[Closed] Anyone gone back to smaller wheels from 29er?

Until last week I attempted to switch between my 29ers and my slightly older 26 wheel bike. After getting my first 29er the 26er never felt right, and I never really enjoyed riding it again. I sold it last week. I was recently considering a 27.5, which was on offer at am amazing price, but discounted it as I was concerned it would feel too much like the 26. I'm sticking with 29ers for now.

Others will tell you it is more about the individual bike than the wheel size, and I am sure they are probably right.

It is more about the individual bike than the wheel size

I can answer your question ( possibly ! ) I've got a Kona Raijin 29er H/T and a 650B Process with 134 ? travel . My mate also has a Process but the 29er with 111 ? travel . I rode my Process on local trails then straight away we swapped bikes . Convinced me I don't want a 29 full suss , just feels too unwieldy , I reckon my mate feels the same but won't admit it ! 🙂 In my opinion 29 H/T yes F/S no . Actually thinking today that if only Kona had made the Ti Explosif 1st I would have gone for that ! Anyone want to buy an ultra rare Ti H/T ? 🙄

I was just going to reply 29er hts yes 29er fs no for the fact that a 29er fs especially if longer travel would just feel wrong.

FYI - I have 26er 130mm/140mm full suss for 'core duties and 29er 100mm ss ht flat barred for training and general speed/showioffness.

Would deffo say for me, I have the right bikes in the stable now, unless someone was to give me a 1x10 carbon 27.5 sort travel full suss. 😉

Not FS, but I did go from 29er HT to 26 HT. Handling was a little quicker, rolling a little slower. Both were steel, singlespeed and had similar geometry. I like them both but don't miss the big wheels.

A 27.5 short travel carbon Giant Anthem with 1x11 is probably my perfect bike to be honest 😉

I've gone from 29 to 27.5 but the change from Spesh Camber to YT Capra means that the wheel size change is the least notable difference.

A 27.5 short travel carbon Giant Anthem with 1x11 is probably my perfect bike to be honest

Exactly the bike I decided not to buy, as it wasn't a 29er! However, keep in mind it was replacing an old alloy 26er anthem which I used to enjoy, but completely went off once I got a 29er. I just felt the 27.5 would be far too similar to the 26er I was looking to replace. Had it been a completely different model, I may have gone for it.

I have a Orange Alpine 29er and also a Orange ST4 and ride basically everything in Scotland and some Enduro events.
Recently the 29er was getting fixed and I was riding the 26" bike.
It was still great riding the ST4 just different from the 29er.
The 29er for me is a far better bike and I don't ever see me going back to a smaller wheel size.
Probably end up selling the ST4, already sold my 26" Five.

I've gone back. But that's more because I like building up bikes and have a liking for retro(ish) bikes.

I've got a 29er ht fully rigid and a 29er full suss and a 650b full suss. Out of all of them the 29er full suss is the quickest over the areas I ride , sometimes too quick. I enjoy 29 and mainly ride my fully rigid one and only take out my 650b on dry clean perfectly manicured trails as it cost me more than I should of spent

Doubt I'd go to 29 now, its days are numbered IMO, esp FS.

Won't make much of a difference anyway.

Anyone gone back to smaller wheels from 29er?

Yup! 26" Since the early 90's then built up a 29" bike a few year ago... bought a 27.5" on a deal from the LBS that would have been rude to neglect and haven't looked back. Have since sold both the 26" and the 29" frame, fork and wheels.

It is down to personal choice preference and choice.

I'm heading back to 26", but with 4" tyres. Seems it's quite easy to build a 30lb-ish trail fatbike that will be more capable than my mid travel 29er.

I was just going to reply 29er hts yes 29er fs no for the fact that a 29er fs especially if longer travel would just feel wrong.

Have you tried a long travel 29er?

I've got one and think it's ace. I had to ride my 26" HT over the winter and really missed the bigger wheels. I also demo'd the 650b version of my bike and it just felt like mine but with the volume turned down a bit, if that makes sense.

