@@gmbntech 27.5 front (Assegai) & rear (DHR2)! It rocks! 💫 Having had full 29er before, in my experience I can say that I didn’t enjoy at all. For me as a 171cm height rider, it felt less controllable.
2022 Jeckyll 29/29, 2023 trance x29 is ironically a mullet (29/27.5) my aurum is 27.5/27.5 but I'm on the Trance 80% of the time I ride if you exclude my commuter bike 🤓 *I sent the Jeckyll twice on the bike vault it was never featured so I sent the Trance but the picture was pretty ish I'll try to get a better one tomorrow. With a view or something 😂 plus now it has the coil and custom flip chip back on 😈 Third edit... Owen did a great job with this one, love the nerding!
I've still got a 26inch bike too - although they are some real advantages to both 650b/27.5 and 29er - but the best bike is the bike your riding - so keep enjoying the trails! Cheers Owen
I think rider height is a big consideration. I’m over 6ft and since discovering full 29er would not go back. Riding style is also a factor. Mullet set up on a larger frame looks wrong as well but I get that is just aesthetics. Having the option to run both is the answer. Maybe 😂
Interesting insights - I agree - I feel like rider height is big aspect too - but there is a nice something about how the smaller rear wheel helps in turns! what bike are you riding the most at the moment? Again thanks for sharing! Cheers Owen
@@OwenBikeNerd I don't disagree a smaller wheel helps in turns in some cases but overall, for me, full 29er is a good balance for mt riding. I am currently on a new Orbea Wild FS and an Orange Stage Evo 29er 🙂. Cheers - Dan
I've always thought that 29 is a bad option for short people (like me). Apart from the fact that it is simply too big, the clearance between tyre & saddle is too small for most rear luggage options. Switching to 27.5 at the back is going to be an improvement in that respect
im tall and hate it in everything but blasting rock gardens. So very not agile and boring. Speed feels like you dont have speed. I understand racing but I feel like if people want to enjoy biking they should ride mullet max
Started MTB with an MX set. Tried a square 29" setup - flexy and unwieldy. Tried 27.5 square - very fun. So it's between 29/27.5 and 27.5/27.5 for me. More travel and less flex on 27.5 forks, so I favor that for DH and jumps. MX climbs better over chatter, so it's a good AM setup.
@@bitumen83except that if we had followed moto design instead of evolving from stupid skinny tire road bikes by cyclists we’d have gotten to where we are a lot quicker. Moto had all this stuff figured out in the 80s.
@@bitumen83 emtb aren't human powered my record uphhil was 6069ft on muscular xc 120mm (mtb is not my main sport) I rented an emtb did 6889ft and was did I really do sport today ? or was it just pretend, don't misunderstand I want an emtb probably in 2025 but it's motorcross light it's not bicycling for them it makes a lot of sense
I have a Specialized Status which introduced me to the MX wheelset and S2, size configuration. I learned about frame geometry and ended with a 29/29 setup since i was able to fit one. This allowed me to ride faster, rock climb better, and resell the bike. Now on a S3 and I am missing the playfullness but now have stability. We will see what else will teach me.
My ebike was 29 for a year. This year I went to mixed. I was replacing a rear wheel (OEM hub was dying) and just decided to give it a try. There is a difference but to tell the truth not enough to really get me excited. A bit quicker out of the corners but since I am not racing this is not a critical deal. The small wheel does give me a bit more push when I hit the pedals. This is good and bad. Fun when I want to lift the front or get across nasty stuff. Bad when trying to get moving on a loose slope. Just spins. I have an older acoustic 27.5 X 27.5 I rode for 5 years. When I bought a new acoustic 4 years ago I bought a 29er because it was the hottest thing. I was not impressed. Sluggish. No where near as fun as the 27.5 squared. I then got rich for a month and bought some Berd wheels for the 29er. (I was immediately poor again.) OMG! The 29er handled as well as the 27.5 with all the advantages of the 29 wheels. The lesson for me is on an acoustic bike do not worry too much about size, worry about rotational weight. Light wheels and light tires will give you a whole new bike. Of course if you get those tires too light and you ride heavy you are going to have issues. Absolutely none of this applies for the downhill crowd.
I have all three setups but I run my hardtail 27.5 front and rear because I use it as a giant BMX bike. I specifically bought the frame to have the highest bottom bracket and the shortest chain stays. It runs a 29er front fork and if I'm going to go out on something really Steep and techie I will throw a 29er front wheel on it. it really is amazing the difference it makes in going down rooty rocky steeps
I have not tried mixed wheel sizes, but I do have one of each (26er, 27.5er, and 29er). I love the speed and cornering ability of the 29er, but I have so much more confidence on the 27.5er when the terrain in question is technical and steep. In my mind, that extra bit of rollover isn't worth the smaller clearance beneath myself. The options for 27.5" bikes may continue to dwindle, but I think the standard will live on due both to mixed-wheel setups and because the industry must cater to riders of all sizes.
good video hesitating between a 140/150 29-29 and a 170/170 27.5-29 for 2025 as someone riding a 27.5 front and rear for almost a decade I can say the only negative of 27.5 for me is the front wheel banging into roots and rocks and stopping me dead in steep climbs, a front 29 seems better for sure
Very in depth analysis but you missed the main point. If a 27.5 wheel and a 29 wheel are leaned at the same angle, the 27.5 wheel will make a tighter arc. When you turn a bike the rear wheel turns a tighter arc than the front wheel so it should be smaller. Dirt bikes have had different sized wheels for a very long time. This is why the MX wheeled bike feels better in the corners. For everything but cross country MX wheels is the way to go and it won't be long before all bikes except xc are MX
Came in here to say exactly this (and some other stuff). 27.5" turns sharper at the same lean angle. Sometimes that quick turning is better and sometimes that sweeping turning of a 29" is better. BUT that's an easily measurable and noticeable difference. Horses for courses, and all that. Combine that with the less weight, less gyroscopic effect (meaning less stability but also less non-rider force acting on the bike), more wheel stiffness, and more clearance (so my ass and suspension designed can both be a little less compromised) and you might find yourself deciding mixed wheel is a great idea...and I think you'd be right. I'm a short dude so it's a great idea for me anyway...but also there are a bunch of other good reasons beside that for considering a mixed wheel setup.
Nody talks about the gyroscopic effect of larger wheels, larger wheels are more stable but to me thats not really what I want in a downhill bike.. I prefer being able to turn sharper and quicker, I 27er is noticably more agile.. I agree that xc is 29s game..
I like the mixed wheel setup for me, I find it more fun to ride, snappier, better control and easier descending. Only downside is the needing two inner tube sizes on long epics and buying two different size tires.
