relacing HED CX tubular wheel.
 

Some of the nipples are out on this wheel and I'm wondering how to (aside from drilling the aluminum, which I may do) get nipples back into the holes so I can get this thing out on the road. Anybody have experience with this?

Have they been pulled through in a crash? If so, the wheel's junk. If the nipples are missing due to broken spokes/being unlaced/whatever and the rim is undamaged, then you put nipples in it just like any other deep rim.

If it's an older HED CX with structural carbon fiber (i.e., the nipples protrude from the carbon fiber inner rim) then use a spare spoke inserted from the bottom up through the hole in the rim bed. Thread the spoke on a turn or so, pull it down through the rim until it protrudes from the bottom, unthread spare spoke, thread onto new spoke.

If it's a newer HED Jet with a non-structural carbon fiber fairing, the nipples will need to be the small hex jobs HED uses or a flipped upside down conventional nipple. Run the spoke up through the carbon fairing, poke around blindly while squinting through the rim bed hole until you get lucky and the spoke protrudes through the hole..use hex driver to thread new nipple on. Can you tell I've done this and it's sort of a pain in the ass? :)

Thanks for the response. The issue here is that the rim doesn't have any holes except the one the valve goes through. So I guess I will have to drill into the aluminum rim to be able to set it down in there? The wheel wasn't crashed, the spokes fell into the wheel after they had been de-laced. It's set up kind of silly, I'm not sure if it's because it's tubular or if that's just this particular wheel that's made that way. It's been a huge pain in the ass, but I'm not giving up because it cost me next to nothing and it's a pretty cool wheel.

HED's official response when speaking to customer service was "go ahead and drill 1/4 inch holes in the rim base to install new nipples. It will not sacrifice the integrity of the wheel". Still a bit nervous, but going ahead with it. I guess it'll shave a few grams then right? lolol