26" is dead...
 

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[Closed] 26" is dead...

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[img] [/img]

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:19 pm
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i like the kona but jamis dragon 650b .

[img] [/img]

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:19 pm
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tazzymtb - Member
@ rocketdog, no 'cos you're ruined a lovely trek by not having big silly mav duc32's on it and put some "old man's moris marina green" forks on instead

YOU HAVE NO SHAME!!!!!!!

SC32s are much better, you can turn corners wiv 'em
[url= http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2696/5854208080_3a56b7a9d5_o.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2696/5854208080_3a56b7a9d5_o.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocketdog/5854208080/ ]69er[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/rocketdog/ ]rOcKeTdOgUk[/url], on Flickr

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:20 pm
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Ton, sorry, but mine is being custom built by Nicolai as we msg. Should be here when I get back from California...

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:20 pm
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SC32s are much better, you can turn corners wiv 'em

unless you have a 29er wheel because we all know* that 29er's can't do corners and are only used for fire roads

*based on the evidence of those that have never ridden a 29er and what some bloke told me down the pub

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:23 pm
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You aint got nuffin on me

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Posted : 07/01/2012 8:25 pm
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Diavel. Cutting edge. Vive le tour monsieur..

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:32 pm
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who cares, its got wheels, chuck it down the hill 😛

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:35 pm
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Diavel. Cutting edge. Vive le tour monsieur..

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:36 pm
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I dream of the day when I can be as [s]certain about anything[/s] [i]good a troll[/i] as TLR is [s]about everything[/s]

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:38 pm
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Nae trolling, simply telling it as it is.... I was a massive cynic until I bowed to the pressure of my dealer.... Quite simply, 29" is much better up here in the highlands of Scotland...

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:47 pm
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recently test rode a 2012 Specialized Epic Comp 29er

very, very surprised about the ride quality and performance, especially in the tighter stuff, did not feel like a big wheeler unless bunnyhopping

handlebar was lower than on my 150mm travel 26" wheel all-mountain bike

the only previous experience of 29ers was riding an Ellsworth Evolve FS at Forest of Dean last winter, which felt really sketchy with odd geometry that did not suit the bigger wheels

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:50 pm
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who cares

Just read the whole thread, they are not hard to spot.

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:50 pm
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I love all my 29ers. I don't give a shit what everyone else rides.

Everywhere I go people are always asking me about my bike, so I think there is plenty of interest out there.
For whatever reason the UK seems about 5 years behind the rest of the world in terms of the 29er movement.
In winter here I find 29ers are hard work and I often go back to my 26er.
29 wheels are generally a little heavier that 26, but a mud coated 29 wheel is way heavier that a mud coated 26.
Maybe thats why they've been a little slow to catch on around here.

[img] http://www.rotorburn.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=189997&d=1292506697 [/img]

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:51 pm
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What's the benefit of a 29er then? I can't imagine that big wheels are any good on singletrack. My racer certainly wasn't!

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:53 pm
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chips are better than mash

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:53 pm
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Cream mash is better than mash.... 29" is better than 26" dependant,but in general...

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:55 pm
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yeah but would you have a cream mash butty?

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 8:58 pm
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Lol @ billy. Inference is negligible t o my OP...

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 9:00 pm
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There's a time and a place for everything

Ride and let ride

I'll try one just for you but if I die I wont be happy

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 9:02 pm
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I still ride 26", but in comparison, its sshit. .

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 9:04 pm
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Nah I don't need a wannabe cyclocross bike. I already have a cross bike, will stick to 26" and keep well clear of the fashion "emperors new wheels" marketing driven must have that 29ers are!

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 10:09 pm
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I don't care if bigger wheels are faster/smoother/easier - are they more fun?! BMX and jump bikes suggest not...

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 10:18 pm
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[img] [/img]

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 10:20 pm
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Oh well, looking forward to tomorrows necrophilia.

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 10:23 pm
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kudos100 come for ride fella and borrow one of the fleet

I'd love to mate, but don't you live op north?

