anybody know of any good ways to remove rusted seatposts? a lot of the bikes i'm goin to be working with are rusted to heck with the seatpost still in them. on my first build i could only get it to move down by hammering it and using penetrating oil. haven't tried any other bikes but i'm sure they're just as bad. any tips?
rusted seatpost removal
- Thread starter skillet
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What kind of penetrating oil did you use?
If the post is going to get replaced I have drilled a large hole thru it and used a bar like a T handle to twist it out.
I had one I could not remove, but it was an aluminum post in a steel frame which when it reacts I think is far worse than any rust. Probably not an issue in this case though.
If the post is going to get replaced I have drilled a large hole thru it and used a bar like a T handle to twist it out.
I had one I could not remove, but it was an aluminum post in a steel frame which when it reacts I think is far worse than any rust. Probably not an issue in this case though.
If you're not yet familiar with Sheldon Brown's website check it out. I think it ought to be in everyones favorites. A lot of good information there. Here's his suggestions for stuck seat posts http://www.sheldonbrown.com/stuck-seatposts.html
Good luck.
Good luck.
skillet said:
steel or aluminum?
if it's aluminum, don't use heat...you'll make matters worse. use ammonia.
I had a steel one stuck REALLY bad. I tried everythin on Sheldon's site with no luck. I ended up cutting it flush with the seat tube and then drilling it...not fun.
when I find an old rat to be I soak it...... soak it good in pb blaster and loosen seat bolt and stem bolt and soak some more then I put the bike in the garage and forget about it and when the time comes to ressurect it all is free 
Re:
PB Blaster, the best stuff in the world for loosening anything rusted or stuck.
I just used it on an old seat post the other day and it came right out! Same thing for stuck grips.
Forget about WD-40!
Hooch said:
PB Blaster, the best stuff in the world for loosening anything rusted or stuck.
I just used it on an old seat post the other day and it came right out! Same thing for stuck grips.
Forget about WD-40!
check the stickies this has been covered many times :wink:
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2599
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2599
i've had some luck by turning the frame upside down and clamping the seat post in a good bench vise. if there's a hole where the seat tube connects to the bottom bracket, spray penetrating oil inside, and then use the frame itself for leverage to help loosen the post.
The biggest problem is getting a strong grip on the post itself. They're round and smooth and slippery.
Use the seat clamp or a clamp piece from a junk seat. You can put the clamp into a vise, or put a junk seat on it really tight and put that in the vise, and use the FRAME for leverage- twisting and pulling the frame off the post.
Even with all these things, and PB Blaster at my disposal (GREAT stuff, we use it in my paper mill where EVERYTHING is rusted solid), I had one that would NOT come out. I had a '68 Stingray that had been ridden in mud (maybe underwater? I dunno) as a BMX bike. The post was most of the way down and stuck bad. I even drilled into it through the bottom bracket, with the frame all stripped, and tried to drive it out with a punch from the bottom! No luck.
I ended up with it clamped up, wrapped in rags of course, held in an industrial floor-model drill press, and a 13/16" extra long drill bit way down inside the frame to remove it. I had probably 10 or 11 inches of post to remove. Ugly. But I had tried for a year to remove it some other way. Even used a bare hacksaw blade down the inside... cut a couple inches but to no avail.
I saved the original paint though...
--Rob
Use the seat clamp or a clamp piece from a junk seat. You can put the clamp into a vise, or put a junk seat on it really tight and put that in the vise, and use the FRAME for leverage- twisting and pulling the frame off the post.
Even with all these things, and PB Blaster at my disposal (GREAT stuff, we use it in my paper mill where EVERYTHING is rusted solid), I had one that would NOT come out. I had a '68 Stingray that had been ridden in mud (maybe underwater? I dunno) as a BMX bike. The post was most of the way down and stuck bad. I even drilled into it through the bottom bracket, with the frame all stripped, and tried to drive it out with a punch from the bottom! No luck.
I ended up with it clamped up, wrapped in rags of course, held in an industrial floor-model drill press, and a 13/16" extra long drill bit way down inside the frame to remove it. I had probably 10 or 11 inches of post to remove. Ugly. But I had tried for a year to remove it some other way. Even used a bare hacksaw blade down the inside... cut a couple inches but to no avail.
I saved the original paint though...
--Rob
I havent had to deal with a stuck seat post, but after reading Sheldon's advice (all good stuff) and thinking about it for a bit... I bet an autobody slide hammer would work wonders on something like this if you could rig a way for the slide hammer to grip the post.
Someone said above if the post is still sticking up, you could drill a hole through it and insert a screwdriver to rotate it. well maybe something along the same lines except attach the slide hammer to the screwdriver.
Someone said above if the post is still sticking up, you could drill a hole through it and insert a screwdriver to rotate it. well maybe something along the same lines except attach the slide hammer to the screwdriver.
Ratfink1962 said:
I've never tried this, but it sounds like an awesome idea. ^^^ If a good length of the post is out of the frame (again, never tried this), I would think you could weld a junky bar of some kind across it really well and use it like a t-handle. What I've always done in the past is to soak the post really well with Aero kroil "Kreeping Oil" (I love that stuff- http://www.kanolabs.com/google/) and then strip the frame bare, clamp the end of the seat post in the vice until it's squished out flat, and then turn the frame around the post. I went too fast once and almost sheared the post off- if it is still stuck real good, you can just sort of wiggle the frame around it a little bit- that's what finally broke mine free to the point where I could turn the frame completely around, and then off, of the post.
I read this trick on another forum, and tried it yesterday, and it worked like a charm. As long as the seat post is 7/8, take a BMX or MTB style stem, and bolt it onto the post. Then put the forks on the stem and tighten everything down. Had a buddy hold the frame steady and pushed on the forks. Got the stuck post free like it was nothing.
How about this stuck seat post in the tube. Its a pipe, a water pipe that some fool pounded into the post. The slide hammer?? I have dumped lube into it and used heat and wouldn't twist out. I could try to use the slide hammer. Any one else use it???
i would take a big nut, weld it to the top of the post, screw in some threaded rod, put a weight on(like 10 pounds) and weld on a plate for the weight to hit (thick, like 3/8" to 1/2" plate), spray it good with penetrating oil, and pull up on the weight, like a homemade slide hammer. worked on a stuck stem i had.
Most of the time I can get them out. Remove crank , turn upside down fill seat tube with PB Blaster for at least two weeks. Put seat post top in a Heavy Duty Vise and use the frame for leverage. Alum. seat post I use amonnia to break the bond. I had one that I just could not get out in a cycletruck . I drilled a hole in the bottom bracket Took a five foot solid rod , just a little smaller than the seat post tube and pounded it out .( good thing my neighbor is a blacksmith) then welded the hole back closed. Don`t try this unless it is a last resort , but it worked.