I'm not saying I wouldn't go 650b but I'd need a lot of convincing and a lot of time testing.

My main worry is that manufacturers seem to be concentrating less on the bigger fs 29ers so when I get a new bike in a few years I might not have much choice but to go 650b.

I recently built up a 26", short travel, hard tail. I built it to the same specs as my other bikes, even going so far as to make sure bar (riser) and saddle height were similar. The bike has a similar TT length to the other bikes I have (Mojo 650B and Singular Pegasus 29er), but the first time I rode it it, the bike just felt...wrong. I tried it a few times thereafter and whilst it did feel better the more I rode it, the feeling of wrongness didn't abate.

I sold it. 29ers (and to a lesser extent 650B) are the way forward.

It's really about personal preference.
Geometry and where/how you ride will influence hugely.

However, for me, I kept my fs 26er but am now selling it. My last 2 HTs have been 29er and I just totally 'get it' - it has been such a go to choice for me that I'm happy to have it as my only mtb.

I am sticking with wagon wheels 🙂

Doubt I'd go to 29 now, its days are numbered IMO, esp FS

Urggh, hate to go on about wheel size, but I thought about this when looking at the Anthem 27.5. 29er are pretty prolific in the USA from what I understand - will that keep them going?

I've tried 27.5 (HT and FS) but really prefer 29'er for my XC riding, which is on a 29'er HT

I can see 27.5 making good sense for a longer travel FS bike

I definately agree with the following

It is more about the individual bike than the wheel size

For info., I've had a 29er HT for a few years and liked it so much, I sold all my 26ers to get a do it all 29er FS (Tallboy LTc). The TB is a brilliant bike for where I live, but after about 18 months, I got the itch for a more nimble shorter travel bike for trail centres. I demo'd a couple of 650b's back to back against a 26 and my TB, and just didn't feel enough difference between the 26 with big volume 2.4 tyres and 650's on normal 2.3 tyres. I ended up getting a Devinci Atlas 29er, which feels almost the polar opposite to the TB. The Atlas is the most 26er like 29er I've ever ridden - even with a 140mm fork on, it changes direction in a flash. Incredibly nimble for a 29er - it's an odd bike, it feels almost like a compact XC race bike, but with trail bike suspension - it's a real rocket.

After the Atlas, I was expecting the Blur to feel even more nimble and aggressive and involving...but it really isn't as 'full on' feeling. I've certainly noticed more feedback through the wheels over stuttery roots and rocks on the Blur, but the steering is calmer and more like the TB than the Atlas. I was surprised how fast the Blur could get up technical rocky climbs, but I was having to keep a constant drive going with my legs, so I reckon overall, I was probably working harder than on a 29er. One thing I really did notice on the climbs was how easily the wheels got baulked or hooked on sharp edges, whereas the TB in particular will just bulldoze over anything.

To test the descending performance, I have a local descent that is almost Alps like (super steep with slippery bits and a nasty hairpin. Unsurprisingly, the Blur negotiated the hairpin a little easier, and it felt confident on the steep stuff, but I could definately feel the tyres working much harder for grip than on the 29ers. Overall though, I was pleasantly surprised by how well the Blur compared on the descents. (With HR2's on the TB, steep descents are almost too easy:))

I guess what I'm saying is that if you want something to contrast your 29ers try and get some demo rides of a few 650's (or 26 if anyone makes em any more!). Definately think it's worth trying a few though, as I reckon bikes like the later 26 Orange Fives and similar might feel different to what you expect. I still regret selling my Anthem X 26er, as I think they were brilliant bikes.

Oh, if you're interested, I also have an unused aluminium Blur TRa frame available for sale :))

I've just put some 650B+ wheels in a 29er hardtail frame if that counts?
I'd not swap my 29er full suss for anything else unless I was riding uplift assisted every week though.

I went back from an Enduro29 to 650b.

It went really fast, but I never really enjoyed riding it I don't think, got a bit one dimensional just smashing through things.

I had a 29" HT too, but I don't really like riding HT's, so that didn't last that long either.

