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JJUULLYY 22001122

TTHHEE PPEERRFFEECCTT MMOOUUNNTTAAIINN BBIIKKEE WWHHEEEELL

27.5”

TTHHEEQQUUEESSTT IISSOOVVEERRAANNDDHHEERREE’’SSWWHHYY

KHS SIXFIFTY656xc

KHS XC604

26”

29”

KHSFLAGSTAFF

JOSHBENDERHOW ISURVIVED

JOSHBENDERHOW ISURVIVED

SPECIALIZEDSPECIALIZEDUNLEASHESUNLEASHESTHE MONSTERTHE MONSTER

SPECIALIZEDUNLEASHESTHE MONSTER

MOUNTAIN BIKE A

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n.com • KILLER B

WHEELS

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SPECIALIZEDUNLEASHESTHE MONSTER

SPECIALIZEDUNLEASHESTHE MONSTER

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40 www.mbaction.com

Attack OfThe Killer B

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Our first-ever dual-suspension wheelshootout—26 vs. 27.5 vs. 29

Fun factor: Serious racers will remainon the ultimate quest for which bike isthe fastest. For the wrecking crew,picking a winner came down to whichbike we most enjoyed for the overalltrail-riding experience.

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D eveloped when mountain bikers had one bikefor everything from cross-country to downhill,the 26-inch wheel was the undisputed stan-

dard mountain bike wheel size. As designers pushedthe limits of frames and suspension, manufacturersbegan experimenting with larger-diameter, 29-inchwheels for specific types of riding. Cross-country and

trail riders slowly (we are talking about a decade here)adopted the new wheel size, but in the past two years,the adoption rate has skyrocketed, as have the numberof 29er models offered by bicycle companies. In certaincategories—hardtail trail and cross-county race bikes, forexample—the 29er has severely eroded the sales of 26-inch-wheeled bikes.

The limitations of larger-diameter wheels surfaced as bikedesigners tried to employ them on longer-travel bikes. Thebig wheels needed somewhere to go as the suspension bot-tomed, and that meant the bike had to sit higher to startwith or needed drastic changes to the frame and frame stays.This, and to some extent the weight of 29-inch wheels, gotdesigners looking for other options. That option was notnew. It was a wheel size that had been sitting on a shelfsomewhere in France. The wheel was—drum roll, please—the 650b, or, more specifically, the 27.5-inch wheel—or,more fun, the Killer B wheel.A number of handmade bike brands rushed to build Killer

Bs, and Jamis and KHS get credit for championing the KillerB by releasing production bikes using this wheel size. (Harotested the water, found it too cold and left the beach after aseason.) These brands believe that the Killer B is theperfect compromise for all types of mountain biking, notjust for cross-country or gravity.We conducted our first side-by-side-by-side comparison of

the three wheel sizes on three KHS hardtails in our April2010 issue and couldn’t come up with a decisive winner. Wewaited until March 2012 to try it again, this time with threeJamis steel hardtails. Two years andmore time on all three wheel sizesresulted in us being able to pick adecisive winner out of thegroup. The Killer B did indeedkill the 26er and 29er in thatshootout, although we cau-tioned that riding a 27.5-inch wheel meant you werecommitted to being an earlyadopter.When KHS offered us a

chance to try the three wheelsizes on comparably equipped

dual-suspension trailbikes, we jumped at the chance. Thebikes would be the KHS Flagstaff (29er), KHS SixFifty656xc(27.5) and the KHS XC604 (26er). Finally, the MBA wreck-ing crew was set to get some serious saddle time on dual-sus-pension bikes with the three wheel sizes. Could the Killer Blive up to its name?

THE TESTOur testing included riding each of the three bikes on our

normal test loops. This allowed us to become familiar withthe bikes and dial the suspension. Once we had become cozywith the bikes, a course was set and the wrecking crew andinvited guests spent a day logging laps on each bike back toback.

New kid on the block: Aside from the new wheel“standard,” the SixFifty656xc featured some updatedfeatures when it came to the frame. A tapered headtube and oversized downtube made for the stiffest,most responsive ride of the three.

July 2012 / MOUNTAIN BIKE ACTION 41

SixFifty656xc

27.5”WHEELS

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WheelsThis may sound good in theory, but in reality, it is

more like work than fun. Mountain bikes were notinvented for riding laps. Still, there is no arguing that aback-to-back comparison like this—fun or not—cangenerate conclusive results. Here is how the wheelsstacked up.

MOVING OUT26-incher: As you might imagine, the 26er fits smaller

than the other two models. The top tube is shorter andthe front end is lower. While this puts you in a moreupright position on the bike, the weight distribution isbiased forward thanks to the smaller wheels. The handle-bars on all three models were somewhat narrow, but wewere glad to have a consistent size between the threemodels.

