Super happy to not give a shit anymore. 29/700 wheels are great tho, if only because thatâs the same size as a road wheel.
if i postpone getting a new bike long enough maybe i can get a 35âer
Ugh mountain bikes are so stupid. Iâm over it.
if they hold speed better then surely a much heavier 29er wheel would do the same, right?
Iâm a big wheel nerd (29+ and 27.5 fat) and a Rigid Bike Enjoyer so Iâm keen to swing a leg over a full 32â rigid XC ATB thing. I also ride my 26 x 1.9â bike and 27.5â bike on trails. But when I wanna go fast and carry speed over roots and chunk the wagon wheels are the move. Folks can hate but itâs not like you wonât be able to keep building and riding 26â - 27.5â - 29â.
Feels like a 32 would always be heavier than a 29 of similar build for ??? Benefit
I realize I am 12+ years late to the latest generation but for enjoyable spirited mixed surface riding a 650x42 is pretty great
Edit: what 650b tires existed in 2014? Hetres, pari motos/??? Rivendell/panaracers. Babyshoe pass was introduced that year.
2016 was the âall roadâ year
I really want to know what is faster, a fat 650b or a narrow 700c at the same height/outside diameter, on gravel.
A 29â wheel is 10% bigger than a 26â wheel. They weigh a lot more but the speed you carry off road is night and day. A 32â wheel is 10% bigger than a 29â wheel. I havenât tried one, but I have spent a ton of time on bikes with a similar outer diameter (29+ and 27.5 fat) and itâs night and day to a 29 x 2.4â wheel. Of course if you just ride smooth stuff or donât care about MAX SPEED 
then who cares, but itâs fun to go zoom zoom.
Iâm curious too. Jan claims it doesnât matter but Iâm not so sure. This 27.5â and 27.5â+ trail tire testing from Seb Stott in 2019 is pretty interesting though. The tl;dw is that 2.8â were always faster, and by a pretty noticeable amount.
Schwalbe had Marathons.
Also, but maybe these are actually early 2015?
Surly/Panaracers
Soma/Panaracers
Bruce Gordon/Panaracers
Why not both at the same time?
At the same OD and assuming constant tire I donât think thereâs a good argument that the 700c will be faster. Rotational inertia isnât enough to overcome the suspension effects. Despite the current popular viewpoint, there also isnât really enough aero data to make the case there. With constant sag, the 700c combo maintains a slight advantage in OD (~5mm) but that isnât powerful enough either.
I asked John Karrasch about testing this last year and he didnât have any interest due to low 650b popularity and the cost of building another wheelset to match the 700c one he uses now to test very limited combinations. And maybe the rims werenât available in 650b either?
Itâs interesting, and it would be nice if there were other sources of non-Jan data. I have had better results relative to the field on 650bx2.2 than 700cx38/42.
Good on you, you are not the first.
Iâve done this tooâŚ
I am still a bit in denial about getting older and slower and while I enjoyed 2.0 x 650bs in my last (only) gravel race I was looking for excuses for why everyone was dropping my assâŚ
i wouldnât be as annoyed about the advent of 32" if the 26" rim/tire situation wasnât getting worse every year
iâve worked to fit bikes for a few very short friends over the past few years and itâs incredible frustrating how constrained your options become
Useful, although he doesnât publish the actual tire pressure and prefers to say something about ideal pressure for weight/surface based on one of the online calculators (Wolftooth?).
His Patreon is well worth the couple bucks btw
https://www.patreon.com/MTBandGravelPerformanceTestingbyJohnKarrasch?utm_campaign=creatorshare_fan
Talk to me about 26" 2.1/2.2/2.3 slick/street/BMX cruiser/pump track type tires.
Seems like all you see on these 90s MTB-turned-commuter builds are Billy Bonkers and Maxxis DTH. Are those popular for legit reasons or are they popular just because everyone else has them (like the Shure SM7B with podcasters)?
I like the idea of a relatively smooth tire because I want a smooth comfy ride and wonât go off road, but have never ridden tires like that before so I donât know whatâs what.
Gotta have the gumwall aesthetic, thatâs a non-negotiable, but what say you guys on whatâs actually a good tire? Looking at Goodyear Wingfoot Park, SimWorks (Panaracer) Volummy, Ultradynamico Cava, maybe even Rene Herse Rat Trap Pass âŚ
I really like the rat traps. I run them with sealant in tubes and they are a very nice ride. they are also getting very spendy.
I have the DTHâs on my ecommuter and they have held up very well and been sure footed on wet roads. less so with some snow on the ground.
when GF wears out her rat traps, Iâm putting DTH on her bike
Iâve got DTH on the 1x1 and theyâre just fine. Smooth enough for roads and paths, grippy enough for dirt/gravel trails. Probably not as fast as RTPs but theyâre also a tiny fraction of the price, and Iâm riding a 1x1.