Symox

Took my OEM skewers from my Specialized Roubaix and upgraded them to Ultegra skewers. Not only are they virtually the same weight (+/- a gram), they hold much better and are frankly a better design than the external cam ones. No more creaks standing out of the saddle. They just feel more secure

If you haven't done so, you might consider them as a low cost upgrade. I know I'm glad I did.

Polaris OBark

I have the Dura Ace version, which are very similar, but the plastic is replaced by steel. I also got a set of the steel-axle DT Swiss skewers. They are even better. Internal cams are far superior to external cams, but getting rid of the cam completely in favor of something you can crank down on until it is physically impossible to go further is best (assuming your hubs are designed properly so that squeezing doesn't change the pre-load).

79pmooney

And you don't have to go anywhere near that level to get rock solid good ones. Any cheap all steel Shimano of the past (I'm guessing) two decades is of the modern cam design and will be just as secure. The cheap QBP steel skewers are fairly crude but anchor wheels just fine.

I don't know the years internal skewers (all of the old ones) went to curved levers and when they went to the new cams but I think they happened fairly close. I think I am fairly safe in saying that any relatively recent internal skewer of "decent heritage", ie a major hub maker, is going to have the new cam. And probably all the old straight levered QRs are the old cam. Don't use them! That includes the revered Campy NR levers, one of which opened while riding. The reason my Mooney's fork isn't original.

HTupolev

When you say "old cam", are you referring to ones where the leverage doesn't fall into a very pronounced valley at the end of the closure?

Camilo

Not an "upgrade", just a change. I don't dislike internal cam skewers, and use them on some wheels, but external cam skewers are perfectly adequate for vertical dropouts. For horizontal dropouts, yes, go with internal cam every time.

Symox

I prefer the cam mechanism being protected from the elements. But to each his own

t2p

be careful not to over tighten
​​​​​​.

Broctoon

I believe this is what Sheldon Brown advised as well.

SoSmellyAir

I did not realize the difference between internal vs. external cams until I recently upgraded to a CF wheelset, which comes with fairly basic external cam QR skewers. Their closure mechanism just does not feel anywhere nearly as substantial as the internal cam models on my Mavic Kysrium Elite wheels. After a bit of research (Bike Forums - View Single Post - Getting new wheels!! Should I upgrade quick release skewer?), I too upgraded to Ultegra 6800 QR skewers, which have a much more distinct and larger difference in tension between the open and closed positions. They are 30 g more than what they replaced.

Symox

Went on my favorite hilly/windy road ride. Impressed at the improved feel and quietness due to the skewers

totally worth it

Polaris OBark

My front wheel would move a little bit and the disc brake would start to rub until I made the switch. (I had Salsa boutique red ones that matched my hubs. You can see them in the avatar.)

Camilo

Oh yeah, I would think that disc brakes with QR hubs would be a good reason to use the internal cam QRs if there wasn't adequate clamping force with the external ones. I have never owned one (my one and only is thru axle). I just speak from regular rim brake bikes with vertical dropouts front and rear. There's no real force on the QRs requiring exceptional clamping force, and the external ones work fine. Older bikes with horizontal rear drop outs definitely need them because the rear wheel tends to get pulled forward by the chain on the drive side. On my current vintage bike, I not only have to use genuine Campagnolo QRs, I have to force them closed with all my might - and they're tough to release! Couldn't get it with any external QR I tried.

t2p

the material of the fastener/nut on the drive side can also make a difference on horizontal dropouts

steel can provide a better 'bite' (into the dropout) - compared to softer aluminum ... aluminum teeth once worn will not bite

I've used Control Tech bolt-on skewers on many of my bikes - including one steel bike with horizontal dropouts

but for the steel bike with horizontal dropouts, I replaced the nut on the drive side with a beefier steel nut

attached pics

Oldguyonoldbike

My face and hands are scarred from when an external cam skewer popped open on a bike with horizontal dropouts. Since then I upgraded to Ultegra internal cam skewers on all my bikes.

chaadster

Man, I’ve been using all kinds of external cam skewers since the 80s, back in the Ringlé days. I’ve never had any real problems with them, but I’ve also never used them on horizontal dropouts.

