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Trail Junky
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Your Take: Full suspension - 26 vs 27.5 vs 29
06/13/19 at 11:24pm
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Howdy peeps,

I am in the market for a new bike.  What's your take on 26 vs 27.5 vs 29 for wheel size on a full suspension rig.  I am 6' 5" and average 205 lbs.  Although I mostly ride at WWC and Sherman, I do move around in the greater Charlotte area and occasionally ride in Western NC.  I will be moving off a full suspension 2006 Giant Pistol 1 with 26" wheels.

Thanks,
-Clay
  
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IntheBush
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Re: Your Take: Full suspension - 26 vs 27.5 vs 29
Reply #1 - 06/14/19 at 12:51am
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Trail Junky wrote on 06/13/19 at 11:24pm:
Howdy peeps,

I am in the market for a new bike.  What's your take on 26 vs 27.5 vs 29 for wheel size on a full suspension rig.  I am 6' 5" and average 205 lbs.  Although I mostly ride at WWC and Sherman, I do move around in the greater Charlotte area and occasionally ride in Western NC.  I will be moving off a full suspension 2006 Giant Pistol 1 with 26" wheels.

Thanks,
-Clay


I'm 6'0 175 lbs. or there about.. All my bikes are 29ers.. But I have had and have ridden all three..

My take is, if you lean more towards XC and around this area and you're not incredibly small or short, 29ers make sense. 

If you're more into jumps, rougher trail conditions in the mountains, etc.. then I'd probably go 27.5. 

Considering your height, I have a feeling you'd probably feel more comfortable on the 29er. 
  
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JustinCeez
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Re: Your Take: Full suspension - 26 vs 27.5 vs 29
Reply #2 - 06/14/19 at 12:26pm
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29er all the way based on height alone.  I don't ride one personally......but I'm only 5'8".
  
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AgentRuss
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Re: Your Take: Full suspension - 26 vs 27.5 vs 29
Reply #3 - 07/03/19 at 8:54pm
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I'm 6'3" and 205lbs... and I love my Intense ACV - which is a 27.5+ full squish with 2.8" tires. 

It climbs great and is a blast on the downhills. And the the plus-sized tires give it a profile close to a 29er, but with more tread to grip the trails. 

Whatever you decide, find a shop that has different options for you to demo so you can find what makes you smile on the trails! I have been working with the guys at Ultimate for years and highly recommend them.

Good luck and happy shopping!
  
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Re: Your Take: Full suspension - 26 vs 27.5 vs 29
Reply #4 - 07/04/19 at 1:14pm
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For trail riding, I had a 27.5 for a few years and recently switched back to a 29er.  It's 29er all the way for me.  I just like the bigger wheels and admittedly it makes rough technical trails easier to ride.  I think a 27.5+ as mentioned would be ok too but I still feel more balanced and dialed in on my 29er full suspension.  Just my preference.  I will also say that a lot of the riding I have done on the left hand side of the dial (west coast) seems better suited for 29ers to me.  The less steep "angle of incident" when rolling big step downs and the bigger tires ability to roll through larger chunky rocky sections are a big advantage.  This is much appreciated in WNC too.   Cool
  
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sig_edmund
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Re: Your Take: Full suspension - 26 vs 27.5 vs 29
Reply #5 - 07/17/19 at 5:56pm
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6'4 and 215.  Ridden all three and if you are going to keep the bike for a while the choice is simple.  You should ride 29 for the scale alone.  For someone of your frame, or mine it is simply more stable, and responds to a larger persons input like a smaller person on a 27.5/26.

If you get the right travel/ geometry for your riding the 29er can be every bit a playful as a 26/27.5 with more roll over capability, and faster corner speeds if you want to push it.  That having been said figure out what flavor you like by riding a few.
  
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