On Wed, 2010-01-13 at 08:52 -0800, Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery wrote: > I remember the article that Mike mentioned. I think the point was that > Riv bikes already have good clearances, so why bother (not to mention > BB height issues...) In the early days of RBW's promotion of 650B, a > lot of people were converting 27/700 bikes for no clear reason, since > many of the conversions already had ample tire-space (many 1970s bikes > had loads of room). Of course, if you have an early 80s Italian racing > bike or something else with minimal clearance, then there are clear > benefits to the conversion. We did many of these, which were well > received by their owners, and made the bikes much more useful and > interesting. > > On Jan 13, 10:17 am, Mike <mjawn...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Jim makes a really good point here. The Rambouillet works fine with > > fenders and 32s so why bother with 650b. If you don't use fenders you > > can fit a tire up to 37mm. There was an article or note in one of the > > RR, I can't remember which one, where Grant mentioned that their bikes > > weren't good for 650b conversion.
On the other hand, if you can fit it, there is a WORLD of difference between a 650Bx40 Hetre and any 32mm tire. There's even a world of difference between a 38mm CdlV and any 32mm tire. I have all these sizes, and I speak from experience. Also, I've used 35 and 38mm 700C tires in the past (although not the current gen. Pasela 37mm, which by all accounts is the best wide 700C). In my opinion, based on my experiences, there is simply no comparison between the plush, velvety ride of the wide 650Bs and the harsh, unpleasant, heavy-feeling ride of the wide 700Cs I've tried. And the best of the wide 700C lot, the now-defunct Bruce Gordon Rock 'n Road knobby, had other issues: very fast wear, and a wicked rebound. Hit a good sized bump with it, and it was like slamming a basketball on the ground: BOING! Hang on to the handlebar, lest you lose it. In my experience, the wide 700Cs just aren't the same as the wide 650Bs. They're generally much higher pressure (in some cases, labeled "inflate to" 90 or 100 psi) than the corresponding width 650Bs, which often are labeled 50psi max pressure, with much stiffer sidewalls and beefier construction all around. Supple, they're not.
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