How big of a deal breaker is a front QR axle instead of a Thru axle?

J

jerseyjeffr

New Member
My grom grew. and, right now, the only thing harder to find than face masks is reasonably priced small hardtails. Rumph. I have found a few in my price range, but, I also know that my kid is going to be riding this for only2-4 years max, and then jumping up a size. I know that I definitely want 1x and hydraulic brakes, but not sure about how I feel about a QR front axle vs a thru axle, I am ok with a QR in the rear, but wondering if I will regret one in the front. Any thoughts? (I am worried about fork leg flexing, and overall axle strength.)
 
The QR only stops the wheel from coming out under gravity/braking forces in the front. The fork rests on the ACTUAL axle, with the QR only retaining it.

If your kid isn't racing competitively/rubbing tires on his current fork, there's not a problem...
 
Is this bike for you or kid?
If it's for a kid then he'll outgrow in a few yrs so QR/Thru axle is not an issue.

If it's for you, QR/Thru axle is not so much the issue but standard wheel sizes. I'm talking about Boost/non Boost wheels. Ideally you want something updated with Boost spacing, otherwise when you inevitably want to upgrade you have a good platform to build up on. A lot of folks buy a 5-10yr old bike and want to spend money on upgrades that don't make sense given the age of the bike.
 
extremedave said:
How big a kid and what's he going to be doing with it? I'm not a QR fan either but they've kinda been around for decades, and most people still have faces.
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he is 5'2, about 90 lbs, but will chase all the big kids at nica practices at speed. He has no qualms about following his brother (riding a slack fs stumpy) over jumps and drops. But, I also think I will have 2 +/- years on this bike, and in 8 years he will be throwing his leg over an XXL....
 
jerseyjeffr said:
he is 5'2, about 90 lbs, but will chase all the big kids at nica practices at speed. He has no qualms about following his brother (riding a slack fs stumpy) over jumps and drops. But, I also think I will have 2 +/- years on this bike, and in 8 years he will be throwing his leg over an XXL....
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I'd get him the best used bike you can find right now, with an eye towards resale. Don't invest too much in upgrades, generally the bike might sell faster/be more desirable but won't bring much more cash.
It sounds like he's going to outgrow it next weekend anyway. ;)
 
Yep, I have narrowed it down to a diamondback line or a trek roscoe, but everyone is really proud of what they have got right now. both are pretty good geometry and comparable brakes, but the trek is thruaxle and shipping and the diamond back is closer and QR.. I am probably holding the bike for a bit and handing it off to the little sister if the big(ger) brother does not total it during his time in the saddle.
 
9mm QR or T/A QR?

Oddly enough, I sought out an older Helm 1 for my Chameleon build mainly because it has a QR thru-axle, vs the bolt-on only axle of the Helm 2. Due to how I plan to transport my bikes in the back of my camper-van build, an easily removable front wheel is a "nice to have" feature.
 
Not sure what type of hubs he has but dt swiss makes a 9mm thru bolt which is good enough for me, been using it for years now and I doubt I could tell the difference between that and a 15mm thru axle. All you need to do is swap out the end caps and you're good to go

www.dtswiss.com

9 mm | DT Swiss

www.dtswiss.com
 
non issue, QR will be fine. I thrashed a QR bike for years at Plattekill and urban riding without issue. Most of my stravtard KOM’s pre-fat were on front and rear qr’s on a Salsa El Mariachi
 
I've been there. Gave my son my old giant trance which had a QR fork and that little bastard did every trail I'd let him at mountain creek on it. He was probably 90 lbs at the time. Remember we were ALL riding QRs barring the DH/FR guys up until 10 yrs ago and we all survived just fine.
 
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