GTs58
I'm the Wiz, and nobody beats me!
What year does 6+8 make my forks?
It looks like the original forks were longer?
Assuming that the larger tire on the red bike is 26x2.125, there appears to be almost an inch of added space above the tire on the older forks.
Maybe the blue forks I've got aren't for a middleweight?
I dug around and found another pair but they're nearly identical to those on the bike now, but those are marked 4+5.
View attachment 1380984
Although the mtb tire on mine in this pic is a 2.35", there's a noticeable difference in the fork length.
So as it stands, this bike has the wrong forks, wrong chain guard, and will likely have the wrong wheels if I build it as it sits because with S7 wheels, there may not be enough room to fit the fenders. (The front fender is going to be close).
The more I did into this lot of bikes, the more I think the guy who had all these was just building bikes from spare parts.
I think I need to decide whether to just build up a set of S2 wheels for this and hang a set of chrome fenders, and make the CG I have work and call it a beater or hang it up in the corner and wait for the right parts to show up.
The 6 + 8 on the fork indicates it was forged in June of 1968. I've never measured the length of any fork but I doubt the middleweight forks were different in length over the years. A middleweight would have S-7 rims and if you use an S-2 installing fenders won't work very well unless you use a tire smaller than the 2.125's. Not sure if you got your S's mixed up on the rims. Just another FYI if you are piecing together the bikes. There was a frame geometry change on the cantilever frames between the 58 and 59 models and the rear fenders are not interchangeable unless you modify the top attaching point. If I remember correctly there was a 3/4" difference. So for your 58 frame any middleweight rear fender off a 1958 or earlier model will work.