Originally Posted by
arty dave
I like the Michelin world tour too, they have a nice retro tread pattern, but they seem to have disappeared in 27 x 1 1/4" (they were a bit wider which I liked a lot - probably more like 1 3/8"). Apart from 26 x 1 3/8" they're still out there in 700C, and also have whitewalls and gumwalls in this size.
I get them from a guy who used to have a shop years ago, he still tinkers a bit in his retirement and can still get parts, although he doesn't sell to the public anymore.
The 35-590 size has been $25 each for a while now, in black sidewall only, but he doesn't keep a ton of them in stock. He can get whitewalls but I've never had a use for them here. He's not had any 27" tires in a while but he ordered me some IRC branded 27x1 1/8" skin walls a few weeks ago that looked like the one's I used to buy in the early 80's. I've not seen that tire listed anywhere online.
Every so often he gets a buddy of his to list a few things on CL in South Jersey or Philadelphia but the guy don't ship. Occasionally he lists a few pair of Michelin tires. They apparently sell pretty fast, the ads are rarely up for very long.
I've been trying to get him to get me some Schwinn 26x1 3/8" S5-S6 tires in both whitewall and in black but he's not made an order with that supplier in a while, or they've been sold out with this latest bike boom. His supply must be local, he usually has things for me in a day or two,or three at the most.
I do know the larger US bike parts suppliers don't list the Michelin tires in 26x1 3/8" anymore, and when they did they only listed the gum wall version but those were dropped from the catalogs over the past few years.
Here's the last pair I picked up for a project I'm working on:
