My guess is the nipples are brass, not alloy. That might be another reason they have held up so long. Normally, if spokes are so short that they don't thread through the nipple head, they will be prone to breaking. I also agree that being a front wheel has helped too as a front wheel doesn't have any twisting forces unless it's a disc wheel. If that had been a rear wheel, it probably would have been toast awhile ago.
Last edited by Lombard; 01-31-23 at 09:02 PM.