Well, the front wheel I built for this bike 20+ years ago, has rusty eyelets around the spoke nipples. Bummer. And when I took the rear wheel to be trued, several nipples stripped. Took a trip to the nearby bicycle collective and couldn't find remotely matching 27" wheels. However. There was a matching set of Alexrim CT700 wheels with 700x32 tires and tubes, and, a Shimano 8 speed cassette... Turns out, 32s barely fit the rear between the chainstays. And rubs the crown of the fork. So, 700x28s have been thrown on. I already had them on hand. The 700x32 Specialized Nimbus Flak Jackets tires sure are heavy. But I will pass them to my daughter for her Hybrid. Now to see if the friction shifter has enough pull and the Exage 400EX has the reach for 8 speeds...