# Light skewers....



## Cni2i

Hi everyone. I currently have Fulcrum Racing Zeros Ltd Competition edition wheelset. In the never ending quest to lose gms here and there, I am trying to get lighter weight skewers. I believe the fulcrum racing zero skewers weight approx. 120 gms for the set. I am seriously considering the Tune skewers weighing only 33 gms for the set. 

My only concern is with lighter products, there is sometimes the tradeoff of durability/strength. In this case, I am a little concerned about the clamping torque of the Tune skewers versus heavier skewers. For reference, I am 5'8" and weigh 140 lbs. 

Would love to get feedbacks from others who have Tune skewers and/or other lightweight skewers like CNC, etc. Thank you.


----------



## sramred

don't worry so much about durability. titanium is just as strong as steel when applied to cycling applications.
And the skewer isn't where the weight of the rider and the bike are on. The sole job of the skewers is to squeeze the frame to the wheel. My KCNC was only $70, are over 70g lighter than my steel SRAM skewers and i haven't died yet


----------



## Cni2i

sramred said:


> don't worry so much about durability. titanium is just as strong as steel when applied to cycling applications.
> And the skewer isn't where the weight of the rider and the bike are on. The sole job of the skewers is to squeeze the frame to the wheel. My KCNC was only $70, are over 70g lighter than my steel SRAM skewers and i haven't died yet


Thanks for the feedback. Yeah, been using them without issues thus far.


----------



## rifreede

This is not an area to save weight...at least in my opinion. Not a good place for a weakness to exist.


----------



## Cni2i

rifreede said:


> This is not an area to save weight...at least in my opinion. Not a good place for a weakness to exist.


I do hear where u r coming from; hence The reason why i started this thread. I would never ever suggest that lighter skewers are going to improve anyone's climbing time/performance. But I got them b/c I was on a quest to get my bike to drop below 14 lbs. There are obviously other ways, but that was an easy way to drop approx. 100 gms quickly. 

Anyways, will take everyone's advice into consideration.


----------



## sramred

rifreede said:


> This is not an area to save weight...at least in my opinion. Not a good place for a weakness to exist.


Why not?


----------



## De36

*Planet X Skewers*

As for the Tune skewers The posted weight is incorrect from a couple of guys are running them who have weighed theirs. I have been told they are 46ish grams for the set. Its nonsense to argue over such little difference. I have Tune parts and LOVE Tune products!!! Great quality.

I have the Planet X Skewers 44g (actual) for the PAIR. Ti/Carbon. The price is so right! $25.


----------



## castofone

I've been running a set of the 40g Taiwanese ones for about 20,000 km without any probs.
There's not much to them. I think you could damage them if you over tightened them. Some people use crazy pressure on qr levers


----------



## andyoo

if you don't trust 3rd party. get a pair of zipp Ti skewers. at least it's aero plus light.


----------



## froze

There isn't enough aero in a skewer to make any difference whatsoever. I also wouldn't waste my money on Titanium skewers, why? what's 10 grams per wheel going to do for your speed? Not a damn thing just as the aero effect! You can get the Zipp stainless that for the pair will weigh 53 grms...that's LESS then their Titanium model!! And it will save you $40!!!!


----------



## mann2

KCNC makes some good, durable light and relatively cheap Ti skewers. Been using for a few years now. weighs around 40g. 

great weenie upgrade from stock. bites like a champ.


----------



## sramred

froze said:


> There isn't enough aero in a skewer to make any difference whatsoever. I also wouldn't waste my money on Titanium skewers, why? what's 10 grams per wheel going to do for your speed? Not a damn thing just as the aero effect! You can get the Zipp stainless that for the pair will weigh 53 grms...that's LESS then their Titanium model!! And it will save you $40!!!!


how can u beat gravity? its hard to argue that making something lighter on your bike will not make you faster, all else being equal. i dropped 100g (about a quarter of a pound) just from the 2 skewers. 

