tire width confusion

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and you will find that we've all been screaming for bigger 29" tires for ... well, ever. Before the ExiWolf came along earlier this year, things were even worse. I don't think most tire companies view tires bigger than 2.3" as suitable for XC use, and they will only make something bigger for the DH/FR market. And the 29" DH/FR market barely exists -- yet.

What Shiggy said: no one is making 29" DH/FR bikes partly because the tires don't exist, and no one is making 29" DH/FR tires because the bikes (except for maybe the Behemoth?) don't exist.

I don't think the tire makers are completely stupid here -- most 2.5-ish or larger tires wouldn't clear the chainstays of most current bikes, so even if such a tire came out people would only buy ONE -- for the front -- rather than two. For the same tooling cost as a big tire, they could come out with a 2.0-2.3 and double their potential market. Personally I think such thinking is misguided -- since there aren't yet, the first one to market will have no competition and will sell way better than just another tire in the crowded 2.1 field.

And I hear ya, especially for snowriding. My KM's fork will easily clear a 3.0. In fact, I've been known to ride a 26x3.0 on my KM, although it drops the front end a bit too much. My ideal fattie would be something with a moderate weight casing like the Endomorph, in a true 3.0 size (but not 3.7), with a little more knob than the Endomorph but not too much more. Would be perfect for snow and deep sand. Um, I'm not holding my breath.