Will a Boost 148 rear wheel fit my 135mm frame?
By Crankworthy · Published · Updated
No. A Boost rear hub is 148mm wide and built for a 12mm thru-axle; a quick-release frame is 135mm wide with open slots, not axle holes. That is two mismatches, not one. Buy a 135mm quick-release rear wheel instead.
The numbers
| Quick-release mountain bike frame | 135 mm |
|---|---|
| 12mm thru-axle frame | 142 mm |
| Boost frame (12mm thru-axle) | 148 mm |
| Boost hub in a 135mm frame: too wide by | 13 mm (6.5 per side) |
Where on your bikeRear axle and dropouts
Why
Rear spacing is the distance between the inside faces of the frame’s dropouts, where the hub’s locknuts sit. Quick-release mountain bike frames are 135mm; Boost frames are 148mm and take a 12mm thru-axle [1].
Width is the first problem: the hub is 13mm wider than the gap it has to fit. The axle is the second: a thru-axle passes through a hole, while a quick-release frame ends in an open slot [1]. Fixing one still leaves the other.
Re-spacing is not the way round it. Aluminium and carbon frames must not be re-spaced at all [1]. A steel frame can be cold-set wider by a frame builder [1] — but its dropouts are still slots, not the holes a 12mm thru-axle needs.
How to check on your bike
- Look at the rear axle
- A lever, or a nut on a thin rod through the hub, is a quick release. A thick axle that threads into the frame through a hole is a thru-axle.
- Measure the spacing
- With the wheel out, measure between the inside faces of the rear dropouts. About 135mm is a quick-release frame; 142mm or 148mm is a thru-axle frame.
Skip
- Don’t buy: a Boost 148 rear wheel for this frame
- Instead: a 135mm quick-release rear wheel.
- Don’t buy: a re-spacing job on an aluminium or carbon frame
- Instead: nothing — keep the frame’s spacing and buy the wheel to match it.
Bikes this applies to
From our research, these bikes are listed by their maker with a 135mm quick-release rear axle — a Boost 148 wheel will not fit any of them.
- 2024 Trek Verve 1 Disc — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek Allant+ 7 — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek Allant+ 7 Lowstep — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek Allant+ 8 — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek Dual Sport 2 Gen 4 — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek FX 1 Stagger — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek FX 3 Disc Gen 3 — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
- 2023 Trek Verve+ 2 Lowstep — 135x5mm QR maker’s spec page
What this needs that we don’t stock
We don’t stock 135mm quick-release rear wheels, so there is no part to link here. When you buy one, match three things to your bike: 135mm quick-release spacing, the freehub your cassette sits on, and — on a disc-brake bike — your rotor mount (six-bolt or Center Lock).