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Wheel size comparison8/6/2023 They also make sense for elite cross country racers looking to shave precious seconds off their lap times. A mountain bike tire will slip in between the planks if you don't hit your line perfectly, while the wider 29+ footprint will offer a bit of forgiveness.įull suspension makes a lot of sense, in my opinion, for expert riders hitting double black diamond downhill runs with gap jumps and 5-foot drops. But it's deceptively tricky due to its location at the top of a steep incline followed by a sharp left. The photo (and the iPhone camera's tendency to flatten everything in an image) doesn't do this obstacle justice. On the trail, I've had riding buddies give me a hard time about how they need to skillfully choose their lines through rock gardens, while I just bomb straight down the middle without braking or even steering. While the fat bike gave me the confidence to pick my way through the more advanced skills sections at Ray's Indoor Mountain Bike Park, the extra-large diameter of the 29+ let me plow over everything like it was flat. We've yet to put any serious saddle time on a 27.5+, but after an entire spring and half a summer on the 29+, it's become our new recommendation for novice-to-intermediate riders looking for stability, comfort, and confidence to tackle tougher terrain. Over the past year, I've witnessed more and more riders (particularly older riders who have been mountain biking for decades) quickly adopting the "+" size.often mounting them to hardtail fat bikes with rigid forks. A 29+, meanwhile, achieves almost comical visual proportions. As a result, the outer diameter of a 27.5+ tire is similar to a standard 29er. "+" tires come in two sizes: 27.5 x 3" and 29 x 3". The fat bike size is clearly best for snow and mud, and the mountain bike tire is fastest on most dry trails, but the 29+ strikes a perfect balance between grip, float, weight, cushion, and rolling resistance. And for a lot of trails, we've come to believe it's like the Goldilocks of tire sizes.just right.Ī 26 x 4", 29 x 3", and 29 x 2.2" tire side by side. Simply put, a "+" tire is 3" wide, a size that splits the difference between traditional mountain bike and fat bike. Examples may include what I like to call "greasy" trail surfaces, trails where you have a loose material (like sand, scree, or loam) sitting on top of a hard surface, as well as trails with lots of technical rock and root sections.Įnter the "+" size tire. This results in situations where a fat bike can seem tedious and slow, while a mountain bike may leave a rider wishing for a bit more grip, cushion, and stability. Naturally, given the choice, you'd choose a mountain bike for smooth, dry, and fast trails, and lean toward a fat bike for extreme conditions where you need maximum traction and/or float.īut in reality, trails often fall more toward the middle of this spectrum. It will also float atop loose surfaces like sand, mud, and nditions where a mountain bike tire will sink and bog down. A 4" tire will be significantly heavier and slower rolling, but provide a LOT more grip on slick surfaces. Common mountain bike rim sizes include 26", 27.5", and 29".Ī fat bike rim is typically 26" in size, but the actual tire measures between a massive 4" and 5" wide.Īs you may imagine, a 2" tire will generally be lighter and roll faster on hard surfaces. NOTE: We set the tires up tubeless, but that big-ass seat bag is needed for carrying a spare 29+ tube in the case of a puncture.įor a little bit of background, a typical mountain bike has tires that are between 2.2" and 2.5" wide. The Borealis Flume fat bike also accepts 29 x 3" wheels and tires (shown) as well as 27.5 x 3". ![]() Of course we said yes, and a week later, a humongous box containing two unbelievably large-diameter wheels/tires showed up at our front door. Shortly after our review, however, the guys at Borealis threw a wrench in the works: "Would you like to try a set of '29+' wheels with the bike?" We enjoyed the bike so much, in fact, we arrived at the following belief: for most novice-to-intermediate trail riders (like us), a fat bike will not only extend your riding season through the winter, but the confidence it inspires will possibly make it the best year 'round option too. Then, after conquering the skinnies on the fattie at Ray's Indoor Mountain Bike Park, we came away thoroughly impressed with the extra confidence a fat bike delivers on challenging terrain, and blown away by its ability to bulldoze obstacles like rocks and logs. While skeptical of this whole fat bike fad, it only took a few pedal strokes on a snowy trail for us to be completely hooked. ![]() Last winter, we reviewed the Borealis Flume fat bike.
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