Internal vs external cam skewers

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skiezo
Posts: 141
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 2:32 am
Location: Mid. PA. USA

by skiezo

So, I had a external cam skewer fail on my gravel road bike last week. The plastic washer cracked. I did not notice till I got home and took off the wheels. I replaced both skewers with some old velocity internal cams.
Have others had any external cams fail or am I just being paranoid? I have a few pairs of campy/DA/velocity internal cam skewers as well as a set of Tune internal cam.
I know there is a great weight difference between the 2 types of skewers but I will be using the internals from now on for my own piece of mind and safety.

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ITTY
Posts: 221
Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2014 8:08 pm
Location: Bremerton, WA

by ITTY

I've never had any problems with the external cam skewers except for lack of "grip strength" on disc forks. I make sure to squirt a drop of lube on the cam mechanism from time to time, which isn't necessary with internal cam skewers.
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eric01
Posts: 909
Joined: Mon Feb 06, 2006 1:06 am

by eric01

There's a wide variety of external cam skewers. Some very well made -- and with brass bushings, not plastic -- some very cheaply made.

My advice is to not skimp on cheaply made and potentially dangerous skewers in general.
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ergott
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by ergott

99% of the time I'm on either Shimano or Campagnolo skewers. I do have a set of WW skewers, the Tune internal cams from a while ago. I guess they hold the wheel in place, but they never feel as comforting to my hands/head when I use them.

Hawkwood
Posts: 334
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2009 4:27 pm

by Hawkwood

I've tried various external cam skewers and have now come back to Campagnolo internal ones (Shimano would have done just as well). The cam action is ultra smooth, plus they appear to be easier to unclamp when I puncture on cold rides and my fingers are numb.

Tom-s
Posts: 127
Joined: Sat Apr 26, 2008 10:44 pm
Location: Holland/Belgium

by Tom-s

I've used various external cam skewers from lower end KCNC to higher end Tune and Carbon-ti. With all sorts of bikes i've gone back to Shimano internal cam skewers because they just work easier and better.

Sleepless
Posts: 224
Joined: Sun Feb 23, 2014 7:58 pm
Location: Istanbul, TR

by Sleepless

Can anyone suggest light steel skewers that won't break the bank? I'm using skewers that came with Fulcrum R3 (heavy). I tried KCNC Z6 but they creaked a lot and I binned them.

spud
Posts: 1266
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2009 5:52 am

by spud

I've been very impressed with the Bontrager skewers which came with my high end Bontrager wheel set. Don't know how much they cost, but the lever action is very nice, and they are internal cam.

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btompkins0112
Posts: 2635
Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2011 3:04 am
Location: Mississippi

by btompkins0112

I am always on Shimano skewers.....not worth the risk for me.

r3awak3n
Posts: 68
Joined: Wed Feb 11, 2015 11:44 pm

by r3awak3n

I know its not internal cam but I have had great luck with zipp skewers. The TI ones are 60g but I use the SS ones at like 80g and they have been great. Have em on 2 bikes.

I think there is a difference btw good external cam skewers and crappy external cam skewers. That said I also have some A2Z titanium skewers that were cheap and never gave me a problem. They clamp fine as well. Not as nice as my campy ones that are on the vintage bike but they have worked ok. I try not to cheap out on the skewers, its a stupid place to save money and weight on.

1415chris
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Joined: Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:59 am
Location: Surrey UK

by 1415chris

Not cheap, but aliens 3 all the way.

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Tom-s
Posts: 127
Joined: Sat Apr 26, 2008 10:44 pm
Location: Holland/Belgium

by Tom-s

I'm now also on a different kind of skewer. For my road disc bike i opted for a little extra stiffness with 9/10mm DT RWS thru bolt skewers (to be used with normal dropouts).
These are also available as normal 5mm versions with a steel or titan axle.
Mine are 126g/set so not that much heavier compared to DA internal cam skewers.
With the normal 5mm axle in titanium they are even lighter. Really worth the try, work perfect for me.

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