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@lae
Wheels will be 26 x 1 3/8 i.e. 597mm ISO, not the same as MTB 26" which is 559mm ISO.
Not a problem though - tubes and tyres are plentiful in that size, and you can even get aluminium rims from Archie Wilkinson cycle speedway (as well as ebay). A good upgrade for these bikes is just to get a set of cheap singlespeed aluminium-rimmed wheels off of ebay or similar - better braking and they're a heck of a lot lighter. Just makes it a joy to ride really - comfortable and quick enough.
It's likely to be quite heavy with the steel rims and 3sp hub. IIRC my girlfriend's bike (essentially the same but with aluminium singlespeed wheels) is 13kg - that's with the steel rack and wire basket, but it does have plastic mudguards which are a bit lighter than the steel ones. You could lighten it further with aluminium bars and seatpost but I wouldn't bother.
You probably won't have any trouble with the SA hub - 99% of the problems are down to the cable not being set up correctly. Although if it has been ridden with a loose cable for ages then they pop out of gear, and each time they pop out it damages them slightly which makes them even more likely to pop!
£55 is a good price.