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Source for 26", polished, rim brake, ~38mm wide rims?

1751 Views 5 Replies 4 Participants Last post by wschruba, Dec 16, 2021

zanq

Discussion Starter · Dec 10, 2021

I have a 1991 Schwinn High Plains that is one of the bikes in my stable that I will never get rid of, and always find myself making small tweaks/updates to keep it relevant. I ditched the original wheelset years ago, but now I'm looking to go back to the original look.

I have it built up as a commuter/26" wheel touring rig and the original wheels were Weinmann 660mm x 38mm (26x1.5"). That is a pretty wide rim and I'm having trouble finding something that is:

26"
around 38mm wide (I'm assuming that is outside width)
rim brake
polished

One of the closer matches is the Velocity CliffHanger at 30mm:

Velocity Wheels - Hand Made in USA

Bicycle rims, wheels, and accessories hand made in the USA. Best in class designs available in multiple sizes, colors, configurations, and applications.

www.velocityusa.com

While I continue to search, is there a make/model that someone knows and would suggest?

Thanks

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.WestCoastHucker.

· #2 · Dec 10, 2021

with rim brakes that wide, you may run into clearance issues. the brake arms will be spaced so wide the cable across the top of the tire may not clear the top of the tire. the farther out you push the arms, that triangle becomes very short...

i once was running rim brakes on 32mm wide rims and would hit my heels on the brake arms all the time with them so far out.

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zanq

Discussion Starter · #3 · Dec 10, 2021

.WestCoastHucker. said:
with rim brakes that wide, you may run into clearance issues. the brake arms will be spaced so wide the cable across the top of the tire may not clear the top of the tire. the farther out you push the arms, that triangle becomes very short...

i once was running rim brakes on 32mm wide rims and would hit my heels on the brake arms all the time with them so far out.

Valid point. The bike originally came with cantilever brakes and it now has V-brakes. I feel the rims I have on it now are too narrow; I have the pads adjusted in so far that when the brake is released, I still have to let air out of a 1.9" tire to get past them. The original tires were 26x2.0.

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zanq

Discussion Starter · #4 · Dec 11, 2021

So stepping back from my width criteria, is there a formula or guidance on how wide a rim should be or can be based on spacing of the brake studs and type of brake being used?

The original brakes and wheels were cantilever brakes and (supposedly) 38mm rims. This is based on a historical spec sheet I downloaded for my bike (I still have the brakes). I currently have Avid V-brakes and rims with an outside width of 25mm.

Thanks!

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jestep

· #5 · Dec 15, 2021

I haven't run into this problem specifically, I don't think I've ever tried a rim that wide, but IME you would have clearance issues with the chainstays before the V brake cable on most older bikes. I have had situations where I had to deflate my tire to get it to clear the brake arms on a 2.3+ tire, but never cable clearance. It obviously depends on the bike though.

I would maybe consider a Sun Rhino Lite XL. Not 38 but they're wide for a rim brake 26 and they did come in a polished silver version, no clue what the availability on that version is though.

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wschruba

· #6 · Dec 16, 2021

I believe Velo Orange sells a polished silver 26" rim that works with rim brakes.

Other than that, I would go with Velocity (which, while expensive, I would endorse 100%). The Cliffhanger should be plenty wide enough for your purposes. The NoBS rim is probably closer to a 'classic' look than the Cliffhanger (I have both, and the Cliffhanger is a nice update for a 'classic' bike, but it definitely looks modern).

I would suggest, believe it or not, looking for a bicycle co-op/used bike shop, and just buying a cheapo 90's bike. 26x1.5, single wall rims were super common up through the early 2000's. They're still de rigueur on 26" beach cruisers with rim brakes.

Modern brakes shouldn't be an issue with rim width--it's mostly if you see older dia-compe/Shimano wide-profile cantilevers that you are likely to run into issues.

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