Then may i ask, do lightweight tubes matter? a lighter frame? a lighter groupset? What about lighter everything? All the small things add up don't they. i dropped 3-4 lbs from my bike and thats probably where i'm going to stop because i have other hobbies to spend my money on, but the 3-4 lbs were a result from changing wheels, tires, skewers, and other contact points.


----------



## froze

sramred said:


> how can u beat gravity? its hard to argue that making something lighter on your bike will not make you faster, all else being equal. i dropped 100g (about a quarter of a pound) just from the 2 skewers.
> 
> Then may i ask, do lightweight tubes matter? a lighter frame? a lighter groupset? What about lighter everything? All the small things add up don't they. i dropped 3-4 lbs from my bike and thats probably where i'm going to stop because i have other hobbies to spend my money on, but the 3-4 lbs were a result from changing wheels, tires, skewers, and other contact points.


A quarter of a pound from just two skewers? what the hell were you using? Cast iron skewers! Your suppose to use those to cook with!!! Seriously, what the heck kind of skewers would save over a quarter of a pound from lighter skewers?

So I went to Weight Weenies site and looked up skewers, the heaviest road (non cross or mtb) quick release skewer (pair) was the Joy Tech all steel skewer that weighed 196 grams; the lightest was the KCNC TI skewer at 45 grms for the pair. So maybe if you went from the cheapest all steel skewer to the one of the most expensive TI skewers you may have lost a quarter of pound. 

But if you lost a quarter of a pound from a cheap all steel skewer to a expensive TI skewer then that begs a question: Why would you put an expensive skewers on a cheap wheel? You see, only cheap wheels and hubs would have the cheap skewers. If like most people you have Shimano hubs with skewers that probably weigh 120 gram, if you bought reasonably priced TI skewers they probably weighed 70 grams...you didn't lose a quarter of a pound, maybe an eighth of a pound.

And skewer weight is non rotational weight, it's static weight, so the penalty of 1/8th of a pound or 2 ounces or 56.7 grms is nothing (and that savings is at the most you could have saved). The biggest improvement you did came from your wheels and tires. 

But knowing what wheels and tires weigh I doubt you saved 3 to 4 pounds, you see 3.5 pounds is 1588 grms...that's the weight of a compete wheelset!!! So unless you came from real heavy cheap $100 a pair Alex clincher rims and touring tires to some sort of $1500 plus all Carbon pro tubular rims and tires I doubt your weights.


----------



## sramred

froze said:


> A quarter of a pound from just two skewers? what the hell were you using? Cast iron skewers! Your suppose to use those to cook with!!! Seriously, what the heck kind of skewers would save over a quarter of a pound from lighter skewers?
> 
> So I went to Weight Weenies site and looked up skewers, the heaviest road (non cross or mtb) quick release skewer (pair) was the Joy Tech all steel skewer that weighed 196 grams; the lightest was the KCNC TI skewer at 45 grms for the pair. So maybe if you went from the cheapest all steel skewer to the one of the most expensive TI skewers you may have lost a quarter of pound.
> 
> But if you lost a quarter of a pound from a cheap all steel skewer to a expensive TI skewer then that begs a question: Why would you put an expensive skewers on a cheap wheel? You see, only cheap wheels and hubs would have the cheap skewers. If like most people you have Shimano hubs with skewers that probably weigh 120 gram, if you bought reasonably priced TI skewers they probably weighed 70 grams...you didn't lose a quarter of a pound, maybe an eighth of a pound.
> 
> And skewer weight is non rotational weight, it's static weight, so the penalty of 1/8th of a pound or 2 ounces or 56.7 grms is nothing (and that savings is at the most you could have saved). The biggest improvement you did came from your wheels and tires.
> 
> But knowing what wheels and tires weigh I doubt you saved 3 to 4 pounds, you see 3.5 pounds is 1588 grms...that's the weight of a compete wheelset!!! So unless you came from real heavy cheap $100 a pair Alex clincher rims and touring tires to some sort of $1500 plus all Carbon pro tubular rims and tires I doubt your weights.


my bad, they were 118g, the KCNC were 42g. Savings of 76g. pretty good price for gram ratio of you ask me. i paid $60 for mine on the bay. the going rate is about $1/g until you get into more high end stuff like sram red.

