I hope someone around here does something like this. I want to ride one without coughing up the money to try it out.

Compliments on a very beautiful build! Love the eclectic parts mix you've fitted too. :thumb:
Quite inspiring as I have a -74 waiting to be dressed up. Only wish my frame was in as good condition as yours. :o

^ sweet!

I took her on a 70 plus mile ride this last weekend and she performed great. Mostly paved road, some soft shoulders, and a bit of pitted multiple use asphalt trail.
Climbed well and tracked well on the descents. Nice and firm on the curves.
Was a bit nervous about the braking...the Weinmanns are mega reach. Greater than Raids even. No problems at all. Smooth or hard braking all good.

This is my first 650B and I am quite sold on the format.

-D

I put this together while I'm waiting for a proper 650B frame to be built:

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...gX/photo45.jpg

I'm also waiting on the rear wheel to be built up with a cassette hub.

Thanks for chairing your impressions! Guess it was a much more plush ride too?
Can't wait to get my hands on a set of 650B wheels now.
But the list is long so in the meantime I might use it as a fixed gear commuter. :innocent:

Finally got around to converting my well-loved Bob Jackson to 650B over the weekend, with wheels from @Catnap and tires from @whatwolf (thanks, guys!). I plan to use it as my fair-weather commuter, and am on the hunt for a rear rack and fenders now. Bought a nice set of Eclipse panniers off eBay yesterday that'll look pretty great on it.

This is my first 650B experience, and it instantly won me over. The Bob Jackson was already super smooth and zippy, and now with the 650Bs it's just ridiculously fun.

http://i.imgur.com/iNDRKSE.jpg

Rad! Well done.

Here's my current/updated Waterford 1200 conversion. Just scored an NOS pair of Megamiums cheap, so the 1200 now has a longer lease on 650b life:

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5329/9...d66da444_b.jpg

Built this Peter Mooney fairly recently as a 650b conversion fixie, posted it here a while back in another thread?

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3742/8...3e08f277_b.jpg

Thanks! Definitely still a work in progress, but I'm pretty excited about it.

Some great looking bikes - way to one-up a guy! :) Now tell us more about your Megamium score.

the Bob Jackson looks great, Zach! Glad those wheels are back on the road again.

Nice one Truckface, but why only use it for commuting? Try taking it on a roadie ride! Here is my 650B Bianchi Limited. This is my only road bike so I ride it on brevets, commutes, and group rides. Many of the brevets around here involve a lot of climbing, so when I did the conversion I set it up with super low gearing (the lowest gear is 34 front, 36 rear), which has been a lifesaver.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8513/8...9c9881_b_d.jpg

Don't worry - I don't plan on relegating it to *strictly* commuter duty. I mainly just want an excuse to ride it more often. :) I got it for touring, but an '83 Expedition came into my life this Spring, which will become my main tourer. Still plan to take the ol' BJ out for some long rides, though.

Beautiful Bianchi, by the way. Nice to hear she's still working hard!

Your Bob Jackson looks terrific! A Jackson's been on my "I Wanna" list since I was a teenager. Someday...

The Megamium story was lucky, but not terribly exciting. Somebody had an NOS pair on ebay with a minimum bid of $50, I was the only bidder. The Waterford has tight chainstay clearance even with Megamiums, which are the narrowest 650b tires I know about. The paint is too nice and the metal too thin/brittle (Reynolds 753) to do a mono-buttocked chainstay crimping job, so I'll keep my eyes peeled for Megs until it's time for repaint/rework. Cut and braze some scallops into the chainstays i/o crimping and raise the brake bridge, maybe I squeeze Hetres in there?

Here is my Fuji S12S that I just converted. I thought I would try something with low trail geometry, this should be around 38mm with 11 for wheel flop. The frame has seen better days with a good amount of chips, scratches and minor surface rust and although it is a decent frame even if I like it I am not sure it would be worth a repaint and new decals. I will probably just touch it up where needed.


http://imageshack.us/scaled/large/707/otju.jpg

Nice! Couple questions: How did you attach the rear fender down by the chainstay bridge, and what is that nifty tailight setup you have?

Hi rowebr - for attaching the rear fender I used a standard L shaped bracket to mount it at the brake mounting bolt I found it at a local bike shop. The tail light is a Dinotte 140R and I also have a Dinotte 300R on another bike that came with a large number of mounting brackets - I found two that I joined together in order to use the 140R on the seat stay. The 4 AA battery pack is under the seat held by velcro straps. The 140R does come with a seat post mount but I did not want to mount the light there. I hope I answered your questions!

My centurion super elite is super!

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3753/9...ab114f79_b.jpg
DSCF0591 by S Jeong, on Flickr

I haven't shown this one in a while, but this is my wife's Soma Buena Vista, which was purchased as a new frameset for her birthday two years ago. It was a 650B conversion right from the initial build. A few spacers for the fenders and Tektro R559 long reach brakes, and it was good to go! It's been a fantastic city bike, albeit a heavy one with all the extras and that boat anchor Shimano 8-speed IGH and sprung Brooks saddle. The heavy steel rear rack was for the Burley trailercycle hitch, which we no longer use, so that rack will soon be replaced with a lighter VO rear rack.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7070/6...c3c7bbff_b.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7199/6...72eb0d68_b.jpg

I have two to submit. First is a 1985 Peugeot PSN-10 that I bought as a frame only. It weighs 20.64 lbs and is my climbing bike. Second is a 1988 Trek 400T that I bought from a friend, also the original owner. I used only the frame and fork for this one. It is my everyday bike and weighs 21.81 lbs. They both have original paint, are super comfortable and I can't see myself ever riding 700c again.


http://i307.photobucket.com/albums/n...ps7ed03eca.jpg



http://i307.photobucket.com/albums/n...ps75c1152e.jpg

Nice, Moto. What tires are you using and how are the clearances?

Both bikes have run Lierre's which measure 38mm. The Peugeot is running Pari Motos now because they measure at 35mm and provide a better clearance. The tightest spot on both bikes is the chain stay. With the trek on 38's it is 3mm each side, the Peugeot on 35's it is 3mm each side. I run 45psi rear, 40psi front.

Here's a new conversion for me: a 1997 Lemond Buenos Aires made from Reynolds 853. I'm running Compass 650 x 38mm tires and Tektro 559 brakes. Took it out for a 65-mile ride yesterday and am really pleased. Those tires are smooooooth, and the ride is quick and comfortable. About 22 lbs as shown:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-m...00/Lemond2.JPG