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I have ridden a 26er for over 20 years. From trail riding, to downhill runs, to XC racing. All of this time riding and I never thought about using another wheel size. That all changed in 2008 when a friend of mine suggested that I test out his Fisher Hi-Fi 29er. Well 3 months later I purchased my own 29er, a Titus Racer X. After riding the 29er for several months I decided to also try out a set of 650B wheels and compare them to the long standing 26er.

My riding location is mainly a lot of dry technical steep climbs/descents with rocks and ruts, therefore pedal clearance is important to me. I had available two fork sizes, a 2008 Lefty Speed DLR 110(limited to 90) and a 2006 Lefty Max 140 SPV with a 2009 PBR 130 cartridge(limited to 120). I ran the Lefty Speed the first month and never really liked how the bike felt so I swapped it out for the Lefty Max. With the Lefty Max mounted the bike awakened, it also gave me better BB clearance. The only minor negative I found was that on the really steep climbs it requires more body input to keep the front end down. Overall the Titus is fun to ride and it climbs very good with almost zero bob.

Wheel Testing

The two bikes I used for the test: 2008 Cannondale Rize and 2008 Titus Racer X.
The measured sizes of the tire diameter @ 20 psi are, Kenda Nevegal/Notubes Rims

29x2.2(28.99"),Kenda Nevegal/NoTubes Rims 27.5x2.35(27.56"),

Geax Sturdy/Mavic UST Rims 26x2.2(27.03").

The wheel combinations I tried are listed below.

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29er vs 650B vs 26er

After 8 months of testing all three wheel sizes here's what I found; The 650B steered a little quicker vs 29er, but it lacked the traction and roll over of a 29er. On the climbs the 650B climbed just like my 26x2.2. Both sizes climbed and descended good but the 29er just worked better than both. The two sizes 27.5" and 26" are very close in size. IMO it does not make sense to invest in a 27.5(650B) design. You can practically get the 650B diameter by simply changing your tires from 2.0" to 2.2", and its a lot cheaper. If you've been thinking about changing wheels I'd skip the 26er along with the 650B and make the jump to the 29er.

2009 Medium Titus Racer X 29er

-3" Rear Travel Fox RP23 6.5 x 1.50"

-2006 Lefty Max w/09 PBR Cartridge Limited to 120mm

-Stans Arch Rims, Lefty SI Front Hub / DT 240 Rear Hub

-Tires:(29er)Kenda Nevegal 2.2F/Maxxis CrossMark 2.1R

-Cannondale SL Crank 2 x 9 w/custom BB

-XTR Cassette, Rear Shifter, Rear Derailleur, Front Derailleur, and Pauls Thumbie Front Shifter

-Hayes Master Cylinder / Hayes F/R Calipers / Hope 203F, 140R Rotors

-Cannondale OS Stem 110/Profile Solar Carbon Bar

-Seat WTB Rocket/Tompson Elite 30.9 post

-Shimano XT pedals

-BB Height 13"

-26.4 Lbs. Complete with Pedals

On test 2010 Access XCL 9r Frame vs 2009 Gary Fisher Paragon Frame.........stay tuned!