I’m going to leave the rear spacing as-is for now. My first geared bike was a fifteen speed friction shifter (1985 CyclePro Skyline), and I don’t recall having any trouble enjoying that bike. (Isn’t it crazy that component manufacturers could go a couple of decades without adding a cog to the rear cluster!!) The wheelset I bought for this bike is 700c laced to a set of correct Campy hubs, so I should already have room for fenders. It’ll be interesting to see how it rides!