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 10:29 pm
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Why would you want a bike with small wheels? That's why I don't have a 29er, and ride one of these instead:
[img] [/img]

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 10:56 pm
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I'd love to mate, but don't you live op north?

nah middle of the country with strange local folk that talk in a comedy regional dialect.

 
Posted : 07/01/2012 11:24 pm
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29 = clowns bikes

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 12:05 am
 mboy
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Just as a DH is better for going downhill, a trials bike is better for doing trials on, 29ers have their natural abilities and drawbacks... There are of course good and bad designs out there, the good designs hide or at least mask somewhat the inherent drawbacks of bigger wheels, whilst also accentuating their natural plus points.

At best, a 29er is just another bike. You still have to pedal it, and steer it. For the kind of riding that many people find they do most of the time, they find the benefits of a 29er outweigh the drawbacks. For plenty of people, they still find they prefer the inherent qualities of 26" wheels on their bikes. People still ride 20" wheels on BMX's and 24" wheels on dirt jump bikes after all, the latter of which took some while to get universally accepted as a standard anyway.

Mountain bikes will NEVER move away from 26" wheels, but we will see more acceptance of different sized wheels within the sport than has previously been experienced, for the inherent qualities they bring. I've ridden good and bad 29ers, as I have 26" wheeled bikes. It's just a different wheel size, it's like the difference between a hardtail and a full suspension bike, both of which are still perfectly valid for their different reasons. 29ers are not some kind of magic revelation that one day we will all be riding all the time. If they were, it would have happened by now, after all they've been around for a decade or more now!

What is more worrying though is the level of "musthavenewshinythingthenjustifyitontheinternetitis" that is apparent on this forum... If you need a specific sized wheel to make you a better rider, or to ride a certain bit it trail well, save your pennies and spend them on a skills course or two, as you're obviously a shit rider! Any half decent rider knows they can ride a bike with any sized wheels and enjoy it!

END THREAD!

😉

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 12:26 am
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on road 29" or 700c

ITS THE SAME THING dont listen to the marketing men

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 12:48 am
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nobody really needs pointing out that it's all good and it's all fun and it's all bikes! 🙂

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 12:51 am
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nobody really needs pointing out that it's all good and it's all fun and it's all bikes!

I did point that out in post 4, but folks like to grumble and piss and moan for a long while on narrow minded track world, it's like the daily mail and immigrants, but with 29er's.....There to blame for everything you know!

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:17 am
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and I still ride 26"............. 🙂

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:19 am
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29ers are ace.
The idea that one wheel size if good for everyone in all situations is nonsense and that is what the MTB world was pushing until 29ers turned up.
36ers are nice too. Obviously not in every situation but imagine them on long towpath tours with a nice tweed get up and many pub stops.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:28 am
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That proto 36er keeps getting posted whenever the 29er debate comes up.
Are there any others in existence or is that the only bike out there?

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:32 am
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charlie- when are you getting some more Nates in? really need some fat knobbly love in my life

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:45 am
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Hugor, yes
[url= http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6145/6097935952_1cb943410a_o.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6145/6097935952_1cb943410a_o.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/25655510@N02/6097935952/ ]August 26th - Rode A 36er Didn't Like It[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/25655510@N02/ ]Johnclimber[/url], on Flickr

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:57 am
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29ers have heavier wheels so are better for training on 😆

sticking to my 26er Epic, Specialized made a big mistake with only 29er Epics this year,

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 9:04 am
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RD.
That Black Sheep rides suprisingly well.
Though i'm not sure what it has to do with 29ers.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 9:06 am
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i'm not joking. they are not as common as media make out

To be fair, their prevalence is a recent thing, for 2012 they are a hell of a lot more common, a huge number of people I know are changing for next season. Specialized don't even do a 26" hardtail over £1000, nor any Epics, that's a hell of a step!

I'm intrigued to try one sometime, but happy on 26 for now!

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 9:15 am
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26" is dead

No its not and it never will be, what utter pish!

