I must try to preserve as much dignity as Miami Cyclery deserves. I received my MA 40 - Superbe Pro wheel back today and the job was very well done indeed (visually and intuitively). The Spanish only speaking wrench did an excellent job for a very good price. The resulting wheel is true and round, and spokes seem right from my view point. When I picked up the wheel, the English - Spanish speaking wrench said that the wheel was done 14-15-14, and not 12 anything. Sheldon Brown has cleared up the matter for me now. French 13 equals US British 14 and French 15 equals US Brit 13. The two graphs must be inverse to each other (one descending and the other ascending) making French 12 roughly equivalent to US Brit 15. Therefore the French gauge of fat 12 gauge is actually a thin 15 as it is commonly understood. What confused me was that there was no mention of gauge on the box that the Spanish speaking Hector chose.
I am not opposed to the US being a multi cultural society, and I am by all indications fully bi-lingual myself (Spanish English). For highly technical conversations, we are better off agreeing on one language however. This may avoid inevitable confusion that can result even when we agree on one language for a delicate and important matter. In this case the confusion is not only a language difference but also a failure to adopt universal measuring terminology.
Thank you to all list members that were concerned enough and interested in my particular wheel problems. I can't help but notice that we may all be a little bit more enlightened as a result of this discussion. Still, the list members have shown extraordinary patience with my lack of sophistication in classical and basic bike lore.
Happy to be a part of Classical Rendezvous, I am Garth Libre in Surfside Fl.