I just mulleted my Santa Cruz v3 Bronson (2019) from a full 27.5. I have a lot of saddle time on full 27.5, full 29ers, and mullets. As a nonracer who only cares about times bc I like to go fast, for me it breaks down like this: -If I want a super fun playful bike with a bmx bike kind of feel- full 27.5. -If I like riding steeps, especially technical ones, both up and down, a mullet is the clear winner. -If I am riding flowy rolling terrain, or fast gnar but not necessarily extremely steep, then it’s a 29er. Why? Full 27.5 is the most playful bike. Especially when you might be doing things at slower speeds, like what we used to call dicking around, they are the easiest to get off the ground. Smaller wheels equals lighter wheels and you don’t sit so into the bike (in technical terms have as much bb drop) which makes it easier to get off the ground and move around when you don’t have speed to help you. Mullet gives you that extra clearance to get really down and back, which is super important when riding trails that are in the 45-60 degree pitch range lined with roots, rocks, holes and drops. Also the larger front wheel will eat up the holes better without having to do little manuals as often like you have to do with a 27.5 up front, saving energy. Also that smaller rear wheel definitely spins up faster and requires less effort to do so which is super important in steep climbs (at least for this 52 year old) when the trails are not the kind that allow you to carry speed from a down to get up and are full of roots and rocks. Starting a mullet from a stop or very slow speed to get up over a square faced edge is a lot easier with a 27.5 rear. Yet the 29er up front allows the front wheel to roll up and over the ledge without having to lift it like with a 27.5 up front, saving energy. Roll the front wheel up and over, then before the rear gets to the ledge lay the power down and up and over you go. Mullets also manual easier when you do need to get the front wheel up, and have a smaller bb drop re the rear wheel allows you to get it off the ground easier. And finally is cornering- I love the way the 27.5 goes around a corner- at speed and leaned in a lot, you just shoot through them. -full 29er love it for a hardtail or XC bike where I’m riding smoother rolling trails and want to maintain speed. Nothing maintains speed like a full 29er on such trails. I also like it if I am just going to be going mach chicken through gnar and need the bike to just eat. If it gets steep, I want a full 29er with a longer chainstay/rear center to prevent the tire buzz when getting back and low and make it feel more planted. Caveat to all of the above- completely thrown out the window with a emtb- I just want a long travel, super burly built full 29er. Kind of like what I have with my Ibis Oso. Motor changes everything and negates any of the advantages of a mullet.
Having recently migrated from 2014 era 27.5 to a 2023 era 29 have to say the main change in overall "feel" was one of less poppy and playful, less acceleration, far more stable and smooth. The biggest change I didnt like was a far slower lateral speed change i.e. leaning the bike over one way to the other. That was way slower. Managed to change that by reducing rotational weight; got rid of the heavy enduro wheel the bike came with and got some lighter trail wheels. Made a huge difference both for lateral, side to side change and acceleration, the bike is now way more fun and has some pop. Both bikes are from VPP brands so suspension dynamics are limited to shock and linkage evolution over the 9 years. Agree with all your other points but I dont get the trail buzz......shorty. All that said, have a mullet set up on my Dartmoor Hornet LT HT and love it, the larger front wheel brings a bit of stability to a raucous monster and makes it even more fun through the rough and steep stuff.
i strongly dislike a full 29er even though Im 6'1. Makes biking not fun, and speed doesnt feel that speedy haha. Good for blasting through chunk but thats it.
This sort of thing can be dived into further if you guys want to listen to some podcasts. Santa Cruz bikes - a brand that has a few mixed wheel bikes in their range - has a podcast called The Roller Door and they've had a number of discussions about what mixed wheel does well, what it does poorly, and who could/should consider it. Look for the podcasts that include Josh Kissner (Santa Cruz Product Director) or Kiran MacKinnon (Santa Cruz Director of Suspension and Ride Quality). Bikes and Big Ideas had the designers of the new Norco Downhill bike on to talk about designing the bike. Again, they talked a lot about why they decided to go mixed wheel with it. In their testing, the mixed wheel was faster on the stuff they expected it to be faster on (tight turns, things that need a lot of nimble moves) AND mixed wheel was faster for the stuff they expected full 29" setups to be faster on (straight line, high speed, square-edge bumps). If I remember correctly, their DH bike set up mixed wheel was faster for all their testers in all the tests they did. For me, mixed wheel is way better. I want a nimble bike, the trails in my area are fairly tight and twisty, and I'm a short dude. I think mixed wheels are a good choice for a lot of riders and a lot of different riding styles whether or not you're stuck with short legs!
I’m relatively tall at 6’1” and my enduro mullet set up is definitely a far superior ride than when in full 29er mode. I’ve now just stopped changing it and stick with mixed.
Nice vid Owen! I just swapped my rear for a 27.5 and had the first full ride yesterday. It's a completely different bike now, much faster and more fun, but I did find the final drive made me suffer a bit on the long steep uphills compared to the 29" rear. But for the fun factor going down, I think the mullet setup is going to be it for me going forward. Everything you spoke about was right on with my experience. Well done mate!
full 27,5 for the win: -lighter weight -can fit wider tire as 650B (unless u have Trek Stache for 29+, which none of the bikes have) -it works with suspension better -more playful -spokes are shorter -wheel is more rigid and stiffer with wider tires - better cornering -has nearly the same contacted patch as 29er -speed is not a problem with good cassette - its not “sketchy” to ride serious stuff -center of mass is lower -faster acceleration -cheaper I see only positives.
The 29er front wheel does come with some plus as I describe in the video - for me the 29er front works better over the 27.5 front - but if you like 27.5 front and back enjoy it! Cheers Owen
too late for me :( I waited too long and my 2024 27.5 bike candidates are gone forever I waited for the announcement of 2025 models they seem great but they're all 29-29 or 27.5-29
Riding an MX but took the route of buying a 27.5 bike and swapping the fork and front wheel, my particular bike used the same front triangle for a 29er so knew there wouldn’t be an issue of tyre to downtube. With short legs (30” jeans) I used to get a lot of buzz on my old 29er, the MX is much more user friendly, I also prefer having the shorter more agile rear of a 27.5 frame.
I love mullet setups. I have several wheelsets. 1 example is 27.5 x 2.8 WTB Ranger rear with 27.5 x 3.8 Minion FBR front. Speed and some float at the rear and monster truck bulldozer at the front. Also slackens the headtube angle a tad too.
I do normall run Pinkeye with a full 29er set up. When I went to BikePark Wales recently. I did swap the rear wheel to a 650B. As I'm shorter that Neil. I wanted to reduce the chances of effectively sitting on the rear wheel. When I went to Dyfi BikePark. I was running an mx set uo.
Well, I own a Bionicon Edison EVO, originally designed around a 26 or 27.5 platform. I have bot rear triangles. First, I rode 26" back and front, because I used my previous bikes hardware. Then I switched to 26 rear and 27.5 Fork. The front rised a little, so did the bottom bracket, obstacles felt smoother. Recently, I changed for a 29" Boost fork, because there was a proposal I couldn't refuse. So no I ride 26" / 29". Never had anything better, subjectively. I tested a 29" Rocky Mountain Element in between, it felt like a timber truck.
Been riding mullet for 3000 miles and got a new ride and gone full 29 and it feels sketchy and I always run mazza, I did it because I thought riding a hardtail and getting bigger forks it might look stupid but regret the decision especially as I'm 54 and disabled and I've come off twice this year and not once on the mullet. But this bike is black and I call it the devil bike
It's not man, I literally just got a.custom TI soft tail frame spec'D for a 26x.2.4 148mm TA wheel Not hard at all to get @ 26er tire from sizes 1.95 up to 3.0 Only size I couldn't find on that rage was 2.8..but found a 2.75 2.4 and 2.6 have some options in. Enduro and DH style tread
@@MichaelRobibaro dont know where you live, but here in EU, availability is hard especially a FS with standard boost. And its just not the frame, major fork brands are ditching the 26. Even the 27.5 is beginning to dwindle down.
I put a 27.5 on my 29er and absolutely love it. It corners so much easier. Get behind the bike going down the gnarly. This isn’t new they been doing it for years.
Agreed the industry has been doing this for years in MTB - I do mention the old skool Beast of the East bikes, the original BigHit's and the 69er bikes in the video - great to know your a fan of the MX wheel set too! Cheers Owen
Agility and confidence increased as my rear wheel decreased to 27.5. Maybe it luck but I found 29er parts on the used market are fewer and costlier 9/10 times.
