Hi,

I can’t get the axle out of my front wheel, its a Suntour Raidon fork with their own quick release system.

You’re supposed to undo the lever, push in on the tensioner and turn it clockwise which locks the nut closed to remove, this bit works fine. However it then won’t slide out.

I’ve had the wheel off once before and it was fine then. I can still adjust the tension and lock it back into place but there’s a tiny clip on the end of the mechanism which looks loose now.

Any ideas?

I had this problem with my girlfriends forks. If you loosen off the non qr end far enough you can push it in and the axle closes in on itself.
When you re-install the wheel you just have to tighten it up again so the axle can close with enough force to keep the wheel in place.
I think there was a video on YouTube that helped me.

Had the same recently, only way I could get it out was with a (rubber) mallet. Didn’t seem to do any harm.

Rubber mallet for me too, nice idea, but they’re a horrible axle to use.

Hammering is just pushing against the opposite fork leg. I (accidentally) removed the QR mechanism but the outer body of the axle seems to be solidly lodged inside.

Thinking I just go back to Halfords with it as this doesn’t seem like normal wear and tear on a 3 month old bike.

Once I do get it out is it possible to swap it for a 15mm axle with a different design or am I stuck with remembering to grease it every time I want to put the bike in the car?

The non-lever side has an end cap which tightens up against the same-coloured larger part- this needs to be tight (finger tight will do) for the axle to work properly, if it’s not tight enough the non-lever side won’t release fully.

They’re a really good design but they do sometimes need a clean out with some brake cleaner to clear any grit or muck out to keep them working ok. I’ve had mine (20mm) running ok for the last couple of years on the same set of forks.

If you’re anywhere near Peterlee I’m happy to have a look at it if you want.

Thanks for the help, had another go with the mallet and got there in the end. The metal shaft was all gummed up with clay mud.

You can’t swap them for a maxle, not sure if any other designs are compatible, don’t think so though, the fork needs to be threaded for the other types.

I much prefer my maxle.