wheel too small?
#1
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wheel too small?
So i bought an old vintage schwinn the other day. the tires both said 26" on them. so i got to buy new tubes and tires because the old ones are shot. go to put on the new front tire and it seems that the tire is too big for the rim. i pulled a 26 off of it. almost the whole bead gets in but just a last 3"s or so wont seat the bead. do i need a new rim or what should i do?
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Unless you're planning heavy use for that bike, easiest option is to find out which 26" it is that you have (preferably by the ETRTO size in mm, and then get the matching tires. Tubes are probably OK.
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I remember once reading on BF a listof maybe six different 26" sizes. A detailed search would find a lot of information on here. If it's an old Schwinn, it might be their 26x1 3/8 size.
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If it has a fractional size, either 26x 1-3/8 or 26 x 1-1/4 it takes a different, and unique to Schwinn tire, designated as S-6. This is very different from the typical 3-speed English bike's 26 x 1-3/8 EA3 tire so you have to be very careful about getting the correct tire.
A fractional size of 26 x 1-3/4 or thereabouts is an S-7 and like the lightweight is unique to Schwinn.
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So i bought an old vintage schwinn the other day. the tires both said 26" on them. so i got to buy new tubes and tires because the old ones are shot. go to put on the new front tire and it seems that the tire is too big for the rim. i pulled a 26 off of it. almost the whole bead gets in but just a last 3"s or so wont seat the bead. do i need a new rim or what should i do?
That's the problem I ran into when I was trying to fix my Collegiate, and it got me hired at the local bike shop for the lengths I went to to figure it out. BTW: this was 33 years ago.
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#6
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Sorry I forgot to add it is all 26 x 1 3/8. Tires. Rims. Tubes.
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Schwinn 26 x 1 3/8 is larger diameter than the 26 x 1 3/8 used by others. You need a tire that says on it is for Schwinn bikes or has a rim bead size of 597 not 590 bead seat as Raleigh and most others used. You are basically trying to put a 14" tire on a 15" rim in automotive jargon. Roger
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Damnit. The rim says made in england on it.
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OK- I re-read your original post. If the tire is too big for the rim, then it probably got replaced by someone who didn't know bikes. You can either put an "EA-3" tire on your rim, or hunt down the correct wheel for your bike.
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#10
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At this point you could hit up the web and buy a set of wheels with tires that are the most common size.You can get them cheap too,around 60 bucks plus shipping.
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There are eight different, non-interchangeable “26 inch” wheel sizes.
1) 26 x 1.25: bead seat diameter 599mm. Obsolete.
2) 26 x 1 3/8 x 1 1/4: bead seat diameter 597mm. Schwinn S6. Obsolete. Still made for very old Schwinn lightweights, but uncommon.
3) 26 x 1 3/8: bead seat diameter 590mm. Traditional “English racer” size, and used on American-built single- and three-speeds and inexpensive bike boom 10-speeds. Also known as 650A and EA3. Obsolete for new bicycles in the USA, but very widely available in bike shops, hardware stores and big boxes. Common in Japan where it is used on new bicycles, and common legacy size in the UK. This is also a common wheelchair tire size.
4) 26 x ?: bead seat diameter 587mm. Also known as 700D. Very obscure and obsolete size.
5) 26 x 1 1/2: bead seat diameter 584mm. Also known as 650B. Obsolete, but a few companies are trying to revive this size for both road and mountain bikes with proprietary tires they provide.
6) 26 x 1 3/4: bead seat diameter 571mm. Also known as 650C. Obsolete. In the USA these wide tires were used on old Schwinn middleweights. Tires are still made, but uncommon.
7) 26 x 1: bead seat diameter 571mm. Known as 650C as well (!), this narrow racing format is based on an obsolete Italian sew-up tire rim size. Used today on time trial and triathlon bikes.
8) 26 x 1.0 to 2.35: bead seat diameter 559mm. The ubiquitous mountain bike tire size, descended from the American balloon tires of over a half century ago. Now made in a huge array of widths and tread patterns. Widely available worldwide in widths of ~1.75 inches and greater; the narrower sizes are available in well-stocked bike shops. In the wheelchair world, this smallest 26-inch size is sometimes referred to as “25-inch”.
1) 26 x 1.25: bead seat diameter 599mm. Obsolete.
2) 26 x 1 3/8 x 1 1/4: bead seat diameter 597mm. Schwinn S6. Obsolete. Still made for very old Schwinn lightweights, but uncommon.
3) 26 x 1 3/8: bead seat diameter 590mm. Traditional “English racer” size, and used on American-built single- and three-speeds and inexpensive bike boom 10-speeds. Also known as 650A and EA3. Obsolete for new bicycles in the USA, but very widely available in bike shops, hardware stores and big boxes. Common in Japan where it is used on new bicycles, and common legacy size in the UK. This is also a common wheelchair tire size.
4) 26 x ?: bead seat diameter 587mm. Also known as 700D. Very obscure and obsolete size.
5) 26 x 1 1/2: bead seat diameter 584mm. Also known as 650B. Obsolete, but a few companies are trying to revive this size for both road and mountain bikes with proprietary tires they provide.
6) 26 x 1 3/4: bead seat diameter 571mm. Also known as 650C. Obsolete. In the USA these wide tires were used on old Schwinn middleweights. Tires are still made, but uncommon.
7) 26 x 1: bead seat diameter 571mm. Known as 650C as well (!), this narrow racing format is based on an obsolete Italian sew-up tire rim size. Used today on time trial and triathlon bikes.
8) 26 x 1.0 to 2.35: bead seat diameter 559mm. The ubiquitous mountain bike tire size, descended from the American balloon tires of over a half century ago. Now made in a huge array of widths and tread patterns. Widely available worldwide in widths of ~1.75 inches and greater; the narrower sizes are available in well-stocked bike shops. In the wheelchair world, this smallest 26-inch size is sometimes referred to as “25-inch”.