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natprice

I have a mid 1970's gitane tour de france that I am considering buying an extra set of wheels for. The bike still has the original rims which take sew up tires. I would of course keep this set for any serious road biking but I would like a new set that would allow more flexibility on the terrain I can take the bike on. The idea of a cyclocross bike sounded intriguing but I don't know too much about it. Taking into account the clearance on these road bikes, does anybody have any suggestions for wider more versatile wheels?

sandranian · Site Admin

The rims aren't going to make that big of a difference. What you need are a set of 32 or 36 spoke wheels and a set of tires, 700x32 or 700x35. The 35's may not work because of the clearance issue (the rear stays, usually, are too small). The 32 should work though. In general, the bikes do great on dirt roads (they were actually designed for them), but not too well on anything technical...they are not suited for steep descents and the like. Also, the Mafac brakes aren't the best for real stopping power if they are wet or dirty.

Fire roads and good trails are great.

vanhelmont

Koolstop salmon pads, which used to be Scott Mathauser, will make a huge difference. With stock pads, my '70s centerpulls didn't do much especially in the wet. Harris cyclery sells refill pads for Mafac racers.

natprice

Could I just put cross tubulars on the original rims? If so, any recommendations?

sandranian · Site Admin

Yes. Any would suffice, as long as they fit. Again, you will have to look adjust for the size (width) of the stays.

smilingroadrunner

During the mid 1980's a lot of the local club racers started purchasing Mountain Bikes for off-season training in the fall and early winter seasons. At the time I utilized my Interclub for off-road and bouncing around the pastures here in Kansas.

As Stephan mentioned you are riding a road frame with a much higher center of gravity---so technically it was a long way down if you fell compared to MB frame. Descents were a little hairy. But at that time in my life I had gotten past the Kamikaze mindset of my early days of road racing and was just out there for the enjoyment, fun, exercise, and comradeship.

I used a 27 inch clincer rear rim on a set of spare Normandy Hubs and a 700c clincher rim on the front (due to clearance issue with fork crown and the 27 x 1 3/8 tire wheel set up) The rear tire was a Specialized Tricross 27X1 3/8 and a 700x35c Specialized Tricross on the front. Stephan is correct that 32 may have been easier to fit in the rear wheel assembly (usually I would partially deflate the rear for brake caliper clearance & re-inflate) It would seem that 700c rim for the rear would make more sense as you could go between sew-up rim and cyclocross and not have to adjust center pull brake assembly. (At that time, my local bike shop had an unclaimed Wolber 700c rim ---that solved my clearance issue with the front 27inch clincher rim and the Tricross tires---and I just never pursued getting a 700c clincher rim for the rear.)
Admittedly, I had two different wheel sizes--some day I'll purchase a 700c rim for the rear---I just prefer riding on the road these days Vs bouncing around a pasture.

Cross tubulars certainly will work--I found frequent punctures off road dictated the economics of tire patching the tubes on clinchers. Also the hassle (unless again you have an extra set of sew-up wheels) of removing, cleaning, and regluing new sew-ups. Personally I never found much success in trying to remove a sew-up from a rim after it had been cemented--seems like more frequently the sew up backing tape would someplace pull away from the sew up casing or at least partially pull away.

__________________
C.A.
Salina, Ks.

natprice

So I think I want to get a set of clincher rims to save money on replacement tires and make repairs easier. If I am ordering a set of wheels online what exactly do I need to look for to make sure the wheels will be compatible with the bike? I guess I will be looking for a set of 32 or 36 spoke wheels and a set of 700x32 tires. I don't really have any idea where to start so any help would be great.

sandranian · Site Admin

The axle width will be key, as will the drive chain considerations. For example, what type of derailleurs do you plan to run? If it is a standard 5-6 speed "freewheel", then you will need an older hub, which should fit the smaller dropout width. But anyways, the hub must be compatible with the freewheel, which must be compatible with the derailleur.

smilingroadrunner

Seems like fairly frequently that the older Normandy high flange hubs pop up on Ebay auction sites, on occassion complete wheel assy are available also (but if they are in good shape they often get bid up). As Stephan suggested if your dealing with a rear stay width of 120-125mm on your frame, you are pretty well limited to the 5-6 spd freewheel sizes respectively. Make sure the hub thread size is compatible with the thread size of the freewheel. (seems like most hubs are standard English size threads) but occassionally you might find a metric (??? French) thread size.

