Originally Posted by Gb200

Hi I’m a very novice home bike mechanic but was curious about converting my 700c Masi CXGR into a 650b setup I saw in an article on bikepacking.com. The article (which I can’t seem to include) has a link to a WTB official list of compatible frames that includes the CXGR.

My question is, if I want to keep all the same Shimano 105 11 sp road shifter/derailleur/cassette system, do I just need to find a 650b road wheelset? They seem to be hard to find but maybe I don’t know what I’m looking for. Or would it be possible to go with some 650b mountain bike rims I already have and swap for a long cage road derailleur and an 11sp mtb cassette?

i don’t know the first thing about building wheels and was hoping to avoid that so wanted to purchase or repurpose some prebuilt wheels. Any advice/guidance much appreciated.