Hi Owen awesome video. I agree with most of what you said as you do feel more confident on the bike when decending, but I'm not sure if that actually how the bikes feels or if it's just a mindset that you give yourself know that most downhill riders run mullet. For general trail riding especially the trails that was on this video are more suited for 29er. I do have a full 29er YT jeffsy that had a high/low flip chip. I was curious about the mullet so I put a 27.5 from my previous bike on the jeffsy. I did like the mullet, but another thing I did find was that it gave a slacker seat tube angle and lowered the bottom bracket. So with this, the longer and steeper climbs were a bit harder. With the lower bottom braket I noticed more pedal strikes/bottom braket hits when rolling over jagger rocks or big logs (thank God I have a bash guard). I still might mullet my bike if I'm going to bike park with no technical decents or climbs.
There is a missed opportunity with this great video! Let’s talk about the up as well! How do the mixed wheel sets up with flip chip bikes such as the ripmo V3 compare? I really like the down and if there is a small gain with mixed that would be awesome but for me not at the expense of worse climbing. I think for long fire roads the full 29r will have a slight advantage but what I’m asking about is the tech climbs. Think Moab, Sedona etc etc
I'm not too worried about the playfulness at my age, but look at ease of use. I don't like tubeless as I change tires often so a matched pair works best. Raced MX a lifetime ago and have had 19", 21" & 23" front wheels as well as 17/18/19 rears so mixes are not at the forefront of my thinking. Started on a 29er long before most common brands considered them and prety much enjoyed the way they work. I have however ran mullet with 29/26 and while on the XC course with almost dead stop corners the accelleration was marginally better I went back to full 29. More recently I have moved to ebikes due to age, injury and just parts wearing out. Have had 27.5 F/R, 29er as well as mullet and while the 27.5 was a bit more lively, the 29 setup ticked all my boxes. One of the things I have noticed is a lot of aggressive riders that run the steep courses with lots of jumps, they tend to run a 20x2.4 up front with a 27.5 in a 2.5 or 2.6 out back to give a little more rim protection on the big hits. Like everything in cycling, trends come and go and so much of what we are fed is just marketing hype. Have seen one brand 29 then 27.5 then back to 29 and now mullet, with a design engineer for them telling me possibly back to 29 for 2026. The marketing departments pretty much make the decisions, which leads me to my favorite saying ...... Run what you enjoy riding - just get your azz out there and ride.
Riding FoD and on both my nukeproof giga and missus' mega, with identical tyres and similar 35mm rims (double mary, super gravity), I felt more planted on the full 29er on both bikes, usually using sheepskull and corkscrew as my shakedowns. I can muscle the bike around and for it to remain stable. The moment I switched the rear to a 27.5 mary, I found that when hitting tabletops, the less rotational inertia/gyroscopic force (the corkscrew left hip) made it easier for the bike to turn in the air. However, if I load the mullet bike in the same way I do with a 29 rear, the I've felt the rear come around a bit too quickly for my liking - Yes it's fun, but I need to calibrate my brain to not load as aggressively if I wanted to be smooth. Also, not ideal when going over flat turns on roots, e.g. anywhere else on the FoD, where it's tech. Horses for courses really. Big day out, I'd load both bikes with 29 rear. If I want to do party laps on the top bit of GBU, then it's the 27.5 - spools up quicker too.
No, 26" is OLD school 👍 I'm on 27.5s as well. Best size for all around agility & manuverability. Not as nimble as 26, but not as cumbersome as 29" 29" great for enduro/dh, modern xc with tech. But fir average trail rider on mist trails, 27.5 offers the best compromise. I would love to try modern trail bike geometry/sus with 26" setup.
@@rider65 agreed 💯 %. Acceleration and maneuverability is far more superior with full 27.5’s and I don’t think you lose much as far as rollover and high speed stability.
Shirley as you knew/was expecting the Mx set up to be quicker you should have run this first... Then with a little bit more familiarity of the chosen test trail do the 29 set up.
Would an older intermediate skilled trail rider benefit from a mullet set up? More concerned with control and grip (which will bring speed up) than just speed for speed sake.
A good analysis. Maybe also frame size and overall frame design/geo determines whether the bike performs better as a full 29er or MX. Rider height also seems a differentiator. What I noticed in the video is how far back on the bike you ride ...or the bike design places you. I ride a full 29er ( I am 6 ft and ride a size large) and I am virtually never that far back on the bike, staying much more central over the BB most of the time, or if anything with slightly more weight over the bars. Rider position is also likely to impact on rear wheel behaviour.
Great insights - I agreed - I think the leg length and rider height factors are the real crux with these - even though on paper the bigger rear wheel should be faster the better fit for me of the Mx wheel is better. Cheers Owen
While this information is very informative as it should be, watching through this just makes me realize that I could never enjoy mountain biking if I was a racer becuase it is simply too technical with all the stuff you have to fumble with. I think I am a more of a get on the bike and go enjoy the trails and maybe get a few straches and fall off occasionally type of guy. All this ratio this ratio that is like that one math period is school is absolutely wished I did have to sit through LOL. But that's just me and anyways, great video as always.
Its a lot different though, because motocross is dependent on acceleration and mtb is dependent on gravity. The rear tire mostly serves opposite purposes.
I think that the 3 second difference in times would fall within the margin of error. Having said that, I think it depends on the rider and the trail. I've seen several you tube presenters that seem to go back-and-forth between 29, 27.5 and mixed for their downhill and enduro rigs. I'm well over 6 foot, and all my bikes are full 29 except my e-mtb which is mullet. Because there is so many differences between the e-mtb and my other bikes, I can't say what differences in ride quality are due to the mullet set up.
GMBN sucks at doing real testing, or at the very least they dont show that they did real testing and just give us the click bait times. 3 seconds on a minute long downhill run is pretty substantial if its consistent. They should have done at least 5-10 runs on each setup with a few different riders to show if one setup was consistently quicker on average. Presenting the test as 1 timed run on each setup is kind of insulting, even if they are riding a trail they are familiar with.
27 .5 - party at the front and party at the back. Wheel size imo is mainly trend driven by the manufacturers. Shame you didn't do a full 27.5 comparison.
@@OwenBikeNerd How it climbs? Since I kept the original BMX drive train, horribly of course! You'd almost be better off putting a strap on it and hanging it onto your back for going up steep hills. But otherwise, yeah, it absolutely shreds. Downhills it's also pretty awesome to still have the back pegs as an alternative place to put your feet.
I wouldnt ever change from a 29 up front on my trail bike, slow speed obstacles especially are a problem on smaller tires. But on my DH bike I LOVE a full 27 and wouldnt dream of running big wheels front or full, but then again, I avoid tech at DH parks.
I made a mini mx, 275 front and 26 rear, I really like it a lot. I had to increase the travel 190 and 180. My bike was 29er with 160 front and 150 rear. I had to buy 8.5x2.5 shock with offset bushings both eye to eye to lower the shock, and just buy a 190 air spring for my zeb. I also went single speed since all I do bike park.
I can't run mullet with my rig (Raaw Madonna V2.2) and I have short legs, but damn! I can adapt and have tons of pleasure with this bloody 29er, so what else?!!
Most bike companies are only making 29ers or MX bikes like Downhill, Enduro, or All-Mountain. You can barely find any companies that make MX trail bikes or down-country-ish bikes (less than 150mm travel).