700c rims would seem to make the most sense in these days as you could switch out with your road sew-ups and not have to adjust brake caliper alingment. As Chas has noted, it does seem that 27" tires are getting more difficult to find quality, a lot more variety in 700c tire sizes--and as mentioned in earlier posts---will have less clearance issue with rear stays and front fork crown by using 700c rims.

____________________
C.A.
Salina, Ks.

verktyg

natprice

Any thoughts on building my own wheels? I think it would be interesting to learn and I wouldn't mind spending the time on it if it was fairly easy and if its possible for a complete beginner to build a decent set of wheels. Do these hubs

(http://cgi.ebay.com/Maillard-Normandy-Sport-36h-BSC-HF-hubs-set-NIB_W0QQitemZ370034484137QQihZ024QQcategoryZ58099QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

look like they would work? How would I tell if the British thread on the hubs is compatible with my bike? What width should I look for when choosing a rim?

Gtane

Wheel building is not difficult, natprice, it just takes time and patience. I've built many on steel and alu rims and it's very rewarding once completed.

I would test yourself by building a front and a rear before you try to build your final wheels. You'll also need to decide on the type of spoking - crossed or radial - and type of spokes. I started out by building three crossed, both sides, front and back using swiss DT double butted spokes and have rarely built differently - my wheels have been solely for road use so you may wish to try a different configiration. I found this set-up to give a good basis to develop from there and most guides give the three crossed pattern as a starting point. Be aware that spoke lengths differ very slightly but these differences are critical and will have a huge impact on the outcome of your wheels if you choose, and build with, the incorrect spoke length for your chosen rims and hubs.

Read as much as you can before you begin and also study as many wheels as you can. It's also worth having a finished wheel to copy, to hand, as a guide when building.

Once learned this is a very useful skill to know.

You'll need a truing jig and a dishing guage for the rear wheel, as well as a spoke key. Park tools cater for everything and have some good advice on use too.

Here are some ideas;

Dishing Guage http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=16&item=WAG-3

Truing Jig
http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=16&item=TS-2

Spoke Key - check the nipple size with the key size before you buy, but this one does it for me with DT spokes;

http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=16&item=SW-42

Here are a few sites offering very worthwhile reading to get started that I've used;

Roger Musson - http://www.wheelpro.co.uk his wheel building book is excellent

Sheldon Brown - http://www.sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html

The Cycle Shed - http://www.thecycleshed.co.uk/wheelbuilding.html

Wheel building is very enjoyable and it's quite an art to get a really tight true wheel that will withstand many bumps and years of riding (excepting curb bumping!)

Happy building.

sandranian · Site Admin

Common now! Wheel building and truing is a pain in the arse! And I am only saying that because it is the only part of bicycle maintenance/mechanics that I don't know how to do! Damn all of you who do...because I lack the patience!

Gtane

Well, now's your chance Stephan. Have a go to become the complete mechanic. Smile

Natprice, the hubs are fine. The large flange Normandies are a good straightforward standard hub. Very durable and easy to maintain. They will last years. Good looking too.

One can build on to anything, just make sure your hubs have the same number of holes as the rim.

Here's some useful information regards sizes:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire_sizing.html#width

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html

Here's a very useful threading guide that will help you. The thread type should be noted on the component so you'll be able to match.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gloss_ta-o.html#threading

natprice

I think I got a good deal on a cheap campy hub for the rear wheel:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=230236937570&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=013

Its a 36 hole hub. I don't think it's as cool as the high flange ones but I guess it will work just as well.

There is a 32 hole front hub listed that I was thinking about bidding on. Does anybody have any suggestions about matching a 36 hole hub in the rear with a 32 hole in the front? Seems like a reasonable idea to me but I would like some input from somebody more knowledgeable than myself...