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Is 27.5" dead?

Old 09-07-19, 01:07 PM
  #51  
carlosponti
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one of the guys I ride with likes 27.5 hes 5' 4" he just feels more comfortable on one.
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Old 09-07-19, 02:29 PM
  #52  
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Originally Posted by unmumpsimus
There are many folks like that out here. Still on 27.5 for my bigger bike, no interest in "upgrading" it to 27.5+
Yeah, I have to chuckle at “plus” being assumed to be an “upgrade”.
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Old 09-08-19, 10:32 AM
  #53  
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Originally Posted by unmumpsimus
Wait, you do realize that bike fit is much more complicated than wheel size vs. height, don't you?

For example, one of the guys I've ridden with likes 26" and he's 6'7'. Another guy spent years on a 29er SS in the early aughts and he's 5'5"
he doesnt like how it feels to be up as high as on a 29er not so much a bike fit issue. I am aware of bike fit. some people say when they try a 29 over a 27 they feel like they are sitting up high and it makes them uncomfortable. its mainly a preference thing than fit for him. I rode 26 before I got a 29 and I like the feel of the larger wheel over the smaller.
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Old 09-08-19, 03:02 PM
  #54  
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Originally Posted by carlosponti
he doesnt like how it feels to be up as high as on a 29er not so much a bike fit issue. I am aware of bike fit. some people say when they try a 29 over a 27 they feel like they are sitting up high and it makes them uncomfortable. its mainly a preference thing than fit for him. I rode 26 before I got a 29 and I like the feel of the larger wheel over the smaller.
You are not any higher up on a 29er than on a 27.5 or 26. BB height is independent of the wheel size that the bike is designed for.
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Old 09-08-19, 06:25 PM
  #55  
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you people are being too pedantic, feels is the word i used at least three times. I already know about frame geometry etc sometimes people like what they like. it doesn't always make sense from a technical aspect. just like clipless vs flats or did i just open another whole can of worms
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Old 09-09-19, 06:30 AM
  #56  
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Originally Posted by carlosponti
sometimes people like what they like
Word! ^^^
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Old 09-09-19, 07:49 AM
  #57  
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Originally Posted by Kapusta
Yeah, I have to chuckle at “plus” being assumed to be an “upgrade”.
27.5+ is definite upgrade over 27.5. I've ridden both.
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Old 09-09-19, 07:59 AM
  #58  
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It
Originally Posted by prj71
27.5+ is definite upgrade over 27.5. I've ridden both.
Well that is just your personal taste, and one definitively NOT shared by people racing DH and Enduro where 27.5 is much, much more common than 27.5+.

Last edited by Kapusta; 09-09-19 at 08:11 AM.
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Old 09-09-19, 10:38 AM
  #59  
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Originally Posted by Kapusta
Yeah, I have to chuckle at “plus” being assumed to be an “upgrade”.
I know some really sandy trails that would disagree.
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Old 09-09-19, 11:22 AM
  #60  
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Originally Posted by fly135
I know some really sandy trails that would disagree.
Yes, but I think you are missing my point.

“Upgrade” implies something fulfills a similar function, but better.

My point is NOT that plus size does can’t be preferable for some terrain or riding style. My point is that the blanket characterization that it is an “upgrade” is nonsense.

4.8” tires are preferable to plus tires in the snow and sand. Does that mean that fat bikes are therefore definitive “upgrades” over plus bikes? Of course not, they’re just a different tool for a different job. The same thing applies to standard versus plus tires .
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Old 09-09-19, 11:41 AM
  #61  
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Some markets in the world never accepted 27.5" at all and still sell only 26" and 29"/700c. It varies by country what has been accepted as the norm. Pretty sure 26" wheel bikes sales are the majority for mountain bikes worldwide but of course they are including basic entry level bikes in that. The great thing about 29" wheels is they share the same tyres as 700c wheels (rim width permitting) so it's easy to get road tyres for 29" mountain bikes. They roll over bumps better. Yes they need to be engineered better to be as strong as 27.5" wheels for off-road use but still it doesn't surprise me if the market moves more to 29" wheels its a world standard. The modern stretched geometry and 29" wheels makes for some pretty great bikes.
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Old 09-09-19, 02:15 PM
  #62  
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There are some really nice 27.5 x 2.2 tires on clearance right now
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Old 09-10-19, 08:42 AM
  #63  
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Originally Posted by Kapusta
J

Actually NONE of those are marketed as 27.5+. All but two are marketed as 27.5, and the remaining two (Spearfish and 429) as 29ers that can take 27.5 Plus.
  • Pivot Mach 4, Mach 5.5 (and also Mach 6 , and "standard" Firebird) are all 27.5, not 27.5 plus. None of them will even clear plus tires.
  • Santa Cruz Bronson (and 5010) are both built around 27.5 though they can clear 2.8s. Several built kits come with 2.3s.
  • Mojos comes stock with 2.6s. So sort of in between plus and standard. 2.3s would work fine with that if that is how you roll.
  • Giant Reign (along with many other offerings from Giant) is 27.5, not plus. It is designed for 2.3-2.8.
  • Salsa Rustler is designed for tires 2.3-2.8.

