Prepare for the 650b Wheel-Size Revolution

It will be the best-selling wheel size in the corridor within a few years

All the benefits of 650b and the nimbleness of 26 with zero drawbacks.

I think it was Boomforreal who brought up that one could fit 650b on a Stylus. I would assume you would have to get a different fork.

650 b makes more sense to a short guy like me. I sat on a Shinobi and rode it around a bit and it didnt feel flickable….

650 b makes more sense to a short guy like me. I sat on a Shinobi and rode it around a bit and it didnt feel flickable….

That's because they handle like a bus. A fun bus, but still a bus.

My humble thoughts on the matter:

650B and 29'er component and bike manufacturer change-ups are going to be made ONLY within the companies who have large sales distribution so that they can absorb the costs of the re-tool. They look at it like this - "will the marketing of the new fad be profitable enough in the short term to consider product development? It's gotta be short term thinking only because if the product launch fails, they have to be prepared to revert back to the ol' standard 26.

They are selling less of an "evolution" and more of a "fad". Think about it for a moment - when was the last big thing in mtb? Not for a while, really, right? So hey, let's make this "new size" a revolution baby - let's shake it all up - let's make this happen!! Anyone here remember the absolute vehemence that DH'ers swore by with their 24" rears back 10 years ago? Just sayin'…

Here's my take on it. There's the rapidly fluid and dynamic demographic who follow and purchase into the product cycle/fashion of their chosen hobby. The enthusiasts - the peeps who hang here - buy the magazines - know all the latest tech talk and so forth. These are the people who this 650B and 29'er "fad" is being "fed" to. There's another breed out there… The people who've had bikes for years, maybe get them oiled up and the like every so often, who just go out and ride. They're the "baseline" - they don't change much and overall, they're the pain-in-the-ass of the industry and marketing machine. Bottom line is this - whatever population of bikes is currently out there, world wide, with whatever specific wheelsize, it'll be this "majority" that will "maintain" the standard - whether racers, enthusiasts, or not.

I often think/believe these change-ups are solely to move the sales up, stimulate a stagnant buying demographic, get peeps sucked in, SELL SELL SELL, and then fall away 3 or 4 years later claiming "thorough testing proved that there were some discrepancies with the newer sized models and overall, we just feel more confident now knowing that the 26" wheel size really is the best of all worlds blah blah blah….".

Mark my words. Check back in 5 years.

Instead, why don't we look BACKWARDS and remember about how shitty bikes used to be?

Of course the industry wants to make money, and of course some people benefit more than others from a massive number of SKUs, but lets be realistic that the culmination of all the incremental, overmarketed "game changers" over the last 10 years has made bikes fucking awesome.

I think it was Boomforreal who brought up that one could fit 650b on a Stylus. I would assume you would have to get a different fork.

Can someone confirm this?

I asked Ian about an Aperture and it was to small for anything but the smallest tire. I am ready to pull the trigger on a 29er but preferably a 650b AM steel HT. Chromag is doing a small run of 65 local built frames this fall. There local stuff is out of my price range though. The Stylus is a bit burly for my needs though.

Can someone confirm this?

I asked Ian about an Aperture and it was to small for anything but the smallest tire. I am ready to pull the trigger on a 29er but preferably a 650b AM steel HT. Chromag is doing a small run of 65 local built frames this fall. There local stuff is out of my price range though. The Stylus is a bit burly for my needs though.

Transition TransAm

wasn't me (afaik) but i don't doubt they'd fit: the samurai can take a super-beefy tire in the back, and i imagine the stylus has even more room

As per my discussion with Ian and Chromag, they don't fit the Aperture/Samurai/TRL, or at least not well enough to provide suitable clearance for decent tires. They advised against it anyways.

That TransAm looks promising, except it doesn't come in an XL.

As per my discussion with Ian and Chromag, they don't fit the Aperture/Samurai/TRL, or at least not well enough to provide suitable clearance for decent tires. They advised against it anyways.

That TransAm looks promising, except it doesn't come in an XL.

Chromags do have really short chainstays, maybe that's why… btw if you need XL maybe a 29er is better for you.

wasn't me (afaik) but i don't doubt they'd fit: the samurai can take a super-beefy tire in the back, and i imagine the stylus has even more room

It can fit a Stylus and there is a pic as well.

http://forums.mtbr.com/canadian-bikes/chromag-pics-447244-19.html#post4835890

Instead, why don't we look BACKWARDS and remember about how shitty bikes used to be?

Of course the industry wants to make money, and of course some people benefit more than others from a massive number of SKUs, but lets be realistic that the culmination of all the incremental, overmarketed "game changers" over the last 10 years has made bikes fucking awesome.

Please.. Bikes havent changed in 5-7 years. Slight modifications and slightly better production processes but bike's haven't done and won't do anything else special. Besides, like mx bikes keeping it simple is still the best. Half the bikes out there are still single pivot.. Of course they need new wheels, you have to keep the tards who hang out at coffee shops with their "hip" new mtb's happy:lol:

Like sanchez said. Aiming for that market, yet the people who actually ride and don't buy into consumerism will always ride 26" and not give a fuck. It's people who buy a new bike every year because they can, or buy new parts because they are new and cool and bling that drive up prices.

I have a hard enough time keeping 26" wheels straight :lol:

….

…yet the people who actually ride and don't buy into consumerism will always ride 26" and not give a fuck. It's people who buy a new bike every year because they can, or buy new parts because they are new and cool and bling that drive up prices.

I have a hard enough time keeping 26" wheels straight :lol: