My wife is looking to replace her stolen touring/hybrid (a Fuji Sagres) and is looking at a 1988 Trek 900. It has 26" wheels. I'm wondering what the collective wisdom is about wheel size for touring bikes. I've only ever used bikes with 700c wheels (Fuji Saratoga and now a Bill Davidson), so I think that's best -- am I well-informed or just prejudiced? And yes, I do mean touring, not just commuting.

For touring? Wheel size really isn't all that important IMHO, unless you plan on going to places where tire availability might be a problem. What'll make the biggest difference to your wife is probably going to be the tires you choose.

Heck, even with MTBs I find the difference between 29/26in wheels to be pretty minor in the grand scheme of things.

Here's a thread for ya:

[h=1]Best size wheel for Touring?[/h]

It's possible the bigger difference in this case that the old bike was a hybrid and the Trek is a (presumably) heavier mountain bike with heavier and wider wheels. I wouldn't want to tour on a mountain bike - no way, but that's just my preference. I'm not willing to pay the speed penalty. If on the other hand you are going to be on dirt most or all of the time, it would be the best way to go.

Of course going to a 26 doesn't necessarily mean a mountain bike; they can be a road wheel too. Generally speaking 26" wheels are more sensible on smaller frames. They work out much better when the wheel diameter is reduced. Lots of companies have come around to their senses and do offer 26" wheel touring bikes now.

Also keep in mind that there are five extant 26" wheel sizes. The old French touring standard size 650b has become popular recently. It is sort of halfway between the old mountain/cruiser 26 and 700c.

I wonder about this issue. I'm not planning any trips to Timbuktu or wherever at the moment, but out of curiosity, how does one know what tire size is used in other parts of the world? I've heard for example that 26" tires are the most common in SE Asia, but that's not helpful at all since there are many different sizes. Are they using EA1 or MTB/cruiser ISO 559??

I've put 1.25" road tires on my kids' mountain bikes for use on the road -- when we didn't want to go all out and buy them road bikes. They worked okay. I even use them on my old Rockhopper, which I ride on the road when the weather's awful -- my "crap bike." Here's a picture of the kind of bike the Trek 900 is -- an old style hard tail. I think it was even made in the USA. The old Treks did have some good points, I think.

Thanks, BigAura

Current touring bike is 559 mm/26" wheel, prev were 622mm/700C...frame design seems to affect ride/handling more than the wheel difference. Plus for both size wheels there's a wide variety of widths available. For smaller riders the 559 might be more proportional. My only gripe about 522/26 is that with trekking/MTB cranksets I don't get the higher gearing for descents. Not a big deal, having the granny gears more important.