my bike weighed in at about 18.5 lbs stock, upgraded stock aksium wheels with wire bead tires to new ones @ 1500g + conti supersonics + gp4000s. upgraded sram rival to sram red. upgraded all contact points. after all is said and done my bike is 15.4 lbs now with pedals


----------



## froze

sramred said:


> my bad, they were 118g, the KCNC were 42g. Savings of 76g. pretty good price for gram ratio of you ask me. i paid $60 for mine on the bay. the going rate is about $1/g until you get into more high end stuff like sram red.
> 
> my bike weighed in at about 18.5 lbs stock, upgraded stock aksium wheels with wire bead tires to new ones @ 1500g + conti supersonics + gp4000s. upgraded sram rival to sram red. upgraded all contact points. after all is said and done my bike is 15.4 lbs now with pedals


So you bought the KCNC skewers?

Now I understand how you got 3 pounds off the bike, it wasn't by wheels, skewers, tires, and tubes alone, you also upgraded the components. Now that makes more sense...except for one small problem...call me a skeptic, but I don't believe your story because you changed it once you realized it the original story didn't pass mustard. 

And if by some slim chance you are telling the truth, then your new wheels cost too much because they only saved you 200 grams total, or 100 grams each, or 3 1/2 ounces each wheel, which is nothing. Then you go out and spend $25 each just so you can have 55 gram tubes? Why would you do that? Why would you go and use GP4000s tires that weigh 205 grms? Since your such a weight weenie you should have bought Conti GP Supersonics that weigh just 160 grms!!

None of what you said makes sense, I think you made all of this up; but like I said, I'm skeptic. At least I have another hater.


----------



## 67stang

here are my weights from a few nights ago using a postal scale at a USPS office:

Easton skewers (the ones that come on the EA50 and other wheels) = 119 grams/pr (4.2oz)
KNC skewers = 39.68 grams/pr (1.4oz)

The net is a .17 lb savings (79 grams)

I paid $59 for the KNC skewers and upgraded because I just had a new wheelset built.


So "Froze", not sure what all your skepticism is about. Shaving a .25 lbs from a skewer set is plausible. And, for under $60, it is on the cheaper end of ways to save & shave 80 grams.


----------



## loona

Bicycle Bike Titanium Lightest CNC Quick Release Skewers - Grey (Pair) - Worldwide Free Shipping - DX


----------



## "Fred"

I also have the KCNC Skewers on my roadbike. They are light and strong. I have put over 7000 miles on them and have no concerns what so ever. 

Last year I was climbing a steep hill out of the saddle when my chain snapped. I went over the bars and did a flip while remaining clipped in. The first thing to hit was my rear wheel and the skewers held tight. You can't test them much more than that.


----------



## Cni2i

^^^ good to know.


----------



## skitorski

Apply weight loss to any and all within your means. Dropping 100 Grams with no downside for $45 is a win in my book. And yes, some have 2300 Gram Alex rim wheelsets. Same cost versus gains analysis can be made for anything, any part. I don't know if my planned upgrade wheels even include skewies.


----------



## Camilo

Just to add another reality point to how much you can lose w/ skewers...

My Cannondale CAAD7 R2000 had Cannondale skewers that weighed 151 grams (actual), and they're pretty normal looking skewers, like this:








I believe that the traditional type (Shimano, for example) might weigh more than that even. But just sticking with these , one would save 110-120 grams going with the lightest weight ones which is 4 ounces, or .25 lbs. Not a stretch at all.


----------



## Camilo

sorry double post


----------



## metoou2

Williams
70 grams, $50.00 / look good
I do not own these, just saw them the other day.

Carbon Quick Release Skewers

nail polish remover might get the Williams logos off.


