Best 650B conversion candidate: Cannondale Rush or Prophet

[sandyeggo]

I really want to try 650b. I'm admittedly a Cannondale fanboy (for good or bad).

I know both the Rush and Prophet convert well to 650b.

I'm looking for an all-around type trail bike -- most of the trails I ride are XC. I do not plan on racing -- I just like to get out on the trail to have some fun while getting some exercise.

Pros for Rush: I've had one, loved it, wish I hadn't sold it. I want something that with quick, fast handling.

Cons for Rush: I tend to get pedal strikes a lot on my Cannondale Flash 29er. (12" BB height). The stock rush has 12.6" I believe and we can add 3/4 of an inch when 650B. After sag, I'm not sure if I would be more likely, or less likely, to have pedal strikes on the Rush vs. the Flash.

Pros for the Prophet: more travel - I've never owned a FS with anything more than 110mm of travel. Higher BB - I don't think I'd have any worries about pedal strikes with a 650B prophet.

Cons for Prophet: I don't think it would have the quick handling of the Rush. Heavy - may make climbing a bit harder (but I don't have any really long, extended climbs I don't view that as a very big con).

My heart is with the Rush, but I'm afraid that I will get more pedal strikes with a 650B rush then I do with my Flash 29er and that would suck.

Any thoughts and/or additional pros/cons would be appreciated!

[Morpheous]

You will gain .5" of BB height so Rush in like a fool.

[squads]

The rush would be great for 650B. I had one as my first FS bike and I loved how it cornered and felt in general, but the pedal and bashguard hits were non-stop in tech terrain. I was mulling over 650B on it several years ago before I jumped up to a bigger bike.

[Haystack Calhoun]

I have done my Rush and it's turned into a great bike. The higher bottom bracket helps.

[sandyeggo]

Thanks for all the replies. The Rush is it. I have one coming my way and soon it will be a 650b!

[skidad]

Thanks for all the replies. The Rush is it. I have one coming my way and soon it will be a 650b!

Dam that was a fast decision

I have a converted 650B Prophet. 31lbs with dropper post and pretty much a bombproof bike. 14.25" BB height after the conversion so pedal strikes are not really a problem even here in New England. HA in the XC shock position is 69 degrees so it works great with the 650B wheels and with 140mm of travel can handle most anything I can do with the bike.

I would love to try a converted Rush and I know you can get the weight down much lighter than the Prophet (especially with the carbon versions ) I think the added 1/2" of height with the 650B is just what the Rush needs to make it more technical trail friendly.

Good luck and update the thread with some pics and a ride report

[SuspectDevice]

I've ridden converted Rush and Prophet frames.
The rush was short-shocked and used an angleset with a 120mm fork for a 66 degree head angle and super-long wheel base. Totally badass.

[sandyeggo]

Dam that was a fast decision

I have a converted 650B Prophet. 31lbs with dropper post and pretty much a bombproof bike. 14.25" BB height after the conversion so pedal strikes are not really a problem even here in New England. HA in the XC shock position is 69 degrees so it works great with the 650B wheels and with 140mm of travel can handle most anything I can do with the bike.

I would love to try a converted Rush and I know you can get the weight down much lighter than the Prophet (especially with the carbon versions ) I think the added 1/2" of height with the 650B is just what the Rush needs to make it more technical trail friendly.

Good luck and update the thread with some pics and a ride report

Ha - it was fast, wasn't it? I had already had my eye on a Rush and then the Prophet idea came to mind so it didn't take much convincing to go with the Rush.

I will definitely post up some pictures/ride report!

Thanks again for all the responses!

[jnordby]

Late to the party, but I was building my 2007 Rush and riding it instead of checking this fine MTBR forum. Mine is alloy, running a white brothers 130mm 650b fork up front. I had been riding a 650b Yeti 575 (2006 frame), and loved it - but the BB was TOO high at 14". No pedal strikes to be sure, but it lost it's ability to transition in turns like it used to. I think the prophet is best left alone on 26ers, else that BB is going to be super high.

