It’s a mate’s Voodoo Bokor about 8-10 years old – there’s a qr lever on the back wheel axle left side but it just spins and spins both directions, doesn’t lock or come out. On the right side you can see where the axle screws in to the frame but the hole in it is round so can’t get any allen key/torx tool in to try and unwind from there. Basically, how do we get the effin back wheel out? Any advice appreciated, cheers

On the lever side is there a tiny allen bolt on the axle? Tighten that up.

There’s a small grub allen screw through the actual lever which looks like it is for clamping on to the qr shaft but it’s fully tight and unfortunately just seems to still spin around on this shaft. The bike has been left for ages and I suspect something has seized inside as it was probably never greased….

Looks like there’s a hole at the non-QR end. Does a 6mm hex fit in there?

No unfortunately – as above – ‘On the right side you can see where the axle screws in to the frame but the hole in it is round so can’t get any allen key/torx tool in to try and unwind from there’.

Surely something on the drive side has to undo otherwise how will the axle come out even…?

Molgrips. The axle is toast anyway.

On the right side you can see where the axle screws in to the frame but the hole in it is round so can’t get any allen key/torx tool in to try and unwind from there’.

Is there a smaller hex beyond the round bit?

Alternatively, see if the hanger will come off? Might give you some leverage

Is it one of those ones you have to fold the lever right back until it engages the threaded axle?

Doesn’t seem to be any smaller hex inside the rh hole. Will give it all a liberal soak in plus gas now and try mole grips on the lh side sticky out bit tomorrow to see if it budges. If it does, new thru axle I guess, and grease/antiseize etc.

If the lever (and the spindle it attaches to) spins but the axle doesn’t move then there must be some mechanism for engaging the two parts. If there isn’t a grub screw then is it one of the ones where lever position engages the spindle inside the axle – if that makes sense? I’ve seen where either fully open or fully closed will engage the thread and allow it to be unscrewed. Does the lever spin at both extremes? (i.e. fully closed and / or fully open)

My Chinese road bike has axles that look like those – they’re shite. There’s supposed to be a means of lifting the lever a bit to release it and allow it to spin, then you release it and a small spring re-engages it. That fails all too easily. You can clean it out a bit and re-lubricate (I couldn’t get mine right apart but managed a small gap)

Regardless, I’ve “hammered” in a torx key to the hole at the other end to create some engagement points for the one I now carry on rides, just to let me tighten never mind release

Tap an M8 thread in the axle on the drive side and put a bolt in, screwing it up should undo the axle.

what Endomick says, or also scardeypants.

I had a RS cheese based bolt thru QR handle snap off, similar round hole on drive side. Advice on here was to hammer a suitable torx in – that worked for me.

Success! Soaked over night, Torx tool knocked in and it undid luckily, now to find a better replacement. Thanks for advice all!