Heatherbikes: I looked at the X404 on the site - they do make it in the 590 size for 26 x 1 3/8 tires. Not sure why yours are labelled 597 since according to the site they don't come in that size!

have a look at the tires - are they fitted correctly and marked 590-xxx? It could be the label is wrong on the rims.

Reason I bring this up - when you go to return them you want to hammer him for not listening, but if these are indeed the right size you can't say they aren't.

I agree that the appearance of the rims is a bit, um, modern, but the profile at least attempts to mimic the original.

As far as CR18s go - for whatever reason in our area they are really expensive compared to Alex so you need to be prepared to pay more for what you want.

ps. I have a beard so take this for what its worth.....