EW 350 beaded edge tyres

[Wilfr]

Hi,
sorry for harping on the subject, but maybe there is still someone out there who can help me:

As I wrote in the thread "1927 (?) EW 350" I have rebuilt the original wheels on my bike and I have fitted new Chen Shin beaded edge tyres in size 26"x3.50". These tyres fit the original 19.5" rim very well, and they don't look too bad, see picture.
However, board member Juris ("latdougnut") told me these tyres are very low quality and only intended for use on rickshaws up to a speed of 30 mph. As, a decade or more ago, these tyres were sold as the solution for EW Douglases (I think by Lambrook tyres and/or by the VMCC tyre scheme) there must probably be someone out there who has tried them.

Is there no-one in this discussion group who has some experience with these tyres?

I understand fitting the available 26"x3" Dunlop/Ensign/Coker tyres to the original 19.5" rims is possible, but not safe. Thus,  if I do not want to trust the Chen Shin tyres, the only safe option seems to rebuild the wheels once again with 20" rims. If there is no way around this, can you suggest a source for these?

thanks and kind regards
Wilfried
 

[bruceb]

Hi. I will give you my experience on rickshaw tyres as I know how frustrating it is when you ask questions here and a lot of people read them but no one replies.
I had rickshaw tyres on a 1926 Harley(single cylinder) many years ago. I don't know the brand. I had them on for about 15 years and had no problems. I think the tube is more likely to give trouble than the tyre. Use good quality tubes.

[phil_h]

My two-pennorth is :
1) Rickshaw tyres and wheels are rated for carrying more than 1 person !

30mph x 3 people = more stress and loading than 40mph and 1 person (even if there are 3 wheels on a rickshaw)

2) Asian roads are _not_ of good average quality, so the average rickshaw is likely to suffer more potholes etc whn carrying is load than if it used on tarmac roads.

[graeme]

Most Australian riders of older machines with beaded edge wheels have been running around on rickshaw tyres for at least the last 30 years. The only problem I know of is with some Chinese made tyres that seem to wear out very quickly in hot weather - I had a rear tyre on the 3 1/2hp outfit last less than 50 miles! I knew it had worn out when the tube burst, and I stopped to see that the tyre had worn completely through in a couple of spots - not just down to the canvas but actual holes in the tyre! Needless to say the club here didn't order any of these ones to sell to members. In fact I have used the outfit as a testbed for a few different tyres, as outfits certainly give tyres a hard time. The tyres we get here now are made in Thailand, and seem to be perfectly adequate for the task. They won't last as long as Dunlop tyres - but they are about 1/8th of the price, so you can afford to put a few more on over the years!
And in answer to the question of whether to fit a 26x3 tyre to the EW rims, I know of a few who have done this with no problems. But if you are really worried, get new rims laced on.
Cheers, Graeme

[ste]

Sorry to butt in, but does anyone know if these tyres are availble in New Zealand?
Stephen

[Wilfr]

Hi Bruce, Phil and Graeme,
thank you very much for your feedback. There is surely a lot of truth in all your reasoning, so I will not go ahead and tear my nicely re-spoked wheels apart before they have ever been on tarmac!
As for the roads, they are certainly better here in Bavaria than in the average rickshaw driving grounds, and as  for the temperatures, I reckon it never gets as hot here as in some parts of Australia!

So I'll go ahead and have a try, and hopefully the front tyre won't burst at the expected terminal speed od 80 mph...

best regards
Wilfried

PS: if these 3.50"x26" tyres should prove to wear out quickly - does anybody know a source for them? My original supplier doesn't do them any more.

[phil_h]

Well (tongue firmly in cheek) if you get into trouble, I will happily measure up some of my mountain bike tyres to see if they are any good, if I can find any narrow enough ;)

[Daren W Australia]

Hi Just fitted Ensign beaded edge tyres 26x3 to my EW600 25x3 rims got them from Brian Forth check this previous post https://www.douglasmotorcycles.net/index.php?topic=2981.0 went on well (but I have never fitted beaded edge tyres before) and look good on a flat tank bike Regards Daren

[graeme]

For someone in Europe it would be cheaper to get the Ensign tyres direct from Vintage Tyres in the UK.

[philpjuk]

Hi I use chen shing tyres on my 2.3/4,they have covered a high mileage,with very little wear over 30 years,They are now showing a bit of crazing on the side walls and I think will need replacement if the MOT man spots them(maybe a bit of black boot polish might help!)phil.

[Wilfr]

Hi Phil,

well, that sounds like some good news, thanks a lot!!
May I ask where you are based, and do you know a source for these in your country?
I mean, I know they fit the rims quite well, and if you say they are good in use as well, it would be nice to have a spare set, just in case...

kind regards
Wilfried

[graeme]

Hello Wilf,
Sorry to put a dampener on your excitement, but 2 3/4 Douglases have 26x2 1/2 tyres, not 26x3. 26x2 1/2 tyres are readily available in Asia, whereas the 26x3 are not. Your best bet is to buy Ensign 26x3 tyres, stocked by Vintage Tyres in the UK.
Cheers, Graeme

[Wilfr]

Ok Graeme,

what a pity, but thank you anyway - there is always a snag, as they say....

best regards
Wilfried

[davebarkshire]

I did put 26x3 on my EW. The 25 original tyres were too old to use and 25" tyres were not available so the rims were changed.

3" tyres would have been regarded as 'Balloon Tyres' back in the day which were popular with some riders for the extra comfort that they gave and sidecar pilots usually preferred them because cornering was different in their world. The handling of my EW was not great and I think that this was partly due to the fat tyres which did look great by the way.

Back in the day beaded edge tyres did come off the rim sometimes when being pushed too hard and it can still happen today. It is very important to keep them very well inflated and modern beaded edge tyres (and wired ones) seem to need more puff than they did back in the day. I pump my beaded tyres up to a minimum of 40psi and have never had any trouble with them regardless of make or age (except the original one from the 20s which exploded overnight in the garage when I first pumped it up).

You may find this blog interesting too. Don't get too paranoid though!
http://thevintagent.blogspot.com/2009/01/beaded-edge-tires-and-safety.html

PS. Here is a photo for you. Is it supposed to be a Douglas or Triumph?
http://www.barkshire.co.uk/bikes/misc/Douglas1916.jpg

[Wilfr]

Hi Dave,

thank you for the links - actually I have come across Paul's description of the fatal accident a few weeks ago and I must admit it MADE me paranoid! I mean, the thought of the tyre getting tied up between the forks and the rim and spokes until you end up with a completely locked, naked front wheel  isn't a very comfortable one...
In this light the picture of the downhill race looks even more scary - though even without a tyre coming off a downhill race on a gravel road is scary enough! Yes some features of the bike (especially the front end) do not look too much like Douglas, but the engine definitely does.

kind regards
Wilfried