Drop Out/wheel Sizes ?

[BADGER.BRAD]

Hello All,

I have a battered fixed wheel bike which I brought cheaply from ebay just to test if I liked fixed gear life ! As I have taken to it I have now decided to put a bit of tlc into the bike, it is fitted with 27 inch wheels with rusty steel rims which I have decided to replace. I first tried to put a spare pair of mountain bike wheels (26 inch) but found that the drop outs are a different size and as the drop outs are preety thin to start with I do not wish to risk making them any weaker by opening them out, this leaves me with the option of 700c wheels . My question is will these fit or are these likley to be different again ?

Many Thanks

Brad

 

[kyuss]

A 700c wheel will fit but it's the hub width that's important not the size of the wheel. MTB dropouts are spaced at 135mm, modern road bikes are 130mm, some older ones 126mm and track bikes 120mm. Most fixed hubs are 120mm with 130mm slightly less common. Best thing to do is measure the distance between the inside edges of the rear dropouts and buy a wheel with hub to suit. Assuming it's a converted road frame it's most likely to be 130mm but a 120mm fixed hub will work with some spacers as long as the axle is long enough.

 

[gbb]

If you fit 700 wheels Brad, you 'll probably need some deep drop brake calipers as well.
If thats the case, i assume your existing calipers will be nut fit...and it's a bit difficult to get hold of deep drop nut fit calipers. (i think mine were 70mm drops...the longest i could find) There are mods you can do to fit allen key fit calipers, but it's getting more complicated then.

Dont wade in....try to do your homework, it gets moderately expensive.

 

[skwerl]

a frame with 27" wheels will most likely have an 126mm dropouts.
look on ebay. there are lot's of track wheels available built on 120mm hubs with spacers supplied to adjust to wider OLN sizes

 

[BADGER.BRAD]

Drop Out Sizes

Hello all,

Many thanks for getting back to me, much appreciated. I Think I have a cure for the problems that 26 inch wheels will create, As the bike looks like it was painted by some one using a toilet brush and I wanted to remove all the gear/pump fittings I will get away with a little welding in order to line up the brakes again. The problem with the drop outs was not the width of wheel but the diameter of the threaded ends of the axles( I should have made this more clear !!!) The 27 inch wheels are approx 8 mm with a flat machined on two sides taking this down to 6mm (ish) as it slides into the frame, the mountain bike wheels have axle end diameter of about 10 mm with no flats meaning I would have to take out 4 mm from the drop outs. As they are very thin to start with I think this would be tooooo much. My cure for this in to weld a small plate to the outside of the drop outs then recut them with a grinder to suit the 26 inch wheels.

Before you say it, yes it is a lot of hassle for an old bike but I have grown attached to my old fixie plus I like the idea of recycling/re-using things as much as possible.

Many Thanks all

Brad

here is a pic of the old wreck

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3172/2677944096_0310aabb34.jpg?v=0

 

[hubgearfreak]

easier to file flats onto the axles i'd have thought