30.5-inch wheels go from experiment to real Schwalbe project

When 32" wheels are just starting to appear in MTB and gravel, Schwalbe is already working on 30.5-inch tires, a new intermediate size that could begin to gain traction in the industry.

The information has been revealed by Escape Collective, which claims to have accessed a communication sent by Schwalbe to industry partners after the Taichung Bike Week held in September.

Schwalbe is working on 30.5" tires

According to Escape Collective, a bicycle manufacturer and another wheel manufacturer contacted Schwalbe to promote the development of this new size. For now, their identities are unknown, as are the tires that the German brand is preparing and when they might hit the market.

The 30.5" would sit between the current 29" and the new 32", but its appearance would clearly be related to the latter. The larger diameter of the 32" complicates its integration as the frame size decreases, and an intermediate wheel would allow this concept to be adapted to smaller bikes. In fact, we already have a clue about how it could be used.

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Cube already has a 30.5" bike in its 2027 range

A recent leak about the Cube 2027 range published by the German media Radsport-News showed a future Cube Nuroad Aero C:68 X Race, gravel bike, with 32" wheels, but with one particularity: the XS size appeared equipped with 30.5" wheels.

Escape Collective points to the possibility that Cube is one of the manufacturers related to the Schwalbe project, although there is no confirmation that it is the brand that has commissioned these new tires.

The combination presents a scenario similar to what we already saw with 29 and 27.5". In this case, the 32" would be reserved for sizes where their diameter can be properly integrated and 30.5" for smaller frames.

The 30.5" had a first attempt with the 750D standard

The size does not start completely from scratch. WTB developed the 750D format a few years ago, with a bead seat diameter (BSD) of 660 mm, compared to the 622 mm of the 700C/29" wheels.

WTB even manufactured experimental rims and tires, and Moots presented a Routt CRDD in 2023 specifically designed around this size.

For now, it is not confirmed that the new 30.5" that Schwalbe is working on will use the same 750D standard, so it cannot be assured that both systems are compatible.