mornview

After experimenting with all of the available wheel sizes for the last few years, I have determined that, for whatever reason, nothing is quite as enjoyable to me as the ride I get on bikes with 26 x 1 3/8 (ISO 590) wheelsets. The thing I've noticed is that in the 80's, as the industry transitioned into some really nice tubing (like Cro-Mo), this style of bike seemingly completely disappeared. I'm lucky enough to have unknowingly came into possession of one such bike with Femco tubing; this is plenty light and plenty tough for my liking.

As I wasn't necessarily a collector at the time, I'm wondering if anyone can recommend me any frames from the 80's (any decade, really, but the 80's seems most likely to have produced the bike I'm looking for) that came stock with 26 x 1 3/8 (not looking to convert from 27" or anything here) and had frames made of Cro-Mo, Femco, or any other tubing that is relatively light yet tough. I love the ride you get from an old Chicago-built Schwinn "lightweight", but the weight of the frames just gets to be a bit much considering how much I have to lug my bike around.

(Note: I am also aware of the 650B size. Again, I'm strictly looking for 26 x 1 3/8).

Thanks !

Salamandrine 

The 80's weren't a big decade for ISO 590. Essentially everything was mountain bike ISO 559 26". There may have been some very obscure custom stuff, as well as bikes made for the European market.

Some 60s 3 speeds were relatively light, and could be hot rodded with a set of aluminum rims.

I'm still pinching myself that 650B has made a comeback.

Salubrious

I have a Claud Butler path frame from 1950 that is really light and apparently designed to use that size. It was likely built with 531 but the frame was refinished in the 1960s by a British outfit so no Reynolds decals appear, but the history indicates that this frame (type 24) was made with Reynolds. 27" is a no-go and even 700c is a stretch, unless you go with tubulars (in which case you would need some really short reach brakes). But the 650As fit quite nicely which is what I have on it right now.

elmore leonard

I agree. very hard to beat the ride of a 26 x 1 3/8 tires. Especially like the Kenda I have on my Raleigh 3 speed (I converted from a 10 speed) that take around 66lbs pressure and is shaped so about 3/8 inch of rubber (tread) hits the road..

fietsbob

Hire one Custom Made. (I have 16 x 1_3/8" tires on my Brompton)

noglider 

Check out the 650B craze. There are good, light rims made in that size and a nice variety of tires. The difference in size is negligible between 650A (aka 590) and 650B (aka 584). Lots of folks have succeeded in converting bikes intended for 700C wheels, though there are traps and pitfalls.

Henry III

I've got Scandinavian built Royal with 590's but not too keen on it since the quality of tires aren't the best. It's got these cool but crude looking lugs.

John E

During the 1950s and 1960s, 26 x 1-3/8 x 1-1/4 tires, which were compatible with regular 26 x 1-3/8" rims, were not uncommon. I was disappointed when I could not get identical replacements for the Pirelli Stellas that came on my first Bianchi.

Salamandrine 

+1 Absolutely.

It's kind of silly to insist on 650A for a light and fast bike, unless the OP simply enjoys being an iconoclast, which is fine.

There was a need for an intermediate wheel size between MTB 26" (559) and 700c, and it has been filled by 650B. Kind of strange, since when I quit wrenching this was a really obscure size that only the hippest bike nuts even knew about, but it it what it is. Lots of stuff is around for it now.

IF the OP wants a cromoly or reynolds frame specifically set up for 650A, it will most likely need to be custom built. Otherwise, perhaps with some serious dredging some obscure relic of the 50's or early 60s could be found.

The new cool 26 will be E.A.1. schwinn...

nlerner

I think lighter weight bikes built for 650A wheels will be hard to come by. I also think that high quality tires in that size are hard to come by. Still, I like the plushness of the 650A col de la vie tires, and have a set of those on my 1952 Raleigh Lenton Sports (which was probably made for EA1/597mm wheels). On this forum, I've seen several examples of 650A conversions, and if you're doing that with a bike originally made for 700c wheels, it means you're looking for brakes with an additional 16mm of reach. That should be pretty easy to find.