The Rush is 13 1/8th perhaps, with a 2.2 Wolverine and that 130mm fork up front, and a 2.2 Schwalbe RR in the back, on stans 355's and stans 3rd gen hubs. My lefty PBR 120 arrived today, so the front will come down to spec and I'll lose a little of the wheel flop. I have a 29er Salsa, so I don't notice the flop much, but I expect the lefty will finish this to a nice ride. Already feel pretty comfortable on that Rush, after a weeks worth of riding (and a long race, the Ridegline Rampage here last weekend). Way better handling than the high BB yeti - though the Yeti suspension probably could take a bit more AM situations.

imho - and a lot of the above I learned through friends who steered me to this Rush and 650b - you know who you are, thanks!

Jon.

[sandyeggo]

The wheelset FINALLY arrived and I threw them on yesterday. Took her out for a quick 6 mile ride on a mostly flat trail.

Early indications are I'm going to really love this wheel size. (Already loved the Rush from when I had one in 2007).

A couple of pics:

[weekend_update]

Quick question for skidad. How does the bike corner with a 14.25" BB height? Fewer pedal strikes for sure, but I'm curious how the bike handles otherwise. I'm used to riding a bike with a much lower bb, which definitely leads to a few more pedal strikes, but lends itself to whipping around turns.

[strengthcycle]

Thanks to this thread I 650b'd my prophet. Man I love my bike! I was in need of new wheels and got these for a good deal. I also just changed to 1x9. I love the way it rides I haven't noticed a huge difference but I'm sure the bottom bracket height being a little higher along with only running a 32t sprocket I with have just the clearance I need. Hurricane sandy left lots of downed trees I get hung up on some of the logs where the 29er single speeders I ride with zip right over... Anyway here's mine... And 2.35 nevegals are tight on the sides but I have no issues even in FR mode , although I really only have it in xc

[Rconroy]

Hey I was wondering what type of tire clearance you were able to get on the rear tire of the rush?

[sandyeggo]

Thanks to this thread I 650b'd my prophet. Man I love my bike! I was in need of new wheels and got these for a good deal. I also just changed to 1x9. I love the way it rides I haven't noticed a huge difference but I'm sure the bottom bracket height being a little higher along with only running a 32t sprocket I with have just the clearance I need. Hurricane sandy left lots of downed trees I get hung up on some of the logs where the 29er single speeders I ride with zip right over... Anyway here's mine... And 2.35 nevegals are tight on the sides but I have no issues even in FR mode , although I really only have it in xc

That is one nice looking Prophet (I know, like 7 months after you posted it!).

[sandyeggo]

Hey I was wondering what type of tire clearance you were able to get on the rear tire of the rush?

I used a 2.1 Neo Moto. I'm not sure you could fit a 2.3 back there. I love the 2.1 Neo Moto for what its worth.

[sandwich]

2.3 neo and 2.3 never fit fine on mine. 2.35 Huns dump does not. You may have to mess with the derailleur height to get it spot on.

[Leadsled70]

I know its late but here goes...did you have to short shock the Prophet or did you keep running the same travel? I will buy a 27.5 fork for upfront. Thanks.

[gibux]

Hi, I have broken my Fox Float RP3 on my Rush 2006. What type of rear shock do I have to buy to convert it to 650b?
With the old RP3 I cannot use the Continental Race King 2.2! :-(
Greetings fron Italy

[sandwich]

Any 7.5x2.0 can be converted into the required 7.5x1.75, just need a spacer under the bottom out bumper. You can add a little shim to get more clearance if you need.

I suggest getting a "boost valve" equipped shock, and sticking with the small air can.

[tuul75]

My second bike is a beater cannondale prophet. Its one of the bikes that converts to 650b not too badly i've read. Decided to convert as a project as a platform to compare 27.5 wheels.

