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Hi about to pull the pin on a stumpjumper 29er which has 135mm rear travel what does that equate to in normal travel if that makes sense
I wouldn't say it really works like that, but I wouldn't get upset over 15mm travel regardless of wheel size. Big wheels definitely have better rollover on rough surfaces but in terms of big hits where you are bottoming out it would be very circumstantial whether you'd notice a difference or not. I don't really notice any difference on big hits going from 127mm 26er to 115mm 29er anyway
Sort of, but it's not as straightforward as that I'm afraid.
It will roll over a lot of stuff better than the 26er, but then on some more rugged ground it will get a bit skittery and harder to control.
Do you ride rocky trails much?
135mm x 29 gives a gnar score of 3915 stokes
BUT
150mm x 26 only gives you 3900 stokes.
So the wagon wheeler is better by 15, a small margin, but enough to bring any trail slightly more alive.
You can't argue with science.
135mm
Geometry>Suspension Design>Travel
Therefore I'd be looking at the geometry first and foremost to understand the intended use and capability of a bike rather than jumping straight to travel.
I've ridden a fair few 160mm 26ers. Rode a top spec Stumpjumper Evo on a demo last year. I couldn't get it to feel plush even with running a fair bit more sag than recommended. I wanted to love it but was underwhelmed. Could well have been down to shock setup though. Rode a 29er Remedy on same demo: felt more plush, as if had more travel. Bought a Cane Creeked Codeine: feels as plush and forgiving as 160mm 26ers I've tried.
So much more in it than just numbers.
As has been said, in my opinion the often stated X travel on 29" = Y travel on 26" doesn't work in the real world. I went from a 140mm 26" to 140mm 29" and they both feel very similar where as my friends 120mm 29" feels like it runs out of bounce before my old 26" did if that makes sense.
29" has many benefits over 26" and some negatives as have been repeated time and again. I wouldn't get hung up on travel as there's far more important factors to consider.
Those applying caveats about geometry etc... I was giving the OP credit for knowing that the bikes he's considering are comparable in purpose.
It's best to try for yourself really though, instead of trying to imagine what a 29er will be like.
Geometry>Suspension Design>Travel
This fella has a good outlook on the subject.
I'd take shorter travel/bigger wheels any day.
I'm starting to feel like a broken record, but ive a camber evo, i'm far more comfortable on it than i ever was on my SB66, fast, rough, climbing, jumping, you name it, the camber does it in a more controlled yet more engaging (exciting) way.
My camber makes me question really, really hard the point of "enduro" bikes. I have a DH bike, so when i want to do that sort of riding (it only gets justified about 1% of the time over the camber), i want the bike for it, i don't want a bike im constantly compromising on for 1% of the time, what's the point?