dude4

I bought a montague paratrooper of craigslist so the sales kind of final :S
it feels to tall for me to get on(fine once im riding)
i thought i would fit according to what the internet says but i guess for 5'9" ive got short legs
i was wondering if it could use 24" inch wheels on it so it was ever so slightly lower to the ground

would i run into any issues?

thanks

sknhgy 

Pedals may be very close to the ground.

Where do you live? How much would you take for it?

I am now folderless. I gave this to my 8 year old grandson and he loves it:

Dynocoaster 

how large a tire does it have?

pacificcyclist

Ahh, it sounds to me that you are a beginner cyclist. You do know that it is normal that you can not put your foot down while seated on the saddle. All modern bikes have a higher bottom bracket which makes it impossible to put your foot down when the bike is not moving and you are on the saddle. You need to learn how to dismount and mount from the bike. Lowering the seat will cause excessive knee bent. And using smaller sized wheels will loose all braking functions because the brake arms expects a larger rim. But if you have discs, you will change the fork trail and overall riding characteristcs of the bike that it will not ride as nice. If you can ride comfortably without locking the knees and have adequate stand over clearance, then you will have to learn how to mount and dismount from the saddle as you start up the bike.

gregoron

Obvious question, but did you adjust the seat height? I have a Montague DX and I'm 6'. I can adjust it really low. Going from 26" to 24" won't solve your problem due to pedal clearance as mentioned above.

robsta

Hi
I have 24 inch wheels on my paratrooper. I put them on as the 24s are easier to pack in a suitcase. The difference in pedal height did not cause me any probs. Of course, when on a corner you need to be aware pedal strike is possible and if off road your clearance will be a little less.
Cheers
Rob

GlowBoy

I would try making sure the saddle is adjusted properly, and spending some quality time on the bike getting used to it, before making a radical change like that.

You'll bring your pedals 1" closer to the ground, which is a BIG difference. Some people won't be bothered by it, but you'll need to be really careful to keep the inside pedal up in turns. I once landed flat on my face after clipping a pedal in a turn (while standing out of the saddle), not a fun experience.

As pacificcyclist mentioned, by lowering the axles without also changing other variables you will also radically change the handling. Your bike will have a lot less of what's known as "trail", which means the handling will be much quicker and less stable-feeling. Seasoned road-bike riders might find it preferable, but most beginning cyclists would probably find it twitchy and confidence-robbing.

And also as pacificcylist said, if you don't have disc brakes you won't be able to convert to 24" wheels (unless you also convert to disc brakes -- which may or may not be feasible depending on the age of your Paratrooper). If you do have discs you will be able to do it, but it still won't be cheap. No one makes a prefabricated 24" disc wheelset, so you'll need to have a custom wheelset built. Figure on at least $250 or so for that.

fietsbob

You mean big ones like , the brakes won't reach the rims. ?