Any question answered...

I'm just trying to fix a wheel for a mate. It has a split nipple. Its a 24h front Vuelta Chromelite with 4.5mm bladed spokes. I can't find out which gauge nipple to replace it with. The spokes are manufactured by Alpina and are definitely larger than 2mm at the business end ( that is the largest nipple I've tried on it).

I got my micrometer out and I'm getting a reading of 2.30mm just next to the thread and exactly 2.5mm on the actual spoke thread.

What gauge spoke/nipple am I dealing with here? I can find 2.3mm and 2.5mm online...

Cheers

Slow reply, but the measurement you want is the flat, unthreaded part of the spoke just before the thread begins. When the threads are rolled (and on good spokes they should be rolled rather than cut) the recess is effectively narrower but the raised part is effectively wider, hence the larger measurement on the thread itself.