Great! Thanks so much for the advice everybody. I'm new to bikes in general so I didn't know that not all 26" will fit the bike and I didn't know that 650a tires are the same thing. The panaracers look great!

And thanks to tcs for the tips on the hub. I'm hoping it's just a matter of cleaning and relubing as you mentioned. It would be amazing to maintain the original parts. As for replacing the rims, is it mainly to reduce the weight of the steel originals or is there a safety factor to this as well?

I'm learning tons everyday thanks to these forums. It's really exciting. Thanks all.