bitsnpieces1

OK, just got back from the Schwinn shop in town. Prices follow:
26 x 1 3/8 " tire, blackwall.............$12.00 each
marked: (37 - 597 ) ; 26 x 1 3/8 x 1 1/4 ; fits 26 x 1 1/4 straight side EA-1 English & Schwinn S-6 rims.

tube for above tire.......................$ 3.77

So it would appear that you could also buy a 26 x 1 1/4 English EA-1 tire and it would fit a Schwinn rim.

Les

cudak888 

Not true.

While both the English EA1 size (26X1-1/4") and Schwinn S-6 (26X1-3/8" American) tyres share the 597mm rim size, that is the end of their similarities:

*The S-6 is a wide, non-performance middleweight Schwinn tyre. S-6 rims are not compatible with many of the narrower English EA1 tyres of the same diameter.

*The EA1 rim is generally a narrow, performance, lightweight tyre. EA1 rims so happen to share the same rim size with the S-6, and as a result, both the correct EA1 tyres and the balloon S-6 tyres can be mounted to this rim, although the latter is technically incorrect and not recommended on lightweights.

The traditional inflated diameter of an EA1 tyre resembles that of current 27X1-1/4" tyre - not ballonish, but not equivilant to the diameter, let's say, of a 700X23C. A much narrower, high-performance variant existed through the '70s and into the '80s however. The inflated diameter of these later EA1s were pretty close to 700X25C, and required hooked bead rims.

Take care,

-Kurt

bitsnpieces1

Ah, but that's the point. The Schwinn 1 3/8 is the same width as the English 1 1/4. I measured my 26 x 1 3/8 tires inflated at 55 psi and they are just about up to 1 1/4 inches wide. That doesn't seem like a balloon tire to me. I have been under the impression that balloon tires are around 2 inches wide. The Schwinn 26 x 1 3/8 tire is used on Lightweights NOT Middleweights. Remember I'm not including super flyweight Tour de France type models and we're talking a 1960-'80 standard.
Also the tire states it's for EA-1 STRAIGHT SIDE rims, not a hooked bead. My Schwinn rim measures right at 1 1/4 inches wide on the outside. The English 1 1/4 tire it's talking about is probably an older English standard.

I have compared my 26 x 1 3/8 tire to 27 x 1 1/4 (I guess) used on 10 - 21 speed bikes and the only apparent visible difference is that mine have a 1 inch smaller diameter. Also these were produced at a time that Schwinn was competing with the Raleigh 3 speeds.

At any rate the idea of the post was to let people that were looking for 26 x 1 3/8 tires for their Schwinns that they are readily?sp available at a Schwinn dealer at a reasonable price and an English 26 x 1 1/4 straight side rim tire might fit. They would need to check it out.

cudak888 

Not exactly. The American 26X1-3/8"/S-6 is larger then most all forms of the English 26X1-1/4"/EA1.

As for the validity of the tyre's actual measured width compared to the fractional measurement on the sidewall, you can dispense with this method - it is rarely accurate, particularly in this case.


I didn't say balloon, I said middleweight, although in retrospect, I should have specified the tyre as being for Schwinn's lightweight models. However, may I note that Schwinn's lightweight models that wore the S-6 tyres are closer to being diamond-frame middleweights then lightweight touring machines. Not because of weight, mind you, but because of the S-6 tyre.


Comparing rim width to the fractional size is also incorrect. If it were, please explain this: If the Schwinn tyre/rim (whichever you want) measures 1-1/4" wide exactly, how come they call it a 26X1-3/8"?


That is known. The American 26X1-3/8" S-6 size tyre is by no means obsolete, any shop should have brand new Kenda S-6 tyres in black or gumwall for sale. Shops that do not can order them, and shops that can't/won't order them are to be avoided.

Whether someone can fit an EA1 tire to an S-6 rim is pretty much a moot issue though, for the EA1 size is technically obsolete in the U.S. There are a few shops that may have NOS EA1 tires on hand, or you can purchase a the EA1 Schwalbes from Harris, but they're not commonly available items anymore, particularly the high-pressure narrow EA1 tyres as used on some '80s roadbikes (Fuji's S-10 comes to mind).

