You can fit 650b wheels on any 700c bike, but some 700c bikes won't
fit 650b tires. This isn't an issue for Mark's Sam, but it's worth
noting for 650b conversions in general. If your frame has tight
clearances with 25mm 700c tires, currently-available 650b tires will be
very tight. If 23mm 700c tires are tight, you're likely SOL without
frame modification. AFAIK there are no 650b tires narrower than 32mm
currently available; GB Cypres and Hutchinson Confrérie des 650 are
the narrowest at 32-33mm. The only very slightly narrower tire
sometimes available is the discontinued Michelin Megamium, 31-32mm.
I have two 650b conversions in-house with less than 2mm tire clearance
at the chainstays, a '96 Waterford 1200 with Megamiums and a '76 Mooney
with Confreries. Both are pretty tight with 25mm 700c tires. They have
vertical drops so no chance of wheel slippage, and I'm stupid enough to
ride both---on decent roads, not too far from home. The Mooney is
Reynolds 531 but has great paint, so I'm not ready to have the
chainstays crimped. The W'ford also has great paint, but beyond that
it's built with Reynolds 753, not a great candidate for crimping.
Nothing wider than the Megamiums will fit in the W'ford, so when either
of those tires dies it's back to 700c.
The question is most definitely "what would you gain with 650b?" The
conversion ideal is using a 650b tire with enough volume to both
improve the ride and not drastically change handling. On these two
bikes I'd rather have 31-32mm 650b rubber and tight clearances than
25mm 700c rubber and tight clearances.
I would love to see a true 30mm supple 650b tire to help give better
road manners to crit bikes...
Paul Brodek
Hillsdale, NJ USA
Quoting Tim Gavin :
You can fit 650B wheels on any 700C bike. The question is which
brakes to use....The question is, what would you gain with 650B? You
can already fit 45mm tires on 700C rims on the Sam. Do you want more
float than that? If you do, then go for it...
Tim
On Wed, Aug 7, 2013 at 6:20 AM, Mitch Browne wrote:
I've ridden Supreme 40's under my Atlantis Longboards daily for
almost two years now. Love them. No fit issues. Mitch BrowneSan Luis
Obispo, CA
On Tuesday, August 6, 2013 4:46:53 PM UTC-7, Mark Taintor wrote:
I have a new 56 cm Sam that's going to be built up in the next
week or so, and I've got a couple questions about tires and wheels for
it:
1. I'll be putting on Longboard fenders and was wondering if 40 mm
Marathon Supremes would work with them. Would it be better to run the
35 mm Supremes? I know there's clearance for 40 mm tires on the
Hillborne but don't know if that is with/without fenders.
2. Anybody ever put 650B wheels on a 56 Sam? Looking on the Riv website
at the page for the Betty Foy, it says that the Betty and the Sam can
take the same volume tires. The Betty mostly uses 650B wheels. As of
now I'm planning on 700c wheels, but am intrigued with 650B. Thoughts?
Thanks,Mark
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