These I know right off hand because I'm looking for exactly that; a short travel, mixed wheel size trail bike. I'm sure there are more (Norco, maybe? Transition, maybe?) but I haven't looked at them enough to know from memory. Raaw Jibb V2 is a trail bike that can be set up for mixed wheel with a rocker link. 135mm travel Pivot Trail 429 can be set up mixed wheel with a flip chip. 120mm travel Forbidden Druid can be set up from the factory for mixed wheel. 130mm travel Ibis Ripley can be set up for mixed wheel with a flip chip. 130mm travel Santa Cruz 5010 comes only as mixed wheel. 130mm travel Santa Cruz Bronson is only mixed wheel. 150mm travel
First of all nice video, how does geometry change behave on a carbon frame like if you change 29 to 27 without flipchip or to build a bigger fork on a carbon frame?
Interesting insights! 29ers can be really fast - and the science is there to say they can be more efficient at rolling so for XC, down country, trail riding they can be amazing - but when suspension travel gets longer and if you're riding steeper terrain and even more so if you've got a lower standard over - MX wheels can work really well. Again interesting insights thanks for sharing! Cheers owen
@@OwenBikeNerd They make sense for riders with poor handling skills for the above reasons on very basic trails, and if you just want to go zoom on gravel, but they are so clumsy, just watching someone trying to do anything technical on 29 just looks wrong.
Worth having a quick look at Ministry cycles Instagram from last week. It seems you gain wheel travel with the smaller 27.5. Not something I’d really considered even as a deckchair engineer! (It’s about 4mm if you can’t be bothered) Interesting anyhow.
Did he claim at 7:45 that the wheel with the tyre is 745mm, and his inside leg is 760mm, giving him only 15mm of clearance? why would it only be 15mm of clearance? when you're riding the bike you're standing on the pedals, so he should be taking that measurement from the pedals when they're horizontal, for example if the pedals are 300mm from the ground when horizontal then he would have 315mm of clearance, but that's obviously not accounting for suspension movement.
I learned and rode 29er for a few years. I was used to how stable it felt. Recently, I bought a 27.5 2nd hand and I felt out of control on the first few runs. I am getting used to it and liked the playfulness and agility of it. However, I am curious if I can get the best of both worlds by running mullet.
For me it does feel like a best of both worlds on a longer travel bike - but I'm on the shorter side of adult life - If you can its worth trying! Cheers Owen
@@OwenBikeNerd hi Owen! I just wanna update you that I was able to try mullet setup and it feels amazing. I have front stability while my rear stays playful. I do need to get used to it since the front gives me absolute confidence and I forget my rear is a 27.5. It sometimes causes my rear skid sideways on braking especially when the ground is a little loose. Overall, it feels amazing and very fun. I will keep the setup. Thank you so much for all your tips! Cheers!
Mixed wheel sizes were banned by the UCI in the early 80s because of the extreme designs of specialist bikes used in road time trials, before riders started using tri bars in the event. However they were running smaller wheels on the front as opposed to the rear. At 24" front and 28" rear. The front ends were so low it was getting dangerous. The ban was only lifted for gravity MTB events more recently.
Try the same tests with a larger rider (maybe 6 foot and 200 pounds). My bike started as a mullet and was converted to a 29er for the rollover and speed benefits.
What wheel setup do you ride?
26 FAT!
@@gmbntech 27.5 front (Assegai) & rear (DHR2)! It rocks! 💫
Having had full 29er before, in my experience I can say that I didn’t enjoy at all. For me as a 171cm height rider, it felt less controllable.
2022 Jeckyll 29/29, 2023 trance x29 is ironically a mullet (29/27.5) my aurum is 27.5/27.5 but I'm on the Trance 80% of the time I ride if you exclude my commuter bike 🤓
*I sent the Jeckyll twice on the bike vault it was never featured so I sent the Trance but the picture was pretty ish I'll try to get a better one tomorrow. With a view or something 😂 plus now it has the coil and custom flip chip back on 😈
Third edit...
Owen did a great job with this one, love the nerding!
2022 patrol Al size large, MX
27.5.. No chance in hell would I ever ride a 29.
Still running 26 front and rear
Bike companies hate you
Amen. We are ahead of our time. In 2030 the industry will discover the benefits of an smaller wheel: agility, playfulness, lightness...
I've still got a 26inch bike too - although they are some real advantages to both 650b/27.5 and 29er - but the best bike is the bike your riding - so keep enjoying the trails!
Cheers
Owen
I have a 29 and and old 26.
I have better times with 26.
@@docmccoy9813gravel bikes are closer to 90' MTB than any other trend.
26 makes sense
Mullet is definitely the way to go for me. I love the way it feels through turns, through chunk and through the air.
I was on 29 for a couple of years but back on the mullet for the fun factor.
It's working alright 😁
I think rider height is a big consideration. I’m over 6ft and since discovering full 29er would not go back. Riding style is also a factor. Mullet set up on a larger frame looks wrong as well but I get that is just aesthetics. Having the option to run both is the answer. Maybe 😂
I used to think it looks wrong but looking at it parked next to my YZ 250 I kinda get it... Now I find it pretty 😍😂
Same here, over 6 feet, had it all. 26/26, 27.5/26, 27.5/27.5 etc. 29/29 for me, just feels great.
Interesting insights - I agree - I feel like rider height is big aspect too - but there is a nice something about how the smaller rear wheel helps in turns! what bike are you riding the most at the moment?
Again thanks for sharing!
Cheers
Owen
@@OwenBikeNerd I don't disagree a smaller wheel helps in turns in some cases but overall, for me, full 29er is a good balance for mt riding. I am currently on a new Orbea Wild FS and an Orange Stage Evo 29er 🙂. Cheers - Dan
I've always thought that 29 is a bad option for short people (like me). Apart from the fact that it is simply too big, the clearance between tyre & saddle is too small for most rear luggage options. Switching to 27.5 at the back is going to be an improvement in that respect
im tall and hate it in everything but blasting rock gardens. So very not agile and boring. Speed feels like you dont have speed. I understand racing but I feel like if people want to enjoy biking they should ride mullet max
General trail riding/shorter travel bike = full 29.
Longer all mountain to downhill = mixed wheel
Santa cruz nomad 2024 model with 29 Maxis Assegai in the front & Maxis Minion DHR mark 2 in the rear.
Simply love it. Grip for days...
Love the mullet setup and the orbea rallon way to run both 29 and 27.5 without changes in geomatry
Started MTB with an MX set. Tried a square 29" setup - flexy and unwieldy. Tried 27.5 square - very fun. So it's between 29/27.5 and 27.5/27.5 for me. More travel and less flex on 27.5 forks, so I favor that for DH and jumps. MX climbs better over chatter, so it's a good AM setup.
Motocross doing It for decades, It was a bit obvious the mullet is better.
Motocross is not moved by human power, rear wheel is much wider than front, etc...
Almost all motobikes have mx wheels.
MTB is something different.
They also have a much narrower front tire but I don't see anyone in mountain biking doing that
Generally combustion power is better than human too. They been doing that for decades.
@@bitumen83except that if we had followed moto design instead of evolving from stupid skinny tire road bikes by cyclists we’d have gotten to where we are a lot quicker. Moto had all this stuff figured out in the 80s.