(Thats coming from a long term 29er convert)

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 9:22 am
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The black sheep it 36er does ride very well... Quite fancy one. Wheels from the unicycle world, frame from. Eeeer

NATES due with me at the end of this month.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 9:40 am
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we all know 29 durrs are the biggest skill compensators out there. if you can't ride a bike then you buy a 29 so you can at least have something to talk about.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 9:46 am
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Specialized don't even do a 26" hardtail over £1000, nor any Epics, that's a hell of a step!

I think it's this sort of thing that will require a change in the mindset of many of us towards the 29er concept. Even having one of my bikes as a 29er my natural attitude towards them has still been that they are a good choice for folks stuck between buying a hybrid and a mtb but erring on the off road side of the fence, albeit in a wheels on the ground bridleway riding kind of way.

My experience of mine is that the other differences my 29er has to my other bikes (differences in distances between contact points, geometry, frame material, drivetrain, tyres, bar width etc etc) are as much if not more influential in the way the bike feels than the size of the wheels. The only people who I think can truly say they have judged the difference for themselves are those that have ridden identical models from the same manufacturer on the same terrain on the same day where the only difference is that one is the 26" and the other is the 29er version. For the rest (and that includes me) the other variables are too noticeable to make informed comment.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 10:03 am
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Specialized don't even do a 26" hardtail over £1000, nor any Epics, that's a hell of a step!

And in a way Specialized will be the 29er test bed, if they start to re-introduce 26 epics and stumpy HT's back into the range within the next 24 months we will know that 29 hasnt worked with the mainstream UK mtb'ers. Im not sure any other manufactuer has taken such dramatic steps to influence 29ers into their range.

I think ill wait a while before jumping on the 29 wagon, ride quality aside it looks like ill have to save up at least £4,000 to replace my epic anyway spec for spec and that'll take me years...

Bike prices hmmmm thats another topic 🙁

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 10:07 am
 Spin
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Or how about: "29ers: Bike companies invent another niche to make you think you need another bike. Once you've bought that bike you can't say 'actually it's not so different' so you start to spout pro 29er guff to make it look like your not just a slut for a shiny new toy"

Discuss.

29ers are a meme.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 10:22 am
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no one told me oh well!! 😈

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 10:38 am
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"just a slut for a shiny new toy

You know me so well

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 2:51 pm
 Spin
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You know me so well

I'm including myself in that slutty category too.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 3:01 pm
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Just ride a bmx and you will soon realize how slow and cumbersome 26 feels. You wouldnt want to go any bigger! ;O)

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 3:11 pm
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nah middle of the country with strange local folk that talk in a comedy regional dialect.

Sounds right up my street. If you send me an email worldeliteAThotmailDOTcom we can try and sort something out. 😀

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 3:22 pm
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And in a way Specialized will be the 29er test bed, if they start to re-introduce 26 epics and stumpy HT's back into the range within the next 24 months we will know that 29 hasnt worked with the mainstream UK mtb'ers. Im not sure any other manufactuer has taken such dramatic steps to influence 29ers into their range.

not sure about this, Specialized have 26 and 29ers in the more popular bikes, Stumpies and the like,

Epics and HT Stumpies are not so popular, as a manufacturing mass producing company do you tool up for 26ers and 29ers on your less popular ranges, if you do prices will go up and your becoming a batch producer, more inventory more hassle, plus 29ers will provide an opportunity to upgrade existing customers,

Specialized probably made this strategic decision several years ago, luckily they won the XC World Cup and Champs using a giant, but at the same time one of their top riders, who looks like he was forced to ride a 29er, performed below par last year,

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 3:33 pm
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Does anyone really care what other people ride. 😕

I couldn't give half a shit personaly. Though i do find it funny that there can be so much hate directed towards something as daft as a wheel size.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 4:38 pm
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Are they really that much more [i]fun[/i]? Cos frankly, that's what we're all here for.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 4:54 pm
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martinxyz - Member

