Not Another B.C. Dude

Submitted by Polara Pat on Fri, 10/18/2013 - 22:13

Hey folks,

Just thought I would stop by and say hello. My name is Pat and I live in Nelson B.C. where I lead a vintage bicycle club called the Scullions. We meet monthly to help one another thrash on bikes and network to buy/sell/trade parts amongst ourselves. There also may be a bit of beer drinking involved. Of course being that we are proud Canadians we have a healthy dose of CCMs in the gang. Lately we've been having problems finding a good source for in-country 26x1 3/8 and 28x1 3/8 tires but I'm sure a seperate thread for this topic will set me straight.

Here are a few bikes from my quiver. I'm by no means a restorer of these fine cycles but I do try to put the effort in to make them very servicable and fun to ride like they were meant to be.

Here is my '37 twin tube that I built ages ago and sees a ton of Summer riding. It's a very solid and surprisingly fast bike.

This is my bastardised Mustang that is sure to make the purists cringe.

Here we have a nice mens frame Futura that we built up the other night for one of our buddies in the club. It was his birthday, lucky bugger.

This last one I just picked up and really haven't decided what direction to go with it. It's a GT-101 Duomatic and I have the correct rear rim but again, lack any good rubber. Someone has also put a chrome fork on this bike that seems weird. I threw a 30's springer seat and 24" rear wheel on it just so I could roll it around but they won't be staying. I think the original tire size is 26x1 1/2 but I would love to find somethng fatter to work with the original rims.

 

11 Comments

Submitted by T-Mar on Sat, 10/19/2013 - 10:30.

Welcome to the forum. Unfortunately, tire and rim sizing is not a straight forward issue.  The problem is that tires are commonly marked with outer diameter and width, when what is important for rim compatibility is the bead seat diameter (BSD).  For instance, there are 26 x 1-3/8” tires in both 590mm and 597mm BSD. To avoid compatibility issues manufacturers now include an ISO designation on tires, format ww yyyy  (ww = tire width in millimetres and yyy = BSD in millimetres). For old bicycles, to ensure compatibility, the best method is to determine the rim type from the marking or if absent, to determine the BSD by measuring the rim and/or tire.

CCM used at least three different 26” rims:

EA1 = 597mm BSD

EA3 = 590mm BSD

F12 = 571mm BSD

28” provide the same issues, as there are at least 4 different BSD for that diameter. Often, owners may have switched wheels, so we shouldn’t even assume a certain rim type or BSD based on the age and model of the bicycle.  To ensure compatibility you need to determine the rim type from the marking or measure the BSD. Once you’ve established the rim type or BSD that you require, it will be easier to advise you on tire availability.

BTW, the only that is showing for me is the GT-101 and it appears to have a bent replacement fork.

Submitted by Polara Pat on Sat, 10/19/2013 - 13:13.

Thanks for the great wheel and tire info T-Mar. I knew there were a lot of discrepincies with CCM sizing but I didn't think there were so many options for 26" and 18" rims. Oh boy.

 

Did you mean that the only image that came up for you was the GT-101? They all appeared when I logged in. I feel like the bent forks came from a 10 speed or something like that since the fork  threads climb above the head tube quite a bit. I don't plan on keeping them.

Submitted by T-Mar on Sat, 10/19/2013 - 14:12.

Yes, I'm only seeing the GT-101 picture. The others are only showing as window boxes with a red X. Post back with your rim designations and we'll supply the info tire availability and sources.

 

Submitted by Polara Pat on Sun, 10/20/2013 - 11:08.

What a terrible tease. I think I know what may have happened but I don't see an "edit post" button to make my changes. I'll try to just re-post the images here. BTW when measuring the BSD where do you run the tape from? Probably noy the rim edge since the bead seats inside the channel. Let me know and I'll get some measurements out.

 

image.jpeg image_1.jpeg image_3.jpeg

Submitted by T-Mar on Mon, 10/21/2013 - 07:35.

Thxs, Pat, the new pics posted fine. BSD is measured from the centreline of the tire bead. On most Endricks style rims (i.e. those with a flat braking sidewall) this is about 6-7.5mm below the top edge of the rim. However, most Endricks style rims also have the rim designation stamped on them. The Mustang. GT-101 and Futura are all modern enough that they should have designations stamped on the rims, provided they are are the original wheels.

Submitted by Polara Pat on Wed, 10/23/2013 - 14:29.

Alright, I finally got a chance to go and dig through the garage for wheel sizes. Having the wheel code to work with is really handy and the stampings were all very clear. Without digging too deep I found four F-12 and two EA-3s that I would consider putting new rubber on. Is this something that could be had in country?

I also swapped the correct duomatic wheel onto my GT-101 and went for a ride last weekend and it works like a charm.

Submitted by T-Mar on Wed, 10/23/2013 - 17:24.

EA3 compatible tires are stil very common. You should have no trouble get them through any LBS (Local Bicycle Shop). I was into my Canadian Tire this morning and even  they had about six 26 x 1-3/8" (37-590) in stock. The CTC SKU is 073-7255-8 and the price was quite reasonable, at $12.99. Offhand, I'm not sure about the F12 and will have to check some catalogues. Check back in 24 hours and I should have an answer. 

Submitted by Polara Pat on Wed, 10/23/2013 - 18:45.

Sounds good. We had a shop that one of our members was buying from out of Calgary I think and they had lots of fun custom stuff and the tires like the Thick Brick etc but I think poor customer service may have ended that relationship. Living in a small town I'm pretty much at the whim of buying online so it would be good to find a reliable source.

I look forward to hearing what you have found.

 

Pat

Submitted by T-Mar on Thu, 10/24/2013 - 18:01.

There are a handful of F12 compatible tires that are available in Canada. The trouble is that there are no big Canadian mail order houses like in the USA and it's hard to know which LBS are willing to do mail order. Personally, I'd be ordering them through the nearest Canadian Tire and getting the EA3 compatible tires at the same time. CTC has an arrrangement with a distributor called D'Amour Bicycle and Sports (aka Damco) in Montreal.  Damco carries the CST C-241 tire which, according to my Damco catalogs, is 47-571 (26 x 1-3/4"). Most of the OEM CCM F12 tires were 26 x1-1/2" so these are a bit wider and you should check the availalble clearance just to be sure. The Damco SKU Is 56-064-05 and they were about $15.00, last time I checked. Ther's also an S&H fee on most orders though I'm not sure how much it is to BC.. Seems like the nearest CTC is about 50km away in Castlgar, which isn't too far. Don't you go there periodically?

Submitted by Polara Pat on Mon, 10/28/2013 - 20:00.

I do occasionally go to the Crappy Tire in Castlegar when I'm really craving terrible customer service and poor products. Just kidding, I do actually make it out there pretty regular since it's only a half hour drive from me. Next time I'm out there I will check what they have for those sizes.

Thanks

Submitted by Polara Pat on Fri, 11/01/2013 - 10:28.

So I made it to Canadian Tire and the selection was dismal to say the least. I did get surprisingly good service from a woman who was very willing to help but didn't know how to cross reference the #s you gave me on her computer or special order anything. I'll check it out more when I'm in a bigger hub. I did score a couple of $12.00 26x1 3/8 tires and tubes mind you just to have in the shop.

The search continues.