Will aluminum skewers corrode a steel bike?
03-27-23, 03:51 PM
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Will aluminum skewers corrode a steel bike?
I want to replace my stainless steel quick release skewers that came with my vintage Bianchi with aluminum ones... Is that a bad idea in terms of corrosion resistance? I don't want to have to apply grease to the skewers every time I wash my bike.
03-27-23, 03:58 PM
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bad idea in terms of strength, why would you want to do this?
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03-27-23, 03:58 PM
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the skewer levers are anodized and will resist corrosion for more years than you will own the bike... the skewer rods do require a smear of grease every couple of years... they are steel and will rust, a form of corrosion.
if your bike has horizontal dropouts where the rear wheel mounts up, you will not be happy with your aluminum QR levers.
if the rear dropouts are of the modern vertical design, they will work fine.
you will reduce the weight of your bike by about 2 ounces by swapping to the aluminum levered skewers.
if you take time to properly adjust the axle/bearing tension to a "slightly loose when not mounted to the bike" tension, you will save far more resistance to your pedalling force..QRs TIGHTEN the bearing setting. Do Not Over-Tighten a QR.
https://www.slowtwitch.com/articles/...n_dropouts.jpg
if your bike has horizontal dropouts where the rear wheel mounts up, you will not be happy with your aluminum QR levers.
if the rear dropouts are of the modern vertical design, they will work fine.
you will reduce the weight of your bike by about 2 ounces by swapping to the aluminum levered skewers.
if you take time to properly adjust the axle/bearing tension to a "slightly loose when not mounted to the bike" tension, you will save far more resistance to your pedalling force..QRs TIGHTEN the bearing setting. Do Not Over-Tighten a QR.
https://www.slowtwitch.com/articles/...n_dropouts.jpg
Last edited by maddog34; 03-27-23 at 04:11 PM.
03-27-23, 04:52 PM
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On older bikes with horizontal dropouts you need steel skewers with internal cam levers to be able to tighten the wheel in place to avoid the wheel going off centre between the chain stays.
03-27-23, 05:38 PM
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one option is a ‘hybrid’ approach - aluminum and steel - aluminum skewer nut on left side and steel nut on the right / drive side ... or an alloy nut with steel insert on the right / drive side
the steel nut on the right / drive side will provide enough bite to eliminate movement on the horizontal dropouts
I did this on a vintage steel bike - Control Tech bolt on titanium skewers with the alloy nut on the left side and a larger steel nut on the right / drive side to ensure the wheel did not move in the dropouts
could do something similar with traditional skewers - just replace the alloy nut on the right / drive side with a steel nut ... or an alloy nut with a steel serrated insert
03-27-23, 06:04 PM
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What do you mean? I thought you were supposed to tighten the skewers as tight as you can when you mount the wheels to the bike. What does "slightly loose when not mounted to the bike" mean? You can tighten QR skewers when the wheel is off the bike?
03-27-23, 06:11 PM
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What do you mean about tightening the skewers as tight as you can?
03-27-23, 06:11 PM
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He's talking about the hub bearing adjustment, not the skewer. And his comments only apply to traditional loose ball hubs. If the bike was set up by a decent shop the hubs should have been adjusted properly.
03-27-23, 06:51 PM
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The bike has vertical dropouts. It's early 90s I believe.
What do you mean? I thought you were supposed to tighten the skewers as tight as you can when you mount the wheels to the bike. What does "slightly loose when not mounted to the bike" mean? You can tighten QR skewers when the wheel is off the bike?
What do you mean? I thought you were supposed to tighten the skewers as tight as you can when you mount the wheels to the bike. What does "slightly loose when not mounted to the bike" mean? You can tighten QR skewers when the wheel is off the bike?
03-27-23, 06:59 PM
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a bike showed up like that just two weeks ago... the owner got a condensed version of QR 101 that day... i retest them when they return to pick up their bikes...
03-27-23, 07:09 PM
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03-27-23, 07:18 PM
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03-27-23, 07:18 PM
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Yup, I guess I've been doing things all wrong. Thanks for letting me know.
03-27-23, 09:26 PM
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No, they won't corrode a steel bike. As others pointed out, aluminum doesn't grip into steel frames well and with more horizontal dropouts can slip under heavy load like an out of the saddle climb. During a cross race last fall I ripped the back wheel out of place so the tire would rub the non-drive side chain stay 3 times on the same short off camber climb. Not the fastest rider due to my weight but plenty of power and it sucked having to stop, try to under the skewer and reset the wheel. Vertical dropouts have no trouble with this at all.
03-28-23, 04:44 AM
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03-28-23, 01:00 PM
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here's one popular internal cam QR assy... aluminum ends, high grade steel rod... aluminum lever attached to a steel eccentric.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Shimano-X...8e0b64ccb06fae
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Shimano-X...8e0b64ccb06fae
03-30-23, 02:24 PM
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Should the aluminum corrode, not steel? The nobility chart of metals shows aluminum and zinc as the least noble. This means that the steel bike may corrode the aluminum skewer, but the bike itself will be OK.
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04-01-23, 10:37 AM
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Replacing steel quick release skewers with aluminum is a terrible idea that will lead to massive corrosion effects.
I ruined this fine steed doing just that.
I ruined this fine steed doing just that.
04-02-23, 08:29 AM
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The paint on your Bianchi is a well proven means of preventing galvanic corrosion between steel and aluminum.
04-02-23, 09:11 AM
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04-02-23, 09:30 AM
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Sheldon is correct about the axle compressing slightly; Park is incorrect about the axle flexing, but both are correct that bearings of hubs with Quick-Release axles must be left slightly loose when the wheel is off the bike. An easy way to adjust the bearings correctly, with the axle under compression, is to use an axle vise like THIS ONE.
