[29Inches]

Guy's what were we thinking!

http://www.arrowracing.com/innovations/fwt.html

 

[SlowSSer]

1. lowers ride height

2. More suspension travel available

3. Shorter spokes provide stronger wheels

4. Quicker Acceleration = less Centripetal Force (moment of inertia)

5. More grip angle equals more control

6. Lighter wheels equals better performance and a more efficient suspension system

dont care. I still like my 9er.
edit: it looks like they might have the same number of tyre choices.

 

[SprungShoulders]

They were thinking that 24's have definite advantages under certain circumstances, just as 29's do.

 

[29Inches]

Certain Circumstances

They were thinking that 24's have definite advantages under certain circumstances, just as 29's do.

I agree for BMX and the rear of DH bikes

 

[DWF]

I agree for BMX and the rear of DH bikes

They actually work really well for technical riding. The 24" wheel lets you use a big tire without the diameter getting too big and heavy (try pedaling a 3" Gazzi on at 26"). Basically a 3" 24 has the same OD as a 26" 2.1. I can also testify that the 24x3" Arrow Wide Bite tires roll as fast as any beefy 26" tire I've ridden and that's saying something given their 3" profile. Pic is by Kristian.

 

[s1ngletrack]

They actually work really well for technical riding. The 24" wheel lets you use a big tire without the diameter getting too big (try pedaling a 3" Gazzi on at 26") and heavy. Basically a 3" 24 has the same OD as a 26" 2.1. I can also testify that the 24x3" Arrow Ramp Bite tires roll as fast as any other 26" I've ridden and that's saying something given they're 3" profile. Pic is by Kristian.

Heretic.

 

[Cloxxki]

In a DH race, my money is on 29" over 24".

In an XC race, any, my money is on 29" over 24".

On drops along a cliffs, my money is on 24 over 29". Wheels are just a landing gear, they don't HAVE to turn in mid-air.

Conventional dirtjump : 24" again, the ramps are small, bike must be small.

Anything involving pedals being cranked, wheels being rolled : 29" baby!

 

[DWF]

Heretic.

Yeah, I feel like Sen. Salazar at a "Focus on the Family" group hug!

 

[s1ngletrack]

Yeah, I feel like Sen. Salazar at a "Focus on the Family" group hug!

Damn - those are fightin' words (regardless of one's stance on the wheel size debate)

 

[DWF]

Damn - those are fightin' words (regardless of one's stance on the wheel size debate)

What? I put a in there. Doesn't that mean I can be passive aggressive with my sarcasm and then deny any offense? Hmmm, I thought that's what those meant....

 

[slowrider]

24

It could be a better option for shorter riders than the 29r's because for instance the Ventana El Cap the shortest TT available will be 23+ and the standover 28 3/4 which wont work well for a 5'4" or shorter rider.

 

[Cloxxki]

Smaller wheeled bike fitting short adults better is only something temporal for front suspension bikes and doesn't even go for rigid bikes.
A no-compromise rigid 29" bike can "easily" be built for riders under 5'.
Limiting factor in suspension forks offered to us, is that even the most practical, the Marz, has only 43mm of offset. Unless offset grows along with the wheelsize, handling will slow down. Head angles therefor are now steepened, but with smaller frames that develops toe-tire overlap, scary stuff.
Something as simple as a 46mm offset suspension fork can bring the smallest possible no-comprimise rider height down by 4" over present 38mm off forks. See my signature.

 

[slowrider]

Maybe

Smaller wheeled bike fitting short adults better is only something temporal for front suspension bikes and doesn't even go for rigid bikes.
A no-compromise rigid 29" bike can "easily" be built for riders under 5'.
Limiting factor in suspension forks offered to us, is that even the most practical, the Marz, has only 43mm of offset. Unless offset grows along with the wheelsize, handling will slow down. Head angles therefor are now steepened, but with smaller frames that develops toe-tire overlap, scary stuff.
Something as simple as a 46mm offset suspension fork can bring the smallest possible no-comprimise rider height down by 4" over present 38mm off forks. See my signature.

That might be true if an when someone builds the fork you're talking about and a bike to go with it but as of now how are we misinformed? While the potential is there it hasn't yet been realized and until it is the existing bikes require a 5'6" rider to run a very short stem and suffer poor standover.

 

[D.F.L.]

In a DH race, my money is on 29" over 24"...

QUOTE]

C'mon, Cloxxki! Did you mean to say that your money is on the fact that the 29er wheel will fold in half before the end of the run? Or that you'll have 2 flat tires by halfway

29er wheels are too tall and have hubs that are too narrow to have the lateral strangth needed for real DH. IF hubs got wider ( and they do need to) and rims got stronger, then I could possibly agree with you for some courses.

But there's still be the problem of tires, because there are no large 29er tires, much less 29er DH skins. Lots of big tires are available for 24", and once up to speed with 8" of travel, some of the disadvantage of the smaller diameter is overcome.

29er wheels are great, but let's not overstate things.

 

[Cloxxki]

D.F.L. , the few DH bikes I've seen had 150mm or wider rear hubs, and like 110 front hubs. I agree that with the sport getting harder on gear, and the rims getting larger, we need wider rims. Time to stop the q-factor mania.
Have you ever seen the Kris Holm rims? I think those will hold quite a bit, 875g, and all in the right places.
Perhaps the 700c for offroading concept is still hampered at the extreme ends to prove it's potentional, but I would gladly take the bet that 5 years from now, DH'ers will have little to laugh when the discussion goes to 29/30". Where in XC, 29" is the heavier option, it could well turn out that in DH a given end time could be reached with a lighter 29/30" bike than the same level 26" bike.

In DH the average speeds are too great to take roll-over, cornering grip and braking traction for granted. Test first, judge later. A narrow Exiwolf 2.3 is already quite an impressive performer, if I hear the reports coming in.

 

[sslos]

Some experience...

Disclaimer: I love my 29" wheel. You can have them when you pry them from my cold, dead fingers! Mike Curiak is my president!
Oh, sorry.
I used to race DH. And I had a set of 24" wheels to use with 3" Gazzis for a couple of courses, like Moab Rim in the Tour of the Canyonlands. They definitely have their place.
And with DH courses turning more and more into huge dirt jumping comps, they will continue to have their place.
However, I raced a lot of courses that I'd have loved to have had something like the Behemoth on.
Horses for courses, as the say.

the los

 

[Cloxxki]

Interesting.
I need to go see a DH race for sure. That means going outside the borders, BTW.

 

[DWF]

Disclaimer: I love my 29" wheel. You can have them when you pry them from my cold, dead fingers! Mike Curiak is my president!
Oh, sorry.
I used to race DH. And I had a set of 24" wheels to use with 3" Gazzis for a couple of courses, like Moab Rim in the Tour of the Canyonlands. They definitely have their place.
And with DH courses turning more and more into huge dirt jumping comps, they will continue to have their place.
However, I raced a lot of courses that I'd have loved to have had something like the Behemoth on.
Horses for courses, as the say.

the los

I agree. Gazzi's = Slow rollers. The Arrows have intrigued me with how fast they roll and looking them again last night I think I've figured it out. The pics on the website don't show it, but the tire has a unique tread profile in that with normal pressures (~20 PSI) the tire rides on the center rows of knobs, which are ramped and about 2" wide. The rest of the knobs are offset and significantly below the centerline level so unless you're cornering or seeing a significant increase in ground pressure or on softer surfaces, the rest of the tire doesn't affect rolling resistance. This is obvious when looking at the tire head-on. Gazzi's have a much flatter profile and while they do have a much higher volume than the Arrows the difference in rolling resistance is really significant.