26 isnt dead...or is it?

[tasty.dirt74]

SO, does anyone else ride a 26 inch bike anymore?

 I do.

A new set of rims are coming in the next couple of weeks.

They are to use the existing hubs on the bike ATM.

Roval hubs with DT Swiss internals and a 20mm Roval on the front.

[Sitar_Ned]

Dead? Not quite... but def on life support.

With 27.5 and 29 it seems those will be the dominant wheel sizes, and mainly the people that are on 26 inches are people that already had those bikes. In other words, I don't think many new bikes being sold are of the 26 variety. Thus, they will just slowly fade away.. Or who knows, maybe they make a complete resurgence? I could be wrong, of course.

[brmeyer135]

I think the main bikes sold in the 26" size are long travel.
My brother has many bikes...all 29" except his 'jump' bike, a Specialized Enduro, which is a 26"

[snipe]

If Giant has its way 26 is dead,  29 is dying and 27.5 is going to be it.   So is 27.5 the best all around or is it good at neither.   For my money the 27.5 is as nimble as 26 but adds in a little roll over advantage.   however a 29er on the right trails or in good hands is faster, carries that speed and rolls over stuff easier...however its a bit cumbersome in tight techy trails.  my 2 cents. 

I have all three sizes but am cleaning out the 26.  When there are more tire selections for 27.5 then I will be a happy camper.

[tasty.dirt74]

I think the main bikes sold in the 26" size are long travel.
My brother has many bikes...all 29" except his 'jump' bike, a Specialized Enduro, which is a 26"

This../\/\/\.

I have a 29er hardtail for xc races, and a SWorks Enduro for the fun trails..

If I was to look at a new bike as a replacement, then it would prob end up being a 650B. For no other reason as that there will be more options in that wheel size in the next couple of years.

I have just replaced the fork on the enduro, and am getting a wheelset built for it, so it realistically wont be going anywhere soon!

[cmh]

My wife is 5'3" and resisted even demoing a 29er for a while.  Then she demoed one and liked it.  Now it's her primary bike.  We shipped the bike for a riding vacation so she got back on the 26er... and hated it.  Looks like we'll be getting rid of her old 26er bikes.  Would love to get her on a 650b and am eyeballing the IM-196 for exactly that purpose.

On the other hand, I've got an old Scott Scale 26er which was my only bike for a while, and I recently resurrected it as a singlespeed.  It's 18.6lbs, and once I got over the irrational fear that riding 26 would result in my immediate and painful demise, I'm actually having a bunch of fun on it.  Mind you this is a local trail that is not terribly technical, and I'm still nowhere near as fast as I am on my FS 29er trail bike... but still, I'm having fun on a bike.

For me, though, there's nothing except 29er in my future.

[Carbon_Dude]

Dead.  At least to me anyway.  I rode a 27.5" bike and liked it enough that I would buy one of those before I ever bought a 26" again.

[Jotegr]

Between June and the end of Oct, a good half of my rides are shuttled, lifted or dirt jumping. I'm using 26" for this since I'm trick and jump focused rather than speed focused for these.


Otherwise I like the other two sizes with no personal preference. My chiner is a 27.5 but I like 29ers too.

[Vipassana]

I rode a friend's 26" Giant NRS(?) the other day back to back with my 29er.  When we switched back, he was all smiles.  I was not.  I could never go back to that wheel size.  It felt like a toy in a way.  Like riding a BMX.

[Carbon_Dude]

I rode a friend's 26" Giant NRS(?) the other day back to back with my 29er.  When we switched back, he was all smiles.  I was not.  I could never go back to that wheel size.  It felt like a toy in a way.  Like riding a BMX.

Exactly.  When I would ride my old 26" Epic it would feel like I'm riding a kids bike.  My 29er just fits me better.

[brmeyer135]

Don't see 29" going away.
For shorter guys, a 29" is not the best choice and fit.  As above, a 29" works for women because the TT is usually dropped low.  A 27.5 would be better in this case.

[ecaos]

They aren't for me. Here's mine and I'm thinking about putting together a new one. For me (maybe opening a can of worms here), is not worth it to go 27.5 for just half an inch of whatever that difference makes and options still way limited compared to 26". Maybe the only advantage (for me) is that if everybody is moving to 27.5, 26" forks, wheels and tires will go on sale.