monroeja

I currently have a Surly Steamroller which has bolt-on wheels. I was considering changing to a fixed gear frame that had quick release wheels so I could expedite my tube repair/replacement since I used my fixed gear to commute to work. Does anyone know any other pros or cons for making this switch? I do like the bolt-on wheels as they provide a more solid feel and assurance.

seau grateau

Quick release will hold fine as long as you tighten them properly, but some people have trouble with aligning the rear wheel.

EpicSchwinn

I think you can save a little bit of weight but, like you, I'd agree that the secure feeling of bolt on wheels are nice. Another con might be ease of theft. A 15mm nut isn't much protection but it at least means the perpetrator needs to be carrying tools and some random person couldn't just walk away with it on the spot w/o tools.

I can't think of any fixed gear wheelsets with quick releases. Which were you looking at?

Bat56

Are you commuting through a cactus patch? Flat repair is not the reason to pick quick release.

ThermionicScott 

I could be wrong, but I don't think you need to replace the frame to use QR wheels, either.

seau grateau

Yes, the reason to use QR is so that you can quickly and easily remove your wheels....for....other stuff.

hairnet

How about not having yo carry an extra tool to do a flat repair. I had a QR on my SS and I found it a lot easier to set the chain tension and be on my way. I might do it to my novatec hub one of these days

Bat56

Unless a person is getting a lot of flats, repairing flat tires should not motivate the decision to pick QR over bolt-ons on a fixed gear bike. Bolt-on is the better choice.

Scrodzilla

Q: How difficult is it to carry a stubby 15mm wrench or PDW 3Wrencho?

A: Not very.

JohnDThompson 

Just make sure you get proper, enclosed cam-type quick releases, not the modern open cam-type.

8bits

-=(8)=-

In my experience--not a fan of QR at all-- riding Gators or Scwhalbes(sp?) lessen the probability of flats considerably, and 99% of what's left can be fixed while the rim is still bolted to the bike.

LanEvo

I prefer bolts... at least in my area, they do not get stolen as easily.

ThimbleSmash

Nuts and Bolt, but then again I carry enough tools in my pack to set up roadside repair stand.

postprimepedal 

The time-consuming part of an fg tire change is tensioning the chain and adjusting rear wheel alignment. You may find this difficult if you make the switch. I carry a small, light cone wrench for removing the wheel to change flats.

ColonelJLloyd 

A 6M hex key is already in my tool kit so there's nothing extra to carry for my Phil or Paul hubs. If I were riding something with 15mm nuts then I'd just carry one of these.

monroeja

I didn't have a specific wheelset in mind. That would have been a good follow up question. I do remember a bike mechanic mentioning to me that Surly made a from that worked with quick release wheels, but I can't remember which model he mentioned.

monroeja

I wouldn't need to change the frame? Do you know what I could use to switch my steamroller bolt-on's to quick release?

LesterOfPuppets

A QR axle and a QR skewer. I dunno what kinda hubs you have, so you may need new hubs also. There are some that aren't that simple to switch out axles on. Sometimes it's easier just to get a whole 'nother wheelset.

Coluber42

My commuting fixie has an old Surly bolt-on hub, using the nuts for a BOB trailer (i.e, you don't necessarily need track nuts, either; aside from being able to tow a trailer with them, the BOB nuts are a lot beefier and you can crank them down more than track nuts).
But for my long distance fixie, I have a Phil Wood hub with a quick release. The Phil Wood hubs come stock with bolts (yes, bolts, not nuts) but you can swap out the end pieces for ones that are designed for quick release and which are sold separately. I like the quick release better on that bike for several reasons. The most obvious is that it makes fixing flats quicker. I'm also more inclined to take the wheels off that bike and load it into the car to go to a ride somewhere far away, which I never do with my commuter.
I also find that I need to re-tension the chain every 150-200mi or so (more often in the rain), which was also true when I used a bolt-on hub. But the quick release makes it, well, quicker. And I do enough rides longer than that, that I appreciate making it quicker and easier to do mid-ride.
But the biggest reason why I switched is that I was having so many issues tightening the bolts down enough to keep it from slipping. I went through track nuts at a rapid rate until I switched to BOB nuts, and even still, I'd mash through washers and put a lot of stress on the dropouts. At one point I found that part of the track nut had forced its way into the dropout and started spreading it. With a QR there's no rotation; you just close the lever really, really, really tight. So there's way less stress on the dropouts. I use it with good washers on both sides and haven't had any further problems, and I've been riding with the QR for at least five years now. You need a really good quality skewer though, that gives you a lot of "bite" and won't strip when you crank it down really hard.

It definitely has nothing to do with the frame, just the hub. Dropouts, fork ends, whatever, the frame doesn't care. If it's a Surly hub (highly likely if you bought a stock Surly as a complete bike) I think you can get a replacement axle to swap in that you can use a QR with.

IthaDan 

^^^^ This + two holes + 2x () = easily accessed wrench on the bottle cage bosses (yes, the shifter bolts thread in).

gigantor

Bolts

hairnet

Relevant C&V Thread

5matt

I have ridden a fixie for 20 plus years with an old campy nuovo record quick release-I just change out the axle on my rear wheel. I've done it to three wheels so far and have never pulled the wheel out of alignment. I ride in rural areas and don't leave it anywhere that theft is a concern. I've never had luck with bolts, can't seem to get them tight and the wheel aligned easily-with the quick release, no worries, and changing flats is simple.

Leukybear 

I don't see anything wrong with either. A QR front is actually pretty normal.