----------



## Lelandjt

The no name Ti skewers with spindly levers that sell cheap on Ebay ($30 set) are so light that anything else will only save a gram or 2 more and for much more $$. I just got a rear one of these: Anodised Bike Bicycle Quick Release Titanium Wheel Skewers Road MTB AEST KCNC | eBay

The only way to go significantly lighter is with bolt ons: Anodised Bike Bicycle Quick Release Titanium Wheel Skewers MTB Road AEST KCNC | eBay


----------



## froze

Lelandjt said:


> The no name Ti skewers with spindly levers that sell cheap on Ebay ($30 set) are so light that anything else will only save a gram or 2 more and for much more $$. I just got a rear one of these: Anodised Bike Bicycle Quick Release Titanium Wheel Skewers Road MTB AEST KCNC | eBay
> 
> The only way to go significantly lighter is with bolt ons: Anodised Bike Bicycle Quick Release Titanium Wheel Skewers MTB Road AEST KCNC | eBay



Has anyone ever used these cheap ones? Sometime ago I heard of someone who did and they wouldn't hold the wheels tight after a few cycles of use.


----------



## MerlinAma

12 High End Skewers Reviewed - Fair Wheel Bikes

Good comparison of various brands.


----------



## Full_Spectrum

Aside from weight, the big thing is machining quality and complexity, and material selection. Fairwheel doesnt cover that in the comparison, which is unfortunate. It would be good to understand the grade of aluminum used in the various parts, and could easily explain the spectrum of pricing. You get what you pay for, generally...


----------



## Lelandjt

Most of the really light cheap skewers have the alloy cam rubbing on a concave alloy washer. The quality of the anodizing (hardness and thickness) is gonna make a big difference in how consistent the throw feels over time. I think the anodizing matters more than the alloy used since snapping the lever is something I've never seen. A nice quality polymer insert would be even better.


----------



## Full_Spectrum

Lelandjt said:


> Most of the really light cheap skewers have the alloy cam rubbing on a concave alloy washer. The quality of the anodizing (hardness and thickness) is gonna make a big difference in how consistent the throw feels over time. I think the anodizing matters more than the alloy used since snapping the lever is something I've never seen. A nice quality polymer insert would be even better.


That sort of make sense.

The anodizing quality is directly correlated to the grade of aluminum in most cases. A 2024 piece will look very different to a 7071 piece, even if they go through the same process, post machining.
I am not suggesting that a skewer of lower grade aluminum is going to snap, but I would personally rather spend my money on something well designed and built from decent material, if possible.
Ive used several of the skewers in the reviews, and found that the low end ones were simply not very well designed, for various reasons.


----------



## Fred 853

Here is a good article on the different types of skewers - Bicycle Quick-release Skewers . I believe that most of the pro riders use the enclosed types of skewers such as Dura Ace, Campagnolo, and Fulcrum for safety even though they are heavier.


----------



## Cni2i

Fred 853 said:


> Here is a good article on the different types of skewers - Bicycle Quick-release Skewers . I believe that most of the pro riders use the enclosed types of skewers such as Dura Ace, Campagnolo, and Fulcrum for safety even though they are heavier.


Interesting read. Although I love the looks and weight of my Tune Dc14 skewers, I just feel safer with my Fulcrum skewers. Maybe unsubstantiated fear....?


----------



## froze

Fred 853 said:


> Here is a good article on the different types of skewers - Bicycle Quick-release Skewers . I believe that most of the pro riders use the enclosed types of skewers such as Dura Ace, Campagnolo, and Fulcrum for safety even though they are heavier.


I'm glad you brought this up because years ago they had major issues with lightweight skewers loosening up and even breaking, but I haven't heard about those issues in awhile, and the KCNC skewers have gotten rave reviews and no negatives that I've seen.


----------



## Lelandjt

Fred 853 said:


> Most of the pro riders use the enclosed types of skewers such as Dura Ace, Campagnolo, and Fulcrum for safety even though they are heavier.


Pros are trying to make their bikes heavier to meet the minimum weight despite the superlight frames/forks/components/wheels their sponsors want them to use. Heavy cassettes and skewers are good places to hide weight and since they want the best working skewer made by a sponsor with no regard to weight.

My lightweight skewers take a little more care to get tight than a Dura-ace but they drop over 1/4lb for $35. I was trying to build a light bike on a budget so this trade-off is worth it to me.


