I recently (within the last 2 years) went from full 27.5 to mullet and now full 29.
first bike was a Knolly warden with full 27.5 and mullet.
now on full 29 chilcotin.
The biggest difference between them was mainly in square edge bumps in the rear. I could definitely feel the rear wheel in 27.5 get hung up slightly but it definitely initiated turns much easier than the full 29. Also I never buzzed my but with the 27.5 and I have several time with the 29 in the back.
I did feel like it took a bit less effort to get the rear wheel going in 27.5 but nothing I think that would sway me either way.
Im sure somebody already mentioned it, but there is a whole lot more to the rear of the bike than just the size of the wheel. CS length, axle path, BB drop, ebike all play in to how a particular rear wheel feels. Then you have to factor in what your terrain is. A bike, the rider, and the terrain comprise the system. It all depends....
Im sure somebody already mentioned it, but there is a whole lot more to the rear of the bike than just the size of the wheel. ...
Im sure somebody already mentioned it, but there is a whole lot more to the rear of the bike than just the size of the wheel. CS length, axle path, BB drop, ebike all play in to how a particular rear wheel feels. Then you have to factor in what your terrain is. A bike, the rider, and the terrain comprise the system. It all depends....
This is why I tend to be suspicious of rider feedback. It's hard to hold all the other variables constant when you're testing and comparing any mountain bike product, but it's really easy to jump to conclusions and think you know exactly why you're feeling what you're feeling. So if someone has two identical bikes with identical suspension setups that have been optimized for different wheel sizes and body positions, and they do back to back testing on those bikes, then yeah I'm gonna put a lot of stock in their takeaways about wheel size. But if they're different bikes in different circumstances and you don't optimize each setup, then it's hard for me to believe you can isolate what you're feeling.
Im sure somebody already mentioned it, but there is a whole lot more to the rear of the bike than just the size of the wheel. ...
Im sure somebody already mentioned it, but there is a whole lot more to the rear of the bike than just the size of the wheel. CS length, axle path, BB drop, ebike all play in to how a particular rear wheel feels. Then you have to factor in what your terrain is. A bike, the rider, and the terrain comprise the system. It all depends....
This is why I tend to be suspicious of rider feedback. It's hard to hold all the other variables constant when you're testing and comparing any...
This is why I tend to be suspicious of rider feedback. It's hard to hold all the other variables constant when you're testing and comparing any mountain bike product, but it's really easy to jump to conclusions and think you know exactly why you're feeling what you're feeling. So if someone has two identical bikes with identical suspension setups that have been optimized for different wheel sizes and body positions, and they do back to back testing on those bikes, then yeah I'm gonna put a lot of stock in their takeaways about wheel size. But if they're different bikes in different circumstances and you don't optimize each setup, then it's hard for me to believe you can isolate what you're feeling.
Funny you should mention this, I've been riding a bike lately with the ability to switch between the two while keeping every other variable constant. I was struggling to get comfortable on the bike initially and couldn't tell what it was, but after switching to full 29", I felt like I finally started to gel with it, and now it's super comfortable. The way the smaller rear wheel seemed to build traction, then suddenly unload it in turns which made things really unpredictable and was the main thing that stood out to me. I think the mixed wheels could be sweet for some steeper terrain, and I'm excited to try swapping back and forth more, but I think I'm definitely a full 29 guy on anything other than a downhill bike.
Yes, using a Mullet clevis link I was able to hold other variables constant on my SjEvo and test straight 29er to mullet, back-to-back on familiar trails.
There might have been some other stuff that felt a bit different but there were 2 things that were glaringly obvious: 1) The mullet snapped in to turns much better, allowed me to steer with my hips and was more balanced front to rear drifting more evenly and so on &, 2) I just couldn't climb nearly as well on the mullet. Nothing to do with the flat stuff, it was the ledges that I usually rock right up on the 29er that were consistently snagging me on mullet.
After that mullet ride week I felt very good about where I wanted to be in the future and that was with a motor I wanted Mullet and when on leg power exclusively I wanted straight 29er. With my very chunky terrain and my 5'11" height. Your experience may vary.
I do split the difference a bit by using an Aggressor 27.5 x 2.5, which is a pretty tall 27.5" tire.
Yeah. I dabbled in the 24x3.0 thing a bit. Even built up a set of Double Wides. But I'm on my big boy 26's for the long run I figure.
I'm 5'10" with a short inseam and absolutely love properly designed MX bikes.
I recently (within the last 2 years) went from full 27.5 to mullet and now full 29.
first bike was a Knolly warden with full 27.5 and mullet.
now on full 29 chilcotin.
The biggest difference between them was mainly in square edge bumps in the rear. I could definitely feel the rear wheel in 27.5 get hung up slightly but it definitely initiated turns much easier than the full 29. Also I never buzzed my but with the 27.5 and I have several time with the 29 in the back.
I did feel like it took a bit less effort to get the rear wheel going in 27.5 but nothing I think that would sway me either way.
Im sure somebody already mentioned it, but there is a whole lot more to the rear of the bike than just the size of the wheel. CS length, axle path, BB drop, ebike all play in to how a particular rear wheel feels. Then you have to factor in what your terrain is. A bike, the rider, and the terrain comprise the system. It all depends....
This is why I tend to be suspicious of rider feedback. It's hard to hold all the other variables constant when you're testing and comparing any mountain bike product, but it's really easy to jump to conclusions and think you know exactly why you're feeling what you're feeling. So if someone has two identical bikes with identical suspension setups that have been optimized for different wheel sizes and body positions, and they do back to back testing on those bikes, then yeah I'm gonna put a lot of stock in their takeaways about wheel size. But if they're different bikes in different circumstances and you don't optimize each setup, then it's hard for me to believe you can isolate what you're feeling.
Funny you should mention this, I've been riding a bike lately with the ability to switch between the two while keeping every other variable constant. I was struggling to get comfortable on the bike initially and couldn't tell what it was, but after switching to full 29", I felt like I finally started to gel with it, and now it's super comfortable. The way the smaller rear wheel seemed to build traction, then suddenly unload it in turns which made things really unpredictable and was the main thing that stood out to me. I think the mixed wheels could be sweet for some steeper terrain, and I'm excited to try swapping back and forth more, but I think I'm definitely a full 29 guy on anything other than a downhill bike.
Yes, using a Mullet clevis link I was able to hold other variables constant on my SjEvo and test straight 29er to mullet, back-to-back on familiar trails.
There might have been some other stuff that felt a bit different but there were 2 things that were glaringly obvious: 1) The mullet snapped in to turns much better, allowed me to steer with my hips and was more balanced front to rear drifting more evenly and so on &, 2) I just couldn't climb nearly as well on the mullet. Nothing to do with the flat stuff, it was the ledges that I usually rock right up on the 29er that were consistently snagging me on mullet.
After that mullet ride week I felt very good about where I wanted to be in the future and that was with a motor I wanted Mullet and when on leg power exclusively I wanted straight 29er. With my very chunky terrain and my 5'11" height. Your experience may vary.
I do split the difference a bit by using an Aggressor 27.5 x 2.5, which is a pretty tall 27.5" tire.
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