Thanks for the replies. Food for thought (Bowglie - I'm looking to go 29 FS, not downsize).

Where I ride it would be interesting to try a Stumpy, Remedy or Codeine sort of bike. Although I might find myself in a bit of trouble with the speed.

Wot SSStu said

I've dropped a smidge in diameter going from 29er to 650b+ on my rigid SS, but gained gallons in air vol. Ace.

My xc/fs here in France will remain 29er though.

Ridden plenty of bikes in the last few years, of varying wheel sizes. There's good and bad bikes of every wheel size of course, but for me, most of the time, I just prefer 29ers, both HT and FS. The only time 29ers don't make sense to me is on long travel FS bikes, when the wheel size can start to limit design somewhat. But then again for 99.9% of my riding, 120mm of travel is plenty...

Interesting thread (and civilised too). Amongst my new bike prevarication is the possibility of a 29r xc hard tail (would be an advantage on many of my regular rides to be light weight xc) to run alongside my 456.

My worry is the 456 might just end up obsolete/too different although it would be more playful I suspect it might not do anything better.

Therefore maybe I should keep the 456 for xc and general riding and buy something 650b and mid travel FS for "best"/ lumpier riding.

Oh ffs I am coming back to square one again...

Bother. 😆

Hobnob - is yr 650b bike as fast as the 29er was then?

Just curious as I've idly considered something like a reign or rallon myself.

Rickos - I heard from stu the importer that the last few thumper frames are going cheap, in case that helps.

Short, slack 29ers all the way for trail riding (in the 100-120mm range: Phantom, Process 111, Following, Segment. etc) as they stay nimble and fun. I'm sticking with my Phantom as I have yet to ride a more fun bike on anything from my local woodsy single track to the Alps and Colorado. I personally find that no one believes that these bikes are any good "because they are short travel 29ers". I have yet to find anyone who has ridden one who holds the same opinion.

I would entertain 26/650b if I ever needed longer travel, purely for the ability to do big, big drops, but smaller wheels don't make sense to me any more for natural UK trail riding (I live in big rocky Scotland if you want a frame of reference). I have yet to ride a trail where I thought that I would benefit from 650b over 29 and all the smaller wheeled bikes I've ridden since either feel nervous or wallow around too much for the same ride quality. Long travel 29ers are awesome in what they can devour but make normal trails feel very dull (and they are unavoidably loooong).

Caveat to all this is that smaller folk often seem to lack the size and strength to make a 29er handle properly or at least take longer to adapt. Anecdotal evidence admittedly.

Hobnob - is yr 650b bike as fast as the 29er was then?

Just curious as I've idly considered something like a reign or rallon myself.

It's hard to say, I've had some of my best results on my Reign, so I expect for me, yes it is, but it doesn't feel like a one trick pony, which is how the Enduro did to me.

I still like the idea of a short travel 29", something like the Smuggler in carbon so it could be light, to be honest if I didn't race, something shorter travel would probably be where I put my money. Scout carbon, 5010, Smuggler, Process 111 if they ever made a light carbon version, etc.

I'd like to think as long as the bike was fun, the wheel size would be irrelevant. For the moment though, space dictates one MTB and one road bike, so it's a light 160mm 650b bike for me 🙂

Short, slack 29ers all the way for trail riding (in the 100-120mm range: Phantom, Process 111, Following, Segment. etc) as they stay nimble and fun. I'm sticking with my Phantom as I have yet to ride a more fun bike on anything from my local woodsy single track to the Alps and Colorado. I personally find that no one believes that these bikes are any good "because they are short travel 29ers". I have yet to find anyone who has ridden one who holds the same opinion.

Wholeheartedly agree with what you say, but will add Caveat Emptor that "fun" is subjective and some people just don't get them... But for those of us that do, they just make so much sense!

Cheers for the reply Hobnob, I thought you had a Reign hence why I asked.

My experience is that my friends' 650b 160mm bikes are mostly a fair bit lighter than my 130mm 29er - and they mainly have the advantage on very rugged fast trails where they can just let go of the brakes and not worry about line choice.

