hmmm, I'm getting that there are not really any easy fixes here that are mainly composed of me ordering something. Well, I'm up to a challenge, if I can work on my car, I guess I should be able to figure out this bike. Although, when I was a kid, if my bike got a flat I wanted a new bike, so I've never really even taken a rear wheel off before I did this one - and that back brake is not on my good list. I guess I'll just take that wheel off and see if I can see where the problem is, then give the wheel a good inspection with the tire off. Once the wheel is checked out, I'm going to go with the Maxxis tires and some new tubes. I could even swap some wheels from a huffy without a freewheel if I need to, so maybe with all the parts around here I can get a bike going that he can ride. thanks for all the tips!!

One other thing - do I need to get some tape for the inside of the wheel? I really have no idea what the normal supplies for bike maintenance should be.