Syntace develops thru axle for Cross Country

Syntace has set itself a high target: The newly developed X-12 thru axle should not only be significantly stiffer than a conventional design on the rear wheel, but even lighter than a normal hub with quick release. To ensure that many bikers can benefit from the new system quickly, Syntace is making the X-12 available to bike manufacturers at a very reasonable price.

Syntace chief developer Jo Klieber is not necessarily known as a man of loud words. Instead of investing in elaborate marketing, he prefers to invest in the development of his products. The fact that Klieber is now promoting his X-12 in full-bodied fashion suggests how proud he is of his latest product. With the X-12, Klieber promises nothing less than that thru-axles will make sense for the first time on lightweight cross-country and marathon bikes. His thru-axle system is intended to enable dropouts that are lighter than conventional wheel mounts and yet noticeably stiffer. The axle alone weighs just 39 grams in the Allen version and 20 grams more with an RWS clamping lever manufactured by DT Swiss. This makes installing and removing the wheel less complicated than with previous thru axles and even easier than with a conventional wheel with quick release.

Proven technology ensures stiffness

The trick of the X-12 is the large-surface supports for the wheel axle on the frame. An integrated cone prevents play between the parts and stiffens the system both radially and axially. According to Syntace, this design principle has been tried and tested in industrial technology for more than 100 years. Syntace has had the design patented for use on bike frames.

To ensure that X-12 does not disappear into a drawer, but is quickly used on bikes, Syntace makes the design plans available to bike manufacturers for the symbolic price of one euro. For hardtails, Syntace even offers ready-to-weld dropout kits that can be used immediately. This saves bike manufacturers the time and effort of having to produce such parts themselves. Hub and wheel manufacturers can even use X-12 completely free of charge.

First manufacturers jump on board

Hubs and wheels compatible with X-12 are already available from numerous manufacturers. These include DT Swiss, Mavic and Tune. The Syntace sister brand Liteville already offers frames with X-12 dropouts. For the coming model year, Cube is also relying on the new standard for the enduro bike "Fritzz" and the all-mountain bike "Stereo". Other manufacturers are set to launch correspondingly adapted frames on the market in the course of next year.

On the Syntace homepage, Jo Klieber provides comprehensive information on the design of the system and functional videos. A constantly updated list shows components that are compatible with X-12.

www.syntace.de/x-12