Mountain Bike Reviews Forum banner
21 - 40 of 102 Posts
The Spec Crave Comp 29 has a 71.5 headtube angle and 442 chainstays with a 46mm offset fork. Those are not the geo of a stable all mountain ride. That is last gen XC numbers.
Pick one of the many 29ers with slack geo and you can end up with something that makes your Crave by comparison feel twitchy and not worth riding on some trails even though both bikes have the same wheel size.
You could get more info at a demo day or two when they come around your area. Bikes are really very different.
 
29ers aren't dead, 27.5ers are a definite difference from 26ers, and 26ers are still around and some prefer them. Decide for yourself, I'm all in on 27.5ers, some are in for the others, no one here can tell you what you'll like...ride them all!
 
another one of these threads?

ride what feels best for you, don't listen to what the "industry" wants you to do. /thread
No, you must do what the industry tells you to do otherwise the industry will fail and collapse because you aren't consuming more goods that you don't need.

Also size does matter.
You can be a man and get big 29" wheels or be a little sissy boy and get 26" wheels.
If you are not sure what category you fall in then get 650b/27.5" wheels.
Then let everyone know that you are a little sissy boy trying grow up or maybe that you are a manly man trying to be in touch with your sensitive side but I don't know.
 
No, you must do what the industry tells you to do otherwise the industry will fail and collapse because you aren't consuming more goods that you don't need.

Also size does matter.
You can be a man and get big 29" wheels or be a little sissy boy and get 26" wheels.
If you are not sure what category you fall in then get 650b/27.5" wheels.
Then let everyone know that you are a little sissy boy trying grow up or maybe that you are a manly man trying to be in touch with your sensitive side but I don't know.
you eem like a right bellend, i chose 26er, and i love it, what you gon do?
 
No, you must do what the industry tells you to do otherwise the industry will fail and collapse because you aren't consuming more goods that you don't need.

Also size does matter.
You can be a man and get big 29" wheels or be a little sissy boy and get 26" wheels.
If you are not sure what category you fall in then get 650b/27.5" wheels.
Then let everyone know that you are a little sissy boy trying grow up or maybe that you are a manly man trying to be in touch with your sensitive side but I don't know.
Christ! We get it, you're a 29er fanboi so can you just let the poor horse die already?:rolleyes:
 
Christ! We get it, you're a 29er fanboi so can you just let the poor horse die already?:rolleyes:
I think he is being sarcastically hyperbolic and forgot to insert the appropriate emoticon to let everyone in on it.

...on a related note, I bought another 29er yesterday so I basically agree with everything he says about being a real man. :thumbsup:
 
Ha, I pm'd Matt to warn him he was opening old wounds with another vs. Thread. Y'all are being nicer than expected to the newb.

(I'm surprised no ones slammed him for riding specialized!)
 
It all depends on what you are after. 26 inch wheels are best for cornering and popping airs, 29 inch wheels are better if you have a more "roadie" type mentality and you are after milage and more xc riding. If you don't understand this concept you are probably better off on a 29er. The 26 wheel size is practically going extinct as company's are all moving there line ups into the 27.5 realm.

With that being said I have heard that 29 inch wheel bike are getting better at AM/aggressive trail riding with better geo. I'm not completely sold on it tho since I prefer a bike that handles more like dh rig for xc riding. Those big wheels feel slugish and awkward to me. It may be better for straight forward rolling but once again that is not a factor or benefit that out weighs the drawbacks for me.

The 27.5 is probably a good in-between feel getting a little best of both worlds but I have yet to try one, they look sweet.

Don't listen to the "this is what I ride so it's the best comments". All bikes are cool and fit different styles. Just try and figure out what you are after and go from there.
 
I'm building a 27.5 now. Everything else, and everyone else on anything else, just sucks :)

In all seriousness, I had an old 26", and upgraded last fall to a badass 26" A/M bike. (Gt sensor 1.0 full XT, 150 MM) and loved it! I'm short and have stand over issues. I wanted (or was told I wanted) a 29er. This September Jenson had a deal in a small Niner Jet 9 29er. I scooped it up and sold the GT. I fell in love with it for my basic cross country rides. These were mixed in difficulty, but fairly open and smooth. Typical roots and such, but no rocks and no super tight, tetchy stuff. The 29s were very smooth, inspired confidence, and rolled over anything.
My wife got a 27.5, and I took it out one day just to see what I thought of the wheels. I rode the same trails I usually ride, and truly felt like the 27.5 was the best of both worlds. I hit things head on, and in the same manner as I did on the 29er. I didn't feel like I gave up much (if anything) in the rollover department. I did notice the handling was much quicker and more precise, like the 26 was.
Fast forward to now, and I'm building a XC/AM setup with 150MM of travel, on 27.5 wheels. I've been riding more rocky, technical stuff and feel that the 29s, while great rollover wise, are a bit sluggish in really tight stuff I'm riding now. The added travel will help with the tougher areas. (I had 80/100MM).
Test rides are great if you have access to them, but not all of us do. I'm a believer in the "tweener" 27.5 wheel size now, from personal experience in my ride area. Your experiences may vary, but I hope this helps. I'm 1000% unbiased and just like to ride.
 
