What's up with the plating on EK barbs?

[Baleful]

I started out using EK barbs almost two years ago when I first got into liquid cooling. I have had the same EK barbs since I started so they have been in use now for two years.

Last week I broke my rig down for maint. when I noticed several of the barb's plating was coming off. Only one barb is pretty bad off, but the rest have little chips and nicks here and there exposing the brass underneath the nickle plating.

In the picture below, you can see the barb on the left is missing it's plating at the tip. The one on the right is brand new and never used.
http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt121/Liquid_Bale/CIMG1294.jpg



Here is another.
http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt121/Liquid_Bale/CIMG1291.jpg

Anyone else ever had these problem? I don't mix metals at all, and I use straight distilled with 2 drop of PTNuke per loop. This really pisses me off because this isn't the first issue I've had with EK products.

[Cutless009]

if you ask me, the WC market is in a transition from niche market to mainstream market, and those that have already made a name for themselves are starting to back off the quality to make more $$$.


*edit* cept FUFUFUFUFUFUFUFU, theyre startin to get their shit together, srsly.

[Hondacity]

looking at it closely..they're very different...

rib is different...

threading looks different..

and how the front lip tapers off differently...

dunno ...i don't use em..i have some of them though...they still look brand new..hahahah

[Baleful]

You are right honda, they are different. I have two new EK barbs that I bought 3~5 months ago that were never used, and they are different than the old ones. I'm not sure if they are any better, but i'm not gonna be trying them out. After this EK fiasco i'm swapping all the barbs out for BP fatboys. This is just absolutely ridiculous, all the barbs have little peices missing out of them, I would take a pic for you but my camera can't get a good zoomed in shot of it.

I originally broke my machine down for maint. because I saw a bunch little metal peices floating at the top of my reservoirs which I thought was flux from the rads. Turns out it's the fucking plating from all my barbs.

[Septim]

me thinks the new ones needs better quality checks... i've received 1 that instead of a circular diameter, looks like it has 3 points... and these newer EK barbs don't thread properly on some blocks...

personally i prefer the BP High Flow Fitting/DangerDen Fatboys...

[Cutless009]

ek ftmfl, we're all buying FUFUFUFUFUFUFUFU and german shit from now on. SPREAD THE WORD.

[Boyu]

me thinks the new ones needs better quality checks... i've received 1 that instead of a circular diameter, looks like it has 3 points... and these newer EK barbs don't thread properly on some blocks...

personally i prefer the BP High Flow Fitting/DangerDen Fatboys...

+1 on that

[rubidium]

What you have shouldn't be happening. If the nickel is flaking off, there is only one explanation based on my experience one summer as a teenager working in a plating shop: improper surface preparation of the substrate. This is a simple matter of poor quality control during the plating process. After the basic machining of the parts, there is a failure at the degreasing station to completely clear the part of the cutting fluid, or a bypassing of acid dip, prior to hitting the nickel tank. Period.

rubidium

[bigslappy]

Yep that is Shitty QC from the get go !
Seems to be a big problemo with all EK stuff IMO