Alaskan
Well-Known Member
Anyone using Hexlox security axle on their fork should pay close attention.
I just received an email from Hexlox regarding a potential design flaw in their after-market security axles. This effects my wife's Homage with Suntour fork and Novatec hub. Here is the text of their notice:
This is a safety warning for our Q-Loc replacement axle.
So far only one case has been reported to us. Our findings indicated more cases can exist. Therefore we ask you to inspect your front wheel as described below.
If you can not do the check yourself please contact a bike shop and let the check carried out by a professional bike mechanic.
On some hubs the axle is not fully supporting the ball bearings inside. This leads to increased wear on hub and spacers. All cases can safely be identified.
Only the Hexlox Q-Loc axle on Suntour forks is affected and only in combination with certain type of hub models.
See the guide attached: TA Hub Check Suntour.pdf with pictures for illustration: Q-Loc guide #00.pdf
The new axle, avoiding any of these issues, is available.
what to check for:
Suntour fork with - hubs with (inside) continuous tube are not affected.
The current axle can safely be used on these.
(e.g. all Shimano hubs are fine)
Suntour fork with - hubs using spacers
- after removing the hub spacers the bearings become visible
- some spacers can not be removed, the tube inside is not continuous
(e.g. Novatec with additional spacers)
What causes the issue:
current axle tapers out from a full 14,9mm diameter to a narrower diameter in the middle.
The exact position of the narrowing/ tapering is such that the ball bearing cages inside the hub are not sufficiently supported on the axle.
Both Axle ends (on each side) have to go thru
1. the fork
2. the spacers (if there are any)
to ‚reach‘ the ball bearing inside the hub.
On some hubs the spacers are too wide for the axle to reach through fork&spacer combined.
Bike Models/Brands on which we know front wheels can be affected:
Riese & Müller
FLX
Giant
I just received an email from Hexlox regarding a potential design flaw in their after-market security axles. This effects my wife's Homage with Suntour fork and Novatec hub. Here is the text of their notice:
This is a safety warning for our Q-Loc replacement axle.
So far only one case has been reported to us. Our findings indicated more cases can exist. Therefore we ask you to inspect your front wheel as described below.
If you can not do the check yourself please contact a bike shop and let the check carried out by a professional bike mechanic.
On some hubs the axle is not fully supporting the ball bearings inside. This leads to increased wear on hub and spacers. All cases can safely be identified.
Only the Hexlox Q-Loc axle on Suntour forks is affected and only in combination with certain type of hub models.
See the guide attached: TA Hub Check Suntour.pdf with pictures for illustration: Q-Loc guide #00.pdf
The new axle, avoiding any of these issues, is available.
what to check for:
Suntour fork with - hubs with (inside) continuous tube are not affected.
The current axle can safely be used on these.
(e.g. all Shimano hubs are fine)
Suntour fork with - hubs using spacers
- after removing the hub spacers the bearings become visible
- some spacers can not be removed, the tube inside is not continuous
(e.g. Novatec with additional spacers)
What causes the issue:
current axle tapers out from a full 14,9mm diameter to a narrower diameter in the middle.
The exact position of the narrowing/ tapering is such that the ball bearing cages inside the hub are not sufficiently supported on the axle.
Both Axle ends (on each side) have to go thru
1. the fork
2. the spacers (if there are any)
to ‚reach‘ the ball bearing inside the hub.
On some hubs the spacers are too wide for the axle to reach through fork&spacer combined.
Bike Models/Brands on which we know front wheels can be affected:
Riese & Müller
FLX
Giant