It all depends on what you are after. 26 inch wheels are best for cornering and popping airs, 29 inch wheels are better if you have a more "roadie" type mentality and you are after milage and more xc riding. If you don't understand this concept you are probably better off on a 29er. The 26 wheel size is practically going extinct as company's are all moving there line ups into the 27.5 realm.
Nonsense. There are plenty reasons to ride a 29er, (or any size for that matter) having a roadie "mentality" is not really one.

With that being said I have heard that 29 inch wheel bike are getting better at AM/aggressive trail riding with better geo. I'm not completely sold on it tho since I prefer a bike that handles more like dh rig for xc riding. Those big wheels feel slugish and awkward to me. It may be better for straight forward rolling but once again that is not a factor or benefit that out weighs the drawbacks for me.
I wonder about comments like this because, if this is accurate at all, then wouldn't 24" or 20" or even 16" wheel be better than your oversized 26" bikes? ;)

Don't listen to the "this is what I ride so it's the best comments".
I disagree. Although I was making fun of myself for saying the 29er is best because I ride one, the truth of this statement should still ring clear: threads like this are basically asking for opinions, so I am giving mine. Since this topic has been beaten to death, over and over and over again, I feel responses like the one I gave are the only honest reply in a thread like this, everything else comes off as disingenuous drivel. ;)

Carry on....
 
you eem like a right bellend, i chose 26er, and i love it, what you gon do?
Give you a grammar lesson so people can understand you. :rolleyes:

I think he is being sarcastically hyperbolic and forgot to insert the appropriate emoticon to let everyone in on it.

...on a related note, I bought another 29er yesterday so I basically agree with everything he says about being a real man. :thumbsup:
You are correct but I would not expect little boys with 26" bikes to be smart enough to be able to figure it out on their own.

Oh and ;) so I don't hurt any more feelings.

;)
 
I still haven't figured out why people say you can't grab air on a 29. I grab big air on both of mine, do 5-10 foot drops and haven't folded a wheel yet.
Or that you can't do tight twisty single track.
Tons of tight twisty single track here in Western NC and the majority of bikes on the trail are 29ers.
 
Or that you can't do tight twisty single track.
Tons of tight twisty single track here in Western NC and the majority of bikes on the trail are 29ers.
Same thing when I lived in Austin. 29ers ruled there. In fact they almost seemed mandatory (or at least made the most sense) given the terrain. Not nearly as many 29ers back out here in Oakland.

There will come a time when downhill geometry and suspension design are tweaked to their limits (think 8"-10" bikes in the near future) and prejudices against 29" wheels settles down and you will see them dominate in more events than XC and perhaps enduro. I am not saying they are for everyone, but I think the marginalization of the wheel size will come to a close.

And lets be honest, If were talking jumping then well... a 24" bike jumps better than a 26" bike and damn a 20" bike is so flickable it seems downright absurd to think about jumping a 26" "wagon wheel" bike. See what I did there? :D It's all relative, but to think you can't jump a Tallboy LTc, a Rip9RDO or a Leviathan or ride all day park lifted runs on the new WFO is absurd.
 
I think if you post to a thread once you are offering your opinion. I think if you need to reply to posts that share a different opinion, or better yet quote and dispute you have gone to fan boy status and are possibly ignorant of the benefits of the other wheels sizes offered within the industry today.
I also believe that anyone who comments that smaller riders are somehow inferior in their mental capacity is very "small" themselves, and I feel sorry for their insecurities.

I ride steep, rocky, rough, tight, drop infested, chunk where a bike needs be agile, flick-able and easily thrown about and manhandled. Then i ride it fast enough that everything is a blur and the bike is whipped and drifted as a result of the speed rather than for style points that seem so popular in current bike videos.
I'm 5'-7" and ride a 26" bike that provides the geometry, travel and weight that best fits my riding terrain, my riding style, and my physical proportions.

If that sounds like you, consider a fair evaluation of capable 26" bikes before the wheel size zealots force the cool aide on you.

Good luck.
 
21 - 40 of 102 Posts
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Top