32x650b touring tires, anyone?

[tbessie]

Hey all...

So I'm having my dream touring bike built; I decided to go for 650b wheels, as 1) this is for an S&S coupled bike, so it'll be slightly easier to fit in the case without as much playing with the parts, and 2) it seems like 26" will be slowly dying while 650b will be slowly taking its place.

I'm not sure how true any of the above is, but after lots of discussing of this with people, this was the route I took.

In any case, the frame is being built right now (by Steve Potts, made of titanium), and the wheels will be built by a good local builder (the guy who builds the wheels for Rivendell).

So it was time to look for tires.  I was just going to get some of the good ol' Schwalbe Marathons that I've used in the past on my 700c bike... until I found, they don't make them in that size.  Anything they do for touring in 650b is wider than that.

So I've been looking around, and 32x650b is almost nonexistent... almost nobody makes such a tire.  The few I've found seem to be marketed to mountain-bike-oriented people for that cohort's city bikes... slick tread, "fast" etc... not so much for touring.

Has anyone got some ideas about what I might try?  All I've found after searching the major sites have been these two:

https://www.schwalbetires.com/node/282

https://www.continental-tires.com/bicycle/tyres/city-trekking-tyres/contact-speed

Those might do ok, but they're not as tough as the touring tires I'm used to.

Anyone have any suggestions (besides telling me I made a mistake getting a 650b bike? ;-) ).

- Tim

[Pat Lamb]

Tim, I was going to suggest the pricey Compass tires, but they apparently only go "down" to 38 on a 650B.  Can your builder fit something that wide into your new frame?  You could also get the Panaracer Pacenti in that size.

[tbessie]

Tim, I was going to suggest the pricey Compass tires, but they apparently only go "down" to 38 on a 650B.  Can your builder fit something that wide into your new frame?  You could also get the Panaracer Pacenti in that size.

The frame's being built to handle up to 38mm tires (I don't foresee doing any backcountry tours where I need anything more than that).  The wheels are going to be Velocity Atlas:

http://www.velocityusa.com/product/rims/atlas-584

That page says tire width is "28mm - 45mm", so it can take quite a range; I'm getting Paul Racer brakes:

https://paulcomp.com/shop/components/racer/

... which can take a wide range.

I'm getting Honjo fenders, however, in a size that only takes up to 34mm, so that's my limit when running fenders.  I won't be taking the fenders on the next trip, I don't think, so that won't be a limiting factor; I may use bigger tires for this trip, and hope that smaller ones come out before the next trip. :-)

- Tim