27.5-inch: The 656xc is truly the middle-of-the-roadoption in terms of fit. The position is more stretched outthan the 26er’s but more compact than the 29er’s.Crewers consistently noted that the position and weightdistribution were the most balanced of the three bikes.

29-incher: The Flagstaff fit is large for a “medium”production frame. A rider needs to atleast consider moving down a size ifgoing to this 29er. The front end is the tallestof the three, and while the cockpit is longer, therider’s weight felt farther back than on the othertwo bikes.

CORNERING26-incher: Riders

praised the XC604for its nimblehandling charac-teristics, callingit “cross-coun-try quick.”When it comesto jumpingfrom corner tocorner, it is hardto beat the accel-eration of 26-inch

Rock bulldozer: The Flagstaff’s frame has a sort of understated ele-gance to it. The suspension was outfitted by RockShox all around.

A FORGOTTEN FORMAT GETS NEW LIFEWHAT DOES “650b” MEAN?

wheels. The 26er felt the least connected to the trailthrough corners. Aside from the smaller tire contactpatch, the frame features a straight head tube ratherthan a stiffer tapered head tube, leaving some stiffnesspoints on the table. The lateral flex was noticeablewhen cornering hard.

42 www.mbaction.com

Blame it on the French. The number “650”came from the measurement of the outsidediameter of the tire, not the rim, in millimeters.The letter following the number was a nod to thetire’s width. The 650c wheel was used on cruiserbikes in the past, but time-trial roadies andtriathletes commonly use this wheel size withnarrow road tires.

The 650b wheel was all the rage for touringbikes (loaded to the hilt with gear) and tandems(loaded with two people) until mountain bikersbecame interested in applying the size to theirbikes.

Flagstaff29”WHEELS

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Classic styling: The XC604 featured a straight 1 1/8-inch head tubethat flowed into the ovalized top and downtubes. Like the other twoKHS models, the 26er uses a four-bar Horst linkage rear end.

XC60426”WHEELS

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Wheels

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27.5-inch: The 27.5er offered a noticeably moreconnected feel to the trail than the 26er. Handlingwas not quite as quick as with the 26er, but wenever found a trail where this was a problem. Ourriders also commented that the suspension feltmore active through corners than on the 26er.With a tapered head tube and large downtube,the 27.5 was also the stiffest laterally of thethree bikes, helping keep the bike in line whencornering hard.

29-incher: While the cornering faults of the29er in a stand-alone test might not be quite asnoticeable, after riding the other two bikes, onecrewer commented that it “felt like pulling an 18-wheeler into a Dairy Queen drive-through.”Though the bike was tougher to wrangle throughtight corners, in loose, sweeping or off-cambercorners, the added traction of the larger tires wasdefinitely welcome.

CLIMBING26-incher: Our shootout location

offered a great mix of steep, rocky climbs, aswell as more gradual fire-road climbs. The steep-est trails are where the 26er shined, leaping outfrom underneath you when you applied pressure.The XC604’s rear suspension does a great jobproviding a stable platformfor pedaling up climbs,even with the shock’splatform valvingturned off. Wedid, however,experience somepedal kickbackwhen hittingsquare edgeswhile climbingin the small ring.

27.5-inch: Thestiffer chassis

seemed to make up for any loss of snap caused by the slightlylarger wheels. It doesn’t roll quite like the 29er at speed, butthe acceleration up to speed was much better. On anything butthe longest, gradual fire roads, the 27.5 out shined its big-wheeled brethren. The drivetrain was the only thing holdingback the Killer B. Each rider commented that a 2x10 drive-train would be a better fit if it were possible to spec it at thisprice point.

29-incher: The 29er was a bit lackluster in the climbingdepartment after riding the other two models. The large wheelsdefinitely rolled well on the fire-road climbs and over rockssmoothly, but you had to approach climbs with more speed andwork harder to maintain momentum. To put it bluntly, a 29erof equal value to either the 26 or 27.5 tested here is going to getcreamed on the climbs.

DESCENDING26-incher: The 26er was the easiest to flick around the trail

and pop off of terrain, but this is a double-edged sword. Whilethe bike is great for experienced riders who are skilled at pick-ing smooth lines and darting from one side to the other on the

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Wheelstrail while avoiding ruts and pumping for speed, fornovice riders, the smaller wheels can be intimidating.We found ourselves going downhill slower and beingmore cautious on descents littered with square-edgedhits ready to grab the front wheel. Riders felt that aslightly longer top tube paired with a shorter stemwould give the bike some more stability.

27.5-inch: While imitating many of the characteris-tics we liked about the 26er, the 27.5-inch was muchmore stable on rough descents. It required moremuscling to lift the front wheel up and over obstaclesdue to the longer wheelbase and larger wheels, but itwas a compromise we’ll take to gain more confidencethrough the rocks. You still get the sensation of beingable to pump the bike through transitions on the trail,something that is muffled on a 29er. The mid-sizedwheels, along with the full-suspension chassis, gaveus all the stability we could want in a cross-country-oriented trailbike.

