30+ 27 Inch Mountain Bike Wheels Background. 27.5 vs 29, the debate that never dies, everyone seems to have something to say about which is fastest, or just which they like best. These widely used measurements refer to the tire's diameter, and are typically paired with a tire width in inches.
It has 27 inch tires but i want to switch to 700c for greater wheel/tire selection.
The 27.5 rims i have seen are somewhat wider than their 29 inch brothers. 29 bike wheels are actually the same diameter at the rim as the 700c standard you may recognize from road bikes, while the 27.5 (also called 650b) standard comes from european touring and tandem bikes. Some older frames still won't work with 700c. Larger 29 inch wheels sat in the background for a long time, with gary fisher (now part of trek bikes) one of the key players in moving this wheel size onto arguably they are still not as stiff and tough as a smaller wheel, so for harder enduro racing and high mountain use many will stick to a 27.5″ or 26″.