#!markdown
With wheels that are that much smaller, you will definitely have a harder time
cornering, and probably the same with manualing. Although a bigger problem
with wheels that small, is the BB height. The BB height will be a lot lower
because the axis' of the wheels will be a lot lower (lower by around 3 inches
at least). You will have significantly less ground clearance, and if you tried
to land a jump and ended up bottoming out, your frame would probably hit the
ground before your suspension maxed out. This would likely end up in a crash
that is bad for the rider and the bike.
As far as cornering goes, your center of gravity would be somewhat low due to
your BB height being significantly lower. However, the wheels would feel like
they were really far beneath you, especially if you are a fairly tall rider.
This would make you have to really throw the bike underneath you around the
turns using your body weight.
For manualing, you could probably get the front up just fine, but controlling
it, and keeping it in a manual, I imagine, would be quite difficult.
Having small wheels on a large frame is just a bad idea. For cornering, 26″
wheels seem to do the best for most riders and 27.5″ wheels seem to do just
fine. If you are a shorter rider, 26″ wheels are probably the way to go, but
even some short riders seem to do okay on 27.5″. Although, the differences
will be more noticeable. If you are a larger rider, and you are able to handle
the bigger wheels and manual without a problem, you will lose almost nothing
by switching from 26″ to 27.5″ wheels, and you will gain the ability to
rollover obstacles without losing much speed.
If you're a downhiller though, I'd recommend not trying a 29er. When you get
to bigger jumps, you will not have enough suspension travel for the landings.
Also, you will definitely lose a large amount of cornering ability. However,
this could just depend on the course you ride. For example, Aaron Gwin won a
downhill world cup on a Specialized 29er Enduro bike in South Africa a few
years back. The course there really showed off all the good things about
bigger wheels. However, most courses will not. If you can rollover bigger
obstacles without losing as much momentum, but you can't even turn, your
wheels are too big for downhill.
Which size is best for you really depends on your style of riding. If you are
a hardcore Cross Country rider, you'll probably like 29ers. If you're a
Downhiller, you will probably like the 27.5. If you are a Slopestyle rider who
loves hitting the jumps, or maybe a rider who is more focussed on technical
courses with hardcore drops and nasty corners, you will probably like the 26″.
I love finding the best line in a technical course and flying down it as fast
as I can. For this sort of riding, the 26″ is my favorite wheel for the time
being, but eventually, I could see myself switching to a 27.5.
April 26, 2016, 10:59 a.m. - Kablammerhammer
#!markdown With wheels that are that much smaller, you will definitely have a harder time cornering, and probably the same with manualing. Although a bigger problem with wheels that small, is the BB height. The BB height will be a lot lower because the axis' of the wheels will be a lot lower (lower by around 3 inches at least). You will have significantly less ground clearance, and if you tried to land a jump and ended up bottoming out, your frame would probably hit the ground before your suspension maxed out. This would likely end up in a crash that is bad for the rider and the bike. As far as cornering goes, your center of gravity would be somewhat low due to your BB height being significantly lower. However, the wheels would feel like they were really far beneath you, especially if you are a fairly tall rider. This would make you have to really throw the bike underneath you around the turns using your body weight. For manualing, you could probably get the front up just fine, but controlling it, and keeping it in a manual, I imagine, would be quite difficult. Having small wheels on a large frame is just a bad idea. For cornering, 26″ wheels seem to do the best for most riders and 27.5″ wheels seem to do just fine. If you are a shorter rider, 26″ wheels are probably the way to go, but even some short riders seem to do okay on 27.5″. Although, the differences will be more noticeable. If you are a larger rider, and you are able to handle the bigger wheels and manual without a problem, you will lose almost nothing by switching from 26″ to 27.5″ wheels, and you will gain the ability to rollover obstacles without losing much speed. If you're a downhiller though, I'd recommend not trying a 29er. When you get to bigger jumps, you will not have enough suspension travel for the landings. Also, you will definitely lose a large amount of cornering ability. However, this could just depend on the course you ride. For example, Aaron Gwin won a downhill world cup on a Specialized 29er Enduro bike in South Africa a few years back. The course there really showed off all the good things about bigger wheels. However, most courses will not. If you can rollover bigger obstacles without losing as much momentum, but you can't even turn, your wheels are too big for downhill. Which size is best for you really depends on your style of riding. If you are a hardcore Cross Country rider, you'll probably like 29ers. If you're a Downhiller, you will probably like the 27.5. If you are a Slopestyle rider who loves hitting the jumps, or maybe a rider who is more focussed on technical courses with hardcore drops and nasty corners, you will probably like the 26″. I love finding the best line in a technical course and flying down it as fast as I can. For this sort of riding, the 26″ is my favorite wheel for the time being, but eventually, I could see myself switching to a 27.5.