AussieJester said:
Not much to add really other than to say funny post Kingfish
and perhaps pm
Johnrobholmes for 20in rims 16in tires he seems to find them
ok in the USofA, he's in some feared midwest moped gang they likely have the distributorship of
these hard sort after rim/tire combos
KiM
Funny: hehe – thanks
AJ! It gets a little slow around here and sometimes I just get unbridled…
On Johnrobholmes: That would be awesome because the selection sucks here. There are a good many choices in the EU but we can't get diddily unless you like Pirelli or Kenda. Michelin and Continental have some great treads - but it's like I said - a conspiracy to keeps these choices outta here. I even called the US Distributors and it was the same sad story; not available.
The other problem is sourcing a tire that’s less than 3-inches wide because most bike frames can’t take it; 2.75-inch is about the maximum (some exceptions apply).
The other thing that bothered me is that bicycle tires cannot handle high-speed; I have an
out-of-round wobble above 30 mph that grows more profound at higher speed; balancing the rim wouldn’t help: Had a regional Tire Center look at it and they flat out said it’s the tire that’s out of round and not the rim. Only way to get past that is the DOT rating and we’re back to 20-inches with limited choices. At least the Maxxis is a well-constructed tire, though the rubber is softer than a Specialized Armadillo; the latter ain’t worth a damn in the cold rain here because it turns hard and slips. I am literally building a new bike bag to move the weight forward from the rear just for that reason.
Given the limited choices I finally decided the 20-inch would have been too small and it would look ridiculous on my frame. If I had thought this through, if I knew what I know now back then – I would have built a light motorcycle and had vastly better selection. There will be a
Next Time.
BTW – if you look closely, the 26-inch Maxxis Hookworm is
3-full inches taller than the 24-inch; I have both. That’s how this hunt all started: Receiving that tall 26-inch tire and discovering the medium frame was extra-tall. It would take me a step-stool to climb that electric beast. Sheesh!
I just wanna get down the road and have some fun.
Oh, and for the record… I broke down
twice coming and going through
Death Valley. First time was the chain, the second time the left piston. It sucked; no parts available even in Las Vegas. First time I got towed back to Beatty and slept in the backseat of an old Chevy; a machinist fabricated me a chain by combining two short lengths scavenged from heaps lying about. The second time I ran on the remaining cylinder into the next “town†with oil flowing out the left exhaust. Did you know there’s an Opera House (or was) at
Death Valley Junction? I first read about it in
National Geographic. Well – I got to see it up close and personal cuz that’s where the bike gave up the ghost. Had to wire for money to get home. Left the bike there in the custody of one
“Bearded Georgeâ€Â. I ended up sending him the pink slip; with too few parts available it was too much of a hassle to retrieve. Then I joined the Navy. 18 months later I get this Christmas card from
Bearded George; it said:
“Thanks a lot for the bike! I finally got it working. Merry Christmas.†Glad someone got some use outta of it. I bet he had access to a machine shop.
The Fat Lady sang.
KF
2.8" from a 26" wheel with hookworms
