Wheels for my retro-chopper ebike.

[The Madmadscientist]

Hello all,

I've been noodling on what wheel/tire set-up would work best in my set-up.
My set-up , old fat guy ~250lbs, heavy steel chopper frame.

So, from the research I've done I think I need.
26×2.5 wheel with a 3" white wall 'balloon ' tire.
A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

I've been looking for this combo online and am having a difficult time finding anything...

It would be easier to go full fatbike but I don't want the extra weight.

How does this sound to everyone?

Thanks, Daniel

 

[LewTwo]

So, from the research I've done I think I need.
26×2.5 wheel with a 3" white wall 'balloon ' tire.
A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

To get a 2.5 inch wide rim and a 3 wide tire you are likely looking for a Fat Tire rim.
Try looking for ISO 599 x 65mm width rims.

 

[amberwolf]

A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

14g, or 14-15 double butted would make a stronger wheel. Single-butted might be necessary if you're building hubmotor wheels rather than regular hub wheels, depending on spoke length.

It may be counterintuitive, but thicker spokes don't make a stronger wheel (they require much higher tension which stresses the rim more and tends to deform or even crack the rim around the holes, whcih then loosens the spokes, which then requires further tensioning and breaks the rim worse, and so on).

 

[Chalo]

Hello all,

So, from the research I've done I think I need.
26×2.5 wheel with a 3" white wall 'balloon ' tire.
A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

I found your problem.

Whitewall bike tires are 95%+ made in 1.75" to 2.125" width. You're trying for a jim-dandy, cat's-pajamas rinky-tinky old time look, but in a size that none of those old bikes ever used. Try something else.

Don't use thick spokes, they diminish the weight capacity and load capacity of your wheel. 14ga or 14-15ga double butted spokes carry more weight more reliably with less frequent service. I weigh over 350 pounds, and my decades-old, highest mileage wheels have 15-16ga butted spokes.

Here are some 65mm wide rims. That's about 2-1/2". 2.125" tires would look super awesome on them. They'll probably measure 2.7" to 2.8" inflated:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144468034024

 

[The Madmadscientist]

Hello all,

So, from the research I've done I think I need.
26×2.5 wheel with a 3" white wall 'balloon ' tire.
A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

Here are some 65mm wide rims. That's about 2-1/2". 2.125" tires would look super awesome on them. They'll probably measure 2.7" to 2.8" inflated:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144468034024

Thanks for the link but now I'm confused.
That page says that the 65mm is the outside dimension with a 56mm inside width. I thought to run a 3" tire required a 65mm inner width?

Thanks,
Daniel

 

[Chalo]

Hello all,

So, from the research I've done I think I need.
26×2.5 wheel with a 3" white wall 'balloon ' tire.
A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

Here are some 65mm wide rims. That's about 2-1/2". 2.125" tires would look super awesome on them. They'll probably measure 2.7" to 2.8" inflated:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144468034024

Thanks for the link but now I'm confused.
That page says that the 65mm is the outside dimension with a 56mm inside width. I thought to run a 3" tire required a 65mm inner width?

No. Bicycle rims are proven to work with tires between roughly 1 and 4 times the rims' inside width. There are advantages and tradeoffs at the extremes of this range. There's no one best width for all purposes.

It seems like most 26 x 4" fatbikes now use 65mm (outside) rims as original equipment. Just a short while ago, they would have used 80mm to 100mm rims.

 

[The Madmadscientist]

Hello all,

So, from the research I've done I think I need.
26×2.5 wheel with a 3" white wall 'balloon ' tire.
A double wall AL rim with 12 gauge stainless steel spokes with brass nipples.

Here are some 65mm wide rims. That's about 2-1/2". 2.125" tires would look super awesome on them. They'll probably measure 2.7" to 2.8" inflated:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144468034024

Thanks for the link but now I'm confused.
That page says that the 65mm is the outside dimension with a 56mm inside width. I thought to run a 3" tire required a 65mm inner width?

No. Bicycle rims are proven to work with tires between roughly 1 and 4 times the rims' inside width. There are advantages and tradeoffs at the extremes of this range. There's no one best width for all purposes.

It seems like most 26 x 4" fatbikes now use 65mm (outside) rims as original equipment. Just a short while ago, they would have used 80mm to 100mm rims.

Been looking and all the fat bike rims seem to still have an 80-100mm inner rim width...

 

[Chalo]

It seems like most 26 x 4" fatbikes now use 65mm (outside) rims as original equipment. Just a short while ago, they would have used 80mm to 100mm rims.

Been looking and all the fat bike rims seem to still have an 80-100mm inner rim width...

All the ones mainline bike distributors have now are between 65mm and 100 mm outside width. I have never seen a fat rim that measured 100mm inside. They jump up from 100mm outside width to 135mm outside width.

5" tire bikes do often have 100mm (outside) rims.

Most fat bikes are BSOs, and reflect market trends of a handful of years ago rather than what's happening now.

 

[The Madmadscientist]

It seems like most 26 x 4" fatbikes now use 65mm (outside) rims as original equipment. Just a short while ago, they would have used 80mm to 100mm rims.

Been looking and all the fat bike rims seem to still have an 80-100mm inner rim width...

All the ones mainline bike distributors have now are between 65mm and 100 mm outside width. I have never seen a fat rim that measured 100mm inside. They jump up from 100mm outside width to 135mm outside width.

5" tire bikes do often have 100mm (outside) rims.

Most fat bikes are BSOs, and reflect market trends of a handful of years ago rather than what's happening now.

I guess my google-fu is bad...