15 mm Axles. Fad or future?

John U

John U

MTB Precision
15mm is there to be different and get people to buy the companies product. if there were any benefits in going for 15mm then why didn't Rock Shox do it too? And Maxle is a great design that does the job simply and well, backed up by other manufacturers that are using it and have tried to develop a QR 20mm fork without infringing copyrights.

I have used nearly all brands of forks in my years and currently have Fox on 2 of my bikes and Magura on another. They are all great forks but there is no doubting that Maxle is a far superior design. Maxle light is stiffer than 15qr with minimal, if any, weight penalty, and it doesn't require a new size standard for hubs. What more could you want.

Why don't fox just try to out do Rock Shox in the 20mm stakes and develop a light 20mm design that can be used for xc and trail? I guess the answer might be that they tried and can't match it so have given up and invented a new standard with some marketing bullshit to try and justify it.
 
dcrofty

dcrofty

Eats Squid
Kernal Klink said:
Hhaahahaha........... but i thought it was primarily Fox that was pushing the 15mm???
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Could have been, I should stop bagging Shimano so much, they make good stuff that I've used for years and have more bikes with their stuff than SRAM but they do annoy me a bit sometimes.

Since I'm being bitchy I'll suggest that Fox could stop producing new standards and hurry up and full the gap between the 36 and 40. The day they produce a long travel (7 inch) single crown in 1.5 is the day I start thinking of buying their stuff. Stanchion diameter doesn't bother me but it would be nice if it wasn't 38 so all their seals etc could be compatible with one of the other forks.
 
M

miko

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Who really cares if it's fad or future. Next wheel set get yourself a Hope Pro 2 or similar and revel in the ability to get an adapter for just about anything! :)

Whether 15mm will succeed. With Fox and Shimano behind it I'm sure it will be around for a while, but with 20mm and QR so entrenched they aren't going away any time soon.

I'd wait for a couple of years to see how it plays out.
 
Fat_Ride

Fat_Ride

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Fad or not, the biggest bike brands in the world inlcuding Giant, Scott, Specialized, Mongoose and more are bringing their 2009 all mountain bikes out with the QR15 as standard.
Obviously these brands see the benefit in having such a system.
 
T

Timbers

Likes Dirt
Having ridden both in my opinion it is one of the better moves by any manufacturer lately, at the end of the day a QR front is desighned for road bikes and the thought of the loads that go through that area coupled with aditional forces from Disc brakes disturb me.......alot! also the reduction in front end flex is huge albeit less than a 20 mm setup but where not talking about replacing the standard for 7 inch plus bikes here, everything up to 160 mm travel will soon be Maxle lite or 15 QR, QR front ends on mountain bikes with disc brakes will soon be non existant.....like it or not but its definately not a fad.
 
M

Muz

Grove Master
I had fox 32 talas QR last year and am now riding fox 32 talas 15QR and it's a whole new level! The sooner QR is only on roadies the merrier. My understanding is that Fox/Shimano developed the 15QR rather than running 20mm to differentiate between their trail riding forks and their DH/freeride forks. So fundamentally a marketing (and perhaps legal) move. I'm sure they would've had the technology to make a super light 20QR if they wanted.

So yeah, I love the QR15 on my Giant Reign 0, but I do hate the incompatibilities it has introduced. It took years before I could get a 20mm brakeless front hub for my dirt jump bike with shrunk 36's. If i want to run a lowered 32mm QR15 fork on my jump bike (not that fox would probably recommend it) I guess it will be a long time until we see 15mm brakeless front hubs (in cool colours).
 
b_S

b_S

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I'm wanting a 20mm Fox 32, but 15mm will do... it's better than QR and no doubt will be a parallel "standard" for a while to come.

As much as there is finicky annoyances with parts in the bike world, you'd be silly to not agree that most of them listed above, ie 1.5, external BB, post mount all have their advantages and deserve to stick around in some form or another.
 
