650B wheels for gravel - options!

[yinzerniner]

Originally Posted by markmdr

I also wonder why people say its much more fun with 650b's.....

People say it's more fun because of the tires and where you can ride.

700c/29x28mm tires is about the same size as 650b/27.5x47mm, so you'll still have the same bike geometry just 19mm more tire so loads more traction. Also you can reduce the pressure a bunch, which also helps with traction and comfort when off road. Top speed on tarmac will be lower with the smaller wheels.

As for rims, anything below 450g or so should be fine in terms of spin-up feel so there's plenty of options no matter the budget. The XR361 looks like a great combo as well, especially like the asymmetric spoke hole pattern which allows all the spokes to be the same length and evens tension a bunch.