Why not a 26" Club Tour?

[leftpoole]

How would a 26" Club Tour differ from the Sherpa?

It would be called and look like a Sherpa!
John

[horizon]

It would be called and look like a Sherpa!
John

Is that really all there is to it? In that case, I think the case for 650B is made. But I have my doubts: are not the forks wider on the Sherpa (or is that just wheel diameter?) or the tubes thicker/wider?

[JWestland]

They may of course be doing all of us a favour. it doesn't matter whether they sell 650B as better (e.g. faster), the fact remains that it could potentially be the Golden Mean. If road/touring bike makers also switched from 700c to 650B then we have a common wheel for all frames. Of course, most 700c bikebuilders may not like a smaller wheel but Thorn have managed to persuade lots of people that 26" is as good as 700c for most things (and 650B is even that bit bigger). While I am happy with just the two sizes with their different potentials, the switch to 650B (inasmuch as we cannot do much about it) may not be wholly bad. 

But then the roadies also need to go 650B...

That will get interesting!

The current trend there is disc brakes btw. on road bikes. Well if you swing down a hill at 60MPH maybe not such a bad idea...

[Pavel]

I think ... put 26" wheels on a Club Tour ... and you have a close enough to a Sherpa ... that you should just finish the job and call it a SHERPA.

To me the draw of a Club Tour is that is is (apparently) the most stable, least twitchy ride, that has all the trappings of yesteryear.  And that is a heck of a draw.

Otherwise, why not save a small fortune and do what everyone else here in the states does - Buy a Surly.

[in4]

There's a nice Surly on the CTC forum for sale right now. Think its for someone around 5' 10'. Now if someone not unknown on these boards gets his Thorn US franchise Surly will be in for some stiff competition

[NZPeterG]

Well well,
650B!
The man who started to use 650B on mountain bikes stop after a few years and how this is the size too have? Yes its all about the sale of more bikes!
Is this a good or bad thing? Well I now work full time in a cycleshop and it just mad PR.
Ride a good 29"er (700c  rim) and their is no point in the mid size.
But it maybe the end for all 26" MTB's in a few years.

I have coming this week a new $8500 NZ 29"er with One by  11.

I would not have if  29"ers were not the best all round for MTBing.

Pete & Tom..


.

[Danneaux]

its all about the sale of more bikes!...But it maybe the end for all 26" MTB's in a few years.

<grumble> I got caught out when the 27in touring wheels were beat out by 700C.

Thank goodness my past Sherpa Mk2 and now the Nomad Mk2's brake mounts will accept 650B size rims. A 650x38B Grand Bois Lierre has essentially the same outside diameter as my 26x2.0 Schwalbe Duremes: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=3893.0

Best,

Dan. (...who wonders if we might someday see a 650B Club Tour)

[NZPeterG]

Hi Dan,
Yes I have been working on Tom today and your right their is a lot of room to adjust brake pads to 650B! (in the USA 27five)
But i'll be sticking to 26" wheels as Africa (e.t.c) are still 26" and the old 3 speed size? (28 x 1 3/8?)

Tom has changed a little today 

Pete..................

[Danneaux]

Tom has changed a little today

Very much looking forward to photos of the New Tom, Pete!

All the best,

Dan.

[StuntPilot]

Interesting image here of comparisons and measurement of 26" and 650 wheels. Taken from the Wikipedia article here ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_wheel

[JWestland]

A 29er is really a 700C wheel with fat MTB tires, reaching an outside circumference of 29 inches.

650B still has its uses for people under 5"3' for example as otherwise you have "crank overlap" instead of "toe overlap"

[Znook]

650B still has its uses for people under 5"3' for example as otherwise you have "crank overlap" instead of "toe overlap"

I'm 5'3" and using the smallest 26" frame available and it's just on the limit for my size. A 650B, though I've never tried one, I'm sure is going to be literally stretching it in my case. I've even been told that I should be using a 24" wheel size frame because that would be a better fit for me 

Thankfully Lisa at Thorn, after receiving my measurements, has said a 510L Nomad frame is the correct one, which aligns roughly with my current 26" steed. We shall see.

[NZPeterG]

A 29er is really a 700C wheel with fat MTB tires, reaching an outside circumference of 29 inches.

650B still has its uses for people under 5"3' for example as otherwise you have "crank overlap" instead of "toe overlap"

Well almost right on Specialized Lady's MTB you can go down to 4'9" with No Toe/Crank Overlap.
But on most make's your right 5'3" and smaller and you need smaller wheels.
But why 27five? it's all about Selling more bikes to People! Do you know that a 26 x 2.5" tyred wheel is the some size as most 27five?

Pete...

[NZPeterG]

I'm 5'3" and using the smallest 26" frame available and it's just on the limit for my size. A 650B, though I've never tried one, I'm sure is going to be literally stretching it in my case. I've even been told that I should be using a 24" wheel size frame because that would be a better fit for me 

Thankfully Lisa at Thorn, after receiving my measurements, has said a 510L Nomad frame is the correct one, which aligns roughly with my current 26" steed. We shall see.

Hi it's not about wheels size but more about how well a bike is Designed around the rider!

Happy Cycling

Pete.....

PS: My new 29"er is ETA for this friday 

[JWestland]

I'm 5'3" and using the smallest 26" frame available and it's just on the limit for my size. A 650B, though I've never tried one, I'm sure is going to be literally stretching it in my case. I've even been told that I should be using a 24" wheel size frame because that would be a better fit for me  

Thankfully Lisa at Thorn, after receiving my measurements, has said a 510L Nomad frame is the correct one, which aligns roughly with my current 26" steed. We shall see.

Good luck! There's some vintage frames up for sale too that are small:

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/thorn-xtc-bare-metal-frame-and-fork-set-prod4291/
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/thorn-exp-bare-metal-frame-and-fork-set-475-s-%284%29-with-cast-crown-prod3709/

Brochures with geometry are here:
http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=6975.0

To clarify of course frame geometry matters also, but on a drop bar frame you need a shorter top tube, and there it can become very difficult to get off the peg bikes that fit.

On my 51 cm TT 700C Ciocc I have little overlap, but the headtube is slacker than the seattube. This wasn't normally done on old Italian frames but may have been an adjustment as these frames were built to order.
In the old days track/race frames for smaller sizes were often done in 650B or even 26".

I am 5"5 btw...