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Just chatting with a friend and we were wondering when the first 29ers appeared. I thought the late 2000's then I stumbled across and 01 article about a Gary Fisher 29er https://bikemagic.com/bikes/world-exclusive-test-gary-fisher-29er.html
I'm 47 now and was big in to MTB in 01 and I have zero memory of 29er's at the time.
That being said I love the Gary Fisher in the articles.
If I were looking to buy a retro 29er what bike would it be?
IIRC there was a Diamondback 29er (tyres might have been a bit skinny/borrowed from a CX or hybrid) as far back as the mid 90s..
If I were looking to buy a retro 29er what bike would it be?
Obvs - Yeti Big Top. (I might be selling one 😀 )
early 2002 gary fisher supercaliber, then things like the rig and ferrous from around 2004/5, odd stuff like the nishiki bigfoot, from 2003-ish from memory?
for some odd retro-ish loveliness look at things like the original rootbeer trek 69er singlespeed with matching maverick DUC/32 forks
That was it Diamondback 'Overdrive Comp' with 700 x 45c Panaracer Smokes... 1992.
Karate monkey was 2002 I think, and Trek's range was a couple of years after that. Trek were making 69ers in 2009, they took ages to get going though as the geometry and forks weren't there.
the geometry on the 2009 rootbeer 69er was bloody brilliant!
the early fisher 29ers with steep head angles and low 38mm offset forks less so, great in a straight line, like trying to turn a supertanker in tight woodsy stuff.
Mate of mine still rides an 2004 karate monkey and still loves it.
the early fisher 29ers with steep head angles
I borrowed a Kinesis back around 2008? and it was awful - riding in the Chilterns at the time, and I remember it being just like a barge.
First Swifts were around 2007 I think.
That was it Diamondback ‘Overdrive Comp’ with 700 x 45c Panaracer Smokes… 1992.
[cough] gravel bike [/cough]
If I were looking to buy a retro 29er what bike would it be?
If I was looking, it would be the purple Gary Fisher Rig with the Metallica font logo.
Wasn't the On One Inbred the first UK 29er, remembering getting a bright purple frame about 2005-2006 (?) and struggled to find wheels etc for it, ended up buying some Bontrager wheels from the US.
I was working at a sailing magazine in Poole and riding around Studland with a regular shop ride from Kebablab bikelab or another local shop in around 2001-2 and remember seeing my first 29er in the flesh then. Bike Mag had been running pieces on Pacenti and others in the US building bikes with big wheels for a while by that point - I think WTB had made a limited run of Velociraptors on 700c.
Wasn’t the On One Inbred the first UK 29er,
Brant built a 29er Inbred for Rob Dean, who fitted a USE Sub fork to it. Can't remember exactly when that was, but must've been around 2004ish, maybe a bit earlier.
edit: There you go
Marzocchi were making 29er forks around the mid mark. Possibly MY 2003/4? I remember seeing a pair in Alpine Bikes in Glasgow before they moved down the road.
I remember going into a bike shop years ago and asking about a 29er and being told by the father and son that ran the shop that the wheels would buckle and snap and kill me. I'm 6ft3 and 13 stone! 🤣 They tried to sell me a 26 inch bike instead with a massive steerer tube!
Good chunk of history from GuitarTed here: https://g-tedproductions.blogspot.com/p/beginnings-of-modern-29er-history.html
Geoff Apps, Charlie Kelly, Gary Fisher.
29ers have been around a long old time. Modern MTB 29ers with decent geometry probably start at around the Niner / On One Scandal era, I'd argue. Quite a few of us messed around with 29" front wheels on 26" bikes as well. I seem to remember sticking a pair of Singular Hummingbird forks on my Genesis Io singlespeed and coming away absolutely shocked at what the front wheel could now do. It too me a while (I ended up buying a full Hummingbird in the end, which I think went to Jason / Terrahawk) but I'm now entirely on 29ers.
Yeah, from a retrobike point of view the question is do you want it to handle like most old 29ers, ie, shite. Also whether it's to be an XC bike, which will be easier, or more capable.
Gary Fisher was way ahead of the curve but to be brutally honest I've never ridden a 29er much older than about 2010 that was much good. Had an OG scandal 29 which was a superb XC bike and would still cut it today, I suspect it lacks retro credentials though?
There's another good review of subject on the MOMBAT site. But, what is most missing from this conversation is Wes Williams (Willits), who was the greatest proponent and built more 29er MTB frames than anyone else prior to 1999...and, they were titanium. Lots of people were interested in the idea, but tires were a limitation. The availability of Bruce Gordon's Rock and Road Panaracer and the WTB Nanoraptor in 29 were the key pieces that allowed for more rapid development.
