Everyone is afraid of missing out on a trend, but nobody knows exactly where the journey is heading. The new 650B or 27.5 inch wheel size is now omnipresent and is already dominating the new products for the 2014 season alongside 29 inches. A surprisingly dynamic development compared to the sluggish acceptance of the large 29ers, which took years to gain a place in the range of manufacturers and the hearts of racers. 650B is the new 26 inch, they say. With very few exceptions, all bike and component manufacturers are committed to the new wheel size. New bikes, new suspension forks, new tyres and wheels. The current development bears the abbreviation 650B. But three different wheel sizes in the MTB sector? A constellation that not everyone believes in.
With a difference of just 12.5 millimetres in the radius, 650B is positioned much closer to 26 inches than to 29 inches, which is 19 millimetres away. Tall people and especially racers with little suspension travel are convinced by the noticeably different ride feel of the 29er compared to the traditional 26-inch size and the measurable advantages. Not so with 650B. The smaller differences result in direct competition between 26 and 27.5 inches. However, as the market is not expanding at will due to the new trend and there are hardly any new buyers, 650B is poaching in the 26-inch segment. A case of wheel cannibalism. Is 26-inch already being sidelined? No other topic has made our editorial team's email inboxes glow more in recent months.
All information on the 26, 27.5 and 29-inch MTB wheel sizes can be found in the full article - as a PDF download below:
- Fact check: 27.5 (650B) vs. 26 inch
- What the industry says
- What readers have to say
- The actual difference from 26 to 27.5 to 29 inches