On quite technical but pedally trails like Warnscale or even tight and steep stuff like Inners golf course there's been no clear advantage.

Less technical moorland stuff, 29er all day obvs.

I bought a commencal am29, thinking it would be as fast and good at climbing as my 29 hardtail. It wasn't, I sold it and went back to 650b for more travel.
In fact I sold the hardtail as well and use the am/enduro bike for everything now, or did until I bought a dh bike.

It's an interesting question and I agree with garage-dweller, it's good to see such a civilized thread on what is usually such a contentious issue.

I'm currently in the 26" full-suss (Five) and 29er HT (Solaris) camp, but am seriously considering a 29er full-suss. The problem is that I don't want to run three mountain bikes and there are advantages and disadvantages to both, so I'm not sure which to sell.

Here are just a few random thoughts:

It's noticeable that almost all my crashes happen on the Five (including a couple of broken arms in separate crashes recently). It could just be random, but it's not looking that way and as I get older and crashes take longer to get over it's hard to overlook that. I also prefer to ride on my own in remote places, so although crashes are mainly down to skill and sense, any help that the bike can give is welcome.

Hardtails are fun and fast on smooth ground, but they are tough on my body and I don't find them as much fun on longer days out as I used to. I also find (surprisingly) that my Five is often faster overall (and a lot more comfortable) on the rougher trails.

I can't manual for toffee and it takes more effort to lift the front with 29ers than with smaller wheeled bikes. You can get 29ers with fairly short stays these days, but the larger BB drop still makes it a bit harder to get the front wheel up. Also, to get those short stays you need a multi-link bike. I like the simplicity of my Five for riding all year round in Scotland. I love the fact that the bearings are cheap and that I can bash a new set in with a hammer and an allen key in less time than it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Currently I'm swithering between: swapping the Five for a Segment to go fully 29er or swapping the Solaris for a Smuggler to go fully full-suss, The latter would probably result in the Five being ridden in the crap weather and the (multi-link) Smuggler being saved for nicer days (although I'm not a fan of keeping bikes for nice days, so I'm not sure how long this would last).

Not sure that's much help, but thought I'd chip in.

There are differences between 26 and 29 inch wheeled bikes however between 650b and either of the others the difference is a lot less noticeable.

I have rode a lot of bikes over the years and most recently had a 27.5 full susser, a 29er hardtaul and now a long travel 29er full suss.

I wouldn't go back to a smaller wheeled bike now as I find the 29er ideal for all of my riding.

+1 to what roverpig says. My only MTB is a Solaris so it has to do everything for me. Most of the riding I do is "classic" XC type riding for which the 29er HT is ideal - providing you don't try and ride it like a FS.

Regarding the original question - for me a 29er FS would feel too big, I'm 5' 11" but with short legs so personally a 650b FS would be fine. Strange as it may sound I sort of hanker after 26" SS HT as a winter hack/play bike.

Regarding the original question - for me a 29er FS would feel too big

Not sure how you've got your Solaris set up, but would some of the newer (short chainstay) 29ers really be any bigger?

So, in general most seem to have got a 29 and stuck with it. My riding is FoD downhill type stuff, so lots of roots and mud in the winter. It's an itch that I need to scratch, so probably next year a Codeine/Remedy/Stumpjumper will be purchased.

Chakaping - thanks for the heads up, but finances mean I'll have to bide my time.

I have rode a lot of bikes over the years and most recently had a 27.5 full susser, a 29er hardtaul and now a long travel 29er full suss.

Who makes a "long travel 29er full suss"?
I read about the Intense DH29er but apart from that I'm not aware anyone has produced one that's for sale to the general public...

I may need to revise my comment about manuals being hard on a 29er.

I took my Solaris out today to explore a local mountain that I'd not been up before. Turns out there is not much of a trail and very little that can be ridden, but that's another story.

