It’s not brand specific. I’ve seen different brands of alloy nipples disintegrate in different brands of carbon rims quite a few times and experienced it myself (the first time I thought I broke three spokes but they had just pulled out of the nipples).
Sapim aluminum nipples generally have high quality anodizing and they add an anti-corrosion coating but anodizing is witchcraft as much as science so from rings, to frames, to nipples a bad batch is unsurprising. I’d guess that’s the problem if a bunch of folks are suddenly experiencing the issue.
Lacing carbon hoops with alloy nipples? Grease the heck out of the nipples and then seat the tape perfectly before adding sealant. Sealant will absolutely accelerate galvanic corrosion (some folks say some sealants are better/worse but I’ve not investigated it).
Or, just run brass. Especially if you’re going to run black nipples anyway.
March 8, 2023, 7:31 a.m. - Andrew Major
It’s not brand specific. I’ve seen different brands of alloy nipples disintegrate in different brands of carbon rims quite a few times and experienced it myself (the first time I thought I broke three spokes but they had just pulled out of the nipples). Sapim aluminum nipples generally have high quality anodizing and they add an anti-corrosion coating but anodizing is witchcraft as much as science so from rings, to frames, to nipples a bad batch is unsurprising. I’d guess that’s the problem if a bunch of folks are suddenly experiencing the issue. Lacing carbon hoops with alloy nipples? Grease the heck out of the nipples and then seat the tape perfectly before adding sealant. Sealant will absolutely accelerate galvanic corrosion (some folks say some sealants are better/worse but I’ve not investigated it). Or, just run brass. Especially if you’re going to run black nipples anyway.