Carbon-Ti has been machining lightweight bolt-on thru-axles for a decade now, with their latest evolution X-Lock Evo Thru Axle more refined than ever. Lower profile, lighter weight, more secure tightening, more sizes to fit almost any disc brake road/gravel/mountain bike, plus more colors to choose from… all that, and they even get lower pricing than when we last reviewed them.
Carbon-Ti X-Lock Evo lightweight alloy thru-axles
What’s not to love about a simple lightweight upgrade component that gets its own upgrade? When we reviewed the original X-Lock bolt-on thru-axles five years ago, we found them to be a high-quality way to shed a few grams off your bike. While certainly not cheap, they’ve always been a reliable, made-in-Europe option for riders looking to get rid of clunky QR lever thru-axles. And now they have evolved to be better than ever.
Carbon-Ti X-Lock Evo has updated the XC & Marathon World Cup proven axles with a number of performance upgrades.
What’s new? Thru-axle Tech Details
From the outside in, the new X-Lock Evo thru-axles get a lower-profile head design that sits even closer to your frame or fork. Now 15mm fork axles drop the head washer altogether, while the 12mm axles come with either a new flat head+nylon washer or an integrated conical alloy head. The new heads all also shift to larger 6mm hex tooling (vs. 5mm) for more secure & more durable tightening.
Inside, the thru-axles’ variable thickness profile has been reshaped & optimized to save weight without decreasing stiffness. Real weight savings seem small, maybe 1-4g depending on sizes. But when you are talking about axle weights from 30-35g, that’s still nice to see.
Color-wise, Carbon-Ti had already offered the axles in their standard seven anodized colors – black, acid green, blue, silver, green, red & gold – but now also adds a matte black option for a slightly stealthier setup.
The new axles also get updated laser-etched graphics that list the full dimension details to keep axles straight.
Carbon-Ti X-Lock Evo thru-axles – Pricing, options & availability
The new Carbon-Ti X-Lock Evo thru-axles come in a total of twenty-two possible sizes – 8 sizes up front for 12 & 15mm fork axles including Fox & RockShox Boost suspension, and 14 rear for most all of the 12mm axle frame standards.
Carbon-Ti specifically calls out compatibility with popular road & gravel bikes from brands like Bianchi, Colnago, Scott, Specialized & Trek, where they also say cyclists can benefit from “substantial weight reduction compared to the original component”. On each axle’s page Carbon-Ti includes a list of specific models on which they have verified fits. But they also have detailed dimensional drawings of every axle so buyers can check compatibility with many other bikes as well.
The new Made-in-Italy 7075 alloy Carbon-Ti X-Lock Evo thru-axles sell for 68€ no matter the size or color, and are available now through Carbon-Ti’s international dealers and partner bike shops.