I'd abandoned the boggy path and was riding down some untracked heather. The slope got steeper and steeper and I got further and further off the back. Then a little step down appeared in front of me, so I shifted further back still and before I knew it I was sitting in the heather with the bike in front of me. I wasn't trying to manual, just trying not to go over the bars, but if I can get my 29er to loop out on a steep downslope just by shifting my weight far enough back then any problems I have with manualing it on the flat are entirely down to my crappy technique.

I'm curious to try the same size Transition Scout to compare to my 29" Smuggler, just to see the effect the wheel size has as they have very similar geometry. I do really like the rollover of 29" wheels.

No way I'd go smaller than 29" on hardtail though, that's a no brainer for me.

Who makes a "long travel 29er full suss"?

Spesh Enduro 29 is 160mm I think, that's long travel in my book anyway, though everyone seems to be on 160mm mince tanks these days so maybe it has become normal travel.

Spesh Enduro 29 is 160mm I think

*Goes off to look.*

The latter would probably result in the Five being ridden in the crap weather and the (multi-link) Smuggler being saved for nicer days (although I'm not a fan of keeping bikes for nice days, so I'm not sure how long this would last).

I think that's a bonkers idea for the sake of a few extra bearings at a few quid a pop. They are quite well protected on the Smuggler anyway.

*Goes off to look.*

My friend mikeep of this parish has one and [s]drones on about it endlessly[/s] gushes about it profusely as well as rides it very fast indeed. It's certainly a beast of a bike and very light for it's trail munching capability.

Bigjim,

I'm more conservative in that I stick to a 26er full suss with 115mm-130mm rear/140mm front and built up to take a pounding.
Think Blur 4x lines.

I wouldn't allow myself to become a 160mm mincer ever!
I always found that 130mm'ish was enough for UK and that it's better to use most if not all of that travel then you can say you appreciate it more.

There's still some of us rockin' the old skool 😉

I think that's a bonkers idea for the sake of a few extra bearings at a few quid a pop. They are quite well protected on the Smuggler anyway.

It's not the cost that bothers me it's the hassle of trying to extract and replace lots of bearings in hard to reach places. But, to be fair, I have no idea how hard it is on a Smuggler and as I said, it's not a plan that would last long anyway. I'm not into babying mountain bikes.

I do find the Five much more stable than the Solaris when things get really slippy though. Not sure if this is a big vs small wheel thing or something else (e.g. HT vs full-suss or just a lower CofG on the Five).

Never moved away from 26". Everything 27.5" or 29" I've tried has left me feeling a bit meh.

I'll keep rocking the bandit until it falls apart or snaps. Hopefully by then they'll be making 26" trail bikes again...

Orange 5 29 is 140mm which is classed as long travel for a 29er.

I'm sure the codeine is even longer.

In your mind i'm sure it is.

I'm on my second Trek Superfly HT and can't see myself going back to a smaller wheel or going FS.

I'm on my second Trek Superfly HT and can't see myself going back to a smaller wheel or going FS.

What is it you like so much about the Superfly?

My most used bike is a 26" hardtail with a v short wheelbase. It is perfectfor the tight twisty singletrack near where I live. Most other places inc. trail centres, open moorland and scary steep stuff it would be inferior to most new bikes

In your mind i'm sure it is.

Would you not say that 140-160mm is long travel for a 29er then ?

I may need to revise my comment about manuals being hard on a 29er

Yes, after riding and practicing skills stuff on various wheel sized bikes, I think it's very difficult to be prescriptive on 'manualability'. As well as the more obvious stuff like geometry, Ive noticed even things like shock tune can affect things like ease with which the bike can be manualled. I've had 26" that have been easier to manual than 29ers....and vice versa. As an example, I had a single pivot Salsa Horsethief 120mm FS 29er (currently selling the frame;) which has 460mm chainstays - and that was easier to wheelie and manual than my Tallboy LT that has 450mm chainstays and a slightly lighter front end! Even though the Devinci Atlas has 430mm chainstays and very firm feeling 110mm rear suspension, the Salsa was much easier to wheelie, and had a more natural balanced feel when getting the front wheel up - definately less of a full on involving handful that the Devinci can be on rough natural trails. (I though it might be bar height on the Salsa that made things easier, but I double checked relative bar heights, but they were actually slightly lower than the TB - all I can think is that it's down to a combination of suspension action and BB height(?))