All external cam skewers are *not* the same, though, and I suspect many of the issues are to do with poorly designed skewers, for example, the use inferior materials like low-quality nylon lever bushings compared to higher spec brass bushings.

t2p

just got my hands on a titanium DT Swiss RWS skewer

the shaft measures just over 4mm instead of 5mm (listed on their specs)

smh

( have not inspected the steel version )
.

t2p

aftermarket skewers - especially the light weight versions - for the most part - are among the worst designed / engineered bicycle products produced

I have a box of them - began accumulating them in the early 90's

some of them will bring decent money though - like the early Ringle skewers

I finally gave up on the lightweight quick release versions - settled on the Control Tech bolt on skewers

that was was over 20 years ago

So the past two years I suffered a relapse and resurrected the search - only to be disappointed again

dabac

One thing you need to be aware of though is that Shimano has changed where the lever comes to a dead stop.
Older internal cam swings a little past perpendicular while newer i/c stops at perpendicular.
Caught me out a bit first time I came across it. I kept expecting to be able to swing past and tuck the lever in a little but didn’t get the usual force feedback from closing the lever.

Polaris OBark

This is a job for steel. Save weight somewhere else.

My Dura Ace ones are probably the best and most robust ones I have seen, but the DT Swiss one sure makes it easier, and the wheel never moves. I was finding my front wheel would very slightly move even with the Dura Ace skewer, enough so a brake rotor would rub slightly until I went through a re-seating ritual.

I change wheel-sets more often than my underwear, so it isn't just set and forget.

chaadster

Yeah, there are bad ones, both mechanically and ergonomically, but there are definitely good— and lightweight— ones out there. I’m not saying I’d hit a jump line on ‘em, but for regular road use I’ve not had much trouble aside from finding the colors I want.

t2p

Are the shafts of the steel DT Swiss RWS skewers 5 mm diameter ?
.

Polaris OBark

I'll go check.

Please hang on ....

Polaris OBark

4.5 mm

Also, all of my QR end-nuts are interchangeable, so I am going to go out on a limb and suggest they all have the same diameter.

chaadster

Trying to reconcile that kind of experience with my own trouble-free experience— primarily based on running an Avid BB7/QR equipped commuter for 16 years and on which I did all kinds of stuff all year round— I wonder to what extent the dropouts or fork on your bike may have been the cause of the problem.

I’m thinking of stuff like fork leg flex, dropout misalignment, perhaps dropout facing or shaping irregularities. I’m just guessing, but obviously not all bikebits are equal, so it seems plausible.

I also look after my kids’s disc x QR bikes as well, and don’t see any issues there nor get complaints from them to link to a shifting front wheel. I actually just sold my daughters’ 24” wheeler which had gotten too small, but my son’s CoOp with Tektro discs is still in service.

Anyway, I just thinking that it seems unlikely QRs are the fault for your issues, if only because they’ve stood the test of time and been used on all kinds of bikes, pro and amateur, for decades, and in all conditions. If a wheel is moving when clamped in a dropout with a pro-level DA QR, something other than the skewer is amiss, IMO.

Polaris OBark

chaadster

Enve CX fork, 1st gen. Instead of lawyer lips, the fork is slightly sprung, so tha tmight have something to do with it.

The Dura Ace QR is 99% better than the external cam. The DT Swiss system gives me that additional 1% improvement. It is very slightly better, at best, possibly only because it is more reproducible. When it did happen, I would get a very slight rubbing of the pads on the disc, something that many other people would blow off.

The extenal cam skewers I was using (Salsa) were significantly worse. In that case, I was seriously worried about ejecting the wheel.

I weigh almost 200 lbs and live in a very hilly area and do a lot of off-road riding. I grind though brake pads every couple of months. My use case could be more extreme than any you have seen.

Edit: thinking more about this as I awaken from a nearly sleepless night ... I only noticed the problem after I put the Dura Ace Skewers in new (sliver-colored) White Industries hubs. I used the Dura Ace levers with my Chris King hubs since about 2016, and didn't have any issues that I can remember. So maybe it is the endcap surface of the White Industry hubs that is slightly more slick. In any case, the DT Swiss skewers (although uglier) keeps it in place ever so slightly better.

If the Enve fork wasn't $600, I would replace it with a thru-axle version (or a Spork).