Just ride a bmx and you will soon realize how slow and cumbersome 26 feels. You wouldnt want to go any bigger! ;O)

[img] [/img]

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 5:01 pm
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Did anything of note happen in the last 4 pages or was it STD 29er hating stuff ,

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 5:09 pm
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or was it STD 29er hating stuff ,

just the usual zealot vs haters cobblers with everyone else amazed that somehow wheels size is such an issue 🙄

missing a few of the usual suspects though

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 5:13 pm
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Cheers tizzy glad I didnt waste my time reading 4 pages , nothing new to read here

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 5:25 pm
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The black sheep it 36er does ride very well... Quite fancy one. [s]Wheels[/s] Rims from the unicycle world

FTFY - don't suppose a uni hub would work too well on a bike.

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 8:47 pm
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29ers are so last year, its all about 650b now

 
Posted : 08/01/2012 11:05 pm
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ade ward - Member
Cheers tizzy glad I didnt waste my time reading 4 pages

Go on, just rub it in...

 
Posted : 09/01/2012 6:36 am
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650b is gonna get a big push soon, with complete bikes at normal prices appearing in 2013. It's as if the success of 29 has forced some manufactures to take 650b seriously.

Also 29 won't be the max. There are things going on that you are not allowed to know about.

 
Posted : 09/02/2012 9:02 am
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There are things going on that [s]you are not allowed to know about[/s] are just another attempt to suck the money from your pockets

Wheel size, frame materials, suspension Y/No, gears or ss, width of bars, lycra or baggies, length of beard, flats or spds.....

...same old same old - just ride what you got how you like and have a laugh 😆

 
Posted : 09/02/2012 9:09 am
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I'm open to the idea of riding around effortlessly on big wheels but those kind of rolling, long distance rides form an increasingly small part of my riding....i rarely ride a trail centre, which is where i'm led to believe the effects of big wheels show themselves most clearly.

Last time i got my bike out was at the FoD Mini-Downhill....300 riders there mostly on 26 inch wheels as far as i could tell....weather permitting i'm doing an uplift day at Cwmcarn this weekend and nobody in the group i'm with has a 29er....in fact i'd be willing to bet nobody on the uplift will have a 29er....after that i'll ride Rogate intermittently until the Gravity Enduro series starts and then dig my bike out for that too....honestly cant see too many 29ers appearing on the Enduro scene anytime soon....not when current 140-160mm bikes are so good....

....and that is the main problem the industry has, if long travel 26ers were a bit rubbish then we'd all be clamouring for something different/better....but take any number of bikes in the All-Mountain category; Orange 5, Lapierre Zesty/Spicy, Spesh Pitch/Enduro/Stumpjumper, Giant Reign....etc etc, all are better than most rider's abilities and all readily available for reasonable money....the All-Mountain category seems to be the favoured bike for Enduro racing which is the fastest growing sector of competitive mountain biking....throw into the mix internet only companies like Canyon and YT-Industries also making excellent All-Mountain 26ers for around £1500 and the complete lack of interest towards 29ers from most MTB-ers makes sense.

Why pay more money for something that might not be as good?

When 29ers start to appear at the sharp end of DH, Enduro etc then they'll be interest from riders who favour the more off piste kind of riding but for most they are something to pootle around a trail centre on....or enter an XC race with....fine if thats your thing but i wish the converts would stop being so evangelical about the benefits when these same riders dont exactly turn up in droves at the more rugged events to show off the advantages of 29ers....

There seems to be a lot of talk and bluster about how well a 29 inch wheel deals with bad terrain...good, i wish 29er riders would put their money where their mouths are then and prove it....i await the legions of 29 inch bikes on the start line of the Gravity Enduro races this season....i wont hold my breath.

 
Posted : 09/02/2012 9:40 am
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Seriously, I was a dis-believer..... Until the extended demo..... Go do it if you're curious... They are incredible....

I have, 3 times over the last 5 years, each time I've come back to 26.

 
Posted : 09/02/2012 9:51 am
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