fullergarrett

I've been thinking about remounting tires on my 1987 Free Spirit Pinnacle. I've been running "poor-mans" rim strip (two layers of electrical tape.) However, it doesn't feel like enough as some of the spokes still feel somewhat sharp.

I've looked for 27x1 1/4" rim strips for this bike and could only find the cheap "rubber band" style rim strip, like what this bike had from the factory. Is it possible to get Velox or any other better rim strips for these rims? I've looked on Amazon and BikeTiresDirect and nothing in my size. The 700c solutions are way too narrow.

Any help would be appreciated.

Iride01 

If the electrical tape lasted you a long time, why change? I've been of the opinion that rim tape only needs to be a little wider than what it takes to cover the spoke nipples or holes.

The rubber band that Schwinn provided on my '77 Varsity lasted me 35 years with no issues. However I see no reason why 700c tape (622 BSD) wouldn't work on a 630 BSD rim.

Lemond1985

If your tire pressure is low (below 80 lbs or so) tape ought to work. I think two layers of reinforced strapping tape would be plenty, IF you are not able to find a 27" rim strip in the right width.

Now if you have 120lb road bike tires, then you'd obviously want something stronger than just two layers of tape.

fietsbob

single wall rim a rubber rim strip covers the spoke heads, your tape job did similar..

on a double wall rim the spoke head is recessed ,
then the rim strip has to span that hole over the spoke nipple head, and must resist the pressure

of the inflated tube in the tire.. ...

davidad

Hard to beat Velox tape.

fullergarrett

Thanks everyone for their responses. The original rim strip was removed a long time ago. The electrical tape trick has worked well up until last November, when a new tube was punctured. I removed the electrical tape (it was loosing it's adhesiveness anyways) and reapplied it.

My worry is one or two of the spokes still feel pretty rough, even with the two layers of electrical tape. I haven't tried installing a tire and inflating it out of fear the tube may pop.

These rims are shot (a lot of rust), and the bike won't be used for riding (at least not at this time.) I plan on inflating the tires to ~40 PSI for storage of the bike... IMHO better than leaving the tires flat or removing the tires.

Iride01 

Get your bike off the ground if you are going to store it. Tubes will lose air over time, butyl rubber is permeable to air and latex even more so. If the tires are bad, then maybe not an issue, but good tires sitting flat for extended time will probably be susceptible to easier damaging if you have to move that stored bike around much.

HTupolev

I'd prefer those rubber bands over Velox. I haven't been impressed by cotton cloth rim tapes; they wear through faster than other strips under pressure, they're prone to slipping on the rim bed, they can develop sharp edges, and they just plain look ugly after a year or so of use.

shelbyfv

If preserving the tires is your concern, just remove them and hang them on a hook. Inflating them won't make them last longer. Otherwise, any rim strip that covers the holes will work for this situation.