good condition overall, just lacking trucks and couplers. pm me for questions or concerns. Can only ship on Saturdays.

This week on Tech Film Noir, we're watching Weird Science (1985), John Hughes's hormone-fueled Frankenstein story that asked the ultimate 80s question: can a half-megabyte of RAM generate the perfect…

This week on Tech Film Noir, we're watching Weird Science (1985), John Hughes's hormone-fueled Frankenstein story that asked the ultimate 80s question: can a half-megabyte of RAM generate the perfect…

Dave Rome When set up and running correctly, hydraulic disc brakes can be a marvel of modern engineering. They work by transferring a leveraged amount of fluid from the lever, down the hose, and into the pistons at the calliper, pushing onto the pads to slow the bike. Many cyclists don’t think much about the juice inside of their brakes. And yet, there is a large market interested in ways to more easily disconnect the lever from the caliper, ideally without losing the fluid inside or introducing air in the process. This is where hydraulic hose couplers, otherwise known as line splitters, come in. Such couplers were originally designed to make bike assembly easier from the factory, but quickly found demand in making a bike more travel-friendly – or for the real niche purpose of allowing easy handlebar or fork swaps on a multi-purpose bike. Recently, significant demand and interest has come from riders seeking an easier answer to servicing bikes with integrated headset-based cable routing. A few months ago I got my hands on the most intriguing and exciting coupler available, the second-generation Q-Connector from the Taiwan-based company Zeno. Let’s dive in. ****The short of it:**** Compact hydraulic disc brake hose decouplers that open doors to easier travel, faster component swaps, or in some cases, easier future servicing. ****Highs:**** Impressively small, light, and reliable. No tools or small pieces involved once fitted. Well-priced for what they are. ****Lows:**** Not a silver bullet to headset cable routing woes. Couplers lack grip in use. Supply and purchasing is a bit patchy. ## What they are The concept of a disc brake hose coupler is simple, but given the size restraints, the execution is tough. When connected, a good coupler should work as if it's not there, allowing unobstructed fluid flow. It also, most certainly, should not leak. The challenge is to offer a design that ideally allows tool-free hose separation, in a form factor that closely mimics the slender 5 mm diameter of a bicycle disc brake hose. Historically, such couplers may have ticked the tool-free box, but sure haven’t met the minuscule mandate. Some connectors, such as No.22s, are only just small enough to fit inside the inner locking frame tube of a travel bike. Meanwhile, Formula’s SpeedLock and Zeno’s original Q-Connector were more comparable in size to a hose nut – still too big for some applications. Dedicated travel bikes with couplers in the frame tubes were the first aftermarket demand for disc hose couplers. Zeno’s Q-Connectors are now on generation two. This new version is less fiddly to use and offers a much slimmer profile. With a maximum diameter of 6.5 mm (6.2 mm claimed), it approaches the 5 mm outer diameter of a regular brake hose. Being slimmer doesn’t just look better, it opens the door to where you can fit these things and what they’ll fit through. These new V2 couplers are produced in a few formats, all available to suit common mineral oil or DOT fluid brakes. The slimmest option adds just 5.8 grams to a hose and creates a 45 mm straight, rigid junction when connected (more on this in a bit). The simplest and most popular way to get these slim Q-Connectors is with Zeno’s Pre-Pressed hoses; here, the couplers are factory-fitted onto long 3-metre lengths of hoses, ready for cutting and installation (using the compression fittings suggested by your brake manufacturer). The socket-side of the hose retails for US$37.50, while the pin side is US$31. You'll need one of each per brake. Zeno's Pre-pressed hoses (left/top) are the most popular option. Meanwhile, a Zeno dealer can install those same couplers (right/bottom) on existing hoses. The slim couplers can also be fitted to existing hoses, but only by a dealer with Zeno's dedicated crimping tool. Here, the couplers are threaded and then crimped onto existing hoses. These closely mimic the first option in final state (assuming the installation is done correctly). Zeno's crimp tool is only available to dealers. Zeno offers a few other iterations of its slimmest couplers, including one that directly attaches to the common M8 thread found in many popular mountain bike levers or calipers. There are also options that directly fit into common Shimano and SRAM dropbar levers. Then there is the DIY option (US$20.80-US$32.80 per piece). These install on your existing hoses with a similar barb and olive system that you may have used when cutting or fitting a brake hose in the past. While this option slots into your existing hoses and requires no proprietary tools for installation, its larger profile is more visible and has a maximum outer diameter of 9.5 mm, which may defeat the purpose for some. This DIY option will add approximately 12 g to a hose – a number hardly enough to worry about. Left/top image shows the shop-type crimp on Socket Side next to the larger DIY version. DIY connector pair shown in the right/bottom image. You can buy all options directly from Zeno's website (shipping from Taiwan) or through a short list of official dealers. At the time of writing, orders direct from Zeno tend to carry a two-week wait time. The Q-Connectors V2 have recently won a handful of design awards, which has certainly given the product notoriety, and Zeno is building out its distributor network. ## How they work ### This post is for subscribers only Become a member to get access to all content Subscribe now

Walking two dogs at once can be easier with a double dog leash, but they aren't suitable for all dogs depending on their training and behavior.

This week on Tech Film Noir, we're watching Weird Science (1985), John Hughes's hormone-fueled Frankenstein story that asked the ultimate 80s question: can a half-megabyte of RAM generate the perfect…

The automaker is trying to patent a forklift without a driver's seat, making room for couplers that allow the machines to form a conga line. The post Forget Your Certification: GM Wants to Automate Forklifts Now appeared first on The Drive.

This week on Tech Film Noir, we're watching Weird Science (1985), John Hughes's hormone-fueled Frankenstein story that asked the ultimate 80s question: can a half-megabyte of RAM generate the perfect…

This week on Tech Film Noir, we're watching Weird Science (1985), John Hughes's hormone-fueled Frankenstein story that asked the ultimate 80s question: can a half-megabyte of RAM generate the perfect…

The Microvascular Couplers Market is expected to grow from 800 USD Million in 2025 to 1,500 USD Million by 2035. The Microvascular Couplers Market CAGR (growth rate) is expected to be around 7.1% | Wi...

INNOTRANS: Alpha Trains and Wabtec’s Dellner subsidiary have signed an agreement to enter into negotiations on a long-term framework agreement for the overhaul of couplers used on the leasing company’s regional passenger train fleet. The planned agreement is intended to establish a long-term approach to the technical and commercial co-ordination of overhauls. It will enable…

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