LesterOfPuppets

Seems like 590s would work on many road bikes made for 622s, with some long-reach brakes

jPrichard10 

Built a couple wheelsets in 650A. Basically a cheaper version of 650B. THere's nothing inherently better about either diameter, it's just that 650B took off and has better tires and rims.

That said, I've had better success converting 27" to 650A than to 650B (obviously). But you are definitely looking at a conversion. Unless of course you get one of the new Miyatas (yes, Miyata still exists!) coming out of Japan that are in 650A.

rhm

English bikes from the 30's to the mid 50's were made with pretty much the same clearances, and any wheel size from EA3 (aka 650a, aka 26x1 3/8) to 27" would fit. I've run both EA3 and 27" on my Fothergill, and also 700c, with the same brake calipers; the shoes were at the top of the slots with 27" rims, and at the bottom of the slot with EA3, but it worked fine either way.

Remember, how the bike was assembled at the factory is not always related to what the frame will accept. You should be able to fit the wheels you want to almost any frame, though not necessary with the same brake calipers.

That said, I'd go for an English frame from before 1975 or so.

Chris W.

I just googled "650A bicycles in Japan", and all sorts of beautiful bikes showed up (including Grand Bois, and Toei!) I have heard that 650A is fairly common there, and I've also heard you can buy high end 650A tires in Japan. It seems the best tire we can get here in the U.S. is the Panaracer Col De La Vie series Randonnee. The most readily available rim seems to be the Sun CR18.. I was gifted a really nice set of 650A wheels that someday will find the perfect frameset to roll with (so I kinda know where you're coming from )

IMG_20151218_174106738_HDR by Chris Wilson, on Flickr

Cheers,
Chris

clasher

A friend of mine is lucky enough to own a Fukaya from Japan that came with 590 wheels. It's got canti posts so I assume it was made with that size in mind. There's probably many fine Japanese frames made to that wheel size but I dunno how you'd go about getting one.

nlerner

You can buy directly from Grand Bois, which shows a couple of 650A options not available in the US:

650A CYCLES GRAND BOIS ? **********(CyclesGrandBois web-shop)

I've bought from them in the past: reasonably priced and quite fast shipping.

Velognome 

+1 on looking to a British made frame from the 40's-60's . Look for Pollack or Reynolds tubes. I picked up this frame through Hilary Stone, amazingly large at 24.5" and built for 26" wheels, light too. The pic is from Hilary's site with it built up with 27's but the original spec was for 26's



MacLean's come up time and again and the cost is reasonable too.

Good Luck.

dddd

What Salamandrine said ^^^^^





I could see E.A.1. (597) becoming the new standard for road bikes, where ever-wider aero rims are requiring wider, taller tire profiles.

How far that this evolution proceeds, in terms of the best performance compromise between rim and tire size, will determine the next wheel size standard, with perhaps only the addition of two to three chainring teeth (to the current 50 and 52) in order to maintain a respectable top gear.

With the drop in height of the brake tracks of just 12.5mm partly made up for with taller tire profiles, this is not such a big change at all, just as 27.5" was EXACTLY the same 12.5mm taller at the brake pad than 26x2.125 (!).

With the highest-performing motorcycles suddenly hitting new high marks for versatility due to suspension, braking and engine technologies, road bikes could follow in their footsteps with fatter tires run at ever-lower pressures. This has already started with the disc brakes and fatter tires, but I could see a wheel-size evolution perhaps hitting the market in synch with the next 12-speed drivetrains and perhaps one-piece chainrings that incorporate closer ratios set at narrower spacings and using three or four rings with virtually no weight penalty. With electronic shifting now integrating mountainbike's front and rear shifting functions, the proper sequence of shifting can allow even further-reduced chainring spacing, even further than the narrower chain and closer ratios would already allow. The closer ratios and integrated front/rear shifting logic would improve gearing progression, chain angle and shifting performance, and the overall spread of ratios would also be increased. It would be perfect if the new wheel size was timed with the arrival frame architecture that perfectly conformed to the expected profile of said chainring stacks, allowing traditional Q-factor with perhaps four rings.

While neither the traditional mtb-based "hybrids" or fully-suspended road bikes ever set any sales records, a new design based on bikes ridden by the best pro roadracers (and perhaps seen finally taming the Roubaix cobbles on live TV) just might set some sales records just like the automotive SUV did.