How to determine torque when using quick release?

Question

I want to be able to install my front wheel on my Lauf Carbonara fork without using and carrying a torque wrench, e.g. during a longer tour. Lauf says that the preinstalled axle can be replaced eg a RockShox Maxle. I am just very much clueless about how I would know when the required torque is reached when using a lever-type axle?

Answer 1

I’m presuming this is a lever-style axle, similar to a classic QR skewer?

The guideline is usually to have the cam begin to fully engage when the lever is sticking out 90° (lever parallel to shaft). What I mean by “begin to fully engage” is there is often a brief “mushy” section of the lever’s action as all the parts come together and tension begins to increase. You want this 90° thing to occur at the start of pure tensioning, after this initial phase.

You should see a red mark on your hand when you’ve tightened it correctly. If you need a tool to help open or close, that is too tight.

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If I’m mistaken and this is actually a bolt-on axle, the simplest way to avoid needing a torque wrench is to practice torquing it and then loosening it a few times. You’ll soon gain a feel for how tight it needs to be. Furthermore, you could also mark the relative positions of the axle and dropouts with some paint or something. When the paint marks align, the axle is correctly tightened.