303 kaboom

Topic: Failed carbon in 303

Issue: Wheel failure or MECHANIC FAILURE

Discussion: took a perfectly true, no issue, pampered Zipp 303 into my LBS to get a powertap installed. They finished the wheel and I went for a 20mi test ride (to be humbled by power numbers, of course), came back, BAM wheel is out of true. Further inspect, wheel has failed, complete crack in one spot, small crack almost exactly across from big crack. could be road/age/carbon fail…but than i notice a nipple is completely shredded. like if you stabbed a knife into a soda can, and peeled the aluminum away.

ideas?

I’m sure you know, but adding the powertap voided the warranty.

Seems like a hack job by your LBS.

adding the PT does? i thought just the triple lacing would…(edit: mine was 2x laced)

Is your shop a Zipp dealer? Any shop can get Zipp from a distributor, but do they have a Zipp account? Either way, sounds like they did a sh!t job, I’d be kind of mad. Not sure if the crack is their fault since you didn’t state well enough where the crack is, but rounded off nipples is crap.

Do you have any pics?

no pics- dropped the wheel off again right away. They are not a distributer…

the crack is parallel with a spoke, near the stem, and just about opposite of the shredded nip…