Clem Smith Jr. L 59 cm Wheel Sizes

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Jacob Lopez

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Jun 8, 2022, 6:01:54 PM6/8/22
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Hi, All.

I did a quick search but didn't find a thread, so let me know if you know of one re this topic and I can remove this re Clem L's 59cm with 29ers:

I noticed on the Riv site that 59cm Clem's can take 700c rims and "29er Tires".  Does that mean that it can take 29in rims, or...?   I may be looking to size up on my 52cm Clem L to a 59cm and I'm super curious to how 29's perform on this size.  Any experience with that (if, of course I'm reading the specs right and the bike can take 29in wheels)?  Does this introduce toe-overlap?

Jacob
San Diego, CA

Wesley

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Jun 8, 2022, 6:16:01 PM6/8/22
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Hey Jacob,
700c and 29er are the same thing - just called differently between the road and mountain bike worlds.
-W

Garth

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Jun 8, 2022, 6:20:16 PM6/8/22
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Jacob, 700c and 29er, 29in all refer to the same rim diameter of 622mm. The term "29er" came about because the mtb crowd wouldn't dare be associated with them thar road biker crowd so they had to call it something. A fatter tire would only induce toe overlap if the frame didn't have sufficient clearance to begin with and/or you pedal midfoot with big feet and long cranks. The latest Clems though have so much front-center(measured from the center BB to center front axle), none of the above applies.

Jacob Lopez

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Jun 8, 2022, 6:29:32 PM6/8/22
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Well, I feel silly.  A little more research could have answered that!  Thanks, folks!  I appreciate that.  Makes sense now, the part where it says 29er *tires*...

~Jacob

Garth

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Jun 8, 2022, 6:41:00 PM6/8/22
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No biggie Jacob . Bike "standards" are truly a pile of madness !  One can even buy some Schwalbe 28" tires, mount them on a 700c rim, and ride them on a 29er ... and it all refers to the same wheel diameter !  Yippee !

Mackenzy Albright

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Jun 8, 2022, 6:44:11 PM6/8/22
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My understanding is it's a colloquially 29er was referring to a 2"+ tire that makes the diameter approximately 29" vs a 700c with a 23mm is approximately 27". 
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Joe Bernard

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Jun 8, 2022, 9:37:09 PM6/8/22
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Oh you'd probably have to dig a while to come upon this information, most of us only know it cuz we were around when the "700c mountain bike" was a huge flop, then someone had the bright idea to rename the wheel and the 29er was born.

See, also: 650B - an old French size Riv and a couple others revived 16-or-so years ago - became 27.5 for MTBs. 

Joe "my 650B Riv has 27.5" tires" Bernard 

Jacob Lopez

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Jun 9, 2022, 12:04:20 AM6/9/22
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Thanks for the clarification, everyone!  I think it makes sense now - it's all about the outer diameter and how much extra rubber the frame can take.  Got it.  The rim is 700c.

Jacob

Patrick Moore

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Jun 9, 2022, 1:02:26 AM6/9/22
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Jacob: I defy and contradict and rebut Garth when he says: "The term "29er" came about because the mtb crowd wouldn't dare be associated with them thar road biker crowd so they had to call it something." The term "29er" describes the rough diameter of a 700C wheel with a roughly 2" tire, just as "26 inch" describes a Schwinn cruiser wheel with a roughly 2" tire.

FWIW: 700C X 50 gives about 29", 700C X 60 mm gives about 29 1/2", and 700C X 70 mm gives about 30 1/2", at least if it has knobs. 

Patrick "and a "twenty six inch" rim with 1" tire has a ~24" diameter, a 26" rim with a 28 mm tire a ~24.8" diameter, a 26 X 32 about a 25" diameter, and a 26 X 42 mm a ~25.6" diameter ... in case you were wondering" Moore

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Patrick Moore
Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

Eric Daume

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Jun 9, 2022, 7:15:35 AM6/9/22
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I’m going to mildly correct Joe; it wasn’t the renaming that made 29ers successful where the 700c mountain bikes failed, it was the tires. Going from a ~44mm tire to a 2.1” makes a lot of difference. Add in a suspension fork, and suddenly you have a bike that can be appreciated by people who were used to normal mtbs. 

Eric
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lconley

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Jun 9, 2022, 7:30:45 AM6/9/22
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Beware, not all 28" tires and wheels are the same. My Guv'nor has 28x1.5 tires that are for 635 rims, not 622 rims. The only way to tell what the rim diameter is for sure is the ISO BSD - Bead Seat Diameter.
The below is just scratching the surface. See Sheldon Brown if you really want to dig into it.
ISO BSD - 
787   -   36" Coker Monster Cruiser
635   -   English, Dutch, Indian, Chinese roadster tires, 28"
630   -   27", 28"
622   -   700C, 29", 28"
594   -   26" Schwinn S-6
584   -   650B, 27.5
571   -   26" Schwinn S-7
559   -   non Schwinn / standard 26"
451   -   20"
406   -   20"

Laing

Joe Bernard

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Jun 9, 2022, 11:50:12 AM6/9/22
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Well technically I didn't say the renaming was the reason for the success, I said it was successful later as the renamed thing. 

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Hoch in ut

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Jun 12, 2022, 8:57:26 PM6/12/22
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I have a Clem L 59 and have fitted some 29x2.5” tires. (700x63mm). Coming from the stock 45mm slicks, these fat tires have been amazing and made the bike super fun. Even on pavement. 
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