29-incher: The Flagstaff got the job done on thedescents, but left us feeling that we had missed out onsomething at the bottom of the trail. The large-diame-ter tires soak up the trail and roll better than theother two sizes, but the bike feels like it is glued tothe trail. Popping off of obstacles took more effortthan it was worth, as the rear suspension felt dead.We found ourselves riding lazy, giving the bike lessand less input and just plowing down trails.

BRAKINGAll: Brake performance left something to be desired

on all three bikes. The Avid Elixir 1’s were consistentbut felt underpowered. The rear suspension stiffenedup under hard braking forces and left some rubberout on the trails. The shootout was a draw in thisperformance area.

THE RESULTSCan you take our shootout results as an absolute for

all mountain bikes? Of course not. Our shootout

conclusion was arrived at in a vacuum of sorts. Wecompared three similar bikes for trail riding. As the pricepoint of the bikes change (in either direction) and theirapplications change (downhill, cross-country racing versustrail riding), so could the results of the standings.

That said, we had absolutely no trouble ranking thesethree bikes, because they used the same rear suspensiondesign and were relatively close in price. When the dusthad settled, the lap times had been compared and therecovery drinks consumed, our little trio shook outlike this.

1st PLACE: 27.5-INCHOut of these three bikes, we would feel sorry for the

rider who didn’t buy this one. It was our favorite every-where on the trail. The bike is a great blend of livelyhandling, quick acceleration, low rolling resistance andstability. Is it the fastest? That answer depends on yourterrain. For an all-around trail machine, you can’t beat thefun factor and versatility of the Killer B.

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Stuck in the middle: Being the middle sibling certainly isn’t abad thing. The Killer B seemed to take on the best qualities ofthe other two wheel sizes. On climbs, it offers plenty of thetraction we love the 29er for while maintaining the snappy feelof the 26er on steep sections.

Enough room on the trail: Even with the segmentation of threedifferent wheel sizes, through a variety of terrain, it became clearthat each bike still has its place. On rolling trail and off-cambercorners, the stability of the 29er is still king.

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July 2012 / MOUNTAIN BIKE ACTION 47

2nd PLACE: 26-INCHThe 26er just “feels like home,” as one crewer

said. The handling characteristics and climbing anddescending attributes are familiar. However, thefamiliarity alone wasn’t enough for us to give it thewin. The XC604 was a champ on steepclimbs and fun to throw aroundthe trail, but lacked some stabilityon rougher descents and corners.With an updated, stiffer chassis and somegeometry tweaks, this 26er could give theKiller B a run for its money.

3rd PLACE: 29-INCHThe Flagstaff was the easiest and the hard-

est bike to ride. For a beginner looking for adose of confidence over rough terrain, thelarger wheels make riding easier. For aggres-sive riders looking to attack the trail, this29er feels like you’re trying to convince yourlazy friend to get off the couch to get somefresh air. The Flagstaff will get down the trail,and in a hurry, but the rear suspension pairedwith the larger wheels makes for a bike thatfeels lethargic. �

COMPARISON CHART

(high) (high)

Aluminum(front)(rear) (rear) (rear)

(front) (front)Suspension travelSuspension travel

Aluminum Aluminum

(high)

FASTER THAN THE 29ERTHE COMING STORM

Ten years after the first Gary Fisher29ers hit the trails, Jaroslav Kulhavybecame the 2011 Cross-CountryWorld Champion aboard a full-sus-pension Specialized S-Works Epic29er. That was a first for the largewheel size. It seemed there was trulya changing of the cross-country rac-ing guard. The 26er was the past gen-eration’s weapon of choice, while thenew generation was working up theranks on the larger wheels.This theory seemed to pan out at

the opening round of the 2012 WorldCup series. In the men’s cross-countryevent, eight of the top 10 finisherswere racing on 29ers, and only one inthe top 10 was aboard a 26-inch-wheeled machine. But wait, eight andone is nine. What was the final rider,and winner of the event, riding?Nino Schurter, on a prototype Scott

bike, won the event on a set of KillerB wheels. Although Scott has not yetannounced the release of a Killer Bmodel, it is hard to imagine that theyare not planning a 2013 release of atleast one model with the 27.5-inchwheels. There is also speculation thatat least one major brand is going tojoin KHS and Jamis in offering pro-duction Killer B models for 2013.If you feel that another wheel size is

unnecessary, confusing or redundant,we’d have to bet you haven’t ridden aKiller B bike yet. By this time nextyear, the wheels rolling on yourfavorite singletrack could be very dif-ferent indeed. The times they are achangin’.

26” 27.5” 29”

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