Originally Posted by
kroozer
I’m coming to the conclusion that the main reason for converting to 650B is so you can use Hetre tires.
I have some light fast road bikes that are wonderful on smooth pavement, and a couple heavy-duty bikes with big fat tires that are great for the rough stuff, so I can do either kind of riding with no problem. But it’s one or the other-- neither type of bike can fill both roles well. Maybe my Trek 520, but it’s still kind of slow on the pavement, and I’d want to change the tires for different conditions.
What seems new to me is that the Hetres allow you to fly on the pavement and float over the gravel equally well with the same tires. This would allow you to combine gravel and paved roads on the same trip. In my case that would open up a lot of new and really interesting routes around here.
I just converted my '81 Bianchi to 650B, even though I was pretty sure that it wouldn't be able to fit the Hetres. I'm using the 38mm Panaracer Col de la Vie tires and I think they're great. Especially considering they cost about $25 instead of $65 each for the Hetres. Even though I saved some money on the tires, the conversion was expensive...but totally worth it. The ride is pretty awesome.