Niner WF09 will take 160mm forks
http://www.jungleproducts.co.uk/niner/wfo9

Would you not say that 140-160mm is long travel for a 29er then ?

I moved from a 26 Epic to a BMC FS 29'er and have found the bike so much better everywhere I ride. The majority of my riding is across the South Downs so xc type terrain but I have riden it at trail centres and Afan and it has never felt slow or unwieldy. I recently bought an Orange Five Alpine 29'er to try a long travel bike to see how well big wheels and slack ha would work out. I've been really surprised not only how well it worked at BPW and Afan but also climbing and xc type riding. I thought it might be a very limited use bike but I could happily use it as my only bike to be honest.

Whilst at BPW I rode my Brothers 26'er for a wee while but I was more than happy to get back on my 29'er 🙂

I would like to try a decent 650b over a longer period of time to give it a good go but so far I've had quick rides on a Stumpy and SC Heckler and neither had me wanting to change from either of my 29'ers.

Ive got a 5 29er as my only bike and would echo Andy's comments above.

I had my first 29er in 2008, gary fisher xcaliber. it was a nice bike and all the things you'd hear about 29ers then were true, rolled nicely, held speed, was a dog in tight switchbacks...

I actually really liked it, so much so that I sold my 26er and used the 29er.

but, I bought an old 1998 kona 26er as a commute/messabout/hack thing. The turn of speed through the tight stuff brought a grin right back on my face and I started to question the whole 29er thing, and whether mny riding style, had actually changed.

So back to 26ers I went.

I picked up a Scandal 29er about 2 years ago, with the intent to use it as a hack bike as it was very cheap.

then found I was riding that more than my 26er carbon bike. For me, holding speed through singletrack was great, and much more enjoyable than on the 26er. I could sacrifice a little climbing ability for more fun through the twisty stuff. So I swapped the good bits off my 26er, and sold it.

I had one bike. The 29er scandal for about a year. it was great.

It's still my main bike, but I now have another, cheaper 29er as a hack bike.

would like to try 27.5, but my wife would rather I didn't. 😉

160 rear yes 140 no.
I've been riding a Tallboy with 135 rear and 160 front for a few years but i'd not consider it to be a long travel bike.

You might not but from every other direction it seems to be accepted that 140mm+ on a 29er is classed as long.

A larger wheel doesn't magicaly turn 140 into 180 you know. 😉
As good as my 135-160 combo works on a lot of stuff it ain't no long travel bike.

Ok stu.

Just to help you out a little. 😉

Long travel.
[img] [/img]

Not long travel.
[img] [/img]

Erm..... That's a downhill bike of course it's a longer travel than the orange. ???

Two different types of bike.

I'm riding 26" & 29" these days, 29" Scandal XC machine, 26" Soul.

Scandal just feels so fast, stable, and covers ground brilliantly, 100mm sus fork, climbs really well, ideal for training/xc rides on all surfaces.

Soul is much more fun for techy stuff, trail centres etc, just nimble, handles quicker, jumps better.

I like both & can switch between them easily.

Two different types of bike

To me, 29" makes sense for fast, short travel hardtails.

It might also be quicker or smoother on longer travelled and/or full sus bikes, but the fun and enjoyment I get from riding bikes is not all about speed and going as fast as I can ALL of the time.

So how would you differentiate between a long travel 26er and a downhill 26er or are you just being pedantic for the sake of it.

There aren't many 29ers that are 140mm+ hence why they are classed as long travel.

Renton, for once I think most of us agree with you! 😉

The way I see it is with 26/27.5 there are short (<120), medium (120-155) and long (155+) travel bikes, plus downhill bikes (which I don't think need separating by travel because their function is so clear (like slopestyle and 4X bikes too). And with 29ers there is narrower range of travels, just short (<125) and long (125+). I can't think of a single 29er with more than 155mm rear travel - there may be some but not enough for their own pigeonhole.