----------



## pamt

Does anyone have any long term experience with the Planet X Ti Sticks? Trying to find some reviews or information but there's not much out there other than a few post's on the UK forums


----------



## Charlie the Unicorn

I have to laugh when people consider lw skewers a risk. I have 2 sets of the m2racer bolt on skewers. I've been using them since 2007, riding 5000 to 7000 miles a year. Still going strong at 28g a pair.


----------



## AJ88V

I spent hours yesterday figuring out weighs (pun intended) to weight weenie my bike. Swap SRAM Red Exagram crank for my Rival crank, integrated carbon fiber handlebars, new seat, finally trickling down to carbon seatpost. 

I threw the skewers from my current wheels (Fulcrum 5) on the scale and they are 133 grams. 

Titanium skewers for $20 and save 90+ grams. Hmm, that's almost as good as the new crank for $350+, and more weight than any of the other proposed mods over current equipment. For that kind of money, how could you not do it, even if you just want to add some bling.


----------



## Lelandjt

AJ88V said:


> Titanium skewers for $20 and save 90+ grams. Hmm, that's almost as good as the new crank for $350+, and more weight than any of the other proposed mods over current equipment. For that kind of money, how could you not do it, even if you just want to add some bling.


Exactly, so long as you're prepared to put a little more effort into securing them. I did a similar weight loss plan on my bike and also used the new Sram Red crank. It's boutique light at a mainstream price.
Another great value weight loss is the Planet X brakes: $100, 200g per set. This will drop about 120g from most Shimano or Sram brakes.


----------



## AJ88V

Lelandjt said:


> Exactly, so long as you're prepared to put a little more effort into securing them. I did a similar weight loss plan on my bike and also used the new Sram Red crank. It's boutique light at a mainstream price.
> Another great value weight loss is the Planet X brakes: $100, 200g per set. This will drop about 120g from most Shimano or Sram brakes.


The skewers on my HED Ardennes (UPS delivered last night) weigh 110g, so I won't be saving as much weight as before , but it's still worth it to pull the trigger on these. 

Will look into the Planet X brakes. Do you have a link? Thx


----------



## froze

AJ88V said:


> The skewers on my HED Ardennes (UPS delivered last night) weigh 110g, so I won't be saving as much weight as before , but it's still worth it to pull the trigger on these.
> 
> Will look into the Planet X brakes. Do you have a link? Thx


Planet X Ultra Light CNC Brake Calipers Those brakes do look nice, they also make a great set of cantilever brakes too...for those interested.


----------



## skitorski

froze said:


> Has anyone ever used these cheap ones? Sometime ago I heard of someone who did and they wouldn't hold the wheels tight after a few cycles of use.


$18 a pair off of Fleabay. They sell for $28/pair. Bidding is so fun. So far so good.


----------



## multirider

froze said:


> Now that makes more sense...except for one small problem...call me a skeptic, but I don't believe your story because you changed it once you realized it the original story didn't pass mustard.


"pass mustard" -- that's pretty funny. Hopefully you did that on purpose. If not, it should be "Cut the mustard" or "pass muster", but not "pass mustard".


----------



## Fred 853

Another interesting article on skewers:

*AngryAsian: Death to crappy quick-release skewers* comments By James Huang | Tuesday, Feb 12, 2013 6.00am

Most of you have used a quick-release skewer – hopefully correctly – at some point in your cycling life. Save for some of the younger cyclists among us, you've perhaps also noticed that many of the newer ones have grown harder to use, too. Simply put, many modern quick-release skewers just flat-out suck.

Much as I wholeheartedly embrace the move to thru-axles, much of the problem isn't with the idea of quick-release skewers themselves. The fact that classic designs have changed little since Tullio Campagnolo first developed the concept more than 80 years ago is strong testament to just how well the idea works.How often do you see top professionals' wheels just fall off? Yeah, that's what I thought. 

Older quick-release skewers were almost all made of steel with internal cams tucked away inside metal caps. The small-diameter cams and metal-on-metal contact generated lots of clamping force with minimal friction inside the mechanism itself. 