Yes, some of these CAN clear 2.8s, but that is not what they are built around.

27.5 is not dead and is unlikely to die, even if it becomes less of the market share.
My '15 S-Works Enduro 29 can run 27.5 in a 2.8. Pretty versatile bike, but sorta lacks any real focus other than it can plow through stuff pretty efficiently. I've not tried running the 297.5 as suggested in this thread. That would be an interesting experiment.
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Old 09-10-19, 08:50 AM
  #64  
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Originally Posted by qclabrat
Looks like 27.5 ain't dead in the UK, Calibre just released a 1100 pound full suspension. What's that in dollars or quid?
Silly name but the price is the BikesDirect range

https://www.pinkbike.com/u/RideCalib...-for-2019.html
Ha! I thought you were making fun of the weight. Looks like a beast!
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Old 09-10-19, 08:55 AM
  #65  
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Originally Posted by rodgeman
It can. It is desert - rocks, gravel, dirt, and some hills.
For sure, smaller wheels favor rock crawling, and tight/fast singletrack like what you find in Sedona. So do higher volume tires, which are still pretty popular in the desert. I've sorta settle on 2.6 for the time being.

I've been doing a lot of back country riding on my S-works Enduro. It's a bit clumsy to haul around when the trail gets uber primitive, but gets the job done on the system trails. The 26 was better for that type of stuff, too.
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Old 09-10-19, 07:33 PM
  #66  
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27.5 ,29 mtb.

was only a fad (gimmick) to boost bike sales.whats the latest -greatest next road bike wheel size going to be???
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Old 09-11-19, 07:20 AM
  #67  
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In all reality 27.5 and 27.5+ is fading away. It's starting to be offered less and less by the major bike manufacturers in favor of the 29er.

29 x 2.4 - 2.6 seems to be where things have settled with the option to run 27.5+ wheels on most frames. Nice to have options.
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Old 09-11-19, 09:09 AM
  #68  
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Originally Posted by prj71
In all reality 27.5 and 27.5+ is fading away. It's starting to be offered less and less by the major bike manufacturers in favor of the 29er.
That is not reality, it is your future prediction.

The reality is that 27.5 has lost market share, but is still pretty well represented, and new 27.5 bikes continue to be released. And bought.

As far as 27.5+.... As far as I can tell, after a correction in the over-enthusiastic bubble, interest in and availabilty of 27.5+ has been remaining pretty consistent for the past few years.

THAT is the reality.

That the above is somehow indicative of them “fading away” - which implies a fate similar to 26 - is conjecture.

Last edited by Kapusta; 09-11-19 at 02:26 PM.
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Old 09-11-19, 12:50 PM
  #69  
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Originally Posted by Kapusta
It

Well that is just your personal taste, and one definitively NOT shared by people racing DH and Enduro where 27.5 is much, much more common than 27.5+.
I've ridden both at DH parks and personally prefer the smaller 27.5 wheels, also there aren't many plus tires with DH casings either
Though what the pros ride shouldn't matter, they are gravitating towards low BB 29r rigs. It could be what the manufacturers are pushing, like how every PGA player uses graphite shafts now.
Here's a few interesting bike checks and more than half are 29rs.
https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/WO...S-Maribor,2669

Don't like seeing this thread moving in a 27.5 haters direction. I had trouble dropping my 26rs a few years ago along with so many telling me they were crap. I actually road my first gen Ibis Mojo this past weekend after being shelved for some time. The first few hours were were sketchy and awkward till I was able figure out how 20 years of differences changed the way I rode. Afterwards, though I was still not fully comfortable, I was having a blast. Actually the biggest difference from me to overcome were the 10 year old Geax Gatos, they are near new, but the compounds are so much stickier now. Coming around turns I was definitely braking more than normal and the steeper headtube were no help either. But is did ride with 760mm bars, sub-700 bars is something never be able to get back to.

Ride what you brung and take everyone's opinions as just that.
btw: I was considering selling the Mojo, but it's moved back up to #2 of bikes I'll never sell
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Old 09-11-19, 12:54 PM
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Originally Posted by unmumpsimus
Wait, you do realize that bike fit is much more complicated than wheel size vs. height, don't you?

