BradOlz

just purchased my first road bike... an old Nishiki NFS. I've known I wanted a road bike for a while so I've done a bit of research and shopping around (even though I know I couldn't afford a decent new bike). So, when I saw the bike I thought it looked small but I couldn't pass up the yard sale price, I didn't see much to lose by getting it. Since the purchase I've looked up the bike and found out it has the smaller 650c wheels.

Just looking for a little bit of insight into my bike here. Do any manufacturers make bikes with 650c wheels or are these obsolete nowadays? I've noticed it's not as easy finding spare tubes and whatnot.

Advantages? Disadvantages? I don't have much experience riding road bikes, but I love it so far, sure does make my mountain bike feel awfully cumbersome.

thanks

10 Wheels

https://www.everybicycletire.com/Shopping/c-54-650c.aspx
https://www.everybicycletire.com/Shop...etfilters=true

Mike F

They are still around. My neighbor rides a 650 tri bike and so does my wife. Alot of manufacturers are making women specific bikes which use 650 wheels and tires. An LBS that specializes in Tri stuff should have wheels in that size.

10 Wheels

https://www.google.com/#hl=en&xhr=t&q...w=1146&bih=578

BradOlz

I appreciate a little bit of sarcasm as much as the next guy, so thank you for that 10 wheels.

I guess what I was looking for would be the reason behind someone choosing 650c wheels over 700c wheels and vice versa. Thus, why I posted in a forum, hoping to gain slightly more information than entering "650c tires" into a google search.

10 Wheels

I don't know of any rider that has 650c wheels.

My Nishiki had 27" wheels

Hummeth

I haven't done any research on the topic, but just thinking about the topic I would believe the following.

650c

• Better fit for smaller riders on smaller frames
• More aerodynamic due to the smaller profile

700c

• Less tire deformation due to the increased radius of curvature
• More tire options
• Higher bottom bracket to pedal through more corners

Not having ridden both and not wanting to think that hard, I don't have any insights on how they roll.

hueyhoolihan

i've got a custom job that was made for 650c rims. i have subsequently, replaced the 650c's (571mm bsd) with 26" (559mm bsd) to get slightly wider tire with more tread (for touring). now i would like the 571's back.

i have to say though, that a couple of my other bikes have 700c rims and i think i might prefer the ride on those, but it is close.

BTW, any very narrow (specialized makes one) "mountain bike" tube works well on 650c's. and vice versa.

halfspeed

That is mostly correct, except there is only one "C" in 700C and 650C. We aren't measuring engine displacement. The size designation once referred to the outside diameter, in millimeters, of the tire and an alphabetic width indicator. Ironically, "C" was originally a wide tire so modern 700C tires are not 700mm in any measurement.

Hummeth

Whoops, my bad. Good catch. I'm not used to typing it out, just saying it.

SBRDude

A lot of tri bikes used 650c wheels primarily for aerodynamic drag savings. The basic tradeoff, or at least the one that was popularly stated, was that a larger 700c wheel had a greater "flywheel" effect, meaning that it accelerated a bit slower, but held its momentum better than the smaller wheel. So, it was either go with better aero savings, or go with an easier wheel to turn. Most modern tri bikes now have 700c wheels, so I guess the thinking now is that improvements in aero efficiency in wheels means the smaller size doesn't give a large enough advantage.

Nachoman

My main riding partner runs 650s, on a custom frame. He's got a normal torso and short legs.

SoonerBent

There a a lot of 650c tire choices and tubes are plentiful - online. You might or might not find an LBS that keeps any. My advice, from experience, is to keep a spare tire and a couple of spare tubes on hand.