Quite a few of us messed around with 29″ front wheels on 26″ bikes as well.
I remember asking Brant this, putting a 29" On-One wheel in 26" rigid On One forks into a DMR Switchback frame.
I can't honestly remember how it handled. Not too badly IIRC because the head angle was slacker than contemporary 29ers (69deg) and the fork had 26" offset which was ~45mm rather than the ~38mm they used on the 29" forks.
I was at uni in the 2nd year so that was 2006 ish. So by that point wheels were already on the cheap 2nd hand market for student me, and the tyre was a 2.3" from WTB so big-ish brands were onboard.
Singular Swift came out in 2007 and was probably one of the nicer early bikes. Still won't be anything like a modern bike.
Especially when I'm not convinced modern XC bikes are anywhere near as good as they'll get. Just look at the latest Cannondale HT (or the Chinese BXT frames that copy it's geometry). There's a fine line between retro and rubbish. And in mountainbikes in general old bikes a pretty rubbish.
earliest fisher 29ers were in 2002, just the Mt Tam and Supercaliber. the frames didn't change for a couple of years, I had a 2004 X-caliber 29 and it was excellent. They then changed the frame design a bit, but moved the old 29er frames to their dual sport models. I also had a 2006 Utopia, which was the same ZR9000 frame as my old X-cal.
Chips brought a Willets 29er back from Downieville SSWC in 2002 that got a lot of use in Calderdale that winter, fairly sure there was a Retrotec 29er at the event as well, and Mike from Spot was riding one as well, Brant made some prototypes in 2003 I think, Spots were soon in production after that, I got an OnOne in late 2003 swiftly followed by an IF with the same geometry
Early 60s.
IRC Mythos we’re the first commercially available 29er tyre IIRC ? I’ve still got two pair in the cellar, they were pretty crap for UK conditions 😂😂
Wtb had a version of the phoenix that was a 29er in 1999. I think it was called the 'large Marge' but only about 10 were built.
Going back, alpinestar had a 700c alpine xcross in 1991.
You have more chance of winning the lottery than finding one of those wtbs
I remember getting excited about the very modest new Haro Mary 29er (single-speed) circa 2009.
I never got one but a decade later bought a Longitude - which is sort of the same thing except with track-ends and slackness
I built a 29er unicycle in 2004; I remember it being a right pain because getting hold of 29er bits, especially a rim of decent width, was very difficult. I found a Sun Rhyno rim from SJS cycles which was basically the widest rim you could get at a whopping 19mm or something daft like that and a Mythos 2 tyre. The Rhyno Lite was slightly wider but had to be imported from the US at colossal cost. That was pretty much it...
It still has them on now; the tyre works well enough for the unicycle although I did try the same tyres on the MTB and they were quite rubbish, as mentioned above the just become slicks at the slightest hint of mud.
A keeper👍
: xpT7b,CiZ#5T
But, what is most missing from this conversation is Wes Williams (Willits), who was the greatest proponent and built more 29er MTB frames than anyone else prior to 1999…and, they were titanium.
This. I remember stumbling in past his shop in Crested Butte in (probably) ‘98 and remember him being very passionate about the ‘big’ wheels that just rolled better... I didn’t fancy the $2500 price tag (plus shipping, tax and import duty) at the time. But that chat was instrumental in me getting a Solaris mk1 when they became available... oh only about a decade or so later 🤪
My 2007(?) Niner EMD. There wasn't a great selection of tyres, and those Reba's were so noodly..
But it was right nice and fast.
a mate had a 2002 mt tam 29er. the green one with black at the headtube. cracking bike.
i bought a paragon 29er in 2003. it was good too. also had a big sur ?? and a procaliber around 2003/2004.
I 69er'd my Handjob with a Hummingbird.
Iirc the if issues every review of the early 29r's in the early 00's flagged up that the lack of quality tyres and components were just not around. The frame manufacturers and builders had a good idea of what they wanted and how well it could work, but the components companies took a few years of persuasion before committing.
I sold those 29 in 2001.
I thought they would make a great one bike- touring, MTB, road just with a change of tyres.
They look very like my current gravel bike bike.
So I'd get a transition rapture gravel bike 😜
I have one of the original Niner SIR9s in my shed, the 853 one, built singlespeecd on king hubs, horrible white Stan's rims, niner carbon bars and post. Belongs to a mate, it's too small for me, and it just sits there getting old. It's a shame really, should get it sold on.