@@bitumen83 emtb aren't human powered my record uphhil was 6069ft on muscular xc 120mm (mtb is not my main sport) I rented an emtb did 6889ft and was did I really do sport today ? or was it just pretend, don't misunderstand I want an emtb probably in 2025 but it's motorcross light it's not bicycling for them it makes a lot of sense
I have a Specialized Status which introduced me to the MX wheelset and S2, size configuration. I learned about frame geometry and ended with a 29/29 setup since i was able to fit one. This allowed me to ride faster, rock climb better, and resell the bike. Now on a S3 and I am missing the playfullness but now have stability. We will see what else will teach me.
youre running the status full 29?
@@grahamconnett7745 Yes. I have tested other bikes with different wheel sizes too.
My ebike was 29 for a year. This year I went to mixed. I was replacing a rear wheel (OEM hub was dying) and just decided to give it a try. There is a difference but to tell the truth not enough to really get me excited. A bit quicker out of the corners but since I am not racing this is not a critical deal. The small wheel does give me a bit more push when I hit the pedals. This is good and bad. Fun when I want to lift the front or get across nasty stuff. Bad when trying to get moving on a loose slope. Just spins. I have an older acoustic 27.5 X 27.5 I rode for 5 years. When I bought a new acoustic 4 years ago I bought a 29er because it was the hottest thing. I was not impressed. Sluggish. No where near as fun as the 27.5 squared. I then got rich for a month and bought some Berd wheels for the 29er. (I was immediately poor again.) OMG! The 29er handled as well as the 27.5 with all the advantages of the 29 wheels. The lesson for me is on an acoustic bike do not worry too much about size, worry about rotational weight. Light wheels and light tires will give you a whole new bike. Of course if you get those tires too light and you ride heavy you are going to have issues. Absolutely none of this applies for the downhill crowd.
Well done man. It’s amazing how far the industry has taken us. Because of geometry, wheel base and wheels our bikes are infinitely safer.
Cheers
Owen
I have all three setups but I run my hardtail 27.5 front and rear because I use it as a giant BMX bike. I specifically bought the frame to have the highest bottom bracket and the shortest chain stays. It runs a 29er front fork and if I'm going to go out on something really Steep and techie I will throw a 29er front wheel on it. it really is amazing the difference it makes in going down rooty rocky steeps
I have not tried mixed wheel sizes, but I do have one of each (26er, 27.5er, and 29er). I love the speed and cornering ability of the 29er, but I have so much more confidence on the 27.5er when the terrain in question is technical and steep. In my mind, that extra bit of rollover isn't worth the smaller clearance beneath myself. The options for 27.5" bikes may continue to dwindle, but I think the standard will live on due both to mixed-wheel setups and because the industry must cater to riders of all sizes.
Hysteresis & sidewall suppleness/compliance is huge with regard to tire performance
27.5 front and back on my single speed dh park bike is amazing for bike park jumps. Full 29er is pretty good on enduro trails
good video hesitating between a 140/150 29-29 and a 170/170 27.5-29 for 2025 as someone riding a 27.5 front and rear for almost a decade I can say the only negative of 27.5 for me is the front wheel banging into roots and rocks and stopping me dead in steep climbs, a front 29 seems better for sure
just went to a mixed and love it. still waiting to get knobbies on the front. and it already improved cornering and braking
Very in depth analysis but you missed the main point. If a 27.5 wheel and a 29 wheel are leaned at the same angle, the 27.5 wheel will make a tighter arc. When you turn a bike the rear wheel turns a tighter arc than the front wheel so it should be smaller. Dirt bikes have had different sized wheels for a very long time. This is why the MX wheeled bike feels better in the corners. For everything but cross country MX wheels is the way to go and it won't be long before all bikes except xc are MX
Came in here to say exactly this (and some other stuff). 27.5" turns sharper at the same lean angle. Sometimes that quick turning is better and sometimes that sweeping turning of a 29" is better. BUT that's an easily measurable and noticeable difference. Horses for courses, and all that.
Combine that with the less weight, less gyroscopic effect (meaning less stability but also less non-rider force acting on the bike), more wheel stiffness, and more clearance (so my ass and suspension designed can both be a little less compromised) and you might find yourself deciding mixed wheel is a great idea...and I think you'd be right.
I'm a short dude so it's a great idea for me anyway...but also there are a bunch of other good reasons beside that for considering a mixed wheel setup.
Nody talks about the gyroscopic effect of larger wheels, larger wheels are more stable but to me thats not really what I want in a downhill bike.. I prefer being able to turn sharper and quicker, I 27er is noticably more agile.. I agree that xc is 29s game..
I like the mixed wheel setup for me, I find it more fun to ride, snappier, better control and easier descending. Only downside is the needing two inner tube sizes on long epics and buying two different size tires.
MX definitely has its place. Flip chips should be a standard feature when possible.
I just mulleted my Santa Cruz v3 Bronson (2019) from a full 27.5. I have a lot of saddle time on full 27.5, full 29ers, and mullets. As a nonracer who only cares about times bc I like to go fast, for me it breaks down like this:
-If I want a super fun playful bike with a bmx bike kind of feel- full 27.5.
-If I like riding steeps, especially technical ones, both up and down, a mullet is the clear winner.
-If I am riding flowy rolling terrain, or fast gnar but not necessarily extremely steep, then it’s a 29er.
Why? Full 27.5 is the most playful bike. Especially when you might be doing things at slower speeds, like what we used to call dicking around, they are the easiest to get off the ground. Smaller wheels equals lighter wheels and you don’t sit so into the bike (in technical terms have as much bb drop) which makes it easier to get off the ground and move around when you don’t have speed to help you.
Mullet gives you that extra clearance to get really down and back, which is super important when riding trails that are in the 45-60 degree pitch range lined with roots, rocks, holes and drops. Also the larger front wheel will eat up the holes better without having to do little manuals as often like you have to do with a 27.5 up front, saving energy. Also that smaller rear wheel definitely spins up faster and requires less effort to do so which is super important in steep climbs (at least for this 52 year old) when the trails are not the kind that allow you to carry speed from a down to get up and are full of roots and rocks. Starting a mullet from a stop or very slow speed to get up over a square faced edge is a lot easier with a 27.5 rear. Yet the 29er up front allows the front wheel to roll up and over the ledge without having to lift it like with a 27.5 up front, saving energy. Roll the front wheel up and over, then before the rear gets to the ledge lay the power down and up and over you go. Mullets also manual easier when you do need to get the front wheel up, and have a smaller bb drop re the rear wheel allows you to get it off the ground easier. And finally is cornering- I love the way the 27.5 goes around a corner- at speed and leaned in a lot, you just shoot through them.
-full 29er love it for a hardtail or XC bike where I’m riding smoother rolling trails and want to maintain speed. Nothing maintains speed like a full 29er on such trails. I also like it if I am just going to be going mach chicken through gnar and need the bike to just eat. If it gets steep, I want a full 29er with a longer chainstay/rear center to prevent the tire buzz when getting back and low and make it feel more planted.
Caveat to all of the above- completely thrown out the window with a emtb- I just want a long travel, super burly built full 29er. Kind of like what I have with my Ibis Oso. Motor changes everything and negates any of the advantages of a mullet.
Having recently migrated from 2014 era 27.5 to a 2023 era 29 have to say the main change in overall "feel" was one of less poppy and playful, less acceleration, far more stable and smooth. The biggest change I didnt like was a far slower lateral speed change i.e. leaning the bike over one way to the other. That was way slower. Managed to change that by reducing rotational weight; got rid of the heavy enduro wheel the bike came with and got some lighter trail wheels. Made a huge difference both for lateral, side to side change and acceleration, the bike is now way more fun and has some pop. Both bikes are from VPP brands so suspension dynamics are limited to shock and linkage evolution over the 9 years. Agree with all your other points but I dont get the trail buzz......shorty. All that said, have a mullet set up on my Dartmoor Hornet LT HT and love it, the larger front wheel brings a bit of stability to a raucous monster and makes it even more fun through the rough and steep stuff.
i strongly dislike a full 29er even though Im 6'1. Makes biking not fun, and speed doesnt feel that speedy haha. Good for blasting through chunk but thats it.
