Originally Posted by
cyccommute
Perhaps Dutch bikes shouldn't be included in the list. The 28" wheel was on the Raleigh Roadster as well as some other English bikes. From what I can tell, they were pre-WWII to post WWII (mid-50s?). Harris Cyclery still sells them and says they are for brands like " Dunelt, Raleigh, Rudge, Humber, Phillips."
There's been little difference between English and Dutch roadsters, all the Raleighs I've seen were about the same size with the same size wheels and tyres. It's mostly copied and changed English designs, and the sizes were copied too, including the inches, which are only used in case of rims and tyres.
No one ever said that bicycle tire sizes were anything but confusing. They are all supposed to be the size of the tire's outside diameter but, as you pointed out, that doesn't add up. I'm trying to move away from calling tires by their "size" and referring to the rim diameter instead. It's still confusing but less so then going by the outside diameter of some "standard" tire.
I guess it's best considered a name for a certain tyre/rim with a certain size rather than a size itself. That's why I believe ETRTO is a big improvement.
On a side note, Oregon passed a bicycle excise tax law that is supposed to generate money for bicycle projects in Oregon. It's a $15 tax on new bikes sales on bicycles that have "26-inch or larger wheels". If you do the math, like you have, the only bike that they could collect tax on is a
Coker Monster Cycle. The law says "wheel", not tire. A 700C
wheel is only 24.5" and as long as you keep the tire size under 38mm, you aren't being a bike with wheels
and tires larger than 26"
Cool. Maybe it's laws like that have set industry standards. I like those monster wheels, looks much better than a tall frame on regular wheels, there should be a market for them here.