GamblerGORD53

So WTH does this have to do with the Walmart bike buying crowd?? Nothing.

veganbikes

Not to be that person but the third world hasn't existed since December 25th, 1991. Since the Soviet Union fell there is no need for 1st, 2nd and 3rd world because there is no aligning or not aligning with the Soviet Union anymore since it has ceased to be, it is no more. The "third world" was countries not aligned with either of the two major powers the U.S. and the S.U. Less developed or under developed countries makes more sense.

In terms of tire obsolescence probably won't be for another 50 years or more. Given that I can get just about any tire size these days quite easily I don't worry too much about it. Certainly as the slow march of time goes on you will see fewer options but it will be quite a long time. I can still get plenty of good quality 20" tires and 26" tires without too much work. Heck just bought some Schwalbe ISO 590 tires for the shop to sell and that is a well outdated size.

MarcusT

What most 26" boosters are forgetting to mention is that most LBS do not carry quality 26" tires and need to be ordered or purchased online
And to the members who believe that outside the USA is full of 26" tires. I suggest you travel outside the USA.
The reason many people believe 26" tires are so popular in poorer nations is due to the fact that they get the older bikes donated. It will not be too long before the donated bikes are 27.5, 28, 29 and the 26 goes the way of the dodo.
Unless, of course, a cunning bike manufacturer comes up with a priceless ad campaign and re market the 26er as the latest fad after the gravel bike. Then the 26" tire will be reborn

tcs

You can still buy 28x1 3/4 single tube tires, which have not been used on factory bikes since 1932.

Chandne

For cruising-around tires, they will continue but the selection will continue to decline and they are already have. Good mountain bike tires have already become obsolete in the 26" size though.

Ironfish653

https://www.biketiresdirect.com/search/26in-mtb-tires

Only 27 options on one page for MTB / Dirt Jump knobbies, from, Kenda, Conti, Maxxis, Schwalbe and Surly.
Slim pickings, indeed.

icemilkcoffee 

On Modernbike.com, there are over 200 26" tires (and that's not counting the fat tires) available:
https://www.modernbike.com/26-inch-tires+availableisyes

Chandne

The DHF/DHR ares till good designs. The rest are either super draggy or good for cruising around. Not sure if even one is tubeless. Hardly anyone uses tubes in MTB. The 26" bikes are pretty much vanished from even lineup and the tires are slim pickings

icemilkcoffee 

Modernbike shows over 50 tubeless 26" tires:
https://www.modernbike.com/26-inch-t...ready-clincher
And that is not counting the fat tires > 2.5" wide.

Chandne

Still only Maxxis shows 2.3s and tubeless, mainly. Those are decent tires. If Maxxis gives, it's over for decent tubeless 26" MTB tires. The only other one is Schwalbe Nobby Nic old design. I actually used to use those in the mid-late 2000s. I'd hate to be in the 26 world now. Of course, I left it in 2008 and moved to 29ers. Then the 27.5" came on full force but they got wiped out to a large degree as well, though there is still a decent selection for them. There were 4-5 years where they were going strong and were thought to be the king, even unseating the 29er but that did not last long.

georges1

sorry to disagree but on bike 24 there are at least 191 mtb 26 inch tires for sale. So it depends where you shop online,some on line shops have a poorer selection of 26 inch tires than others

Chandne

You can disagree all you want but as primarily a mountain biker since the 90s, I have seen the 26" selection degrade to almost nothing I'd use except for the Maxxis DHF/DHR. Even those are old molds. No new 26" tires so you are left with the old selection and most are not tubeless. Hardly anyone buys 26" MTBs as serious mountain bikes now so why will they keep making the tires? They don't. They just use the old Fire XC type of molds that are far inferior to today's tires that are mainly in 29 and som win 27.5. Goodyear just came in with a few and Maxxis has awesome tires like the Dissector, Forekaster, Rekon, Rekon Race. Specialized makes the Butcher and Purgatory plus a few other solid ones. Sure you can find a few 26" tires but there are very few good ones and no new designs, since 26ers hardly sell anymore. Not sure why you think the selection is amazing...the selection is awful. Are you a mountain biker? What tires do you run now? What type of trails do you ride?

georges1

I use mostly and exclusively Continental Mountain King tubeless tires and Hutchinson Toro tubeless tires, my next tires for my other MTB projects will be Continental Race King Tubeless and Continental Mountain King tires, all in 26*2.2. Don't generalize, not everybody is in the hype of 27.5inch and 29 inch MTBs. There are also some other firms like Michelin and Panaracer who produce fine 26inch MTB tires. Good Year is too new to the game of MTB tires whereas Specialized 26 inch tires of today like the Hardrock R or the Crossroads Armadillo aren't even tubeless, don't offer the same level of Protection and grip compared with Continental Chili Compound and the fact Continental tires are handmade is why I buy them.I ride often in stony and uneven terrain as well as forests. I am a road bike rider and a mountain biker as well. Another comparison between 29 vs 26 inch Wheels - Is bigger really better? and it says :"As for XC racing, the area where 29ers are really gaining traction, I feel the best wheel size will vary depending on the course. With lots of stop-start corners and steep climbs, a 26-inch wheel may be fastest. On bumpy trails where the speed is more consistent, go the 29er. If the course combines all of these traits, as is often the case, just toss a coin. In any case, no wheel size is going to win the race for you. Even at the elite level, where races are won by fractions, it’s the rider that wins the race. 26er Bikes: 14 pros and cons to help you decide which says :"Based on their attributes, 26er bikes excel in areas where they can maximize their acceleration and strength. You will see them in extreme sports like Downhill Mountain Biking and Park riding, where the strength and reliability are more than needed." Which explains why I only ride 26inch wheeled MTBs only. Tried a 27.5 and a 29, not for me

bboy314

Considering the OP is concerned with finding tires to fit a kick scooter, I think they’ll be Ok going forward.

ofajen

Yeah, while some companies like Schwalbe have bailed on 26” MTB tires, there doesn’t seem to be a similar decline in 20” or 26” tires in the urban/tour models.