This sort of thing can be dived into further if you guys want to listen to some podcasts.
Santa Cruz bikes - a brand that has a few mixed wheel bikes in their range - has a podcast called The Roller Door and they've had a number of discussions about what mixed wheel does well, what it does poorly, and who could/should consider it. Look for the podcasts that include Josh Kissner (Santa Cruz Product Director) or Kiran MacKinnon (Santa Cruz Director of Suspension and Ride Quality).
Bikes and Big Ideas had the designers of the new Norco Downhill bike on to talk about designing the bike. Again, they talked a lot about why they decided to go mixed wheel with it. In their testing, the mixed wheel was faster on the stuff they expected it to be faster on (tight turns, things that need a lot of nimble moves) AND mixed wheel was faster for the stuff they expected full 29" setups to be faster on (straight line, high speed, square-edge bumps). If I remember correctly, their DH bike set up mixed wheel was faster for all their testers in all the tests they did.
For me, mixed wheel is way better. I want a nimble bike, the trails in my area are fairly tight and twisty, and I'm a short dude. I think mixed wheels are a good choice for a lot of riders and a lot of different riding styles whether or not you're stuck with short legs!
Thoughts on mixed for climbing? Climbing tech trails and also longer smooth climbs?
I’m relatively tall at 6’1” and my enduro mullet set up is definitely a far superior ride than when in full 29er mode. I’ve now just stopped changing it and stick with mixed.
Nice vid Owen! I just swapped my rear for a 27.5 and had the first full ride yesterday. It's a completely different bike now, much faster and more fun, but I did find the final drive made me suffer a bit on the long steep uphills compared to the 29" rear. But for the fun factor going down, I think the mullet setup is going to be it for me going forward. Everything you spoke about was right on with my experience. Well done mate!
I think it's down to personal preference, comfort and aesthetics, for me same wheel size front and rear 😊
full 27,5 for the win:
-lighter weight
-can fit wider tire as 650B (unless u have Trek Stache for 29+, which none of the bikes have)
-it works with suspension better
-more playful
-spokes are shorter
-wheel is more rigid and stiffer with wider tires - better cornering
-has nearly the same contacted patch as 29er
-speed is not a problem with good cassette
- its not “sketchy” to ride serious stuff
-center of mass is lower
-faster acceleration
-cheaper
I see only positives.
The 29er front wheel does come with some plus as I describe in the video - for me the 29er front works better over the 27.5 front - but if you like 27.5 front and back enjoy it!
Cheers
Owen
27.5 forks go on sale quicker too
Doesn't roll as fast. It's only one negative, and you certainly don't have to care, but it's a negative.
fr fr
Enduro/trail 27.5 front and back, XC full 29
too late for me :( I waited too long and my 2024 27.5 bike candidates are gone forever I waited for the announcement of 2025 models they seem great but they're all 29-29 or 27.5-29
@@fredEVOIXJust use a 27.5” front wheel with a 20mm longer travel fork to correct the geometry back to the 29” spec.
@@fredEVOIX Pivot Shadowcat, Yeti SB135, and Commencal Clash are all full 27.5"
Riding an MX but took the route of buying a 27.5 bike and swapping the fork and front wheel, my particular bike used the same front triangle for a 29er so knew there wouldn’t be an issue of tyre to downtube. With short legs (30” jeans) I used to get a lot of buzz on my old 29er, the MX is much more user friendly, I also prefer having the shorter more agile rear of a 27.5 frame.
I love mullet setups. I have several wheelsets. 1 example is 27.5 x 2.8 WTB Ranger rear with 27.5 x 3.8 Minion FBR front. Speed and some float at the rear and monster truck bulldozer at the front. Also slackens the headtube angle a tad too.
If bike companies designed the perfect bike, they'd have to redesign it and make it worse the next year just to say they had something new.
I do normall run Pinkeye with a full 29er set up. When I went to BikePark Wales recently. I did swap the rear wheel to a 650B. As I'm shorter that Neil. I wanted to reduce the chances of effectively sitting on the rear wheel. When I went to Dyfi BikePark. I was running an mx set uo.
Well, I own a Bionicon Edison EVO, originally designed around a 26 or 27.5 platform. I have bot rear triangles. First, I rode 26" back and front, because I used my previous bikes hardware. Then I switched to 26 rear and 27.5 Fork. The front rised a little, so did the bottom bracket, obstacles felt smoother. Recently, I changed for a 29" Boost fork, because there was a proposal I couldn't refuse. So no I ride 26" / 29". Never had anything better, subjectively. I tested a 29" Rocky Mountain Element in between, it felt like a timber truck.
Been riding mullet for 3000 miles and got a new ride and gone full 29 and it feels sketchy and I always run mazza, I did it because I thought riding a hardtail and getting bigger forks it might look stupid but regret the decision especially as I'm 54 and disabled and I've come off twice this year and not once on the mullet. But this bike is black and I call it the devil bike
10:50 (Blake in the background…) “Not if you ride a Hardtail!”
27.5 front and back. if 26 wasnt on life support, will def go with it
It's not man, I literally just got a.custom TI soft tail frame spec'D for a 26x.2.4
148mm TA wheel
Not hard at all to get @ 26er tire from sizes 1.95 up to 3.0
Only size I couldn't find on that rage was 2.8..but found a 2.75
2.4 and 2.6 have some options in. Enduro and DH style tread
@@MichaelRobibaro dont know where you live, but here in EU, availability is hard especially a FS with standard boost. And its just not the frame, major fork brands are ditching the 26. Even the 27.5 is beginning to dwindle down.
@@rossejera1661 USA
I was just talking about tires since topic was also about mullets
I put a 27.5 on my 29er and absolutely love it. It corners so much easier. Get behind the bike going down the gnarly. This isn’t new they been doing it for years.
Agreed the industry has been doing this for years in MTB - I do mention the old skool Beast of the East bikes, the original BigHit's and the 69er bikes in the video - great to know your a fan of the MX wheel set too!
Cheers
Owen
Agility and confidence increased as my rear wheel decreased to 27.5. Maybe it luck but I found 29er parts on the used market are fewer and costlier 9/10 times.
Hi Owen awesome video. I agree with most of what you said as you do feel more confident on the bike when decending, but I'm not sure if that actually how the bikes feels or if it's just a mindset that you give yourself know that most downhill riders run mullet. For general trail riding especially the trails that was on this video are more suited for 29er.
I do have a full 29er YT jeffsy that had a high/low flip chip. I was curious about the mullet so I put a 27.5 from my previous bike on the jeffsy.
I did like the mullet, but another thing I did find was that it gave a slacker seat tube angle and lowered the bottom bracket. So with this, the longer and steeper climbs were a bit harder.
With the lower bottom braket I noticed more pedal strikes/bottom braket hits when rolling over jagger rocks or big logs (thank God I have a bash guard).
I still might mullet my bike if I'm going to bike park with no technical decents or climbs.
