I got some new bolts for my avid juicy levers, which have been bloody difficult to get by the way.
Anyway, i’ve got them and managed to round them out straight away with minimal force from the allen key.
My question – is this possible with Ti bolts or have i been ripped off, Hong Kong styley and given bolts made out of chewing gum wrapped in tin foil?

ti bolts are easier to round then steel bolts.

Ti is ‘usually’ super-hard, it’ll even take the teeth of a hacksaw…no experience of Ti bolts though

Ti is ‘usually’ super-hard, it’ll even take the teeth of a hacksaw…no experience of Ti bolts though

This unfortunatly is a bit of a misapprehension, titanium galls and smears off onto hacksaw blades, blunting them, but titanium will not go as hard as a hardened steel. From the OP’s description it is very likely to be titanium.

IME with Ti bolts you need to use ‘sharp’ (not the ’rounded’ end) allen keys and treat them as carefully as you would alloy bolts.

And did you need new ones, cos you’d mangled the previous bolts? 😉

Perhaps they were just rubbish quality?

The Ti bolts on my Nicolai are fine and dandy

Yea, rounded one of the original ones through carelessness, was super slow & careful with this one. Used the sharp end too.
They came from Hong Kong, £7 a pair.

Did you use a decent allen key? And did it feel like a good fit? Cheap bolts (steel, alu or ti) can often have fairly slack heads which of course means you’re more likely to round out the heads

I use pedros allen keys, the long ones.
Now that you say, it didn’t feel like a snug fit, it wobbled in it a bit.
I’m finding it impossible to get lever bolts for juicy 3s.
Sram don’t seem to sell replacements, and apart from this cheap Ti option, they seem to be like rocking horse poo-poo.

Ti bolts vary in quality and can be soft, for instance the ones that Ti Bolts (Superstar components) sell are utter shit, if they are standard bolts try Pro Bolts they sell good quality.

I will agree with Kingtut,the superstar Ti bolts are crap.The hex drive is badly sized and not very deep,the threads appear to be rough aswell.
I brough some from Hongkong and they were excellent.

And as nice as posh hex keys are with chamferred hex ends, I always grind them back to give a nice sharp hex. Just means you’ll get as much engagement as possible. Broaching is difficult on Ti, hence poor hex slotting. For small bolts you really can’t beat decent SS. Try a fasteners stockists, they are my first call if I’m speccing a new size at work. Someone like Stay-Tite.

Avid lever clamp bolt for juicy non-split clamp lever, part no.A103830, £2.99 each. Can be ordered through any bike shop that deals with Fishers.Another option if you know somebody with a lathe is to buy a normal M5 bolt and get it waisted like the original, or just drill out the thread on one side of the clamp and use a normal bolt, they only use a fancy bolt and thread both sides of the clamp so the lever can be used on both sides.

Thanks lads.

Not all titanium is the same.
Commercialy Pure (CP) is not as strong as titanium alloys (eg 6/4 or 3/2.5).
A sharp hack saw blade will cut through a titanium bolt; but due to the galling of the titanium on the blade and the poor thermal conductivity the localised heat build-up, of the titanium and the blade, will worsen the galling.
It is possible that some of the magic-properties that people belive titanium possess could be due to confussion between titanium and tungsten. Tungsten is a very hard material, titanium is relatively soft (Brinell Hardness). Or maybe confusion over titanium (metal) and titanium nitride (ceramic coating that can be used on tungsten cardibe cutters to improve tool wear).

the confusion stems from the fact that Titanium is more expensive and must therefore be ‘better’

expensive things are always ‘better’

It’s what keeps mountain bike manufacturers in business

As above, Titanium is relativey soft, and should be treated carefully in the application in bolts and screws.

Also the threads need some sort ti-prep or copper slip to be applied to the threads to prevent the threads binding.
Only ever had 1 Ti bolt in an X Lite seatpost clamp. Never ever again.

When I had my motorbike I replaced the orignal caliper bolts with some Ti ones from probolt – never had an issue and torqued up fine.

Probolts clicky.

Not everyone likes titanium bolts (fastners):

http://www.formula1.com/inside_f1/rules_and_regulations/technical_regulations/8697/fia.html
“15.1.1
6) Titanium alloys (but not for use in fastners with <15mm diameter male thread).”

But not all titanium is the same.

Pah. Alu bolts for brake levers, and don’t be ham fisted.

Sod buying them from Hong Kong too, ProBolt all the way, for both materials.

Hi,
Check out http://www.fixcycles.co.uk for lightweight titanium bolts.
Am a new company starting out, and can offer high quality ti bolts at low prices.
Cheers
Will

spamtastic.