QR Lever Position
 

Should the QR lever be in front of the fork or behind?


https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...550a7f878c.png

Either way is fine.

Of course, that will not prevent this thread from hitting 3 pages.

It depends on the shape of the QR lever!

Some fit or look better in different places.

Uh... what? You must have some seriously long toes to be able to reach the hub. And if your foot comes off the pedal that far/forcefully, I don't think worrying about kicking the front QR is in the Top 5 Things You Should Be Worrying About Mid-Crash.

Depending on the fork and the QR lever's shape, like was stated by Johnny HardKore, it depends. Just don't kick it. ;)

Wut?

Any direction is fine as long as it's not closed against the fork or frame. Never do that.

Some QR's are unable to be positioned past a 90° angle when locked out. For my benefit, I have aft the hub. If it comes loose it'll easily sweep forward, & if by dumb luck, that little movement will buy time to see it & address it.

There are other types of QRs [thru-axle] that you pull the spring tensioned lever laterally, simultaneously turn to obtain desired engagement, release the lever for it to self lock in whichever position the detent passes in thru. Most of these types are more $, likely to capture a "trend" imo.

front qr behind the fork.
rear qr should be inbetween the seat and chain stays

I cannot believe no one has mentioned the obvious here:

To start, it should be on the other side of the fork (the drive side is pictured above... unless that's the craziest fork angle ever).

A couple of comments. 1) Tradition is that the QR lever is always on the left side (NDS) of the bike. This picture shows it on the right. (Many of us right-handers dismount on the left side, so when we stop to change a flat, the lever is on the same side we are.)

2) The "good" QRs are the ones with internal cams and the lever on the outside, This means the lever is asymmetric, not centered as your picture suggests. (The internal cam QRs are simply better, more powerful QRs than the symmetrical ones with the center lever. "Good" does not mean expensive. Cheap steel Shimanos are good. Even cheaper QBP ones are quite decent though I wouldn't ride them the decades I'd happily ride a steel Shimano. QRs with non-steel skewers will never go on my bikes.

I always point my front lever back so any debris doesn't catch it but just keeps sliding back. Rear lever forward to make it harder to be hit by another bike's front tire. This is what we all did in the Boston racing circles of the '70s, probably taught by John Allis, Boston's racing guru (who spent time racing in Europe,early '70s, came back and shared what he'd learned.) I like to fold the front lever over the fork so the end is just behind and easy to get my fingers under but unlikely for anything else to grab. With fenders and racks, this gets modified a bit. Rears either forward under the chainstay or forward and coming over so I can just grab it above the chainstay.

I've had QRs open on me twice. Both front, Both crashes. First time was out of the blue. Slight downhill on an absolutely perfect California road. Wheel came out of the dropouts, jammed against the fork, spun the handlebars around and bent that blade 30 degrees. (Why the wheel came out there is completely beyond me. The road was so smooth and my riding at the moment so steady the wheel should have been just fine with no QR at all.) I crashed fairly hard to the tune of a mild concussion (I was already prone to them), road rash and bruises. Thank you, fork for absorbing so much energy. Second time it was operator error, pure and simple. I'd just barely tightened the lever enough to hang the bike the week before and forgot. This time the consequences were far higher. I was not going as fast, but the wheel and fork did not slow me. Instead they steerered me into a steel and concrete bridge railing. Collapsed lung, several broken ribs and a wrecked shoulder. Pegged the pain meter.

That was bugging me, too, but I figured it was only to make the illustration easier.

i
It nearly drives me crazy when I see the front wheel QR lever on the “drive side” of the bike :eek:. I know that there’s at least one “seasoned” forum member that believes it doesn’t make any difference (and perhaps it doesn’t) and “has always done it that way” :foo:. While one reply indicated it was “traditional” to have the QR levers on the non-drive side, it appears to me that the designers intended for them to be on the “NDS”. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a clear indicator of “noobness” ;) but will concede that individuals can set their bike up the way the wish :). I generally position my levers in a way that they are less likely to be inadvertently released by road/trail debris.

I have wondered if it might be better to have the front skewer on the drive side with discs.

My next bike is going to have skewers that don't have levers, so all this is moot

I prefer to put the old style off-center ones under the chainstay. They don't usually look good if you put 'em between the stays.

Rule #41.

My CX bike has discs and QR (faster wheel changes) and it’s tempting to swap sides with the QR, but I just can’t do it.

I could swap it around on the in-door trainer.... although, it wouldn't matter much WRT safety.

I predict 30 pages

using default forum settings?

You guys who don't like the QR on the drive side had better get on the phone, STAT, to tell TREK they know nothing about bicycles, because the QR on my FX is on the drive side and has to stay there because of their proprietary through-skewer setup.

I like it that way, too, because it means I can hold my bike up with my left arm while testing the tightness with my stronger right hand/arm. In fact, I've been doing it that way for 50+ years, and am still here to tell the tale. :-)

Not unless I absolutely can't avoid it.
^Allllll of this^ :thumb:

A point I forgot in my post above - I said that the "good" QRs are the asymmetric ones. What I didn't say is that a few decades ago (I'm not sure exactly when; late '80s?) Shimano came up with a better cam shape that makes for a better lock and more resistance to accidental opening. My crash with the unexpected opening was the old Campagnolo QR. (1983, long before the new shape.) So - pass on ancient QRs - always. The old Campys were made beautiful and are good structurally for many more years. But your health and welfare is better served with an $8 QBP pair. The old straight levers also could be accidentally opened by stuff that the newer curved ones won't.

And a story re: QRs and other bikes - I talked of front wheels of other bikes coming in contact with rear quick releases. True story. I lead out a town line sprint coming off a small hill. The local hotshot came past close on my right and hooked over as soon as he cleared me to shed the newbie on his wheel. So, momentarily I was on the hotshot's wheel with the newbie beside me. OK. But the newbie knew he was on "the" wheel and wasn't willing to give it up so he simply came over too. By this time, his rear wheel was beside my front and coming into my line. I steered left. But that was only a temporary cure. I had to bring the bike back under my weight or crash hard at 30+ mph (remember that hill?) with a dozen riders on my wheel.

So I steered back to straight and simply muscled my wheel into his and pushed off. There was a loud (and to my sense of time, very long! sound of tearing metal. A huge wobble started instantly. We separated and I rode the bike gently to a stop. His QR left end had cut 8 consecutive spokes out of the front wheel right side and damaged a couple more. Thank G** I was riding Weinmann Concaves so stiff the rim and tire still made it through the fork. (Taking the paint to shiny steel on my brand new custom but I wasn't complaining!)

This story isn't about lever position other than I did not open his. (Thinking to note the position he used was NOT in my mind at the time. Sorry BF. :)) But it does make the point that QR levers can come in contact with other bikes before the crash happens and that position could make a very big difference