Mountain Biking - So what about solid axles with bolts...?

Would that be stiffer than a 9mm QR axle? If so, does no one run them just because it would be a pain to fix flats? I'm thinking of going tubeless anyway and don't ride anywhere I couldn't walk out of if need be, so it got me thinking about the solid axles I have laying in my parts cabinet.

Bolt-on hubs are stiffer. I think most people just like the ease of QR and a lot of XC/trail riders might feel that the extra stiffness is not necessary for them. Of course with QR thru-axle setups becoming more common for xc/trail applications, you'll probably see less and less standard QR mtbs - now people can have the ease of a QR and stiffness of a bolt on.

I think David Turner said it best..."standard QR is a road bike thing".

are you talking about through axles? if so, they are pretty awesome. much stiffer than a quick release, and they are not a pain to take off at all, they come off similar to a quick release (if you don't have one, you can get a maxle, which is a kind of quick release through axle). many bikes today have a through axle in the front, and the trek remedy 9 has both front and rear through axles and i could tell the difference.

if you are going to have a tubeless set up, you aren't going to have to worry about flats, and if you just want to be able to take the wheel off and on, again, it's quite simple.

A touch stiffer & heavier.
I have Surly 'New' hubs w/10mm bolt-on axles on my Monkey.
http://surlybikes.com/uploads/parts/HU0231.jpg
Just need to wrench off the nuts to change a flat:
http://surlybikes.com/parts/jethro_tule

I have flatted a Stan's tubeless setup. I seem to excel at the wrong things.

As Fivel said, "Never say Never!"

My only concern with the 15mm axles is whether they'll still work with my car's roof rack... I have one of those Yakima racks you take the front wheel off for with a 9mm solid axle/QR that goes through the fork.

Anyone have a 15mm through axle and a similar roof rack?

I'm talking about the type axles that lubes17319 is referring to. I have a couple axles that are the same size as my 9mm QR axles that I was thinking might be stiffer than a QR axle.

I know, I just wanted to hijack the thread for my own selfish purposes.

Bolt ons are nice if you always have a 15mm wrench.

Doesn't that type of quick release set-up require that you have the slit in the bottom of the fork where a QR goes through? I didn't think through axle forks had that. In any case, a quick search brings up an adapter for the system, so I'm guessing it doesn't fit regularly.

My only concern with the 15mm axles is whether they'll still work with my car's roof rack... I have one of those Yakima racks you take the front wheel off for with a 9mm solid axle/QR that goes through the fork.

Anyone have a 15mm through axle and a similar roof rack?

fork up adapters for you.

http://www.google.com/products?q=fork+up+adapter&hl=en

Doesn't that type of quick release set-up require that you have the slit in the bottom of the fork where a QR goes through? I didn't think through axle forks had that. In any case, a quick search brings up an adapter for the system, so I'm guessing it doesn't fit regularly.

through axle forks have a maxle, which is just like a quick release, in that you unscrew it, pull it out, and in about 7 seconds, your wheel is off. i use mine all the time. no slit in the fork.

and i apologize if i'm confusing things or replying where i don't need to reply. just trying to be helpful.

Thanks for the fork adapters!

Thanks for the fork adapters!

Google 'rockymounts 15mm qr' if you need one that locks.

through axle forks have a maxle, which is just like a quick release, in that you unscrew it, pull it out, and in about 7 seconds, your wheel is off. i use mine all the time. no slit in the fork.

and i apologize if i'm confusing things or replying where i don't need to reply. just trying to be helpful.

Being helpful indeed. :)

Wait, are we talking about bolt-ons or thru-axles? I've got one of each...one 20mm Maxle, one BMX style bolt-on. They both seem stiff as hell to me, but I'm pretty light and don't push them nearly as much as I wish I could. The Maxle is every bit as easy to use as a 9QR. The bolt-on is annoying to put on and take off. For a while, I had a 20mm TA on a Marzocchi fork that had clamps and was slightly harder to put on than the Maxle, but still way less of a pain than the bolt-on.