Otto

Chandne

You may think it is hype but look at any race. I raced the Firecracker 50 and several others. There are hardly anything but 29ers. The pros are on 29ers too. Of course, ALL our races have no tiny courses with tons of stop-and-go. I have ridden 26ers since the 90s. I'm faster and more stable than my 26ers and I had really nice ones....Yeti, Ventanas, Turner, Intense, and a Moots YBB. My trail club has around 200 riders...a dozen are on 27.5 and the rest on 29ers. Not a single one on 26er. I have ridden in Kansas City, Arkansas, Utah, Colorado, Washington and Oregon. Pretty much everyone is on a 29er though I see some females on 27.5, and a few shorter riders. I have been on MTBR.com since the 90s. The main complaint from the few on 26er is the lack of a good tire selection compared to what we have today for the rest. Glad you are happy. Most of us have moved on. Not everyone has to. I currently ride an Ibis Rimpo and Trek Top Fuel. I now race on a Santa Cruz Blur TR. I do get on a 26er every now and then since my buddy's guest bike is a pretty nice Turner 5-Spot. The difference is stark but our trails can be very twisty but are also fast and steep. As someone mentioned, the OP will be more than happy with his scooter tires.

georges1

You seem to forget until the apparition of 27.5 and 29 MTBs most of the races in enduro, downhill and xc were on won on 26 MTBs so that is not something small . Legends like Dario Acquaroli, Flying Tinker Juarez, Missy Giove, Paola Pezzo, Anne Caroline Chausson, Alison Sydor, Jerome Chiotti, Nicolas Vouilloz, Julien Absalon and Nino Shurter to name a few won their titles on the 26 inch Mavic Crossmax wheels (the most winning wheels in MTB racing). Where I live I still see some people riding 26 ers not many but there aresome who do it. I can find good tires at Bike 24 at luckily for me I do. In Europe there are still many fans and riders of the 26ers. But to each their own.

msu2001la

What is a foot bike?

Chandne

Back then, all we had were 26ers, so of course they ALL used them. Then they moved on. My last 26er was an Ibis Mojo. I really liked that bike a lot. Then I bought a Titus Racer-X 29er and was hooked. I was faster but it felt more stable at speed. I could keep up with the fastest buddies on the downhill, and I liked that 29er feel. Maybe it was because I'm 6 ft tall too. They say taller guys generally prefer the bigger wheels. Anyway, I don't care what people ride though my 7-8 favorite manufacturers do not build 26ers anymore.. If 26er fans can find tires/parts and like 26ers, go for it. Best to stock up a bit since they are vanishing fast. I'd buy some tires and (since I only use custom wheels) I'd also buy two sets of nice rims. My favorites were the Mavic XM819s at the time. I actually use Bike24 sometimes as well, and mainly for tires. They seems to be cheaper so I buy 6-8 Maxxis tires at a time.

bboy314

Schwalbe still has plenty of 26” offerings, from road to aggressive MTB tread.

georges1

3 of my mountain bikes are fitted with the XM 819 v brake rim and I have 3 sets of spare XM819 v brake rims which is the rim from Mavic that could withstand the most abuse alongwith the D521 and the EX723. I bought a lot of components from Bike 24, Bike Components and SJS Cycles.

Crwban

ofajen

Could be some aggressive, slow MTB tires I guess. None of the Schwalbe MTB tires that rate highly in terms of low rolling resistance are available in 26”. Those are the ones I might use.

I’m specifically talking about MTB tires here. Seems like everyone is still making lots of urban, e-bike and touring tires in 26”.

Otto

msu2001la

Weird - but yeah... I'd assume these designs will evolve away from traditional 26" wheels and into 700c, much as the rest of the bike industry has.

People in this thread are correctly noting that 26" isn't as common in "developing" countries as it once was, but there are millions of 26" bikes out there and these bikes will continue to be in use for many decades, so I'd expect tire manufacturers to keep making tires for them. You're not going to find the latest wiz bang aero tubeless race tires in this size though.

JanMM

The three recumbent bikes that I ride - two short wheelbase singles and a tandem that I share with my wife/stoker - all have 20"/406 front and 26"/559 rear wheels. Two Schwalbe Marathon Racers 1.50" on the tandem, Panaracer T-Serv 1.50" on both singles rear wheels and Panaracer Minits Tough 1.25"on one single's front and Kenda Kwest 1.25" on the other bike's front. All urban/touring type tires. Still not too hard to find tires in these sizes online. Closest I've come to mountain bikes was a 1985 Jamis Gentry city bike that came with Panaracer 559 radial ply tires with street tread.