I am planning to build a jump/park hardtail; should I go for dual 26's or dual 24's, and how come? I am a beginner dirt jumper and skatepark rider--I need something suitable for both, but jumping is way more important.
Dirt jumping wheel size
- Thread starter Tully
- Start date
24s. The only benefit of larger wheels is that they roll over rough terrain better. 24s are stronger.
Some people will twaddle other crap about acceleration/center of gravity etc but that's neither here nor there since they are also dependent on gear ratios and frame/fork design.
Some people will twaddle other crap about acceleration/center of gravity etc but that's neither here nor there since they are also dependent on gear ratios and frame/fork design.
For what you want. 24" sounds ideal.
i dunno the 24" tire selection sucks, just my opinion
if you ever wanna race the 24's arent ganna roll as fast but the 24 have a lower center of gravety
If you come up slightly short or long (rough landing, but not a "case"), is it a little smoother on 26's? I'm asking because I tend to do that fairly often.
In other words, which are generally more forgiving and "confidence-building"?
i voted doens't really matter because it depnd on what you are use to. it you use 26" wheel a 24" bike will feel really stupid and vise versa. it i have to pick 26" or 24" i would mose likely go for 26" because of their versitlity outside of the park and dj's
IMO it depends on your frame more than anything. If you get a frame with a low BB (eg DMR Trailstar/sidekick, C'dale Chase etc) it will suck with 24's. Personally I prefer dual 26s because you can only get 521s (721s?) in 26", and they're so much easier to get tyres/tubes for, and you never have to worry about rim brakes not working with your frame etc etc. I used to have dual 24s; the tyre selection sucked and the BB was too low (DMR Trailstar) but it didn't really ride much different other than that.
I personally don't think it makes anywhere near as big a difference as people claim; 24" wheels aren't much stronger at all, for street/park applications the acceleration BS is negligible as is the marginally higher top rolling speed of 26s, and you can ride the same stuff on 26s as you can on 24s.
As for which is "more forgiving", both are much the same
I personally don't think it makes anywhere near as big a difference as people claim; 24" wheels aren't much stronger at all, for street/park applications the acceleration BS is negligible as is the marginally higher top rolling speed of 26s, and you can ride the same stuff on 26s as you can on 24s.
As for which is "more forgiving", both are much the same
Get a 20" bike. You'll be more core and you can ride without a helmet. I think 24" wheels are easier to pump on most dirtjumps. They're stronger and put you center of gravity lower as well. Doing x-ups, barspins and general bike flicking around is easier with a smaller gyroscope hanging the air as well. There's a reason everything being done on mountain bikes was accomplished years before on 20" bikes.
B
bighitfsr
Guest
24" has the advantage that its going to be significantly lighter and stronger.
Your gonna save probably 400g of rotating weight (150g per tire + 50g per rim) and the wheel set will be stronger. 4 skate park and DJs where your running high tire pressure 24s are heaps stronger as your generally not going to flatspot the rims (24" have no advantage against flatspots).
Tire selection and a low BB (with some frames) is the main negative IMO.
There arent a lot of DJ sized 24" tires around.
Also for skate park and DJ a low BB is good IMO.
If you wanted to ride trials and street a low BB wouldnt be so hot.
Your gonna save probably 400g of rotating weight (150g per tire + 50g per rim) and the wheel set will be stronger. 4 skate park and DJs where your running high tire pressure 24s are heaps stronger as your generally not going to flatspot the rims (24" have no advantage against flatspots).
Tire selection and a low BB (with some frames) is the main negative IMO.
There arent a lot of DJ sized 24" tires around.
Also for skate park and DJ a low BB is good IMO.
If you wanted to ride trials and street a low BB wouldnt be so hot.
I dunno about that. I'm in the process of switching frombighitfsr said:
2.6" Gazza on 24" doublewide rim
to
2.8" Comp32 on 26" Mavic EX823
So I'm going to a bigger tyre, with a larger diameter, and a significant increase in performance.
And that's saving about 250g each end. :love:
Yeh, but Gazza's on doublewides aren't exactly a DJ/park combination, are they?
I ride an arrow ds3 which I'm still experimenting with. The 24/26 concept can go both ways. I've actually hit my first rythm section on dual 26's, and I still have trouble with dual 24s. This is most likely due to the heavy arrow tires I have that are 2.6 with big tubes (PX BMF Rims, arrow prime bite 2.6). Some smaller tires would probably let me get a little more air.
as for some other comments: 24's accelerate much faster than 26's. It's not BS. This is on my arrow with relatively light 26's vs. the heavy arrow tires on my 24s. They just go faster.
They don't carry well over rough terrain. I had a real tough time climbing yesterday simply because my tires couldn't make it over the big rocks and log steps. Would 26's have helped? Probably, but so would more leg muscle. Coming down wasn't so bad, but still probably wasn't as great as 26s. On smooth trails there would be no disadvantage.
My 24s flatspot just as easily as any 26" rim I've ever had, if not moreso.
If you're going to make a comparison, compare 26 dw/2.6 gazza to 24 dw/2.6 gazza. Throwing michelin tires and mavic rims is moot, because they are simply finer components, IMO. Then again, I would take arrow 24s/arrow tires over either.
The tire selection argument is getting pretty weak too- check out go ride's selection and I can pick out a few DH and a few SS and even a street tire or two in 24". They don't have Michelins, but F le french
All in all, if you're building a park bike, I wouldn't be afraid of 24's. I think they ride well, and they make the bike feel smaller, which is a boost of confidence in tight situations, such as jumps and street. A longer bike could get into some trouble in some spots, not that it isn't possible with a bigger bike though. I don't seem to feel any problem with casing jumps (i do it a lot) but I do ride rear suspension. Unless this is a trail bike too, then I don't think you'll have a problem with dual 24s.
as for some other comments: 24's accelerate much faster than 26's. It's not BS. This is on my arrow with relatively light 26's vs. the heavy arrow tires on my 24s. They just go faster.
They don't carry well over rough terrain. I had a real tough time climbing yesterday simply because my tires couldn't make it over the big rocks and log steps. Would 26's have helped? Probably, but so would more leg muscle. Coming down wasn't so bad, but still probably wasn't as great as 26s. On smooth trails there would be no disadvantage.
My 24s flatspot just as easily as any 26" rim I've ever had, if not moreso.
If you're going to make a comparison, compare 26 dw/2.6 gazza to 24 dw/2.6 gazza. Throwing michelin tires and mavic rims is moot, because they are simply finer components, IMO. Then again, I would take arrow 24s/arrow tires over either.
The tire selection argument is getting pretty weak too- check out go ride's selection and I can pick out a few DH and a few SS and even a street tire or two in 24". They don't have Michelins, but F le french
All in all, if you're building a park bike, I wouldn't be afraid of 24's. I think they ride well, and they make the bike feel smaller, which is a boost of confidence in tight situations, such as jumps and street. A longer bike could get into some trouble in some spots, not that it isn't possible with a bigger bike though. I don't seem to feel any problem with casing jumps (i do it a lot) but I do ride rear suspension. Unless this is a trail bike too, then I don't think you'll have a problem with dual 24s.