3speed was asking about 10mm bolt-on solid axles in the OP.

Takes about 7 Seconds (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_Seconds_(band)) to loosen/tighten....once my wrench is in hand. (getting past the lawyer lips is the biggest PITA - bolt-on or QR)
Hardly any difference in time than my 9mm QR: but as I said earlier, they are heavier & a bit stiffer.
http://s.shld.net/is/image/Sears/00947923000

Thanks, lubes. I knew that's what you meant. I think I'm gonna try swapping over to bolt-on axles since I've got a couple sitting around anyway. I never take my wheels off as is, so I may as well have a more solid bike that handles a little better. I agree with you in that they're really not that difficult to deal with.

3speed was asking about 10mm bolt-on solid axles in the OP.
.....

ahhh, i'm the moron who misunderstood and started talking about through axles and confused the thread. sorry all.

Other factors being equal, you may get the fork's dropout more firmly sandwiched between a nut and an axle locknut by using bolt-on axles, but the axle itself doesn't magically get stiff just because you have a firm grip on both ends. Take a 1/4" wooden dowel and flex it. Hold it tighter, it's still flexy. Now take a 1" dowel... yeah, you see where this is going :thumb: If you have a legit need for a stiff connection between your fork tips, there's better answers than a 9mm threaded axle, including hubs with oversized hollow axles and conventional QRs, or hubs with skraxles.

Exactamundo.

20mm > 15mm > 10mm > 9mm

A touch stiffer & heavier.
I have Surly 'New' hubs w/10mm bolt-on axles on my Monkey.
http://surlybikes.com/uploads/parts/HU0231.jpg
Just need to wrench off the nuts to change a flat:
http://surlybikes.com/parts/jethro_tule

Worst hubs I have ever used...

Neither the worst not the best.
They're really heavy, but so am I.
Only been abusing my set since the fall of 2006 - attached a WI freewheel & always try to keep on top of pre-load adjustment.
Replaced the bearings only once about 2 yrs after I got'em.

Now as for the # of Shimano XT hubs I woulda trashed in that time....ouch!

For the money for the surly hubs, I expected better cartidge bearings and a machined in shoulder on the axle instead of small cartridge bearings and threaded on shoulders....

Already thinking about getting new hubs and rebuilding the wheels.

Other factors being equal, you may get the fork's dropout more firmly sandwiched between a nut and an axle locknut by using bolt-on axles, but the axle itself doesn't magically get stiff just because you have a firm grip on both ends. Take a 1/4" wooden dowel and flex it. Hold it tighter, it's still flexy. Now take a 1" dowel... yeah, you see where this is going :thumb: If you have a legit need for a stiff connection between your fork tips, there's better answers than a 9mm threaded axle, including hubs with oversized hollow axles and conventional QRs, or hubs with skraxles.

Part of what I was wondering was kind of along the thinking of what you stated first. That's why I was wondering if it would be stiffer. It also seems like the solid axle would be stiffer than a hollow one since it's solid with a lot more metal there. And as you said, you'll probably have the ends more tightly fastened. I'm not going to go to the extent of buying a bunch of expensive new parts since I haven't really had a major issue with flex as is(at least not noticeable at my newbie stage). I just figured since I have some axles laying around that I could easily switch with the QR on my wheels now, I may as well if they're going to be stiffer. I think I'll give it a go on the chance that they will indeed be stiffer or at least keep my fork ends more secure due to a more solid clamping force on the dropouts.


20mm > 15mm > 10mm > 9mm

I knew that part. But like I said $$$...

For the money for the surly hubs, I expected better cartidge bearings and a machined in shoulder on the axle instead of small cartridge bearings and threaded on shoulders....

Already thinking about getting new hubs and rebuilding the wheels.
Surly has heard your request (http://surlybikes.com/blog/post/were_going_to_sex_you_up_hub_style), Dan!

That new hub looks pretty cool! :thumb: