Comments on: 650B Wheels – 198’s Thoughts…

By: David

David — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:32:45 +0000

if it rolls over things better, climbs & corners with more grip etc then it’s a win win for us bikers. ummm! nice one

By: mike

mike — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 22:04:27 +0000

650b has been around in europe , (particlarly in frace) for ages

By: 198

198 — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 18:39:17 +0000

@tomas

Thanks for the background info! That is some great stuff! Unfortunately, I do not think the 650b movement is going to gain much steam until the fork manufacturers get on board. Right now…they are still trying to recoup the costs for the 29er’s.

By: tomas jonsson

tomas jonsson — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 08:16:20 +0000

What seems to go unsaid is that the 650B with narrow rims and decent tires came before the 26inch. Superchampion made rims as did others, Nokia made sweet tires (I even could get studded tires). The problem was that all the stock came from Europe and therefore was not as quickly available as the not so high quality 26inch stuff that was made in the USA. It took Kieth Bontrager to cut down some 700c rims to make some of the first narrow 26 inch rims available in the US. Many of the guys who first built mtb’s used the 26 because that was what was available and they didn’t know any better. If I had my choice as from the beginning, I would be riding 650B. They roll better than the 26, they don’t screw with the bike geometry as much as the 29’s. The bike handling can be tuned by a good frame designer. I’m 5′8″ and the 29’s with suspension are just too tall for me. I hope the 650 becomes as popular as I think it should.

By: 198

198 — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 01:37:25 +0000

@Gerr: I also think it is a way to get bigger wheels to longer travel bikes. The 650b movement has gotten a little stale over the last couple of months. Things will probably get kicked back into gear with Interbike next month.

By: Gerr

Gerr — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:25:15 +0000

I see it as an important step for us medium size guys 5′8″ to 6 ft that 29ers are just a little too large.

By: Thelonius

Thelonius — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 19:28:36 +0000

I always thought it was less about us forcing the manufacturers into new products with smaller stock and higher prices, and more about manufacturers looking for more products and minute changes to keep prices high and force us to constantly upgrade. Perhaps I am a cynic.

One other thing that has left me skeptical of 650b is the bikes I’ve seen where a brand thinks if they can fit a 650b wheel on a 26″ frame that’s all they have to do.

By: LoneStar

LoneStar — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 14:06:34 +0000

I’d agree with you both. After building up a 29er, I enjoy the fact that it rides noticeably different than my 26″ bikes. That said, if you were to put any kind of rear suspension on it, it would soon get too tall for my 5′8″ body (heck, the 26″ bikes already do!). Do we need 650b wheels? Probably not. But that can be said for a whole lot of things.

I don’t think I am going to rush out and buy one anytime soon though.

By: jason

jason — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 13:35:06 +0000

I look at the introduction of the 650 size as another option.
26 small
27.5 medium
29 large

Hopefully it will also allow builders to expand on longer travel bikes with bigger wheels