I have been having thoughts along the lines of the OP, I have a Sultan with a 120mm fork and it's cumbersome in the twisty stuff and my mates on 26 and 650b get away from me in these situations.

I have looked at lots of bikes 26 and 650b but I can't ignore the benefits of the bigger wheels and I'm a tightwad and buying another 29er frame and moving everything across would be cheap 😛

Other than the Devinci previously mentioned what are considered nimble 29ers preferably alloy frames?

I can't think of a single 29er with more than 155mm rear travel

[img] [/img]
I think Lenz also built something along the same lines too.
Irrespective of wheel size 140mm is not long travel 160+ is.

Chief.... I think ssstu is just looking for an argument.

Because of the wheel size 140 IS classed as long travel on a 29er.

If you make them any longer travelled people won't be able to get on them.

Lenz also offering a long travel 29er.

[url] http://lenzsport.com/mountain-bikes/pbj/ ][/url]
Note it has more than 140mm.

You keep telling yourself 140 is long though. 😉

Interesting thread but it has to depend to an extent on the individual. Out of curiosity I tried out 29 and 650b enduro's earlier this year and went back asking why they bothered making the 650b because for me the 29er was a far better ride (and better than the Whyte and Trek 29er's I also looked at).

None were any faster on the same trails than my 26" strive according to strava but the 29 enduro was as much fun and left me wanting more. It's all just riding bikes at the end of the day

I've read most of the first page and it's all very convivial, which is very lovely to see on a potentially fraught issue, such as the size of one's wheels.

Has it degenerated yet to a slanging match? 😉

Haven't read page 2, although from reading the first few posts on page 3, am I right thinking that it's starting to warm up over a few extra mm's?

The Enduro29 is 155mm travel. The Lenz equivalent is 150mm. The Lenz DH bike is 7" travel but it's a downhill bike, not something you can ride down AND up.

The Tallboy LT is long in actual travel but doesn't have modern long travel 29 geometry.

Well done sss for proving you're a dick and for also ignoring what's in front of your face. Shame as there was no reason to troll this thread.

I only asked what real long travel 29ers were out there. 🙄
Some people even answered instead of getting all insulted.
No need for insults.
I'll leave you and your long travel bike to it.

To me, 29" makes sense for fast, short travel hardtails.

It might also be quicker or smoother on longer travelled and/or full sus bikes, but the fun and enjoyment I get from riding bikes is not all about speed and going as fast as I can ALL of the time.

Agree/disagree; long travel 29ers (>130mm) are a bit dull on most terrain I've encountered because they flatten everything. I couldn't find anything to challenge them in the UK outside of a DH track! Short travel slack 29ers (100-120mm) are much more versatile and fun.

I guess it depends on what you mean by fun but my take is being able to pop off anything, ping from obstacle to obstacle and move the bike around the trail. Generally pretend to be a small child riding a BMX or relive the speeder bikes scene from star wars. I can do that much better on my Phantom than I ever could on my 26" wheeled bikes of any travel or suspension type.

Having had at the same time a
Yeti asr 7 so 160 front /160 rear ...26er
Turner Sultan 140 mm fromnt /125mm rear ..29er
Rocky Mtn Element 120 fr 98mm rear ...29er

29er suit me better, going back to the 26er was just not right, felt unstable, twitchy, and just not right so settled on 29er

sold the Turner as it was flattening everything and whilst a great bike I just felt it was too much for me

Rocky does everything from 100 miles Fred Whitton to just playing out and nevers feels it is too little travel nor getting in the way, going up it was 2 to 3 minutes faster that the turner and descending is an equal- ish just more interesting

I have supplemented it with a Ritchey 29er hardtail which due to back injury is sat doing nowt but it is a great bike

so no will never go back to 26 though was tempted by a Turner six pack and having ridden a 650 not bothered

the fun and enjoyment I get from riding bikes is not all about speed and going as fast as I can ALL of the time.

this x10,000

but then I come from a time before strava and endooro