Are 26in wheel mtb worth it in 2020 with Beginner budgets ?

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Are 26in wheel mtb worth it in 2020 with Beginner budgets ?
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flag Jride69
Posted: Feb 24, 2021 at 12:36 Quote
So as many hear that 26ers are dead, as someone who is looking to get in mtb the pricing and affordability of a used 26er is tempting. While my friends scream at me to go into credit card debt for a 29 saying that it's impossible to find parts for a 26er and I'll pay more in the long run.

So question to all of you, what is a 26in wheel bike like in 2020, is parts actually that hard to come by, would u pay more in the long run for it ? Or is it still plentiful, and a good option to those who want to get their foot into mtb but have to stick on a budget ?

All opinions appreciated!
flag mark-p
Posted: Feb 24, 2021 at 12:43 Quote
I think it depends on what you are getting.
You can get an awful lot of 26" bike for your money but there are now many 27.5" around as well.
It really depends on how tight your budget is. If you are needing to replace forks then the choice is limited and decent second hand ones can be difficult to come by. Perversely, good 26" second hand forks are more expensive that you would think.

Depending on your choice of fork the axle to crown measurement of some 26" forks is the same as a 27.5".

The big thing is how fussed you are about the longer-lower-slacker geometry. Even an old 27.5" will be way different to one from the last year or two.
flag rosemarywheel
Posted: Feb 24, 2021 at 12:53 Quote
Definetly a good point on the forks. If you don't mind older, heavier bikes then I would say 26" is worth it. I have 4 full suspension mountain bikes and 2 hardtails and they are all 26. Wheels and tubes are harder to come by, but the frames are cheapish and I like the look older things, even if the geo isn't as I would like it to be.

I rented a 27.5" bike last saturday and I felt so clumsy, the larger wheel size will take some getting used to.
flag DJR2013
O+
Posted: Feb 24, 2021 at 14:56 Quote
Buy mine! I’ve been riding a 2009 26 full suspension since it was released. It’s been great and has kept up fairly well with modern bike specs with a few component upgrades. It goes trail riding and bike park riding just fine. I think the time for cheap 26 parts is coming to an end and they are evening out with 27.5 and 29 parts. For awhile everything was dirt cheap because shops just wanted to clear their excess stock. Lately all the old stuff is gone and there is just new purpose made 26 stuff that is expensive because it is becoming a niche. Like the person above said. A 26 can have a lot of bang for the buck as you can get a full suspension bike at rock bottom prices because it’s not sought after. Pick one up cheap and upgrade later. On the bright side there isn’t likely to be any more depreciation after so many years so you’ll probably come out close to even if you keep its condition comparable.
flag Arctic601
Posted: Feb 24, 2021 at 19:29 Quote
I rode a 26" for years and finally switched to a 27.5". My personal opinion is to go for the 27.5, although the 26 is definitely more playful in many ways, but depending on how tight and technical your trails are this may not matter.

Parts will be harder to find for the 26" and prices may not be as cheap as the tech becomes older.

Ultimately it comes down to what can you afford though. It may also be worth saving some more money.
flag Jride69
Posted: Feb 25, 2021 at 7:04 Quote
Thanks for the insight guys. And it sounds like my friend was partly right in that trying to find replacement drivetrain, sus or tire parts is only getting harder and more expensive. While saving the money upfront is tempting it seems that ill pay in the long run if i run into issues
flag Riyadh
Posted: Feb 25, 2021 at 7:34 Quote
The only parts hard to find for 26 inch wheel bikes will be wheels, tyres and forks. There are enough wheels/rims around. The dirt jump market still uses 26" wheels. Tyres maybe a bit limited, but you will find. Check some online stores. You might have to use a 27.5/650B fork if you cannot find a decent 26er fork. The fox 36 831 is a DJ fork, not sure though if you can adjust the travel.
As for the rest of the parts.... they pretty much the same thing as on any other bike.

I changed 2 years ago to a 27.5 bike from a 26er. The 26er's geometry was still pretty much inline with modern bikes.
flag DJR2013
O+
Posted: Feb 25, 2021 at 7:45 Quote
Jride69 wrote:
Thanks for the insight guys. And it sounds like my friend was partly right in that trying to find replacement drivetrain, sus or tire parts is only getting harder and more expensive. While saving the money upfront is tempting it seems that ill pay in the long run if i run into issues

I guess I disagree with this partly. As long as you don't find yourself with a frame that has a bunch of proprietary standards you should be able to buy parts for it for a long time. They also won't be anymore expensive than the parts for a 27.5 vs 29. I think the reason why everyone says the parts will be more expensive is that 26" sized wheels, tires, etc have been at such a high discount for so long that it is shocking that they are evening out with the rest of the market. They arent really more expensive they are just returning to normal levels.
flag NitrousStone
Posted: Apr 19, 2023 at 23:21 Quote
In 2020 I bought a 2006 RM slayer 50 for 300$. The previous owner had a very abused shock, 120mm fork, xc rims, skinny handlebars and a long stem, and the worst brakes I’ve ever seen on the bike when I bought it. But I loved it. As my first full suspension pedal bike I couldnt have been happier with my 26inch bike. Fast forward to today, and I’m still finding parts, besides tires, quite easily. I added a dropper post, shorter stem and wide 35mm clamp bars, removed the 3x drivetrain and added a microshift 1x drivetrain and upgraded the suspension to a RS domain 160mm and a RS monarch RT3 for the back. All of these newer parts I bought from my local shop and online. A few things that haven’t changed too much, 6bolt rotors, 4 bolt cranks, threadless stems, HG drivers and lots of rims can be setup tubeless. I keep up with my buddies on their new enduro bikes just fine with my 26 inch wheels. Especially uphill
flag naptime
FL
Posted: Apr 20, 2023 at 2:12 Quote
Yes, been 26 ever since and while spare wheel sets are gone I can build wheels from parts. Thats aboot the only drawback.
flag muddytreker
Posted: Apr 20, 2023 at 7:53 Quote
Here in UK and Europe
26er parts are well hard to come by, though I did find that handlebars, stems, brakes, saddles, cranks, pedals,
grips, gear shifters, mechs, chains, BBs, cassettes, disc rotors for the most part all seemed to fit and cross over from
27.5 and 29er frame sizes.
26 tyres are still available and 2nd hand wheels are a plenty, Hope, DT swiss amongst others still make 26er rims,
so getting a custom wheel build is easy, spacer adapters to suit widths, axle types. If you mullet then
it only applies to the rear.

A 26er frame is generally only an issue with regards to headtube ID, if its 44mm then an EX lower headset
allows 1.5 tapered steerer fork, plenty of them to choose.
Seat post diameters can be overcome with shims if its an odd ball size as with any frame,
internal droppers can be a no for the most part outwith drilling frame, Mech hangers are still available,
other than that, yeh yah gonna struggle man, change is tough, good luck
flag Otrick
Posted: Apr 23, 2023 at 15:37 Quote
NitrousStone wrote:
In 2020 I bought a 2006 RM slayer 50 for 300$.
Would you still recommend buying a slayer in 2023? I found a 2008 slayer sxc 50 forsale near me for $300 that looks well taken care of. It would be my first full suspension bike coming from a gary fisher/trek hardtail.
flag NitrousStone
Posted: Apr 27, 2023 at 14:58 Quote
It would be a fun bike!
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