The CNC-fueled aftermarket craze of the early 1990s upended the apple cart, though, with aluminum construction and external-type cams that were lighter and more colorful. Companies such as Salsa and Hope admittedly did it pretty well, too, with big, sturdy, precision-machined aluminum bits and either Delrin or brass cam seats that minimized the design's inherent increase in friction.

The problem came about when companies tried replicating the design at costs that were more suitable to mass production. Flimsy and crudely formed cast arms were used instead of machined ones, soft plastic seats instead of Delrin or brass. These are still lighter than steel, mind you, but they sure don't work as well – and seemingly everyone jumped on board the SS Craptanic.

Try this if you have a set of newer, external-type skewers: remove and reinstall the wheel as you normally would. Then, remove it again but before you put it back on, apply a drop of oil on the interface between the cam and the washer, and another on the barrel pivot. Now reinstall the wheel. Is there a big difference? 

If so, do yourself a favor: throw the wretched things away, and get something that actually works lest your Match.com profile includes "getting dental implants" as one of your favorite pastimes.

Some of my personal mainstream favorites include Shimano, Campagnolo and upper-end Mavic skewers, all of which operate smoothly and develop lots of clamping force. It's worth noting that Shimano and Campagnolo have never strayed from internal-type skewers.

Long-time external-cam proponent Bontrager has recently moved back to an internal-type skewer design, too, and it's a huge improvement. Even SRAM and Zipp have at least switched to a far more functional spherical-type pivot and brass washers. Kudos to all of the above. There are certainly others that work well but it would be impractical to list all of them here.

I'm as much a weight weenie as anyone and certainly am no stranger to blinging out a ride with matching anodized aluminum bits. However, there comes a time when function shouldn't be sacrificed for form, and in this case, the lure of a pretty skewer shouldn't trump the ability to properly do its job. 

_James Huang has been writing about bicycle tech since 2005 and has more than 14 years of experience as a shop mechanic. In that time he's seen plenty of fantastic gear and technology but also a lot of things that have just flat-out pissed him off. Follow the AngryAsian on Twitter at @angryasian, and check BikeRadar for more of his columns, which run every other Tuesday._
AngryAsian: Death To Crappy Quick-release Skewers - BikeRadar


----------



## froze

^^ I kind of agree with this. I think the pursuit of losing weight on a bike has indeed shortened the usability of some components.


----------



## Bridgestone

1.02 into this video shows why skewers is not the place to chase light weight. Ridge sprint - YouTube!


----------



## froze

Bridgestone said:


> 1.02 into this video shows why skewers is not the place to chase light weight. Ridge sprint - YouTube!


I don't want to be the spoiler here, but when a skewer is not adjusted correctly and it's loose that can be felt through the fork or the rear stays. The weird thing about that video is that it's not clear at all what happened, if the skewer simply snapped and not became looser as it was ridden then that's a whole different story. But if you check the reviews of the KCNC titanium skewers no one has had any issues with those, and their probably either the lightest or darn near the lightest skewer on the market.

If you can show us problems with the KCNC Titanium skewers then please do so, I couldn't find any but I didn't do an exhaustive search either.


----------



## Randy99CL

Lelandjt said:


> The only way to go significantly lighter is with bolt ons: Anodised Bike Bicycle Quick Release Titanium Wheel Skewers MTB Road AEST KCNC | eBay


Thanks for the link Leland! I've been looking for some of these.

I don't understand why more people don't use bolt-ons. I've used them since I found the Control Tech Ti set 20 years ago.
They're lighter, strong and almost failure-proof. My Trek with disc brakes came with steel bolt-ons, possibly for more clamping pressure?
No one's ever stolen my wheels. But I don't race.


----------



## froze

Randy99CL said:


> Thanks for the link Leland! I've been looking for some of these.
> 
> I don't understand why more people don't use bolt-ons. I've used them since I found the Control Tech Ti set 20 years ago.
> They're lighter, strong and almost failure-proof. My Trek with disc brakes came with steel bolt-ons, possibly for more clamping pressure?
> No one's ever stolen my wheels. But I don't race.


