I was out riding my Oracle 24 (pinch flatted my 29er) the other day when I noticed how much mud clearance it has. Is it just me or is really rather odd that the Oracle 29er frame only just fits a 29x2.35 (Hans Dampf) wheelset? You’d think Nimbus would have left a bit more space…
I know the new 29er frame can fit a 3" tyre but that still begs the question why didn’t they make it bigger in the first place - after all it is a muni frame for most people.
Maybe one of you guys could enlighten me…
P.S. can you fit a 26er wheel in a 24" Oracle frame? It looks like it could be possible; with a skinny tyre of course.
Yeah, it is strange. The Nimbus Drak 29 has way more room than the oracle 29. It almost looks like the oracle 29 is more of a 26" frame. The oracle looks very similar to my nimbus nomad frame which is 29, but barely fits an ardent 29x2.4 (maybe 1/2 cm on all three sides). I guess you need to stay out of the mud with it.
Looks like there’s a bit of room to spare too. I wonder if a 24x2.5 would fit…
I run a Hans so mud isn’t much of a problem - but gravel is. Every ride all I can hear is the contant ‘chink chink chink’ of gravel stuck in my tyre hitting the frame.
You could always build a fat 26" wheel for it, you would loose a bit of overall size, but you would gain a bit of clearance and tire cross section could be bigger. All it would take is a 26" rim and spokes plus a new tire… Probably all total would be around a hundred bucks.
If I’m not mistaken (and Nurse Ben is welcome to chime in if I am ), until the Surly Knard came on the scene there weren’t any 29" x 3" tyre options.
Hence, I’m guessing that when the Oracle 29 was being designed, the collective wisdom was that frame need only be big enough to fit a 29" x 2.4" or 29" x 2.5".
Incidentally, although I have yet to try the Knard on any muni, I’m really happy with the Maxxis Ardent 29" x 2.4", particularly when paired with a Foss tube. It’s such a light set-up, rolls and climbs like a dream, yet has plenty of cushion and grip when run at 18 - 20 p.s.i. I’m betting that the Knard would be overkill for the type of riding I do – dry, dusty and rocky trails. I already feel that way about the WTB Dissent, and it’s only 29" x 2.5". Of course if I lived in a slightly more damp place (;)) , I might want the float of a 3" tyre in the mud.
), until the Surly Knard came on the scene there weren’t any 29" x 3" tyre options.