Fiamme Hard Silver

Hi guys,

I just bought (very cheaply) a NOS pair of Fiamme "Hard Silver" single
(tubular) rims. I haven't seen these ones before. They've got eyelets, are
32 hole, and weigh about 340g each (on my kitchen scales, which are +/-
about 10g). They are silver, and seem to be hard anodised. They aren't
polished, but rather have a brushed finish.

The join is pinned, but they aren't machined or anything. The sidewalls are
angled, rather than parallel, so I imagine it would take some time for brake
pads that have been worn in on parallel sidewalls to wear to them. The
widest part of the rim is 21mm wide, while at the base of the sidewall
they're about 19mm wide. The sidewall is about 10mm high.

So are these good rims? I was thinking of lacing a pair of track wheels
with them. Is it worthwhile trying to polish them? I went to work last
night (while watching The Bill) with a cloth and some Silvo for an hour, and
have removed all the shop-crud, but they seem to be a fairly low-shine
surface.

Should check the weight, had a pair in the early 80s. They seemed to be
less durable than red label, perhaps they were more similar to the yellow
label instance I had in the early 70s.

I agree, use them on the track.

"dianne_1234" wrote in message
om...
"Suzy Jackson" wrote in message
...
Hi guys,

I just bought (very cheaply) a NOS pair of Fiamme "Hard Silver" single
(tubular) rims. I haven't seen these ones before. They've got eyelets,
are
32 hole, and weigh about 340g each (on my kitchen scales, which are +/-
about 10g). They are silver, and seem to be hard anodised. They aren't
polished, but rather have a brushed finish.

The join is pinned, but they aren't machined or anything. The sidewalls
are
angled, rather than parallel, so I imagine it would take some time for
brake
pads that have been worn in on parallel sidewalls to wear to them. The
widest part of the rim is 21mm wide, while at the base of the sidewall
they're about 19mm wide. The sidewall is about 10mm high.

So are these good rims? I was thinking of lacing a pair of track wheels
with them. Is it worthwhile trying to polish them? I went to work last
night (while watching The Bill) with a cloth and some Silvo for an hour,
and
have removed all the shop-crud, but they seem to be a fairly low-shine
surface.

I remember these. In the 70s, I rode a pair on my Holdsworth road
bike.

- They are definitely hard anodized. Won't polish up without a ton of
work.
- The angled brake track *is* for braking, but the smooth, parallel
sidewalls of modern rims have spoiled me, and perhaps you, too.
- We used to imagine the rim was basically the same as a Fiamme Red
label, just with the hard anodized finish. Maybe we were right ;-)

I think track wheels might be the very best use for them!

Have fun!

"Suzy Jackson" wrote:

I just bought (very cheaply) a NOS pair of Fiamme "Hard Silver" single
(tubular) rims.
....
So are these good rims?

You pointed out already that they are tubies. So for most conceivable
purposes, the answer is no.

But since they were cheap, and if you can build them up cheaply, and
if you don't mind using sausage casings instead of real tires, then
why not give them a spin? Should be good for a laugh at least.

Thorusa.com has nice Sapim spokes dirt cheap. They might still be a
bargain including shipping to Oz.

Chalo Colina

"Suzy Jackson" wrote in message
...
Hi guys,

I just bought (very cheaply) a NOS pair of Fiamme "Hard Silver" single
(tubular) rims. I haven't seen these ones before. They've got eyelets,
are
32 hole, and weigh about 340g each (on my kitchen scales, which are +/-
about 10g). They are silver, and seem to be hard anodised. They aren't
polished, but rather have a brushed finish.

The join is pinned, but they aren't machined or anything. The sidewalls
are
angled, rather than parallel, so I imagine it would take some time for
brake
pads that have been worn in on parallel sidewalls to wear to them. The
widest part of the rim is 21mm wide, while at the base of the sidewall
they're about 19mm wide. The sidewall is about 10mm high.

So are these good rims? I was thinking of lacing a pair of track wheels
with them. Is it worthwhile trying to polish them? I went to work last
night (while watching The Bill) with a cloth and some Silvo for an hour,
and
have removed all the shop-crud, but they seem to be a fairly low-shine
surface.


The Fiamme Hard Silver is a "hardened" grey aluminum and was made in both
road and track models, your trapezoidal-section copies being track. Circa
1980.

When crashed these can end up in several small sections with a spoke
attached to each. The brittleness may relate to the "heat treatment" that
gave the "hard grey" finish. I use the quote marks because that's the ad
copy and I am not an expert on what was really going on. Their predecessors,
Fiamme Red Label and Yellow Label rims, are quite ductile by comparison.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

"Suzy Jackson" wrote in message
...
I just bought (very cheaply) a NOS pair of Fiamme "Hard Silver" single
(tubular) rims. I haven't seen these ones before. They've got
eyelets,
are
32 hole, and weigh about 340g each (on my kitchen scales, which are
+/-
about 10g). They are silver, and seem to be hard anodised. They
aren't
polished, but rather have a brushed finish.

The join is pinned, but they aren't machined or anything. The
sidewalls
are
angled, rather than parallel, so I imagine it would take some time for
brake
pads that have been worn in on parallel sidewalls to wear to them.
The
widest part of the rim is 21mm wide, while at the base of the sidewall
they're about 19mm wide. The sidewall is about 10mm high.

So are these good rims? I was thinking of lacing a pair of track
wheels
with them. Is it worthwhile trying to polish them? I went to work
last
night (while watching The Bill) with a cloth and some Silvo for an
hour,
and
have removed all the shop-crud, but they seem to be a fairly low-shine
surface.

"A Muzi" wrote in message
...
The Fiamme Hard Silver is a "hardened" grey aluminum and was made in
both
road and track models, your trapezoidal-section copies being track.
Circa
1980.

When crashed these can end up in several small sections with a spoke
attached to each. The brittleness may relate to the "heat treatment"
that
gave the "hard grey" finish. I use the quote marks because that's the
ad
copy and I am not an expert on what was really going on. Their
predecessors,
Fiamme Red Label and Yellow Label rims, are quite ductile by comparison.


"dianne_1234" wrote in message
om...
All the Fiammes I recall had those slightly sloped sides. Suzy told us
hers measured 19mm wide on the hub-facing side; I think the track
version was much narrower there. About 12mm?

Yes, that's the right idea. My Fiamme track rim here is about 15mm wide at
the inside and about 18mm wide at the top.
I did not remember the dimensions, I just measured one.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971