I've never had a quick release skewer fail in over 40 years of using them; I don't see what the big deal is.


----------



## Randy99CL

froze said:


> I've never had a quick release skewer fail in over 40 years of using them; I don't see what the big deal is.


It's not a big deal to me either.
I like things that are simpler, stronger, lighter and cheaper. Bolt-ons are all those things.

I've never had to get a wheel off in a hurry in my life.

I don't look at QRs and say "Wow, what cool levers," I look at them and ask why I need them. I don't need them so I like bolt-ons better.

There is no doubt that a lot of wheels have been stolen because the QRs made it so easy.

I wasn't insulting anyone, most people seem to like them, I just wonder why some people use QRs when they might be better off with the others.
Especially when this whole thread is about how light they can get.


----------



## Bridgestone

froze said:


> I don't want to be the spoiler here, but when a skewer is not adjusted correctly and it's loose that can be felt through the fork or the rear stays. The weird thing about that video is that it's not clear at all what happened, if the skewer simply snapped and not became looser as it was ridden then that's a whole different story. But if you check the reviews of the KCNC titanium skewers no one has had any issues with those, and their probably either the lightest or darn near the lightest skewer on the market.
> 
> If you can show us problems with the KCNC Titanium skewers then please do so, I couldn't find any but I didn't do an exhaustive search either.


Tubulars, lightweight skewers and steel frames. He claimed the lightweight skewer as the culprit. Kcnc z6 (steel axles). "Like I said, they were great until yikes. Back to campagnolo skewers for me as well." Is he going to admit user error, doubtful, just the same , stems, handlebars, skewers and pedal axles are not the place to look for the most lightweight alternatives IMO.


----------



## 98koukile

I take my front wheel off 3-4 times a week to put my bike in my car for rides, I tend to think that many people with QRs might do the same and I can't imagine having to take my wrench out for that.


----------



## froze

Bridgestone said:


> Tubulars, lightweight skewers and steel frames. He claimed the lightweight skewer as the culprit. Kcnc z6 (steel axles). "Like I said, they were great until yikes. Back to campagnolo skewers for me as well." Is he going to admit user error, doubtful, just the same , stems, handlebars, skewers and pedal axles are not the place to look for the most lightweight alternatives IMO.


Problem with that post is we have no idea if the rider used the skewer correctly. You can't base one problem that one or two riders had and call it a global problem, if it were a global problem there would be a recall or at least big enough problem to attract wide spread internet reaction...there is none. 

I've seen people with bolt on's fail too, mostly due to operator error just as quick release failures are mostly due to operator error. I do know back in the late 80s and early 90s they had issues with light weight skewers, but since then I've heard very little about problems. And some skewers work better with different types of dropouts too. 

I'm all for reliability and simplicity which is why I don't subscribe electronic shifting; and I like the simplicity of QR's, no tools to get out to change a flat, just pop the lever and the wheel drops out - easy and simple as simple can be. But in the case of skewers I just think this all about making something out of nothing.


----------



## Bridgestone

froze said:


> Problem with that post is we have no idea if the rider used the skewer correctly. You can't base one problem that one or two riders had and call it a global problem, if it were a global problem there would be a recall or at least big enough problem to attract wide spread internet reaction...there is none.
> 
> I've seen people with bolt on's fail too, mostly due to operator error just as quick release failures are mostly due to operator error. I do know back in the late 80s and early 90s they had issues with light weight skewers, but since then I've heard very little about problems. And some skewers work better with different types of dropouts too.
> 
> I'm all for reliability and simplicity which is why I don't subscribe electronic shifting; and I like the simplicity of QR's, no tools to get out to change a flat, just pop the lever and the wheel drops out - easy and simple as simple can be. But in the case of skewers I just think this all about making something out of nothing.


I did not call it a global problem, I said some places like skewers are not the best place to count grams. Ride what ever you want and I will stay with my Campy or Shimano skewers on the RB.


----------



## Randy99CL

98koukile said:


> I take my front wheel off 3-4 times a week to put my bike in my car for rides, I tend to think that many people with QRs might do the same and I can't imagine having to take my wrench out for that.