For example, one of the guys I've ridden with likes 26" and he's 6'7'. Another guy spent years on a 29er SS in the early aughts and he's 5'5"
yes bike fit, is your friend on a medium SS?
some frame geos are really hard to mate with 29r wheels which is why to preserve the angles they need to be dropped to 27.5, especially some FS frames. Some companies don't even sell small 29rs for that reason. Or their smalls are more like mediums
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Old 09-11-19, 01:07 PM
  #71  
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Originally Posted by Bandrada
My '15 S-Works Enduro 29 can run 27.5 in a 2.8. Pretty versatile bike, but sorta lacks any real focus other than it can plow through stuff pretty efficiently. I've not tried running the 297.5 as suggested in this thread. That would be an interesting experiment.
That's been the experiment for riders in my group. Most doing are riding bikes like the Hightower which is spec's with both wheel sizes, but not changing the forks.
Others are trying out the Super Boost, which I not sure whether it will catch on. Most of my bikes are still 142rear and I've been holding out to go with regular boost. Though a few of my bikes do have dropouts which can convert to 148.

What's the rear travel on your bike?
the Mixer builds are called Mullet bikes by me
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Old 09-11-19, 01:17 PM
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Originally Posted by qclabrat
That's been the experiment for riders in my group. Most doing are riding bikes like the Hightower which is spec's with both wheel sizes, but not changing the forks.
Others are trying out the Super Boost, which I not sure whether it will catch on. Most of my bikes are still 142rear and I've been holding out to go with regular boost. Though a few of my bikes do have dropouts which can convert to 148.

What's the rear travel on your bike?
the Mixer builds are called Mullet bikes by me
I think that was the last bike bike that Speicalized made with the 142+ (Spesh early version of boost) was 2015, but I could be wrong. In any case, this allowed clearance for a higher volume tire, but the tire market for high volume 29" tires never really caught on until just recently. The cool part is that I swapped the yoke for the 27.5 yoke and viola I could slam a 2.8x27.5 in three. I also had to get offset shock hardware to keep the bridge from bottoming out on the seat tube. I ran the 2.8 tires for a full season, and like I said, I've settled on 2.6, which is still not quite as popular as 2.5. The Enduro is 160 in the back, and I also modded the Yari up front for 170 mm of travel to bring the BB up slightly since going with 27.5 basically slammed my BB to the ground.

It's called the "Bastard".

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Old 09-12-19, 08:02 AM
  #73  
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Originally Posted by Kapusta
That is not reality, it is your future prediction.

The reality is that 27.5 has lost market share, but is still pretty well represented, and new 27.5 bikes continue to be released. And bought.

As far as 27.5+.... As far as I can tell, after a correction in the over-enthusiastic bubble, interest in and availabilty of 27.5+ has been remaining pretty consistent for the past few years.

THAT is the reality.

That the above is somehow indicative of them “fading away” - which implies a fate similar to 26 - is conjecture.
Head over to Jenson and filter bikes by wheel size. 29 dominates. As it does on Specialized, Trek and to some degree Giant's website. Giant jumped in with both feet on 27.5 and are gravitating back to 29 on their models now because they realized the mistake. 27.5+ , which was common for 2-3 years, is starting to be replaced by 29 with boost spacing which gives a person the 27.5+ option. Then the manufacture only needs to sell the bike with one wheel option leaving it to the customer to decide if they want 27.5+

My gut feeling is that 27.5 will go the way of 26 in the near future.

Last edited by prj71; 09-12-19 at 08:07 AM.
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Old 09-12-19, 08:50 AM
  #74  
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Originally Posted by prj71
Head over to Jenson and filter bikes by wheel size. 29 dominates. As it does on Specialized, Trek and to some degree Giant's website. Giant jumped in with both feet on 27.5 and are gravitating back to 29 on their models now because they realized the mistake. 27.5+ , which was common for 2-3 years, is starting to be replaced by 29 with boost spacing which gives a person the 27.5+ option. Then the manufacture only needs to sell the bike with one wheel option leaving it to the customer to decide if they want 27.5+
Yes, this re-enforces the point you were making, and my response is the same.

My gut feeling is that 27.5 will go the way of 26 in the near future.
Gut feelings are perfectly valid when acknowledged as such.

My gut feeling is that 27.5 is going to follow the path of plus-sized tires and fat bikes. Like fat and plus-size tires, there will be (and we have been seeing) a market correction for the over enthusiasm/overproduction, but they will not go away in the same way 26 has.

Both of our gut feelings are consistent with what we are currently seeing in the market. So really only time will tell.
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Old 09-12-19, 08:55 AM
  #75  
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Definitely a market correction for fat and 27.5+. Fat market became saturated and the number of people left to buy one has diminished because a bunch of us have fatties now. I've reserved my fat bike for winter use only these days. Tried riding it for a full summer and it just wasn't fun with no suspension.

I like 27.5+ tire size. Had a full suspension 27.5+ bike and loved the traction and how much easier it was going thru rock gardens. I sold it a few months ago and am saving up for a new 29er with 27.5+ option where I can just swap wheels. In the meantime been riding my 29er hardtail which has noticeably less traction.
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