Can You Put 29 Inch Wheels On A 26 Inch Bike

We bet you can! Yes, you heard me right. You can put the 29 inch wheels on a modified full suspension 26 inch bike frame. For that, you will just need to be specialized and comfortable in basic bike modifications. How am I so sure? Because I have done the research and implemented it on my 26-inch full-suspension mountain bike. During the research, I have read many experts’ advice, some experts said it’s not possible, and some said it is possible. Here I have found the gap and tried to find a trick after carefully observing experts’ advice and then implementing the techniques with my bike. Interested in knowing more to clear this confusion and know my success recipe?

Be with me till the end, and I am sure you will be knowledgeable about this good idea and can do it yourself.

Can You Put 29 Inch Wheels On A 26 Inch Bike?

This tricky question has a trickier answer. As we said above, you can put 29inch wheels on a 26 inch bike, but you need to do some modifications to your bike. 

First, we have to be clear about whether your bike is an mtb bike or a road bike? Because both bikes have differences. An mtb bike has a rigid frame where only 29-inch wheels can fit on a 29-inch frame. But if you have a road bike that too is a full-suspension one, it will allow you to put different sizes of wheels on top of it. Most of us do this to use an mtb bike on-road. We want to put skinny tires on mtb bikes with the purpose of using them on a flat road with faster speed. 

Tire clearance is very important in this case, and you need to have enough clearance to take care of it. Either you have to face trouble handling disc brakes with a bit bigger wheels than the 26-inch rim. You have to buy an adapter for the rear wheel and use it as your front tire to make it right. 

The wheel size you will get after installing 29-inch rims is 522/100-9. The 27-inch rim and spokes are closest in terms of setup to the 29er wheel. If a bike has 522 front hub spacing, it means that it can use a rigid fork with 522mm axle spacing. A single-speed bike with a 27-inch wheel provides even better handling than a pure trail hardcore bike on technical downhill routes and freshly fallen snow, just with slight rim adjustment to increase the hub’s outer diameter for larger 29-inch rims. 

You just have to adjust the handlebars to make them consistent with the wheel size, adjust the seat tube, seat post, and the front section of the frame with a trunnion.

You also need to adjust your main chainring by putting it into different positions after adjusting the seat tube angle. This will give you a more appropriate range of motion for the rider’s neck while riding downhill or hard pedaling.

Benefits Of Putting The 29 inch Wheels on a 26 Inch Bike

There are many benefits of increased wheel size. Some of the benefits include:

• It will provide more traction and grip than smaller wheel sizes due to their larger size. 
• It will allow the riders to go faster with less effort. 
• It will provide more stability while riding downhill due to its larger diameter and wider rims that offer more contact area with the ground.
• It’s easier to ride over small bumps and curbs, and the larger wheels also make it easier to turn corners at high speeds. 
• It’s also possible to use smaller gears on this switched bike because it has fewer spokes, making it faster than other types of bicycles.

But remember, if you don’t have enough knowledge in this area and the toolset, it’s impossible to convert a 29-inch mtb bike into a 26inch mtb bike.

Why Shouldn’t You Put 29 Inch Wheels On A 26 Inch Bike?

Though you can put 29-inch wheels on a 26-inch bike, it’s not recommended to do so. Why? Because there are huge differences between the wheel size, frame size (26er-29er), geometry, width, and weight differences; without a 29er frame, you will miss many things that can make your ride a more enjoyable one. Let’s know some more reasons. 

• When you go for a ride with this wheels-changed bike, you will face air pressure or resistance during top speed riding on a trek or going downhill. 
• You will also face problems as the bigger wheels are heavier.  
• It will cause instability, affect the tipping over & bottom bracket failure chances, Wobbling, and unsafe.
• A rider can’t ride larger wheels with smaller frames bike with comfortability,
• It will also be difficult to control.

All these disadvantages compel us to forbid you to put 29 inch wheels in a 26 inch mtb bike frame.

Can You Switch Back To A 26 Inch Mountain Bike from 29 inch wheels?

Yes, you can switch back to a 26 inch mountain bike from 29 inch wheels whenever you need. Usually, no rider wants to go back to 26-inch wheels after replacing them with 29-inch wheels. Because it offers smoother ride-on bumps, better handling and controls, top-speed, and many more, so obviously, no rider would love to leave these facilities and go back to their old mtb bike. 

But if you want, it’s possible to switch back to a 26inch mountain bike from 29-inch wheels. Smaller wheels can perfectly fit on a larger frame. So, keeping taller riders’ benefits in mind, many manufacturers have already manufactured 26 inch plus wheels, and many bike shops are selling them with good reviews. These are designed for each bike fit, especially in larger frames, so mountain bikers feel this is the best way to transform their bike according to their needs.

But why would someone leave a better experience? No one, yes, no one will do such a thing until he needs it. Exchanging 29 er rear tires and coming back to a 26 er only happens when someone shorter or a short rider is gonna ride it. If you think a 29er bike is larger for you or someone you want to gift, you can do this. Another reason can be riding it only over the tough trail for better steering power, I mean only for mountain biking.

Final Thought

It’s possible to convert a 26-inch bike into a 29 er mtb bike, but it’s not appropriate. Most experts will recommend you to buy a mountain bike with a frame that is designed to fit the wheel size, not a larger wheel on a smaller bike. But as we outlined, you can do it to enjoy some 29er mtb bike advantages without having a 29-inch wheel mtb bike. Like advantages, you will also face some disadvantages (lower performance in crowded commute riding,  unable to handle bumpy trails, lower speed on rugged trails, etc. If you want a bike for balance benefits, you can try the new 27.5-inch size hardtail mtb bike of Kona or Santa Cruz; they manufacture affordable bikes for mtb biking and road biking.

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