bottom bracket need to be tightened-which tools?

[Guy Tedesco]

i have a mongoose crossway 250 and need to tighten the bb. i think i need a crank remover,pin
spanner, and lockring wrench. i just wanted to check with you gguys first before i start buying
tools i might not need.-guy from long island

 

[Peter TøNnesen]

"guy tedesco" <[email protected]> skrev i en meddelelse
news:[email protected]...
> i have a mongoose crossway 250 and need to tighten the bb. i think i need a crank remover,pin
> spanner, and lockring wrench. i just wanted to check with you gguys first before i start buying
> tools i might not need.-guy from long island

Its a nice thing to have your own tools But, it would be easier to get your LBS to do it, they
might do it for free. No matter what, its cheaper than buying special tools you might use once per
year But again, its nice to have yor own tools.

You have to know what BB thats on your bike, so you can buy the right tool for your BB.

For help look here:

http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/FAQcartdg.shtml

and for the tools you need:

http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/BBTools.shtml

Off course it doesnt have to be Park tool, just to show you the tools, theres a lot of cheaper
alternatives, but if you buy the tool, dont the cheapest...

Good luck Peter

 

[David L. Johnso]

On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 23:38:48 +0000, guy tedesco wrote:

> i have a mongoose crossway 250 and need to tighten the bb. i think i need a crank remover,pin
> spanner, and lockring wrench. i just wanted to check with you gguys first before i start buying
> tools i might not need.-guy from long island

Unless it has a cup and cone style bottom bracket, you should not need a pin spanner. That is a tool
from a bygone era. That also applies to the lockring wrench.

Modern bottom brackets are sealed units. There is a splined tool that fits between the axle and
the assembly; this depends on the brand; not of the bike, but the bottom bracket (same, usually,
as the cranks).

Mongoose is a fairly modern brand, I think. Unless it is several years old, it has a cartridge
bottom bracket. If it is several years old, then, yes, maybe you need the lockring tool and pin
spanner, but in all likelihood you got that out of an old book like Forester's.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | The lottery is a tax on those who fail to understand _`\(,_ | mathematics. (_)/ (_) |

 

[Andrew Webster]

[email protected] (guy tedesco) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> i have a mongoose crossway 250 and need to tighten the bb. i think i need a crank remover,pin
> spanner, and lockring wrench. i just wanted to check with you gguys first before i start buying
> tools i might not need.-guy from long island

I can't comment on this particular bike.

IMHO BB maintenance (non-cartrige BBs of course)can be done without these (but crank remover is a
tool everyone should have - see below).

If all you want to do is adjust the BB then you don't need to remove the cranks (though a loose old
BB would probably benefit from an internal inspection, clean and grease) - but a crank puller is a
useful tool to have, so I would get one. An old BB going loose can be due to excessive wear and
tear, if you take it apart you will see, otherwise, if you tighten it and the BB wears loose again
in a few weeks then it is probably worn out.

C-spanners aren't really needed to remove/tighten the lockring. I use an old file with a large, flat
end to it, sit it (tangentially) in the lockring notch so that I have loosen by gently hammering.
This has never failed. Tigtening is the same. Of course you risk damaging the notch in the ring, but
this has never caused me problems.

Pin spanners are IMHO(experience a long time ago) less than robust. Use a punch or a (bluntish) nail
to undo/tighten the adjustable cup.

On the fixed cup side I use a large adjustable spanner. It took a couple of hardware shops to find
one big enough. I use this for headsets also.

I know many will disagree, and I know that the right tool for the right job is generally a sound
adage, but with increasing use of cartrige BBs it really isn't worth investing in these just to
maintain a BB on an old bike.

There, now I will duck down behind the parapet and await the barage.

 

[Robin Hubert]

"David L. Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 23:38:48 +0000, guy tedesco wrote:
>
> > i have a mongoose crossway 250 and need to tighten the bb. i think i need a crank remover,pin
> > spanner, and lockring wrench. i just wanted to check with you gguys first before i start buying
> > tools i might not need.-guy from long island
>
> Unless it has a cup and cone style bottom bracket, you should not need a pin spanner. That is a
> tool from a bygone era. That also applies to the lockring wrench.
>
> Modern bottom brackets are sealed units.

Bzzzt ... not "sealed", necessarily, but more properly called "cartridge" units. Let's make sure the
OP doesn't learn misleading terms. There's enough of that in cycling.

>There is a splined tool that fits between the axle and the assembly; this depends on the brand; not
>of the bike, but the bottom bracket (same, usually, as the cranks).
>
> Mongoose is a fairly modern brand, I think. Unless it is several years old, it has a cartridge
> bottom bracket. If it is several years old, then, yes, maybe you need the lockring tool and pin
> spanner, but in all likelihood you got that out of an old book like Forester's.
>

--
Robin Hubert <[email protected]

 

[David L. Johnso]

On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 17:14:11 +0000, Robin Hubert wrote:

>> Unless it has a cup and cone style bottom bracket, you should not need a pin spanner. That is a
>> tool from a bygone era. That also applies to the lockring wrench.
>>
>> Modern bottom brackets are sealed units.
>
> Bzzzt ... not "sealed", necessarily, but more properly called "cartridge" units. Let's make sure
> the OP doesn't learn misleading terms. There's enough of that in cycling.

My bad. What was I thinking?

--

David L. Johnson

__o | What is objectionable, and what is dangerous about extremists is _`\(,_ | not that they are
extreme, but that they are intolerant. (_)/ (_) | --Robert F. Kennedy