Yes, good point!


----------



## froze

Bridgestone said:


> I did not call it a global problem, I said some places like skewers are not the best place to count grams. Ride what ever you want and I will stay with my Campy or Shimano skewers on the RB.


I don't personally use light skewers, I have Campy, Shimano, and Suntour, but I would not be afraid to use KCNC skewers due to the history of zero complaints.


----------



## Bridgestone

froze said:


> I don't personally use light skewers, I have Campy, Shimano, and Suntour, but I would not be afraid to use KCNC skewers due to the history of zero complaints.


Zero complaints, lmao guy looses rear wheel in a sprint and swears them off, no complaints there. Don't bother responding.


----------



## skitorski

Somebody on the webs found a guy that found guy that had a failure without any substantiation or validation, hearsay. No data, no facts, it's nothing. More carnage done from squirrels causing blowouts. The web at it's finest. Clamping force, nothing more.


----------



## froze

skitorski said:


> Somebody on the webs found a guy that found guy that had a failure without any substantiation or validation, hearsay. No data, no facts, it's nothing. More carnage done from squirrels causing blowouts. The web at it's finest. Clamping force, nothing more.


I tried to tell Bridgestone the same thing but he got a bit testy; using logic and common sense to explain possibilities doesn't always work with some people.


----------



## mann2

...i've seen a lot of cheap no brand 'titatium' skewers locally which have teflon/nylon bushings (where the levers clamp). i strongly advise against these.

By the way, the KCNC skewers mentioned in this thread has an MTB version which is exactly the same design wise (albeit with a longer rear skewer) . It is quite popular here in our local mtb community and have not encountered any failure reports so far.


----------



## rayms

mann2 said:


> ...i've seen a lot of cheap no brand 'titatium' skewers locally which have teflon/nylon bushings (where the levers clamp). i strongly advise against these.


Is there slippage or just weakness?


----------



## RaptorTC

I've had a meh experience with lightweight skewers. I have a pair of Ti skewers that I got from Bike Hub Store. They were great for about 1,500 miles, but then they started creaking like no other. Lubing them up would make them quiet for a bit, but the creaking would come back about half way through the next ride. Eventually I couldn't take it anymore and just threw the old heavy ones back on and the creaking has been gone ever since. Never had any problems with slipping or anything like that, just the creaking every time I got out of the saddle.


----------



## skitorski

OK, I can add something more constructive now. For us average rider types. I put 2,200 miles on my cheap ti skewers with teflon bearing pads. No squeak, no carnage, no anything. I don't know they are there. What did I say a page back ? $19 off eBay ??

Just my $0.02.


----------



## Tachycardic

I just use an internal cam XTR skewer in the rear since I often pull a trailer with a couple of kids in it. It might not be needed, but it does give me good peace of mind.


----------



## Lelandjt

My front USE Ti skewer is nearly 20 years old and my rear Ebay Ti plastic bushing skewer is a year old. Both are problem free and weigh next to nothing.


----------



## hummina shadeeba

i'm a sucker for loosing weight and not lots of money and I got the ti stick planet x skewers. they are light...but the cam action or whatever you want to call it starts to deteriorate as the crappy plastic bit where the lever sits starts to get smooshed more and more over time. I really like dura ace and salsa. Neither are as light but I bet the more solid holding power is worth it. I used to have some Mavic skewers that came with the wheels and I couldn't get them to clamp hard enough to stop creaking...the salsa skewers solved it. the feel of a solid skewer, and all it's durability, and stiff holding power, is worth some weight


----------



## Charlie the Unicorn

I run m2racer non-qr skewers on my bike. 28g for the pair. Much simpler design, no bushings or levers, been using the same pair since about 2005-2006, which means they have about 48,000 miles on them. No issues. I have another pair waiting to be used at some point.


----------



## DAG on a bike

Dura-Ace skewers = 125gm

Planet-X Ti/Carbon skewers = 44gm

= 79gm reduction (2.81oz) - £19.99 (approx. $32)

Worth it? I suppose that's up to the buyer but new stuff is always fun


----------

