China, India, we’ll basically Asia and other African countries. We are sold the idea of 29er is new, modern, better by clever marketing. Which is true in some areas and not in others. In my opinion a 5ft person is better suited to a 26er then a 7ft person, where as a 29er better for a taller person then a shorter person. Then you have to look at the discipline, rider style and just personal preference. 

I’ve just built up a 1994 Trek singlestrack to go have fun with on my local trails. The hardest thing to find is good quality 26er tyre now a days. But that being said most suppliers are battling to get stock of any size tyre at the moment.

[Mohs]

Edited January 12, 2023 by Mohs

[ChrisF]

43 minutes ago, danthunders said:

...... In my opinion a 5ft person is better suited to a 26er then a 7ft person, where as a 29er better for a taller person then a shorter person. ....

My riding buddy is 203cm, 6 foot 8 inches.

 

He sits on top of that XL 29" bike ....

 

The market needs a 32" MTB 😋

[TyronLab]

13 hours ago, PhilipV said:

Mine must be a bit more than 10 years old by now. I still ride it often. Albeit as a 27.5 singlespeed with 150mm travel. Bit of a Frankenstein but a smile a minute. 

That thing kicks ass dude! Pretty much what I'm looking at building. And it's the two best colours too (black and green).

[PhilipV]

5 hours ago, ChrisF said:

 

My riding buddy is 203cm, 6 foot 8 inches.

 

He sits on top of that XL 29" bike ....

 

The market needs a 32" MTB 😋

No, the market doesn't need bigger wheels. Your friend however needs a XXL frame. Or a Mercer. 

[PhilipV]

6 hours ago, danthunders said:

26er are still alive and probably makes up most of the sales in countries like China, India, we’ll basically Asia and other African countries.

 

We are sold the idea of 29er is new, modern, better by clever marketing.

Do you have stats to back up that claim about 26er sales? And does that differentiate between commuters and leisure riders?

 

I was a staunch hold out against 29ers. Until last year. And now I won't invest money into a 26er if it isn't for a short person or a child. 

29ers really are much better for mountain biking 

[Hairy]

6 hours ago, danthunders said:

26er are still alive and probably makes up most of the sales in countries like China, India, we’ll basically Asia and other African countries. We are sold the idea of 29er is new, modern, better by clever marketing. Which is true in some areas and not in others. In my opinion a 5ft person is better suited to a 26er then a 7ft person, where as a 29er better for a taller person then a shorter person. Then you have to look at the discipline, rider style and just personal preference. 

I’ve just built up a 1994 Trek singlestrack to go have fun with on my local trails. The hardest thing to find is good quality 26er tyre now a days. But that being said most suppliers are battling to get stock of any size tyre at the moment.

I would assume those 26" sales are primarily to the commuter market, and not as "mountain bikes" for actual mountain biking?

[danthunders]

I’m not taking about high end mountains bikes. I’m just talking about general bikes, like commuter, leisure, supermarket chain store bikes etc. The thread is, are 26er dead?. So the answer is no. But with regards to professional and serious cyclist then I would say yes, but then again there are still many who would discuss agree. Also it depends on what type of riding you do, dirt jumping is different to cross country. You would use a different type of bike and wheel size generally. 

[the nerd]

I recently bought a 26".... 

Cotic Soul 26, one of the coolest bikes ive ever had. 

[dasilvarsa]

1 hour ago, PhilipV said:

Do you have stats to back up that claim about 26er sales? And does that differentiate between commuters and leisure riders?

 

I was a staunch hold out against 29ers. Until last year. And now I won't invest money into a 26er if it isn't for a short person or a child. 

29ers really are much better for mountain biking 

Like He Said

[TheoG]

Last time I checked a bike dont have a heart beat, so it cant be alive or dead .... 🤪

I see it this way, if you can ride it and its fun, its most certainly alive regardless of the wheel diameter !!!

[Shebeen]

just for fun here is the Tread 2016 cape epic survey

5% of 1200 riders  = ~60 26ers. i think they stopped asking wheel size a year or two later as it was all niner

 

[SwissVan]

20 hours ago, Hairy said:

26" is not just dead ... they are just sitting in retirement homes, and nobody visiting and going for a ride.....

I’ve got 2 in my bike storage room, they must still be alive as they don’t smell like they are dead.

2004 Spez SW with xtr combined gear and brake levers

2010 Morewood Zula also with xtr

I really should try find a good home for them

 

[RobertWhitehead]

7 hours ago, ChrisF said:

 

My riding buddy is 203cm, 6 foot 8 inches.

 

He sits on top of that XL 29" bike ....

 

The market needs a 32" MTB 😋