650B wheelset recommendations

[David in Maine]

I have a sweet IF disc road bike purchased here in the classifieds. I've been using it as a rando, and general road bike with 700x32 Grand Bois tires and enjoying the cushy ride. I'd like to try some 650B wheels to run even fatter tires for some possible gravel rides. Hoping to find something used and cheapish to experiment with, but I'm clueless what to look for. Hubs need to be 135 x 100 QR and preferably center lock. What wheelsets should I seek out, or, alternatively, what rims for building my own. Thanks for your advice.

[ptourkin]

When I built up my Trail Donkey I trolled eBay for used carbon MTB wheels as there were far more 650B/27.5 discs available in that configuration. I ended up with some i9 rims that were actually made by Enve on i9 hubs. The big takeaway was the wider MTB rims made 47mm tubeless tires super fat and cush.

Edit: Sorry, I didn't see you were looking at 135 qr. Maybe some hubs that configure for multiple standards will still work out.

[Hobine]

I just built up a set of 650bs for my gravel bike. I’m really liking the SRAM 900 hubs lately. They’re fairly inexpensive, light and bulletproof. For rims I picked up some Nextie carbons on EBay, 27 external, 22 internal. Laced everything together with Sapim D lites. For around $550 total I’m quite satisfied.

[CMiller]

I'd use the same hubs and rotors to make the swap more foolproof with the 700c set

[weisan]

Something cheap?

Build your own :
Shimano hubs +
https://m.ebay.com/itm/Dt-Swiss-533D...QAAOSwkzhZxnkM

Complete wheelset
https://m.ebay.com/itm/Croft-Solaris...wAAOSwxfNXNiK5

[ColonelJLloyd]

I'd look for a 23mm internal, tubeless and light rim. For hubs there are cheaper options if you don't need 11s road cassettes. Centerlock with changeable end caps are ideal, but won't be the cheapest option.

[adamhell]

i got some Velocity blunt 35's laced to novatec hubs from Velomine on ebay for under 3 bills. solid, bombproof, haven't needed a true yet, and are convertible between standard QR and TA. WTB horizons measure almost 50mm wide on this rim.

[owly]

rims: DT Swiss XR361 could be an option.

hubs: Novatech XD611/612SB-CL; qr option. Fairly good price.

[David in Maine]

Originally Posted by CMiller

I'd use the same hubs and rotors to make the swap more foolproof with the 700c set

Is this important with hydro disc set-ups? My 700C wheels have DT 240S hubs so not exactly cheap!

[marciero]

I built some Shimano Deore XT hubs onto Race Face ARC. I selected the 27mm internal for use with 48 tires for an excellent non-bling wheelset. I also considered the Velocity Blunt. Those have 30 internal I think. All this depends on your clearances of course.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by David in Maine

I have a sweet IF disc road bike purchased here in the classifieds. I've been using it as a rando, and general road bike with 700x32 Grand Bois tires and enjoying the cushy ride. I'd like to try some 650B wheels to run even fatter tires for some possible gravel rides. Hoping to find something used and cheapish to experiment with, but I'm clueless what to look for. Hubs need to be 135 x 100 QR and preferably center lock. What wheelsets should I seek out, or, alternatively, what rims for building my own. Thanks for your advice.

For rims, any here, great rims. Scroll down to the 650b section..A23, Aileron, Dyad, etc..

http://www.velocityusa.com/product/rims#sizes-tab

Grab some Shimano SLX hubs, QR and build them orI can build them for you.

[Ed-B]

I'd suggest that you consider a few points:

The industry standard for disc brake road wheels is now thru-axle, and most all the new bikes are going to that system; 12x100 front and 12-142 rear. If you invest in expensive wheels you should consider if you might ever want to use them on a future bike, so convertible hubs would be wise.

How much gravel, pavement, trails, etc are you going to ride? Here in the greater Portland Maine area it's mostly mixed surface rides that we're doing. So, with that in mind, what tires are you going to use? Width, tubeless? What fits your frame? Some of the disc brake road bikes are still pretty tight. Measure your clearances between the stays and fork blades at a distance of 320mm from the axle centers. FYI, a 50mm space will comfortably fit 650x42b tires on the narrower rims.

A valid point has been made about the ease of switching between the 700c and 650b wheels, but how often do you think you'll be doing that, and consequently is it worth the expense to buy that convenience?

Pre-built wheels can be less expensive if your bike fits a standard configuration. However, the inexpensive wheelsets will usually require a final hand truing and stress relief.

Personally, I think that Croft wheelset that Weisan pointed out would be a good entry point to try 650B on your bike. They're not convertible, but they have the right specs for your present bike, and they're only $130 shipped - that's about the cost of a single rim. I bought an earlier version of that Croft wheelset for my 650B Planet X London Road and I'm running 650x42B Gravel King tires with tubes. They're decent wheels, and unbeatable for the money. If you go that route you can try it out, and get better wheels later if you want to upgrade. Keep the Croft wheels as beaters.

Ed.

[David in Maine]

Thanks for all the advice. Ed, thanks for the food for thought.

David

[marciero]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

For rims, any here, great rims. Scroll down to the 650b section..A23, Aileron, Dyad, etc..

http://www.velocityusa.com/product/rims#sizes-tab

Grab some Shimano SLX hubs, QR and build them orI can build them for you.

The Aileron are Belgium Plus-killers, albeit at a price approaching the Hed.

[Ronsonic]

If you're interested in trying this on the cheap I've got a half decent Deore - Mavic wheelset that I'll be cutting loose for not much in about two weeks when I get done building the new set for my mtb. PM if you're interested.

Otherwise I'll have to start a monstercross / urban assault vehicle build around them.