May I suggest that you order one of the Schwalbe EA1 tyres that Harris currently sells to compare with the Kenda S-6 tyres - you will notice the difference between the two immidiately.

Take care,

-Kurt

bitsnpieces1

OK: let's go over this.

1) The tires we are talking about are from the 1940s, '50s, '60s & '70s. They are NOT a current standard.
2) The two standards are : Schwinn 26x1 3/8 and English 26x1 1/4 EA1 straight side .
3) An English 26x1 1/4 EA-1 tire wil fit the Schwinn rim and a Schwinn 26x1 3/8 will fit the English rim.
4) Schwinn used various marketing ploys, their 26x1 3/8 tire is one of them. (IT AIN'T A 1 3/8)
5) Neither of the tires are what you will find under that designation on todays bikes.
6) In order to get a tire to fit you classic Schwinn bike it MUST say for Schwinn 26x1 3/8 S-6 rim // English 26x1 1/4 straight side rim on the tire.
7) Kenda makes the particular size you're looking for.
8) If you think I'm talking nonsense, take it up with Sheldon Brown at Harris Cyclery.
9) I bought mine at my local Schwinn bicycle shop.

cudak888 

1) The S-6 size is an existing standard, but not a current standard. EA1 is pretty much obsolete.
2) True, but EA1s were also available as hooked bead tires with no other markings to distinguish them from straight-side EA1s - they were both considered 26x1-1/4"
3) An English 26x1-1/4" tyre may or may not fit a Schwinn S-6 rim, depending on width, and a Schwinn 26x1-3/8" S-6 will fit an EA1 rim, but not nessesarly clear the frame of some particular EA1-equipped bicycles.
4) Frank Schwinn should be cursed at his grave.
5) Provided that by "today's bikes" you mean anything of current production on the showroom floor. You won't find 27"/630mm or 28X1-1/2" out there either.
6) Providing the rim is 597mm! Mind you, Schwinn's 27X1-1/4" rims (which, thankfully, are the standard 27"/630mm size) were also called the Schiwnn S-6 until the '80s. S-6 was used by Schwinn as a 'catchphrase' for lightweight tyres, and did apply to more then one rim diameter.
7) Kenda makes a S-6 tyre in the 26x1-3/8" size of the Schwinns and some EA1s. Schwalbe currently makes the high-pressure, narrow road variant of the EA1 size.
8) No, we're having an learned discussion to decode this mess that history has left behind.
9) Yes, you can buy those Kendas brand new at your LBS. (And for the folks who find their shop doesn't have them and won't get them...find another shop).

-Kurt

alanbikehouston

I would not call Schwinn's use of a unique tire size and rim size "a scam" or a "marketing ploy". At the time that Schwinn introduced that size, Schwinn outsold English bikes in the USA many times over. The number of English bikes using the EA-1 rim sold in the USA is more likely to be in the hundreds than in the millions. By the 1960's, the EA-1 was not even a standard size in the UK.

chwinn designed its own tires and tire molds and American tire companies made millions of tires in Schwinn sizes. Schwinn made the S-6 rim in its own Chicago factory, and as designed, it was a rim that not even an American teen-ager could destroy. The S-6 rim was a superior quality product that was made by the millions. A cyclist who rode on an S-6 rim may never have used the term "wheel truing", as the S-6 wheel was unlikely to need it.

The OTHER 26 inch tire that Schwinn introduced on its cruisers in the 1930's is the size used today on most mountain bikes. A classic. Frank Schwinn should be in the Cycling Hall of Fame for his contributions to American cycling...wait, he already IS in the Cycling Hall of Fame.

Sheldon Brown's web site lists all the various tire sizes in their metric form. Looking at the metric designation makes it easier to tell one "size 26" from another. And, his web site also lists the tires available for sale...virtually any tire size in use in the USA.

They sell tires in the ISO 597mm size, which will fit both the Schwinn S-6 rim, marked for 26 x 1 3/8 S-6 tires, and rims marked for the English EA-1 26 x 1 1/4 size tire.

cudak888 

Who said it was a scam? It's not.

My only complaint is that this particular Schwinn size is a royal pain, for Schwinn used the same rim diameter of the English 597mm EA1 rim.

-Kurt