Another day with wheels (and so on).
I received two Ambrosio Nemesis Rims from a customer.
I'll use these to build the front and rear wheels for a fixed-gear bike.
When I position the rim so the Ambrosio marking reads correctly
and rotate it around,
on the opposite side the marking orientation is reversed.
This is the same specification as old Campagnolo rims.
The Ambrosio marking is laser-etched,
while the marking around the valve hole on the opposite side is a sticker.
Since the laser-etched marking is the more permanent element,
I'll use that as the reference for the wheel's right side.
When the Ambrosio marking is positioned on the bottom side reading correctly,
looking up at the rim from below,
that marking also reads correctly.
This rim is a low-profile rim, and since there's no room on the rim sidewall for stickers,
the markings are on the inner edge surface of the rim.
For example, with Campagnolo wheels
where both the top Zonda and bottom Campagnolo markings read correctly,
this "unidirectional letter orientation" spec is
an evolution of this low-profile rim's
"opposite side markings in reverse orientation" spec.
As rims got taller and the inner edge surface became narrower,
this spec was transferred to the rim sidewall.
Like the Mavic Paris Roubaix SSC, this rim is built thick and stiff for rough terrain,
prioritizing durability, so it's not light.
Even when comparing the weight to cheap rims of similar specs,
the feel while building the wheel is completely different,
and the spoke tension limits are higher.
Ambrosio also made the Formula Chrono 20, a lightweight rim,
so they're not incapable of making light rims.
The hub is a Gran Compe GC-SF.
As the name suggests, it's Gran Compe's small-flange hub.
The included nuts are smooth aluminum ones without knurling.
That should be fine for street riding on a fixed-gear bike,
but for competition use,
knurled steel nuts would be better.
↑Like this kind
This is from a different customer order,
and the reason I sourced it is
because with Mavic Ellipse rear wheel smooth nuts,
when used on fixed-gear frames with tight dropouts,
the rear wheel slips no matter how much you tighten them.
Here, you might think: the hub axle diameter is 9mm front and 10mm rear,
so wouldn't 9mm nuts not fit?
Actually, the Ellipse hub axle is 9mm diameter on both front and rear.
At least that's what I've observed on the models I've seen.
To check this, I searched with "mavic ellipse" and the top suggestion that came up was "mavic ellipse no mu lab."
Built the front wheel.
GC-SF hub, 32H, all-race Italian-lacing pattern.
The flange in the center of the image is the right side of the Italian lacing,
and the Ambrosio marking orientation is as I described earlier.
The Sapim Race spokes
are 14-gauge base 2.0-1.8-2.0mm,
and I chose Sapim Race instead of DT Competition spokes
because the spoke length needed for this wheel
isn't in the standard inventory of the DT distributors.
I received two Ambrosio Nemesis Rims from a customer.
I'll use these to build the front and rear wheels for a fixed-gear bike.
When I position the rim so the Ambrosio marking reads correctly
and rotate it around,
on the opposite side the marking orientation is reversed.
This is the same specification as old Campagnolo rims.
The Ambrosio marking is laser-etched,
while the marking around the valve hole on the opposite side is a sticker.
Since the laser-etched marking is the more permanent element,
I'll use that as the reference for the wheel's right side.
When the Ambrosio marking is positioned on the bottom side reading correctly,
looking up at the rim from below,
that marking also reads correctly.
This rim is a low-profile rim, and since there's no room on the rim sidewall for stickers,
the markings are on the inner edge surface of the rim.
For example, with Campagnolo wheels
where both the top Zonda and bottom Campagnolo markings read correctly,
this "unidirectional letter orientation" spec is
an evolution of this low-profile rim's
"opposite side markings in reverse orientation" spec.
As rims got taller and the inner edge surface became narrower,
this spec was transferred to the rim sidewall.
Like the Mavic Paris Roubaix SSC, this rim is built thick and stiff for rough terrain,
prioritizing durability, so it's not light.
Even when comparing the weight to cheap rims of similar specs,
the feel while building the wheel is completely different,
and the spoke tension limits are higher.
Ambrosio also made the Formula Chrono 20, a lightweight rim,
so they're not incapable of making light rims.
The hub is a Gran Compe GC-SF.
As the name suggests, it's Gran Compe's small-flange hub.
The included nuts are smooth aluminum ones without knurling.
That should be fine for street riding on a fixed-gear bike,
but for competition use,
knurled steel nuts would be better.
↑Like this kind
This is from a different customer order,
and the reason I sourced it is
because with Mavic Ellipse rear wheel smooth nuts,
when used on fixed-gear frames with tight dropouts,
the rear wheel slips no matter how much you tighten them.
Here, you might think: the hub axle diameter is 9mm front and 10mm rear,
so wouldn't 9mm nuts not fit?
Actually, the Ellipse hub axle is 9mm diameter on both front and rear.
At least that's what I've observed on the models I've seen.
Built the front wheel.
GC-SF hub, 32H, all-race Italian-lacing pattern.
The flange in the center of the image is the right side of the Italian lacing,
and the Ambrosio marking orientation is as I described earlier.
The Sapim Race spokes
are 14-gauge base 2.0-1.8-2.0mm,
and I chose Sapim Race instead of DT Competition spokes
because the spoke length needed for this wheel
isn't in the standard inventory of the DT distributors.