I'm going to have my beloved '85 T760 repainted over the winter, by my local expert. I'm wondering about having vertical drops installed, as I've had a few occasions where the rear wheel has come loose. This happens at the absolute wrong times, either on steep climbs or on bumps in the wet during "fast organized rides".

Is this possible, and a workable idea for a bike that is ridden a lot (not any sort of show bike)?

Thx,

CM

Get better skewers.

Alrighty then, what's a skewer that will hold tight against those forged drops?

Looking at all options here...

Or, more precisely, get traditional skewers, like Campagnolo that were sold for decades. That and double check the dropout alignment.
Way back Campagnolo units just worked better than everyone else's, save Shimano eventually who upped their game.

Repechage nailed it again. The traditional style QRs with the eccentric cam inside the skewer housing hold better than the newer style with the cam on the outside of the lever. The newer style arrived upon the scene at about the same time that vertical dropouts, especially on Mountain Bikes, became prevalent.
Brent

And use the metal ends instead of the plastic and metal ones. If they aren't grippy enough, use a Dremel tool and cutoff wheel to cut a half dozen deeper slots on the interior face.

All good advice, a better skewer will usually prevent slippage. That said, repaints are a great time to think about frame mods (need any extra bottle cage mounts? pump peg? top tube casing guides? chain hanger?), and changing to verticals isn't a bad idea. Horizontals give you choice in wheel placement, which can be an advantage, but they also make fender mounting and wheel removal a bit more complex. And verticals won't let the wheel slip. I converted a couple of commuter frames back in the day, which had fat tires, fenders and Sanyo DynaPower chainstay-mount generators. The verticals made life a whole lot easier.

Check that the axle ends don't protrude beyond the dropout faces.

+ 1. Shimano skewers are the way to go.

Or at least not any farther than the depth of the cups on your skewer ends.

If the wheel has slipped in the dropouts repeatedly, it has likely worn the forward end of the dropout. Once there is a slight taper worn into the dropout faces, it subsequently becomes much easier for the skewer to slip again. Use calipers to measure the DO front and back width, file down the rear of the DO face so it is same width as the front of the DO or you can even file the rear to be slightly narrower than the front.

Thanks all!

I should mention that this is an infrequent problem, but it happens just the same. Either wet conditions, or steep bumpy climbs where I stand up mid way to hammer it out. I will try switching skewers for these last few power rides of the year and see if the problem recurs on the particular bumpy, chip sealed climbs where this happens.

I hadn't thought to replace the skewer, because this has happened with at least three of the new model "external cam" design ones, and with two different rear wheels. The skewer is against the drop, so it's not an issue of long axel ends or a misshapen drop.

Time to go down to the lab and see if I can find a nice old internal cam skewer.

I now have two C&V with forged DOs and proper all metal QRs. The do the job (and I do mash on the cranks sometimes; up hill from dead stops). I have found that the rear QRs do need to be noticeably tighter than the rears on my two Trek mtn bikes (vertical DOs) so keep that in mind. My Raleigh has chromed DOs and the Nishiki has painted DOs. Does not seem to matter. I think I keep both rears tightened about the same and they both hold well. Road bikes ridden by an old man though - I don't know how tight a mtn bike doing steep single track would need to be.

Simplex/Spidel skewers had been some of the best ones. They bite really good on the dropout faces, and the design of their lever cams gives best progressive lever feel, so you have a good idea on how tight you have them. Campagnolo skewers feel very similar. Avoid skewers that do not have serrations/teeth on their heads.
My lease favorite skewers unfortunately comes with one of the best C&V hubs from Mavic..... They just feel weird when I tighten them....

Also be sure you are installing the wheel and setting the QR correctly. I've been using horizontal drops for many years mainly with Campy QRs, and never had a wheel creep. On steel bikes with forged or stamped dropouts.

But be sure to allow space for the conical springs to retract.

Drop the QR's and get a good set of the allen-key skewers.
Don't go cheap, figure $30, and carry the M5 allen key.
You can crank them down to your desire, and use a serrated lock washer.

Problem solved, and the bill is in the mail.

Correct info.

CM puts out way too many watts compared to the rest of mortals.

He just needs to learn how to dial it back a bit.

+ 10. He might just need one of those new fangled through axles just to be on the safe side.