26" vs 700c

tricking on old frames is not really advised....not strong enough at all

plus, how you gonna barspin with a drop quill stem?

you're dead right on the frame sizing though, always pick a frame thats a bit too small for you, makes throwing the bike around easier

Wel the stem clears the frame so I just presumed flat bars would to!? Edit: realised they won't when I got the bike out earlier, bit of a blonde moment haha

Yeah that's the general advise, guess I'll just have to get a modern one made for it :)