There is a missed opportunity with this great video! Let’s talk about the up as well! How do the mixed wheel sets up with flip chip bikes such as the ripmo V3 compare? I really like the down and if there is a small gain with mixed that would be awesome but for me not at the expense of worse climbing. I think for long fire roads the full 29r will have a slight advantage but what I’m asking about is the tech climbs. Think Moab, Sedona etc etc
29er front and back
I'm not too worried about the playfulness at my age, but look at ease of use. I don't like tubeless as I change tires often so a matched pair works best. Raced MX a lifetime ago and have had 19", 21" & 23" front wheels as well as 17/18/19 rears so mixes are not at the forefront of my thinking. Started on a 29er long before most common brands considered them and prety much enjoyed the way they work. I have however ran mullet with 29/26 and while on the XC course with almost dead stop corners the accelleration was marginally better I went back to full 29. More recently I have moved to ebikes due to age, injury and just parts wearing out. Have had 27.5 F/R, 29er as well as mullet and while the 27.5 was a bit more lively, the 29 setup ticked all my boxes.
One of the things I have noticed is a lot of aggressive riders that run the steep courses with lots of jumps, they tend to run a 20x2.4 up front with a 27.5 in a 2.5 or 2.6 out back to give a little more rim protection on the big hits.
Like everything in cycling, trends come and go and so much of what we are fed is just marketing hype. Have seen one brand 29 then 27.5 then back to 29 and now mullet, with a design engineer for them telling me possibly back to 29 for 2026. The marketing departments pretty much make the decisions, which leads me to my favorite saying ...... Run what you enjoy riding - just get your azz out there and ride.
ride tubeless, its so much better, there is literally no downside
I like MX.. Still occasionally contact the back wheel on steep drops.
Riding FoD and on both my nukeproof giga and missus' mega, with identical tyres and similar 35mm rims (double mary, super gravity), I felt more planted on the full 29er on both bikes, usually using sheepskull and corkscrew as my shakedowns. I can muscle the bike around and for it to remain stable. The moment I switched the rear to a 27.5 mary, I found that when hitting tabletops, the less rotational inertia/gyroscopic force (the corkscrew left hip) made it easier for the bike to turn in the air. However, if I load the mullet bike in the same way I do with a 29 rear, the I've felt the rear come around a bit too quickly for my liking - Yes it's fun, but I need to calibrate my brain to not load as aggressively if I wanted to be smooth. Also, not ideal when going over flat turns on roots, e.g. anywhere else on the FoD, where it's tech. Horses for courses really. Big day out, I'd load both bikes with 29 rear. If I want to do party laps on the top bit of GBU, then it's the 27.5 - spools up quicker too.
My Specialized Demo is MX style, my Enduro 29" all around. I prefer both however only in their individual playfields. MX for DH en 29 for Enduro.
Call me old school, I'm still 27.5 front and back.
No, 26" is OLD school 👍
I'm on 27.5s as well. Best size for all around agility & manuverability. Not as nimble as 26, but not as cumbersome as 29" 29" great for enduro/dh, modern xc with tech. But fir average trail rider on mist trails, 27.5 offers the best compromise. I would love to try modern trail bike geometry/sus with 26" setup.
Call me old school, 26er rear on a Soft tail haha..but very progressive geo
61° HTA, 80° STA
I'm still on my 2009 Giant Anthem X1 26er it does what I need it to do.
@@rider65
agreed 💯 %. Acceleration and maneuverability is far more superior with full 27.5’s and I don’t think you lose much as far as rollover and high speed stability.
My trail/all around SC Hightower full 29,my park/freeride bike Spec. Status mxd. SC xl frame,Spc lg frame. Im 6'2 175#. Both work great respectively.
Racing on a hardtail (due to budget constraints) - bigger and wider i can get on the rear the better!
Shirley as you knew/was expecting the Mx set up to be quicker you should have run this first... Then with a little bit more familiarity of the chosen test trail do the 29 set up.
Would an older intermediate skilled trail rider benefit from a mullet set up? More concerned with control and grip (which will bring speed up) than just speed for speed sake.
Yes. Im 52 and prefer a mullet over full 29er. See my comment on here for why.
Full 29" gives a train wagon feel, Mullet is way better. When my fork wears out or brakes, i'll look into a longer one +20mm and put a 27,5" in front.
A good analysis. Maybe also frame size and overall frame design/geo determines whether the bike performs better as a full 29er or MX. Rider height also seems a differentiator. What I noticed in the video is how far back on the bike you ride ...or the bike design places you. I ride a full 29er ( I am 6 ft and ride a size large) and I am virtually never that far back on the bike, staying much more central over the BB most of the time, or if anything with slightly more weight over the bars. Rider position is also likely to impact on rear wheel behaviour.
Great insights - I agreed - I think the leg length and rider height factors are the real crux with these - even though on paper the bigger rear wheel should be faster the better fit for me of the Mx wheel is better.
Cheers
Owen
The presenter is so hype! I dig it 🤙🏾
Why thank you!
Cheers
Owen
Haha, from Mullet to MX, is this a marketing drive to avoid the humerous visual side of mixing up wheels?
While this information is very informative as it should be, watching through this just makes me realize that I could never enjoy mountain biking if I was a racer becuase it is simply too technical with all the stuff you have to fumble with. I think I am a more of a get on the bike and go enjoy the trails and maybe get a few straches and fall off occasionally type of guy. All this ratio this ratio that is like that one math period is school is absolutely wished I did have to sit through LOL. But that's just me and anyways, great video as always.
Amazing Wheel.
27.5 front for the aero gains, 29 in the back for easy rollover
I realised motocross have been doing odd sized wheels for a long time
Its a lot different though, because motocross is dependent on acceleration and mtb is dependent on gravity. The rear tire mostly serves opposite purposes.
I think that the 3 second difference in times would fall within the margin of error. Having said that, I think it depends on the rider and the trail. I've seen several you tube presenters that seem to go back-and-forth between 29, 27.5 and mixed for their downhill and enduro rigs.
I'm well over 6 foot, and all my bikes are full 29 except my e-mtb which is mullet. Because there is so many differences between the e-mtb and my other bikes, I can't say what differences in ride quality are due to the mullet set up.
GMBN sucks at doing real testing, or at the very least they dont show that they did real testing and just give us the click bait times. 3 seconds on a minute long downhill run is pretty substantial if its consistent. They should have done at least 5-10 runs on each setup with a few different riders to show if one setup was consistently quicker on average. Presenting the test as 1 timed run on each setup is kind of insulting, even if they are riding a trail they are familiar with.
Both if you got a bike with a flip chip 🙌🏻
27 .5 - party at the front and party at the back. Wheel size imo is mainly trend driven by the manufacturers. Shame you didn't do a full 27.5 comparison.
Are there many/any bike brands making a 27.5 squared bike any more?
@@GarthFlint-nc2vj what's a squared bike?
@@45graham45 29 X 29 or 27.5 X 27.5. Math thing. Sorry.
Q much? 😂
@@GarthFlint-nc2vj Some, but not many. Mullet is the latest fad.
Technically it was also pretty difficult to run a 90s fork with a -63 degree head angle. The stanchion and bushing technology wasn't good enough.
I tried a 27.5x2.6 on my 29er no flip chips or anything and being a fatter tire it only changed slightly. Never measured it but I felt pretty good tbh
Might ask a motocross guy about that... 21/18's have been in vogue for 50 years or more! Meanwhile, I'ma play with my trials bike!!
20"/26" BMX with suspension fork and disc brake is awesome, I tell you!
That sounds like all party!
I bet its a riot on the trail - but how does it climb?
Cheers
Owen
@@OwenBikeNerd How it climbs? Since I kept the original BMX drive train, horribly of course! You'd almost be better off putting a strap on it and hanging it onto your back for going up steep hills. But otherwise, yeah, it absolutely shreds. Downhills it's also pretty awesome to still have the back pegs as an alternative place to put your feet.
