The fall of the 26"
 

After following a few threads where members were searching for 26" rims, tires and their scarcity. It got me to thinking. I have a 26" MTB rim brake (Deore) converted to a multi purpose bike. It's in perfect working condition and I use it for shopping trips or a loaner to friends, but started to wonder if I want to make room in the stable what would I do with this bike?
Selling it would not get me near as much as I feel its worth. Scavenging for parts is very limited. 3 X 9 is going the way of the dodo, headset, handlebars (25.6), seat post sizes are all outdated. I could donate it, but even then, even for a free bike many kids will turn up their nose if it does not have disc brakes.
Too young to be vintage, too old to be of value. I guess I'll keep it and hope they come back into style while I'm still alive

There are so many of these MTB's produced for so long, and in so may classes from Walmart grade to artisanal Ritcheys and Fat Chance's, that there are still millions of these floating around, in almost every suburban garage. You will be able to find used parts for these till kingdom come. These MTB's will outlive cockroaches.
But for the time being, your bike is still a perfectly fine bike. Just get some tubeless wheels and tires and put them on and enjoy the bike. That is the one upgrade that is a must-have for these older MTB's.

Tubeless rims/tires for a 26" rim brake? I would like to see where they are

Velocity Cliffhanger or Velo Orange Voyager.

I turned my 20+ year old MTB into a singlespeed, using the original 26” wheels, v-brakes, and updating to tubeless tires. The tires are Panaracer Fire XC Pro 26 x 2.1. It is my understanding that these tires are discontinued, but they are still available, and there are others out there. I learned from a couple of YouTube videos how to properly tape and seal the rims for tubeless use, and it has worked great for me.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1a80b4e8d.jpeg

Donate it and move on. As your kids, I draw the line at rim brakes

Conversely, I'll keep my 26er until the frame fails (and I have a spare frame, so, even longer)

Never had a problem with parts or tires or anything.

27.5 and 29 were to sell new parts, and it worked.

I would not ...

I have five 26" bikes in my garage, and made an offer on a used one just yesterday. They make excellent city and flat bar gravel / fire road bikes. When someone asks me to help them find a good bike with $100-$150 budget, I find them a Deore LX or better, rigid fork 26" bike.

They are not going anywhere, the tire and wheel selection has decreased, but you can still find them.

My 26 inch bikes have enough frame clearance to run 700 x 45mm tires with full fenders, which is what I am doing right now. I am definitely keeping them and will continue to use them as my all terrain bikes and multi purpose bikes, both are set ups as singlespeed and have disc brakes.

Which 26"? 559, 571, 584, 590, or 597?

​​​​​​https://www.sheldonbrown.com/26.html

About 6 years ago, I put drop bars, fenders (with 1.9" knobbies), rear rack, and v-brakes (with Travel Agents), and Shimano Tourney 3x7 brifters on my 26" mtb I bought new in '89. I would not dream of parting with it. It's become my vacation SUV. It's perfect for dune trail rides on the cape and running errands.

I own a 26er myself .... why not ride it until one of us expires? If you are worried, buy a stock of tires and tubes, but store them in as close to an airless, dark environment as possible. Otherwise ... If someday I need a tire and there simply are no more ... i will deal with that. Not thinking that day will happen soon.

Particularly those old-school MTBs .... serious tanks. Good for everything except road racing.

As for bar size, I bet there are any number of replacement stems .... if needed. If it is a 1" threaded headset .... I bought one a few years back, a Ritchey I think, for $10.

Another option .... start buying up all the junk/trash/Craigslist giveaway 26s people have had in their garages for years and cannibalize them.

Ands here are the tires for them:
Continental Race King Performance 26 Inch MTB Tire at BikeTiresDirect

I wouldn't expect companies like Enve, Zipp, etc to be developing any new 26" rim brake products at this point, but that doesn't mean you can't find parts for these bikes. Call a LBS - they see 26" bikes all the time.

I've been told for 35 years I need to convert my 27" bike to 700C. I've been told for 15 years I need to convert my 26x1 3/8 bike to 650B.

Yeah, I haven't taken that advice. No problem finding quality tires for either and they still offer a lot of miles and smiles.

Now I'm told I need to send my 26" (ISO559) bike to the landfill and get a tubeless 29er.

:rolleyes:

Wait 20 years and they will be the hottest size to have and NOS RM-20s will sell for $100 each on E-Bay.

The tubeless era and the 26" era didn't really overlap for very long. It's not surprising that it's hard to find a wide selection of rims and tires for that combo.

I've got two 26"-wheeled bicycles and have no problem finding parts for them. I use them as utility bicycles, but occasionally take them for longer rides (+20 miles). 26" tires are still available in every bike shop I look in in my area. I'm not picky about brand/model as I just want something that goes on-and-off easily and is puncture resistant. As for gearing, one is a 2 x 7 and the other a 2 x 9. I don't use FDs on them, and I have not had a problem finding a cassette (9-speed) or freewheel (7-speed) for them. All other parts I've needed have been somewhat 'universal' and easy to find on the web. The only issue I had was finding a quill stem for the 7-speed but that just took a little deeper searching on the web. One of the tire posts you allude to was a guy touring in Colombia and mentioning he couldn't find 26" tires, but he later stated he wanted a specific brand and type (a Schwalbe) which does not seem to be sold in Colombia.

I just converted both my kids' 26" MTB's to tubeless using a used set of Mavic Crossmax and another used set of Mavic Crossroc(rim brake). Both of these are 'closed deck' rims - ie. no spoke holes and hence no need for taping, and they work perfectly. So keep your eyes peeled on your local craigslist. You'll find lots of 'tubeless ready' rims which require taping as well- a lot of people have good luck with these, but I didn't. I would buy those only as a last resort. This is the rim brake Crossroc rim (AKA X819)

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...69e83f4b6.jpeg

As for 26" tubeless tires- there are TONS of those out there. LOTs of choices. I limited my choices to UST tires and even there I had no problem at all finding lots of choices.

Based on all the details in the first post, which is most likely?
Ill guess 559, which is what everyone is also assuming.

I think 559 is probably the best all around size, especially for an errand bike if the streets are really bad.

Old mountain bikes tend to go at reasonable prices and make very versatile bikes. I've been running a late 80s Stumpjumper as my commuter for a long time now. It is not hard to find quality tires for a 26 inch wheel bike:

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...64a9133701.jpg

:foo:

I thought the reason some touring bikes are offered with 26" rims is because worldwide that size of tire remains the most available. I'll admit I haven't shopped for tires in that size lately. Maybe something has changed in recent years, with global supply shortages and a constantly evolving industry? If someone were to ask me, "What size of wheel should I take for a bike trip around the world, considering I'll likely have to replace tires somewhere along the way, quite possibly in a third world or developing nation?" I would recommend 26". But again, I've not kept up with it.

There was 26" scarcity over the last 3 years because everyone was fixing their 26" bike and the industry had trouble keeping up with the demand for stuff that is sold on current bikes. I have wondered if the supply was ever really going to return. My commuter is pretty nice, and features 26" wheels. Although I have a new commuter build in progress that is based on a 29er

Do my aging eyes detect ... BioPace chain rings? Love them.

Yes, :). The bike is fairly original (wheels, headset, derailleurs, stem, crank, chainrings). The wheels are 130 OLD with 6 speed uniglide freewheel.