Originally Posted by
Polaris OBark
My front wheel on my disc brake road bike would move around slightly during heavy braking. The skewers were both external cam and titanium (Salsa). I don't know for sure which was at fault, but replacing with internal cam steel skewers solved the problem. I had initially attributed this to the properties of the external cam, but someone pointed out to me it could be a bit of stretch in the titanium, and that steel was superior in this regard.
Also, some skewers come with aluminum non-lever-side nuts. Those threads sometimes aren't strong enough.
My bike has rim brakes, so we may be comparing apples and oranges. When I bought the bike, the titanium skewers were optional and not terribly expensive, with external cams. Not really knowing much about the differences, I ordered the Ti bits. When I got the bike, the original Shimano skewers were included. I have switched them on and off the bike a few times for no particular reason, but don't notice any difference in their performance. Of course, with disc brakes there would be a different set of concerns.
I think the QR nuts I have are aluminum with steel inserts. I'd be nervous having those threads in plain aluminum!