Liesl: Thanks! I enjoy tinkering and building almost (but not quite) as much as I like riding the finished products.
The rims are from Ghisallo, an Italian family operation that used to sell their rims in the US through Eric Hjertberg at Wheel Fanatyk, but now sell direct online at http://www.ghisallowoodenrims.com/ . I understand from the Wheelbuilder website that they’re made by one guy, Antonio Cermenati, in Magreglio, Italy. They’re constructed of aged Slovenian beechwood, assembled in thin laminations that are joined by 2-part epoxy in a proprietary process that the Cermenatis have been perfecting for over 60 years. They’re kind of expensive (though not so much when you consider all the work that must go into their construction), but I was lucky enough to get several sets of rims from Ric at half price when Wheel Fanatyk discontinued the Ghisallo line. They build up identically to an alloy rim, except they require proprietary long nipples to clear the thicker rim wall, and they can’t be built with as high spoke tension as alloy rims. But I’ve now built four wheelsets with them (two for charity builds, one for my daughter-in-law, and one for me on the A.N.T. Truss Bike), and they’re fun to build and have a very nice feel when riding. One other point worth making -- as I’ve mentioned elsewhere, the speed abatement process can be quite entertaining if you use rim caliper brakes (as on this Bomba). If you stay on the brakes hard on a long downhill, you begin to smell a little wood smoke – not an unpleasant smell, but a little worrying in terms of what’s going on down on the rims. Also, if you keep the brakes applied once you stop, the cork pads (you can’t use conventional rubber pads – they muck up the rims) can lightly bond up with the finish on the rims. Easy to disengage once you know what’s going on, but better not to keep the brakes engaged. In order to avoid these braking issues, I’ve used Sturmey Archer drum brake hubs when I have used these rims for charity auction builds – here’s an example, front and rear: https://www.flickr.com/photos/37542512@N04/7346497146/in/set-72157627582881347 and https://www.flickr.com/photos/37542512@N04/7161286101/in/set-72157627582881347/ They stop extremely well, and are quite attractive, and of course they leave the beautiful rims pristine, with no marking from caliper pads. I set up the Bomba as a single speed mostly as a lark – it’s a second Bombadil, which I bought as a frame/fork on the ‘Bay with no clear idea of what I was going to do with it. I had a spare set of these wooden rim wheels that Ric Hjertberg had built up for me, with a Campy hub modified by Peter Weigle on the front and a White Industries DOS Eno on the rear – that wheelset is destined someday for a future build of a Rivendell Wilbury, but that was pretty far down the build queue, so I stole them for this frame just to see how a single speed Bomba would ride. Originally, this was supposed to be a temporary build until I figured out what I wanted to do with the frame – I had been thinking I might take it up to Bilenky in Philly and have it converted to S&S couplers, and make it a travel bike. But I like it so much as is that I may have to rethink that plan. Tom From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Liesl Sent: Monday, May 19, 2014 6:14 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [RBW] Re: Bike to Work Day Tom, you continue to astound me with your aesthetics and bike set-ups. Love to hear more about those rims and why you set up the Bmbadil as a single! xo RCW (where it's raining cats and dogs today) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ **************************************************** To ensure compliance with Treasury Department regulations, we advise you that, unless otherwise expressly indicated, any federal tax advice contained in this message was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or applicable state or local tax law provisions or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matters addressed herein. **************************************************** **************************************************** This email (and any attachments thereto) is intended only for use by the addressee(s) named herein and may contain legally privileged and/or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient of this email, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this email (and any attachments thereto) is strictly prohibited. If you receive this email in error please immediately notify me at (212) 735-3000 and permanently delete the original email (and any copy of any email) and any printout thereof. Further information about the firm, a list of the Partners and their professional qualifications will be provided upon request. **************************************************** ============================================================================== -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
