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Fixie Skewers?

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Old 09-15-09 | 11:41 AM
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Fixie Skewers?

Kind of curious what most fixed/ss folks are using for skewers.
Original QR or something else?
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Old 09-15-09 | 12:02 PM
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Track nuts.
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Old 09-15-09 | 12:04 PM
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i was always curious why there are no skewers for fixed gear bikes.
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Old 09-15-09 | 12:09 PM
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Originally Posted by brron
i was always curious why there are no skewers for fixed gear bikes.
QR's are not allowed on the velodrome.
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Old 09-15-09 | 12:29 PM
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it would not be advisable to use QR axles. You are likely to rip the wheel right out of the dropout because of the stresses a fixed gear puts on them.

solid axles with track nuts, do it for the children
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Old 09-15-09 | 12:45 PM
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Originally Posted by dropspace
it would not be advisable to use QR axles. You are likely to rip the wheel right out of the dropout because of the stresses a fixed gear puts on them.
This is a common misconception, QR hold up just fine, according to Sheldon.

I do have track bolts on mine tho.
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Old 09-15-09 | 12:57 PM
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Originally Posted by dropspace
it would not be advisable to use QR axles. You are likely to rip the wheel right out of the dropout because of the stresses a fixed gear puts on them.

solid axles with track nuts, do it for the children
My qr never slipped on my fixed gear.
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Old 09-15-09 | 01:52 PM
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A GOOD quick release will hold fine. But, I'll still stick with nuts when skipping/skidding and goofing around.

I kinda want to get a quick release front just for ease.
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Old 09-15-09 | 01:54 PM
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Originally Posted by dropspace
it would not be advisable to use QR axles. You are likely to rip the wheel right out of the dropout because of the stresses a fixed gear puts on them.

solid axles with track nuts, do it for the children
Fallacy. I've been riding fixed on the road with QR hubs since 1974. A wheel with a fixed cog will no more slip than one with a freewheel or cassette. And even if the QR is not tight enough, you'll never rip a wheel out of a track end; the opening points the wrong way. I've yet to rip out a wheel on forward-facing road dropouts.

On the track, where you're required to use track nuts, guys will usually pull the wheel on a kilo start, if they pull it at all. The worst that happens is the tire starts rubbing on the stay. If the rider crashes, it's only because he's taking a dive in order to get a restart (the rule used to be that you only got a restart for a mechanical failure or a crash, and a pulled wheel didn't qualify you for a restart. I think that now they've changed it so that you get one restart).

Anyway, on the road, a QR makes it way easier to line up the back wheel than track nuts (track nuts you set up one side at a time; QR lets you set up both sides of the axle at once). I have never understood why they only sell wheels for road fixies (clincher wheels) with track nuts (and the track nuts are usually the cheap one-piece nuts, not the nice pro type with built-in washer). I always end up having to replace the axle with a hollow one and cutting it to size with a Dremel cutting wheel since the shortest hollow axle size is for 126 dropouts if you can find them. Another example of the bike industry not having a clue...

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Old 09-15-09 | 03:50 PM
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Originally Posted by dropspace
it would not be advisable to use QR axles. You are likely to rip the wheel right out of the dropout because of the stresses a fixed gear puts on them.

solid axles with track nuts, do it for the children
The stresses on the wheel of a fixed gear bike are no different than those on a freewheel bike, but modern quick releases in general are not strong enough to secure a wheel in a horizontal dropout.

Quick releases *were* allowed on the track as recently as the 1960s; they were banned not because of slippage concerns, but because of concern that other riders' wheels could snag on the lever, either opening the lever or causing one or both bikes to crash. This is not pretty on the track.
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Old 09-15-09 | 04:00 PM
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I use track nuts on the rear because my Paul Components hub came with them, but I use Halo Hex skewers on the front because I run a regular road wheel that was set up for a QR. I use the hex skewers up front because they are slightly more theft resistant.
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Old 09-15-09 | 04:30 PM
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closed cam QR from shimano.
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Old 09-15-09 | 04:41 PM
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what (rear) track/fixed hubs are currently being made with hollow axles for QR? just curious...

i think most people ride solid axles with nuts because that's how their fixed hub came and they don't care (or have the skill) to bother swapping out the axle. manufacturers take advantage of the appeared preference for track nuts by predominantly producing them. it's a microcosm of the fixed gear boom as a whole. if you can make something using a cheaper process (be it solid axles or no gears) that is just as (or more) desirable as a product of more expensive manufacturing process then it doesn't take a genius to figure out that you better get on that ****.
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Old 09-15-09 | 05:23 PM
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Originally Posted by chevy42083
A GOOD quick release will hold fine. But, I'll still stick with nuts when skipping/skidding and goofing around.

I kinda want to get a quick release front just for ease.
I did that. I just got a cheap front wheel from the bike co-op
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Old 09-15-09 | 07:29 PM
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novatech hubs have hollow axle that you can cut down to size for QR use.
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Old 09-15-09 | 08:43 PM
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i have forte quick release for my front.
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Old 09-15-09 | 09:17 PM
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I'm not sure why you would want to use a QR rear. They are more prone to theft and are more easily used improperly. And being able to tighten the left and right independently helps me to roperly tension my chain.
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Old 09-15-09 | 10:05 PM
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Originally Posted by TimArchy
I'm not sure why you would want to use a QR rear. They are more prone to theft and are more easily used improperly. And being able to tighten the left and right independently helps me to roperly tension my chain.
fixing a flat on the road. It's a big deal, especially that one time when you forget a 15mm.

and for the record, it is possible to pull a wheel forward while using a good shimano closed cam quick release skewer, I should know, I just did it. It was a combination of user error ( I didn't close it tight enough, and a very sudden jump into a very low gear (24 gear inches). Even then, I just ground to a halt, albeit on a steep hill. No harm done, just felt stupid.
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Old 09-15-09 | 11:32 PM
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Track nuts, because that's the way mine came. I don't really have any interest in switching to QR, the nuts aren't much of an inconvenience in getting the wheels off and they give me a little extra peace of mind locking up around campus.
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Old 09-16-09 | 01:30 AM
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Originally Posted by wearyourtruth
what (rear) track/fixed hubs are currently being made with hollow axles for QR? just curious...
I would like to know this too...
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Old 09-16-09 | 10:35 AM
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I think you can swap out the axles in surly hubs pretty easily,
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Old 09-16-09 | 10:42 AM
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I used to use those allen keyed skewers, never had a problem, only reason I don't still use them is because I got a Phil rear
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Old 09-19-09 | 04:56 AM
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Originally Posted by spinerguy
This is a common misconception, QR hold up just fine, according to Sheldon.

I do have track bolts on mine tho.
If you ride alot you may find your rear axle bent being that it is hollow , had this happen to me , yet I do ride ALOT .
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Old 09-19-09 | 05:54 AM
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q/r hub

Originally Posted by brendon_ak
I would like to know this too...
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Old 09-19-09 | 06:05 AM
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Originally Posted by azukisingle
If you ride alot you may find your rear axle bent being that it is hollow , had this happen to me , yet I do ride ALOT .
the strength of an axle is determined by axle diameter, material used and how wide the bearings are placed between frame.

doesn't matter if it's hollow or solid, if the hub has a bad design, the axle will snap on a heavy hit.
in fact many solid axles are made from a cheaper steel compared to hollow axles and are easier to bend or snap.

most obvious place for this example is the bike frame. large diameter tubing is stiffer than narrower tubing.
for the bearing example, take a plank of wood, lay it on some bricks and jump on the wood. the wider you space your feet, the less the plank of wood bends.
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