How tight should hub skewers be?

I have Rolf Vector Comp wheelsets on my bike. The rear wheel will
shift out of alignment under hard pedaling, such as cranking up a hill
while standing on the pedals. To combat this I've had to clamp the
skewers so tight that I sometimes have a very hard time loosening them
to remove the wheel.

I recently had the bike serviced but forgot to mention it to the shop.
He put the wheels back on but didn't clamp down like I had them. He
didn't mention that he had a hard time loosening them to remove the
wheel so didn't give it a lot of thought at the time, but my thinking
right now is he didn't think it was an issue.

How can I keep the wheel aligned without having to tighten the skewers
so much? Also, what damage is caused by tightening them so much?

Thanks.

Stephen Montgomery writes:

I have Rolf Vector Comp wheels on my bike. The rear wheel will
shift out of alignment under hard pedaling, such as cranking up a
hill while standing on the pedals. To combat this I've had to clamp
the skewers so tight that I sometimes have a very hard time
loosening them to remove the wheel.

What sort of antique frame are you riding? With vertical dropouts
that I suppose every derailleur bicycle should have, there is no excuse
for having to tighten a QR until you can smell onions and your eyes
begin to water.

I recently had the bike serviced but forgot to mention it to the shop.
He put the wheels back on but didn't clamp down like I had them. He
didn't mention that he had a hard time loosening them to remove the
wheel so didn't give it a lot of thought at the time, but my thinking
right now is he didn't think it was an issue.

There is another problem with an extra tight QR and you can test for
that by seeing whether the wheel swings freely about it's heaviest
spot when the rear of the bicycle is held off the ground (chain not
engaged to rule out freewheel drag). When tightening the lever, the
elastic deformation is twofold. The skewer stretches and the axle
compresses, an effect that can bind up the ball bearings and cause
them or the bearing races to fail.

How can I keep the wheel aligned without having to tighten the
skewers so much? Also, what damage is caused by tightening them so
much?

The skewer could break at the threads and the QR bearing surface begin
to weld. In fact, they QR is probably already gouged. Do you have
grease on the thrust surface of the mechanism?

Jobst Brandt

Unfortunately through trial and error I have discovered there are many
non Shimano, non Campy skewers that perform as the original poster
describes.

Stephen Montgomery wrote:
I have Rolf Vector Comp wheelsets on my bike. The rear wheel will
shift out of alignment under hard pedaling, such as cranking up a hill
while standing on the pedals. To combat this I've had to clamp the
skewers so tight that I sometimes have a very hard time loosening them
to remove the wheel.

I recently had the bike serviced but forgot to mention it to the shop.
He put the wheels back on but didn't clamp down like I had them. He
didn't mention that he had a hard time loosening them to remove the
wheel so didn't give it a lot of thought at the time, but my thinking
right now is he didn't think it was an issue.

How can I keep the wheel aligned without having to tighten the skewers
so much? Also, what damage is caused by tightening them so much?

Read this:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/skewers.html

Open cam skewers, skewers without serrations, and titanium
skewers cause problems. The severity of the problems depends
on your equipment (like whether you have horizontal or vertical
dropouts), which is the reason that some people get by with
chintzy skewers. Most problems can be cured by getting a decent
Shimano QR skewer - even the cheapest one from a parts bin.
Or Campy if your bike needs the extra bling.

Per :
There is another problem with an extra tight QR and ..

Has anybody said how tight is too tight and how to determine same?

I haven't seen that in the thread... but maybe my news provider isn't getting
all the posts.
--
PeteCresswell

"Stephen Montgomery" wrote in message
...
I have Rolf Vector Comp wheelsets on my bike. The rear wheel will
shift out of alignment under hard pedaling, such as cranking up a hill
while standing on the pedals. To combat this I've had to clamp the
skewers so tight that I sometimes have a very hard time loosening them
to remove the wheel.

I recently had the bike serviced but forgot to mention it to the shop.
He put the wheels back on but didn't clamp down like I had them. He
didn't mention that he had a hard time loosening them to remove the
wheel so didn't give it a lot of thought at the time, but my thinking
right now is he didn't think it was an issue.

How can I keep the wheel aligned without having to tighten the skewers
so much? Also, what damage is caused by tightening them so much?

Thanks.

I'd bet you have crappy, nylon bushing type QRs. . . dump these and get a
good set with internal, METAL cam. Shimano and Campagnolo are always good,
Mavic's are good but can be expensive. I've just discovered an FSA skewer
set called Scatto that is modeled after old Simplex style QRs (like high-end
Mavic) that is nicely made and finished, clamps very well with normal hand
strength and costs about $50. . .

wrote in message
...
Stephen Montgomery writes:

I have Rolf Vector Comp wheels on my bike. The rear wheel will
shift out of alignment under hard pedaling, such as cranking up a
hill while standing on the pedals. To combat this I've had to clamp
the skewers so tight that I sometimes have a very hard time
loosening them to remove the wheel.

What sort of antique frame are you riding? With vertical dropouts
that I suppose every derailleur bicycle should have, there is no excuse
for having to tighten a QR until you can smell onions and your eyes
begin to water.


You're picking on the guys frame? Chances are much more likely that he has
a modern POS skewer whereas there is a good chance that if he is riding
around on an older frame with horizontal dropouts that he has a kick butt
frame.

On 12 Dec 2005 12:40:31 -0800, wrote:

Unfortunately through trial and error I have discovered there are many
non Shimano, non Campy skewers that perform as the original poster
describes.

Can anyone explain what's up with that? The Campy and Shimano skewers work fine,
better than all the rest, but nobody else seems to make that typed of enclosed
cam skewer. Why not?

Ron

"Stephen Montgomery" wrote in message
...
I have Rolf Vector Comp wheelsets on my bike. The rear wheel will
shift out of alignment under hard pedaling, such as cranking up a hill
while standing on the pedals. To combat this I've had to clamp the
skewers so tight that I sometimes have a very hard time loosening them
to remove the wheel.

I recently had the bike serviced but forgot to mention it to the shop.
He put the wheels back on but didn't clamp down like I had them. He
didn't mention that he had a hard time loosening them to remove the
wheel so didn't give it a lot of thought at the time, but my thinking
right now is he didn't think it was an issue.

How can I keep the wheel aligned without having to tighten the skewers
so much? Also, what damage is caused by tightening them so much?


I find this hard to believe without the clamping force acting on
something other than the dropouts. How close are the axle ends to the
outer face of the dropouts?

Phil H

RonSonic wrote:
On 12 Dec 2005 12:40:31 -0800, wrote:

Unfortunately through trial and error I have discovered there are
many non Shimano, non Campy skewers that perform as the original
poster describes.

Can anyone explain what's up with that? The Campy and Shimano skewers
work fine, better than all the rest, but nobody else seems to make
that typed of enclosed cam skewer. Why not?

Because they are "patently" offensive! Bahahahha!

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training