Scoox Posted June 7, 2013 Report Share Posted June 7, 2013 (edited) Yesterday I went ahead and tried to remove my cranks from my old bike to be installed on my new bike. I removed the crank bolts and attempted to remove one side with a crank removal tool. I started turning the tool but it got jammed. Unscrewed the tool off and tried the other crank, exerting as much force as possible. No joy AND I partially stripped the threads on the crank. I took off the crank removal tool once more and looked closer. Then I noticed that the crank bolt washers hadn't come out with the bolt because they had become firmly attached to the cranks after one year of riding. Funny because I had applied ParkTool anti-seize compound. I tried prying the washers out with a screw driver but it wouldn't budge. Surely I am not the first one, so is there a way to get these suckers out? Edited July 22, 2019 by Scoox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blake Posted June 7, 2013 Report Share Posted June 7, 2013 Punch through the bb from the other side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoox Posted June 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 (edited) Eventually I used a 105x12mm rod and a 10mm steel ball, along with a crank removal tool. I plugged one end of the crank axle with a crank bolt, inserted the steel ball from the other side, then the rod. The rod was long enough so that it would stick out about 3-4mm past the stuck washer, this way the crank removal tool has something to push on. The diagram below shows the whole thing at work for removing the right-side crank. The green bit is the crank removal tool, the blue bits are the cranks. The black lines are the stuck washers, which are attached to the cranks. The washers may or may not come off. Once the crank is off it's easy to knock 'em out from the inside of the crank using a screw driver. Edited July 22, 2019 by Scoox 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoox Posted June 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 (edited) Also, on the crank removal tool, the bit that pushes onto the crank axle is usually held in place by a small screw so it's easy to remove (as shown below). This bit is only needed when pushing directly onto a hollow crank axle, i.e. with the steel rod inside the axle you don't need it, and then there's no chance of pushing against the stuck washer. Edited July 22, 2019 by Scoox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamR28 Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Good solution Lesson learned though, always check inside the cranks before using the crank puller tool! The washers get held in place by surface tension of the grease, then when you use the crank puller it deforms the washer and it sticks in the crank... It will come out with some careful tapping, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoox Posted December 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2015 (edited) Sh*t I need help! If you read my first post of this thread, back then I partially stripped the crank thread, the one that the removal tool screws onto. Today I needed to remove the crank to replace the freewheel, but apparently the amount of threading left over from the previous time wasn't enough and the crank removal tool basically came straight out, ripping through the threads. Now there's zero thread to hold onto.I've tried various tricks like inserting the removal tool at a slant but that didn't work. Now I'm stuck, can't remove the crank. I hope I don't need to Dremel it... On a related note, I am not convinced that the Park Tool anti-seize compound I used was very effective. I applied it to the BB axle and also the crank bolts. The crank bolt took a lot of torque to get turning and when it did it did so with a loud "clank" noise probably meaning thread seizure had already happened. Any recommendations on a tried-and-tested anti-seize compound? Edited February 21, 2016 by Scoox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamKidney Posted December 25, 2015 Report Share Posted December 25, 2015 I've been in the same situation. Bit rough arse like but I broke out the hammer. Wrapped the crank in an old cloth and hit it as close as I could to the BB end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCOTTY___ Posted December 25, 2015 Report Share Posted December 25, 2015 Never used a crank puller in my life. Copper mallet or a block of wood and a hammer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoox Posted December 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2015 If it comes off with the mallet pretty easily I may not bother getting new cranks. The crank has some gashes on it but it's still fine otherwise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CC12345678910 Posted December 26, 2015 Report Share Posted December 26, 2015 (edited) On 12/25/2015 at 8:40 AM, Scoox said: Now there's zero thread to hold onto.I've tried various tricks like inserting the removal tool at a slant but that didn't work. Now I'm stuck, can't remove the crank. I hope I don't need to Dremel it.. Use the washer bit from your crank puller and a small 3 arm bearing puller wrapped around your crank and freewheel inner body, i.e. as close to the bb axle you can get, but the pointy end on the threaded part has to be ground flat for it to work. Just apply medium-light tension with the puller and tap the back of the crank arm with a mallet at the pedal end, then repeat til it comes off. Edited December 26, 2015 by CC12345678910 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoox Posted February 21, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2016 (edited) In the end I used a long piece of wood and a hammer, it came off easier than I expected. For removing the freewheel I had the correct Echo freewheel removal tool with a big bolt+nut through it and a bench with a big vice, but the bench was not heavy enough and it kept spinning on the floor when using a lever, so I tried to use a soft mallet instead and I kinda buggered up the freewheel removal tool as the nut kept coming loose. In the end the freewheel wouldn't budge so I just went with new Echo TR splined cranks & freewheel plus liberal amounts of anti-seize compound everywhere. Thanks for all the tips anyway! Edited February 21, 2016 by Scoox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.thumb.png.bb8110430889ca4e55020e2e4b5a5123.png){kind=avatar}
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.