-
Thanks very much for the offer @clubman.
The 26" wheel search was for my 47' Holdsworth and trying to restore it to the specification offered by Holdsworth at the time but when I finally get it running I intend to use it rather than look at it.
The points you raise sound very valid and I think I will now look for sprint's or 700s.
Sprint's - Would I be looking for Fiamme or early Mavic ?
700s - What should I be looking for to suit ?Thanks for advice.
SideshowBob-
Fiamme would be easier to find I guess, Mavic sprints form that period seem VERY few and far between. There is quite a few 26 1/4 Dunlop Light Alloy (Dunlop LA) rims for sale on ebay at the moment, these are nice clincher rims and ride well from what I remember (I had some on the EF Russ that I had a few years back), so you could build (or get built) some wheels up. This would be my choice I think. Apparently they are hard to get a tyres on but I can't remember if I found this the case or not.
-
Which Rims?
Mavic Module E look pretty much like old sprint rims - that was probably the maker's intention.
I expect you have a 40 hole rear hub which you intend to use and this may cause a problem since
most of these rims are 36'sAs I mentioned above, I'd guess that there are more unwanted 40 hole sprints out there than 700's.
So far as the make is concerned, I don't think it's very important - there's not much difference in appearance. For your purposes I would try to avoid anything super light, for example Super Champion Medaille d'Or, which were excellent for best TT wheels, but too fragile for normal use.
Fiamme were very common and would suit you pretty well.I'm glad to hear you're intending to ride your Holdsworth - there doesn't seem much point in restoration if the bike is never used.
jeff80
clubman
This is not much of an offer but I do have a 26x1.25" back wheel you can have for nothing- although it's not in perfect condition since the rim is rusty. It's a Dunlop 'Special Lightweight' so it might be worth derusting and painting. The hub is double fixed (small flange) so it will be 4.25" wide (that's what I call 110mm). I can't remember how true is, it's a long time since it was used.
A worse problem is that it will have to wait until the virus crisis has died down a bit more before I can go and retrieve it.
Are you really sure you want 26" wheels? Have a look at Anidel's crashed Gillot above - you will notice that the front brake blocks are at the bottom of the adjustment slot even though it looks like a medium reach calliper, which tells us that the frame would look better (and was probably intended for) with sprints. 700's are the same size as sprints, and if you can find suitable old 700 rims (probably easier than 26's) you can have nice tyres and decent braking without really spoiling the look of the bike.
The only reasonably satisfactory 26" tyre you're likely to find nowadays are the Schwalbes which Anidel was using. I've got some, and although they're not bad, they are really a roadster tyre and a bit out of place on a lightweight. Most of the others explode if you put more than about 50psi into them. I find it sad to see a lovingly restored lightweight fitted with terrible tyres because the owner thought that 26" was correct 'period' for his bike.