@@sihilius ha ha ha - well single speed is simple at least!
Cheers
Owen
@@OwenBikeNerd No bent derailleur on that bike, I guess.🤷♂ 😂Cheers!
@@sihilius I like the positivity - "One gear many speeds"
cheers
Owen
I wouldnt ever change from a 29 up front on my trail bike, slow speed obstacles especially are a problem on smaller tires. But on my DH bike I LOVE a full 27 and wouldnt dream of running big wheels front or full, but then again, I avoid tech at DH parks.
I ride 27.5x 2.6 front
26x2.4 rear
Custom geo TI Soft-tail
I made a mini mx, 275 front and 26 rear, I really like it a lot. I had to increase the travel 190 and 180. My bike was 29er with 160 front and 150 rear. I had to buy 8.5x2.5 shock with offset bushings both eye to eye to lower the shock, and just buy a 190 air spring for my zeb. I also went single speed since all I do bike park.
Awesome I did a more progressive version of a doctahawk ,but at 170mm
And maybe 40mm or 50ish mm rear travel for flex stays
I feel faster on Mx but in chunder rock I notice the smaller rear 27.5 hangs up a little more.
27.5 ☺️
I can't run mullet with my rig (Raaw Madonna V2.2) and I have short legs, but damn! I can adapt and have tons of pleasure with this bloody 29er, so what else?!!
I’m faster on my mullet-5’10”. Long arms, long torso, short legs. I’m on the same bike, the propain tyee size large. I ran it both settings.
Full 27.5. Dont want a 29er, dont really want a mullet setup but I think that bike are forcing that on me if I want a new bike.
Make your own..better value than anything that can be purchased.
@@MichaelRobibaro that's probably the route I'll end up going, it's just easier buying a complete with finance or cycle to work schemes.
Most bike companies are only making 29ers or MX bikes like Downhill, Enduro, or All-Mountain. You can barely find any companies that make MX trail bikes or down-country-ish bikes (less than 150mm travel).
@@kwiyau They will soon as they will need a new trend for the sheep to follow.
Specialized status 140
These I know right off hand because I'm looking for exactly that; a short travel, mixed wheel size trail bike. I'm sure there are more (Norco, maybe? Transition, maybe?) but I haven't looked at them enough to know from memory.
Raaw Jibb V2 is a trail bike that can be set up for mixed wheel with a rocker link. 135mm travel
Pivot Trail 429 can be set up mixed wheel with a flip chip. 120mm travel
Forbidden Druid can be set up from the factory for mixed wheel. 130mm travel
Ibis Ripley can be set up for mixed wheel with a flip chip. 130mm travel
Santa Cruz 5010 comes only as mixed wheel. 130mm travel
Santa Cruz Bronson is only mixed wheel. 150mm travel
Same method in car, same rim size, but the overall diameter of back wheel smaller to get fast acceletation
Have you seen the latest beast from Surly!!!!! 24" wheels with 6" tires!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I like it 😸
depends on tyres aswell
First of all nice video, how does geometry change behave on a carbon frame like if you change 29 to 27 without flipchip or to build a bigger fork on a carbon frame?
Wasn’t this done to death years ago? It’s never conclusive anyway and always ends up with “it depends on how you ride and what you want”.
Should have just stuck with 26 or possibly 27.5 at a push. You're basically saying 29ers are barriers to better handling, so why bother?
Interesting insights!
29ers can be really fast - and the science is there to say they can be more efficient at rolling so for XC, down country, trail riding they can be amazing - but when suspension travel gets longer and if you're riding steeper terrain and even more so if you've got a lower standard over - MX wheels can work really well.
Again interesting insights thanks for sharing!
Cheers
owen
@@OwenBikeNerd They make sense for riders with poor handling skills for the above reasons on very basic trails, and if you just want to go zoom on gravel, but they are so clumsy, just watching someone trying to do anything technical on 29 just looks wrong.
Worth having a quick look at Ministry cycles Instagram from last week. It seems you gain wheel travel with the smaller 27.5. Not something I’d really considered even as a deckchair engineer! (It’s about 4mm if you can’t be bothered) Interesting anyhow.
Interesting insights - thanks for sharing!
Cheers
Owen
Any idea what bike exactly this is? Carbon or alloy?
Greetings!
I used the Propain Tyee Al - so the Aluminium alloy frame.
Hope that helps!
Cheers
Owen
Did he claim at 7:45 that the wheel with the tyre is 745mm, and his inside leg is 760mm, giving him only 15mm of clearance? why would it only be 15mm of clearance? when you're riding the bike you're standing on the pedals, so he should be taking that measurement from the pedals when they're horizontal, for example if the pedals are 300mm from the ground when horizontal then he would have 315mm of clearance, but that's obviously not accounting for suspension movement.
I learned and rode 29er for a few years. I was used to how stable it felt. Recently, I bought a 27.5 2nd hand and I felt out of control on the first few runs. I am getting used to it and liked the playfulness and agility of it. However, I am curious if I can get the best of both worlds by running mullet.
For me it does feel like a best of both worlds on a longer travel bike - but I'm on the shorter side of adult life - If you can its worth trying!
Cheers
Owen
@@OwenBikeNerd hi Owen! I just wanna update you that I was able to try mullet setup and it feels amazing. I have front stability while my rear stays playful. I do need to get used to it since the front gives me absolute confidence and I forget my rear is a 27.5. It sometimes causes my rear skid sideways on braking especially when the ground is a little loose. Overall, it feels amazing and very fun. I will keep the setup. Thank you so much for all your tips! Cheers!
@@DonnyDondon55 Excellent to hear - this is great! Very happy to help and pleased that its worked - enjoy!
Cheers
Owen
Derailleur is lower to the rocks on 27.5
29 on both for me but I am also 2meters and need it for my long legs 😂
I really hated mazzas. They left the bike feeling dead compared to other tires of the same weight.
And… again. In the words of the DJ, ‘another one’
Thanks do you know any of the direct sales manufacturers such as YT Propain or Canyon?
Mixed wheel sizes were banned by the UCI in the early 80s because of the extreme designs of specialist bikes used in road time trials, before riders started using tri bars in the event. However they were running smaller wheels on the front as opposed to the rear. At 24" front and 28" rear. The front ends were so low it was getting dangerous. The ban was only lifted for gravity MTB events more recently.
Nice summary. 😊🤙
There will be some changes to the ride feel, but the wheelbase can't be changing more than some mm?
wheelbase is the same
Shorter chainstays any day 👍
@@saiiiiiii1 it's better, but you won't get shorter chainstay by switching from 29" to 27,5"
@@vernerjuliussen2071 but the manufacturer should definitely do it when offering both options.
@saiiiiiii1 indeed.
I only build mullet on an original 27,5".
Would never mount at 27,5 on a 29 rear swing. 😅🔥
three seconds? line changes are probably the big deal there. too subjective. just ride.
Just look at the downhill World Cup, nothing groundbreaking going on here. Depends on the course too.
Screw up the scientific parameters, get a screwed up inconclusive result.
29ers are the SUV of mtb
Try the same tests with a larger rider (maybe 6 foot and 200 pounds). My bike started as a mullet and was converted to a 29er for the rollover and speed benefits.
Feel like your definitions of hysteresis and impedance need a revision. Seems like terms are being made to suit what your saying a bit.
Mullet? Isn’t that just a penny-farthing in disguise?