The Westwood rim style of cycle rim used on bicycles was one of the original steel rim designs, developed during or before 1891 by Frederick Westwood of Birmingham.[1] Bowden brakes and cables designed for use with this rim were introduced in 1896.[2] Westwood rims have also been found ideal for use with drum brakes. They were last used on the roadster cycles found in Britain up to the 1980s and still common in South and East Asia and Africa and becoming common once again in Europe. Westwood rims have rounded sides, so they are not suitable for use with caliper brakes.[3] Westwood rims features a wide single-wall cross section, the inside circumference of the rim has a contoured section shape to aid with strength. Today Westwood profile rims found in the West are mostly used in drum brake system roadsters and, to a lesser degree, in bicycles with coaster brake systems.