27.5-26" does not equal 1.5" The difference is rim erd dia is only about 1" so the bike will sit 12mm taller with the new wheels.

I lowered the lefty 10mm using a spacer from my durlox. And for the rear I reduced the stroke of the shock from 50mm to 41mm to lower the rear end, and prevent wheel from hitting frame. Note now using the XC shock mount hole. So total travel is about 110mm. Geometry is a hair steeper but I run lots of sag so pretty close to stock.


HA 67.5
SA 74
BB 13.4
CS 16.6
long FC





The tires are the exact same tires from when i had it in 26er. HR2 2.2 and ardent 2.2. The 27.5 tires I got were even used so its a similar back to back comparison. Rim weights are similar. I am running tubes right now where before I was tubeless in 26er tho.

The verdict? Yeah the bigger wheels are better. Its not huge but noticeable. Bike just rolls over stuff a bit easier and grip seems improved. Trail has a bit less chatter. The loss in travel is not terrible and offset by the better rolling. So throw your trusty 26er in the dumpster :grinno:

I also stripped the paint to freshen it up. But pretty cool to revive a 10 year old frame I think. Even tho it is a lowly crak n fail single pivot. :shhh:

[Leadsled70]

Glad to see someone keeping the Prophet moving. Its really a great bike and with the 1.5 headtube it can stay relevant for some time.

[aohammer]

Just converted my son's Rush, stoked that the Crest / Racing Ralph 2.2 / Pacenti 2.0 fit with no issues even with the front derailleur. Going for the 1x10 (40t) conversion next. Bike is at just under 26 lbs as-is.

[Leadsled70]

Very nice. I'm going to convert my Prophet this summer.

[River19]

I converted my wife's rush to 27.5 3 years ago and she loves it......would have done mine as well this year but bought a Pivot instead.......I saved no money in that deal......lol

[MEvans]

Just customized my 2006 Rush 2000.
Custom wheelset: Velocity Blunt SS rims, DT Comps, red alloy nips, red Project 321 hubs. With Tubeless Hans Dampf 27.5/2.25" evo pacestar
XT M8000 conversion with: I Spec II shifter, brakes, ice tech rotors, rear derailleur, and 11-42 11spd cassette.
Race Face red 32T chainring.

Bike is awesome now, better rollover and no pedal bash!

[karlmichael]

I just converted my Prophet to a 650b. I added a DT Swiss FR570 wheelset/hubs front and rear. I am running nevegal 2.1 in the rear and a 2.35 bontrager XR3 in the front.
I sent my PBR Fork to mendon cycle smith to tune my lefty to my riding style and reduced my travel 10mm due to the larger wheelset
I had Pushed tune my RP23 to my riding style. My prophet has the MX rear swing arm and all new suspension bushings and stuff.
I am adding a XT 2X Drive train this week.

My only issue is with my Pushed Rear shock. Will going to a larger wheelset cause my rear shock to act differently? will increasing the weight and wheelbase cause your shock to act differently? I feel that the leverage point with a 650b would be greater then on the 26in wheel set up? I did buy a fairly light FR wheelset compaired to my old Mavic 819 and Hope pro 2....

I am running the stock shock size for my prophet and i only use my prophet in XC. I am running 250-270 psi in my rear shock which pushed tuned for the prophet and i am still blowing though my travel on fairly normal trails and drops. the max drop on my new set up has been about 2 ft at about 10-15 mph and i used all my rear travel. Is this normal. I weigh 195 with gear.

I had Pushed tune my rear shock with a very very stiff pro peddle and they increased the nitrogen charge and reduced the volume of the air can to ramp up the shock quicker. Their last tune helped a little bit but i am still running higher PSI and my rear end feels Squishy.

Would upgrading to Fox Float X2 fix my issues

Any Idea Team?

[pomocanthus]

interested in getting an old Prophet and doing the conversion too. Following thread to see what answers you get.