D

dilzy

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Fat_Ride said:
Fad or not, the biggest bike brands in the world inlcuding Giant, Scott, Specialized, Mongoose and more are bringing their 2009 all mountain bikes out with the QR15 as standard.
Obviously these brands see the benefit in having such a system.
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Because it is a huge advantage over 15qr, just not over 20mm.

All the big manufacturers would have pre-existing contracts with Fox, as well as the fact that many people (including myself) like Fox forks on their bike (maybe with a rockshox compression damper;)). They are simply stepping up to 15 because that's what Fox have.
 
N

n2o spark

Likes Dirt
dilzy said:
It's a great system, except it's no lighter than the Rockshox Maxle light.
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Yeah what's the Fox 32 equivalent of a Reba Team w/Maxle weigh (inc axle)? With axle and motion control remote, uncut steerer my Reba weighed in at 1750g. Just out of interest...
 
K

kill_switch

Dead-set Idiot
Fat_Ride said:
The QR15 offers a lighter system weight than the 20mm (around 71 grams) and greater stiffness than a standard 9mm dropout (15% increase in torsional stiffness and 25% in transverse shear stiffness).

The 15QR is the perfect blend of weight, stiffness and packaging for the XC, trail and light duty all mountain applications.

I would suggest the 15QR would be more likely to replace the 9mm dropout rather than the 20mm.
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Now first i have to get this off my chest. I hate the idea. Good. Now that thats over ill tell you why.

Was 71 grams really worth bringing in an entirly new industry standard???
Not really. 20mm was and is still fine. Maxle light anyone?;)

-Brent
 
b_S

b_S

Likes Bikes and Dirt
As mentioned before, it appears they were looking for a stiffer axle solution whilst keeping the distinction between trail and heavy duty uses.
 
K

kill_switch

Dead-set Idiot
b_S said:
As mentioned before, it appears they were looking for a stiffer axle solution whilst keeping the distinction between trail and heavy duty uses.
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Thats a fair point. Thats about the on pro ive herd so far though. The lighter card doesnt work on me.

-Brent
 
b_S

b_S

Likes Bikes and Dirt
kill_switch said:
The lighter card doesnt work on me
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yeah same, Fox could make their forks lighter by doing something about the lattice cutaway behind the arch - it fills up with mud and weighs down your fork like nothing else ;)
 
floody

floody

Wheel size expert
Whoops, posted on Kai's account, but whats the 15mm 32 equivalent of a Reba Team then?

Really interested in what the difference is weight wise. SRAM were circulating that email about the Rockshox setup being lighter overall but the parts were different.

Anyone got weights for say 15mm XT and 20mm XT hubs?
 
K

kill_switch

Dead-set Idiot
floody said:
Whoops, posted on Kai's account, but whats the 15mm 32 equivalent of a Reba Team then?

Really interested in what the difference is weight wise. SRAM were circulating that email about the Rockshox setup being lighter overall but the parts were different.

Anyone got weights for say 15mm XT and 20mm XT hubs?
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I think at this stage all they are doing us using the 20mm hub shell and either putting in larger barings or using s stepdown system. Which would make them both heavyer. there will probably be some 15mm specific hubs some time in the near future but i think they would only be a poofteenth lighter.

-Brent
 
DW-1

DW-1

Dirt Works
15mm hubs are on their way.

DT Swiss will be offering dedicated 240s, 340 and 370 hubs, as well as 15mm front wheels. (all due very soon)

Hadley are currently offering (yes... in the usual colours) a modular hub that can switch between 9mm (QR), 9mm (bolt-up), 15mm or 20mm.

From the industries angle:
Fox, DT Swiss and Marzocchi are all offering 15mm options for their trail bike specific forks.

Rock Shox, Manitou and Magura are offering 20mm for their trail bike forks.

On the topic of 15mm - the secret agenda:

There is waaaaay too much properganga out there about "weight savings".

It is designed to seperate the intended uses of the products.

In the Fox range; the 36 and 40 use 20mm... they're for heavy duty riding.

The 32mm forks use 15mm... they're intended for trail riding.

That's it.. nothing more... no conspiracies...

Elvis.
 
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