Campag skewers - Any problems?

whyamihere
whyamihere Posts: 7,719
edited February 2008 in Workshop
On Friday, I got a set of Campagnolo Khamsins, with skewers. On fitting, the rear skewer didn't seem to close properly, but it passed the "hit the top of the tyre" test, so I left it as it was.

Just gone down to the bike to find that the lever's undone itself, leaving the rear wheel loose. The skewer's obviously faulty, so my question is, are they actually any good at all? I've taken the Campag skewer off the rear and replaced it with my old Shimano one, but is it worth requesting a replacement Campag one? Should I put a Shimano skewer in the front wheel too?

Comments

  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    Campag invented the quick release skewer, so they shouldn't be too shoddy.

    Mine are fine, so perhaps you've just got a dodgy one.
    I like bikes...

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  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,719
    Yeah, I assumed that would be the case. In the MTB world there are some pretty bad ones, made more for show than substance...

    I'll give Ribble a ring tomorrow, thanks.
  • ColinJ
    ColinJ Posts: 2,218
    whyamihere wrote:
    On Friday, I got a set of Campagnolo Khamsins, with skewers. On fitting, the rear skewer didn't seem to close properly, but it passed the "hit the top of the tyre" test, so I left it as it was.

    Just gone down to the bike to find that the lever's undone itself, leaving the rear wheel loose. The skewer's obviously faulty, so my question is, are they actually any good at all? I've taken the Campag skewer off the rear and replaced it with my old Shimano one, but is it worth requesting a replacement Campag one? Should I put a Shimano skewer in the front wheel too?
    As soon as you got to the didn't seem to close properly bit you had a problem - it's not surprising that the thing came undone later.

    Often when people complain about skewers coming loose it is because they have either crappy lightweight expensive ones or crappy cheap ones. My experience and the received wisdom of many others is that Shimano and Campagnolo make good skewers.

    I don't know you, so please forgive me if this sounds obvious, but... did you adjust the 'acorn nut' properly? If the nut is undone too much, there won't be enough clamping force when you tighten the skewer by pushing the lever over. If the nut is done up too much, you won't be able to close the lever properly which would mean that you hadn't pushed the lever over the high point of the internal cam - that would explain it coming loose later. If the nut is correctly adjusted, you should start to feel some resistance when the QR lever is in line with the skewer. It should require a significant force to close the lever. That force is greater than 'easy' and less than 'bloody hard'. The lever should leave an indentation in the palm of your hand, but you shouldn't have to struggle to close it.

    Of course, you might just have a faulty skewer... :wink:
  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,719
    ColinJ: I've been working on bikes for myself and others for around 7 years, it's not a question of technique. ;)

    Having removed the skewer from the bike, the lever won't close as far as the front one does, so there's evidently a problem with the cam within the lever.
  • ColinJ
    ColinJ Posts: 2,218
    whyamihere wrote:
    ColinJ: I've been working on bikes for myself and others for around 7 years, it's not a question of technique. ;)

    Having removed the skewer from the bike, the lever won't close as far as the front one does, so there's evidently a problem with the cam within the lever.
    Given the number of your posts (is that genuine, by the way :wink:?), I assumed something like that, but I thought that the information would be handy for some other people reading this thread.

    I always thought that Quick Releases were elegantly simple and didn't need explaining, but then I read that it is quite common for people to try and close them by using the levers like wing nuts - yikes :shock: !
  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,719
    Yes, that number is genuine. I am in my 5th year though, and have been a moderator on the rather rowdy old MBUK forum and now here for 3 of them. ;)
  • gundersen
    gundersen Posts: 586
    Can you open and close it of the bike?

    If yes then you should as be able to do it on the bike.

    If not see if something is in the skewer.

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