Mountain Biking - What's up with so many different axle sizes?

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sheba
10-07-05, 06:19 PM
I was just checking out different hubs on the web and have become somewhat confused.
I've seen 10mm QR, 10mm thru, 11mm thru, 12mm thru, 20mm thru, and even 24mm QR.
OK, the 20mm and 24mm I understand, but the 10, 11, 12 have got me stumped.
Are dropouts specific to a certain size? Can you put a 11mm in a 10mm dropout or vice versa?
Why isn't there some standard?

Please help me make sense of it all.

MasterSezFaster
10-07-05, 08:11 PM
A standard drop out (most mountain bikes) are 10mm and will accept a 10mm weather it be a qr or through axle. I have not seen any 11mm on a mountain bike so you should not need one. Some mountain bikes will have dropouts for 12mm, 15mm and even 20mm on the rear (very few though and the hubs are gonna run you 300$+ for a 20mm rear :eek: ).

You know what a qr (quick release) is, your typical wheel/hub with the lever that locks the wheel to the dropout which has an opening to slide the axle in. A through axle is designed for dropouts that are closed, meaning have no way to put an axle in other then (hence the name) through and they are bolt-ons.

MSF:beer: