azshtr

I did a search and didn't find any thread on it.

Psimet2001 

Rich - I use the small grinding stone.

Every bike I own is sans lawyer lips. Just like every bike I owned before the damn things came out.

I respect everyone's decision in this area - for or against. Those of us who remove them have plenty of reasons why:

1. They completely covert a "quick release" - into a "not so quick release."
2. For those of us who have to disassemble a bike completely and re-assemble 1-2x per day just on our own rigs it is a massive PITA.
3. For those of us who handle 18-20 other bikes on most days - it becomes the biggest PITA.
4. For those of use who actually have attention to detail and know how to operate simple machinery without instructions - the quick release skewers work just fine. It's almost like they were designed to hold the wheels on to the bike. It's crazy.
5. Just like the dork disk the lawyer lip was designed to help save ignorant people from themselves. I tend to follow George Carlin in this regard by adopting the Darwinian philosophy, "maybe the kid that swallows the most marbles SHOULDN'T grow up to have kids of their own."

This being said I can't tell you the number of times I have seen "try"-athletes or novice riders who have incorrectly attached their wheels to their rigs. I take every opportunity to show them what went wrong in hopes that they can keep themselves safe and return home to their families after every ride - and in that regard I do like the fact that they are on new bikes sold to the general public....but....

So, yes. The lawyer lips on my new bikes come off before the frame is out of the plastic wrap.

Carbon Unit

It was only one time that I didn't tighten down the skewers enough and it didn't cause a problem. I suspect that it was tighten enough that even hitting a pot hole wouldn't have caused a problem. Now, I lift the bike off the ground after I tighten the skewer to make sure everything is OK.

thump55

I used to file them off.

Now I just get out of bed 3 seconds earlier.

blacksquid

I don't care one way or another but those of you who use power tools might want to be careful. When sharpening crampons and ice axes, I was warned not to use power tools as it could affect the temper of the material.

azshtr

It's heating the metal that does it. Just go slow and easy to avoid heating.

Homebrew01

That won't tell you anything. Worse, it may give you a false sense of security.
Learn to install it properly, then you won't have to worry.

San Rensho 

Yes, dremel tool with sanding drum. Takes less than 5 minutes. I'm a lawyer so I'm allowed to remove them.

When you sell the bike, be sure to tell new owner there are no lawyer lips, or you may have lawyers coming after you. Lawers get upset when you mess with their lips.

topflightpro

One bike doesn't have them. The other bike has massive tabs. I've been planning to file them off, as it is annoying and requires nearly disassembling the quick release to remove the front wheel, but I have not gotten around to it yet.

dnuzzomueller

Ive had a front wheel fall off after a bump before, quite happy to keep make a lawyer hold them on.

Shimagnolo

I have mid-90's C'dale M700.
It's lawyer-tabs are a pair of tiny bolts that can be removed with a hex-key.
(But I have no intention of doing so.)

king-tony

It can matter in a race. You flat and have to unscrew the QR. Then you pull your wheel from the wheel truck and you have the choice of leaving the QR really loose and then tightening it a lot, or trying to get it close to perfect and take the chance it is too tight and the wheel won't go on. Those 3-6 seconds with the adrenaline running can turn into more and that can also be the difference between chasing back on and your race day being over.

KyleOndy

Mine are always removed, first thing.

Carbon Unit

I have been riding the bike three times a week for five years and never had a problem. I just once didn't tighten the front enough but it didn't cause any problem during my 30+ mile ride. I now double check it before I ride. I don't think it will happen again.

pbd

The tabs prevent proper usage of the quick release. Proper usage of the quick release would ensure no problems, but the tabs actually prevent that proper usage.

The tabs do prevent loose wheels from coming off, but I would wager they cause more loose wheels in the first place by preventing proper usage of the quick release.


That said, I don't actually have a quick release on my bike, so I don't bother filing anything off. I commute in an area where there are hundreds of bike thefts a year, so I don't have anything on my bike that is quick release. If a thief wants my seat or wheel, I hope he brought an Allen wrench. It won't totally prevent a theft of course, but it at least makes my seat and wheel less appealing than the bike next to mine that doesn't require an Allen wrench.

oldbobcat

The dropouts on my Giant are aluminum. Used a small cable cutter that I'd modified for pulling frets out of an old guitar. Snip, snip. Done.

rc32

Yes, mine are always filed off. I remember when bikes used to come standard WITHOUT them. IF you're racing and you flat, it is a MAJOR annoyance, one that can potentially end your race. The rest of the time, proper usage of the QR skewer is your best insurance against bikes flying off of fork mount roof racks, bunnyhopping incidents, etc.

Actually what lawyer tabs don't do is encourage adequate learning of proper QR usage technique.

So again, for me the tabs come off. And on forks with aluminum or steel tips, it seems that the tabs are made of softer metal so it's rather easy to file them off.

aham23

yes. ok, well i didnt, but someone did at my request when he built up the 9. later.

blacksquid

Your first statement is crap. The tabs do not *prevent* proper use of a QR.

rankin116

Yeah, they do. The tabs force you to unscrew the nut on the other side, negating the functionality of the QR lever.

GirlAnachronism

If you're racing and you flat your race is probably done anyways. Just sayin'.

Psimet2001 

Unless it's a crit....then you want that flat change to take absolutely as long as possible so that you can squeeze out an extra free lap.....or so I've heard.

Psimet2001 

You can't prove that. <where's my lawyer?>

Miami Dave

CLIX anyone?

https://clixqr.com/

Shimagnolo

Cool!