26" or 28"???

[rustyspoke66]

Ok, I am working on a Elgin Falcon/Blackhawk project and am considering going with 28 x 1.5" wheels as offered in the 34 catalog. As I was messing around with straightening the fork and looking at some pictures to determine the fork rake and what not I noticed in allot of pictures that there is fair amount of clearance between the tire and fender. I am assuming that this is to accommodate either the 26" or 28" wheels. So I guess my point is that I have never seen a 28" wheel Falcon or Blackhawk and am thinking about going with the 28's. Any opinions on this?

 

[Andrew Gorman]

I'd go for the 28"- marginally smoother ride, 700C rims and tires are widely available. It's your bike.

 

[rustyspoke66]

That's the way I am leaning and I totally agree with the smoother ride thing. The bike in the eyes of a non collector is a real pile and most people might not have tried to fix it. I've gone the route of the Velocity P-35's on a Hawthorne and I think I will try that on the Elgin. I have it mocked up with some old 28's and will post some pics.

 

[rustyspoke66]

Ok this is it, the fenders don't have braces but everything lines up quit well.

 

[Hiawathatc]

What size drop stand should this have? I have a 34 Falcon that is missing it's drop stand and it has a lot of clearance between the fender and the tires (26 inch wheels). Looks like 28 inch would fit. Should I get a 28" drop stand?

 

[rustyspoke66]

I'm thinking a 28" wheel drop stand will work. The stand I got with this bike looks to be repop but I'll try a few and see what fits best. Does anyone know what is the wheel base on these bikes should be?

 

[yeshoney]

This is interesting. If my math is correct you have shortened the wheelbase by two inches. If I remember my motorcycle days when I put a shorter swingarm on it and shortened the wheelbase it made flicking it in a corner very easy. On a bike will it be twitchy due to the low speed? I guess do you care? But I try to think about the ridability of a bike when building it and of course at the nd of the day if you don't like it or the way it rides you could always go back to 26's. I like the look!

Joe

Ok this is it, the fenders don't have braces but everything lines up quit well.

 

[RMS37]

The wheelbase is not being changed; it can be measured as the distance from the front axle to the rear axle or as the distance from the center of the front tire contact patch to the contact patch of the rear wheel. The contact patches are directly below the axle so even extreme wheel size changes will not affect that. What will change slightly is the geometry defining the front wheel caster or trail which will be increased slightly with the use of a larger diameter wheel. Increased trail should actually slow down the feel of the steering but the small difference will probably be less perceptible than the feel attributable to the tire change.

 

[rustyspoke66]

Thanks Phil, I should have mentioned the reason for needing a wheelbase measurement. I was hoping to compare it to a bike that has not been damaged just to see how close I am to factory. This bike had been broken at the top tube to head tube junction and the fork was bent back at least a inch. The only way I can know for sure if I am close is by eyeballing it or by getting a measurement from someone that has a undamaged Falcon or Blackhawk. This bike has had to undergo some major repairs and is by no means an original bike. So at this point after looking through all the catalog pages I can find am looking at putting the 28" wheels on it. After all the original Falcon fenders are kind of hard to find and I happen to have a set of steel 28" raingutters that have not been drilled for finder braces.

 

[cstorar]

I never even thought of putting 28"Look at all the room im sure they will fit!I know its not the same bike but it gave me the idea....