Early adopter needed for the 650B MTB project
September 13th, 2007 - By admin
UPDATE: GOOFY WHEEL PIONEER FOUND, LOOK FOR IT AT NAHBS IN PORTLAND!
If you’re a fan of weird wheel sizes, and you’re a cheapskate, read on…
I am building a 650B-wheeled mountain bike for the 2008 NAHBS show, and I need a rider for it.
If you aren’t familiar with it, 650B is an old wheel standard, seeing a resurgence in the wake of 29er madness. Basically, it’s halfway between a 26″ and 29″ wheel (right around 27.5″), and may be the perfect MTB wheel size. If a 26″ feels a little dinky, but a 29″ seems cumbersome, 650B is the way to go. Just Google it. People are going nuts for this right now.
There are several quality 650B rims made by Velocity, and a few gorgeous forks made by White Brothers. At least 2 nice tires, by Panaracer, are available. 26″ tubes work fine. As the word spreads, more parts will become available, probably much faster than 29″ stuff came on the market.