Not at all.
Have you ever tried it?
There is a thread with a lot of opinions on this here:
https://unicyclist.com/t/the-future-of-26/
To sum up mine: the difference between 27.5" and 26" exists, but is not that big (it’s actually 1" different, opposed to what the name suggests). Both the gap from a 24" to a 26" and a 27.5" to a 29" are bigger, and feel a lot more significant for me. If you look at unicycles standing around you can also see this, I don’t think I’d ever have an issue telling a 24" and a 26" apart from a distance, but with 26"and 27.5", that is harder to do.
I would recommend buying 27.5" new, because that is where the bike market has decided to go, so there are a lot more tire choices there. In my opinion, having the right tire for the job makes more of a difference than 25mm of wheel diameter.
If you find a good deal on a used 26", I’d still consider it. It’s not like tires have completely disappeared for them, just less and less choice.
Final point: a 29" can do very well even on technical trails if you set it up for it.
5 Likes
Thank you for your long answer! That help me a lot…
The 27.5x3.25 Duro Crux is the standard for the KH muni and also used by Ryan Kremsater riding this stuff:
I would say it’s pretty capable in the right hands 
Is a 2.8 tire for Muni Good as well? I got such a offer for a used 27.5.
IMHO, 2"8 is one of the best size for muni. It’s lighter than a big 3" or 3"25 while being manoeuvrable. I run a 27"5 x 2"8 Maxxis Rekon + and I love it. It’s far better than a Maxxis High Roller 2 27"5 x 3" for example 
1 Like
Thank you!!!
Any tire from 2.4" to 5" wide can be really good in the right hands - it depends on your riding style, skillset and terrain.
Start somewhere in the middle and figure out which direction you want to take from there for your next tire is my suggestion. If you want to be able to run lower pressure to “float” over roots and smaller imperfections, go wider, but you may have to deal with controlling the tire a bit more. If you want a more direct feeling Uni that responds faster, go thinner, but it will also transfer the bumps to you more harshly.
There are no definitive answers, it’s more a question of choosing which problems you prefer dealing with.
2 Likes
Thank you. I only know the 3“ from my 24er Muni. But I will try, the 2.8“ for the new 27.5er.
Hi Anne,
almost everything is said, I think it is a good decision. A big advantage IMO is, that you have a wide range of tires available for the 27.5 and there are only few left for 26.
If you love downhill the 27.5 ist perfekt, for Crosscountry I prefer the 29 Inch.
Best Andy
Tire: I use Schwalbe Magic Mary 2.8 for Downhill, the above mentioned recon is good in the dry, not so good in wet conditions. but better for CC.
This isn’t that bad either… 26 is still being made a lot for fields like dirt jumping, downhill (a lot of 26-ers still in use with the general public), wheelie bikes/bmx, fat bikes and trial. Those wheel sizes will not change quickly (although downhill is moving towards 27.5 and 29 as well) so there will still be plenty of tires available. And since the market is smaller, you don’t really have the overload of the other sizes, where each tire is often sold in various different options (carcas, rubber, etc).
Depending on your riding preference, there are even tires available for 26 which aren’t available for the bigger wheels, but which behave awesome in their field (Schwalbe Crazy Bob is such an example, Maxxis Holy Roller is another).
Some tires which I think are awesome for their specific purpose, and all available in 26":"
- Schwalbe Crazy Bob
- Schwalbe Magic Mary
- Continental Cross King
- Continental Der Kaiser
- Maxxis Crossmark II
- Maxxis Holy Roller
- Maxxis DTH
- Maxxis High Roller II
Not used personally, but are used a lot:
- Clean Koala
- Kenda Small Block 8
And then you still have a range of fat tires available for the fat bikes.
3 Likes
Thank you Andy.
I love downhill the most. Cross Country too, But of necessary it works for CC as well, doesn’t it?
I choose a 27.5“ Muni (Quax Rgb) with a 2.8 tire. Maybe I will buy a 3.25 tire too. Thank you all for your amazing help!!! I will report how I get along with the unicycle and experiences…
See you soon,
Anne
1 Like
Hi Anne,
it sure does. needs a bit more energy and is therefore the better excercise;-)
I’m riding a 27.5 rgb myself. I’ve come to like the saddle it came with, but not the pedals and I found the 137mm cranks a bit short, but I may go back to them someday. Right now I prefer 145mm, which is the longest quax makes.
Thank you for the information. I offered the 145 mm cranks and other pedals. I am glad about that. Thanks for your message!
I spent about half an hour today riding my 27.5 and my new 24” back to back. The 27.5 has a 3” tire and 145mm cranks while the 24 has a 2.6” tire and 148mm cranks. Overall diameter is right around 29” on the 27.5 and around 25” on the 24. Pedals, saddle and saddle height are identical, relative to the pedals.
Riding the two the one thing that really stood out about the 24 was how much easier it was to ride brakeless. The 27.5 is slightly faster and noticeably smoother. The bigger wheel and fatter tire just roll over things easier. I still need to test the 24” out on some tougher downhill and climbs to see how it does. What I was riding today was just a short easy loop which definitely favored the bigger wheel.
1 Like
Try both with shorter cranks, then go long again….
I’ve got 110/129/148 cranks on the 24. I’m not really all that interested in trying short cranks right now though. The trails I’ve been riding are challenging enough with longer cranks and I’ve got a couple of climbs that I’ve never managed to conquer yet, also some downhill that although I’ve done it I still find it to be a challenge each time. I’m hoping I’ll do better with the 24" on those trails. The stuff I was riding today had to do with not having the time to get away to a better location.
1 Like