Bigger wheelset/tires on a brand new Worksman Newsboy?

[klunknoob]

Hi,
I am brand new to this forum and while I'm looking for an old pre-war Schwinn, I decided to purchase a brand new Worksman Newsboy so I would have something to ride. I was wondering if anyone knows what the largest wheelset and tires will fit on this bike without any frame mods.

Thank you,

 

[sandman]

I believe a 2.5" tire will fit . Measure from the chain line to the other side of the frame . This should give you a good idea ?

 

[Wildcat]

If they kept the same geometry as the older INBs, the forks are plenty wide, it's the chain stays and seat stays that aren't that wide. Sandman is right, measure across to see how wide you can go, remembering to subtract 1/4 inch on each side if your rims are true. That's for the rim width and tire width.

 

[Wildcat]

I did some research on frame size and just found out they moved to South Carolina back in 2017 with their bike production:

https://www.myhorrynews.com/news/wo...cle_494c9674-260a-11e7-bdfa-47985c2934d7.html

 

[klunknoob]

On a similar note, are there any 30s-40s frames (Schwinn, Columbia, Colson, Etc.) that you could fit modern 29" rims and wide tires on, without modifying the frame? I know you could control this more easily on the front fork, but it's the chainstay/seatstay that I'm worried about.

Thanks,

 

[Wildcat]

Most of the frames you mentioned were made for 26" tires, although there were 28" tires on some of them. If the width is good, you may still have a problem with diameter.
One way I would suggest is dropout extensions. Homemade of course. That would back the wheel away from the narrower areas of the chain and seat stays and move it back from the BB. I plan on making some if needed to fit for my 3 inch tires on my next frame. This would work on your Worksman probably.
Here's an example from a thread here, by Bird:

 

[klunknoob]

Most of the frames you mentioned were made for 26" tires, although there were 28" tires on some of them. If the width is good, you may still have a problem with diameter.
One way I would suggest is dropout extensions. Homemade of course. That would back the wheel away from the narrower areas of the chain and seat stays and move it back from the BB. I plan on making some if needed to fit for my 3 inch tires on my next frame. This would work on your Worksman probably.
Here's an example from a thread here, by Bird:
View attachment 119580

This *seems* like a very simple solution, although I would probably find someone to assist me designing and cutting the steel. I assume these need to be pretty precisely made to avoid wobble and stuff like that ?

 

[Wildcat]

This *seems* like a very simple solution, although I would probably find someone to assist me designing and cutting the steel. I assume these need to be pretty precisely made to avoid wobble and stuff like that ?

If the material was thick enough and only extended enough to make your tires fit, it should have enough rigidity so that there will be no flexing. You may only need 2 inches extra. Steel the same thickness as the bikes own dropouts should be fine. The wheel can be lowered or raised along with moving back to get a different ride height, depending where you place the mounting holes.
On this one, they went a lot farther back than needed but it still seemed to be solid. I would keep it closer for more strength though.