Re: Help with disaster cotter pin



[I note that Google Groups is still acting weird. It didn't respond to
an attempt to Reply earlier today. But I'll try...]

Thanks, folks, for the help with the jammed cotter. We got it done!

Here's how the (frustrating) process went to the happy ending:

1. Try to whack out pin, no budge, Park tool doesn't budge, pin
mushrooms, heavy hammering with various punches doesn't budge.
2. Saw off both sides of pin, drill out partly with drill-press, drill
thru with smaller bit at outside of hole to avoid spindle. More punch
and chisel attempt, no go.
3. Simultaneously consult with you nice people. : )
4. See Jobst's mention of testing for arm alignment. Arms are aligned
but this concept makes me think that working the arms might loosen the
remaining fragment. I reinstall wheels and stand on arms, with some
bounce, from either side. IT DOES! Fragment falls out.
5. Everything is fine. New pin.

(The only reason I attempted this was to try to ship a very
large-framed bike at optimal low rates. I would now try to avoid
removing old cottered cranks no matter what! This one was on a fresh,
lightly used, clean bike---but still stuck!)

--JP
allbikemag.com
 
<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> [I note that Google Groups is still acting weird. It didn't respond to
> an attempt to Reply earlier today. But I'll try...]
>
> Thanks, folks, for the help with the jammed cotter. We got it done!
>
> Here's how the (frustrating) process went to the happy ending:
>
> 1. Try to whack out pin, no budge, Park tool doesn't budge, pin
> mushrooms, heavy hammering with various punches doesn't budge.
> 2. Saw off both sides of pin, drill out partly with drill-press, drill
> thru with smaller bit at outside of hole to avoid spindle. More punch
> and chisel attempt, no go.
> 3. Simultaneously consult with you nice people. : )
> 4. See Jobst's mention of testing for arm alignment. Arms are aligned
> but this concept makes me think that working the arms might loosen the
> remaining fragment. I reinstall wheels and stand on arms, with some
> bounce, from either side. IT DOES! Fragment falls out.
> 5. Everything is fine. New pin.
>
> (The only reason I attempted this was to try to ship a very
> large-framed bike at optimal low rates. I would now try to avoid
> removing old cottered cranks no matter what! This one was on a fresh,
> lightly used, clean bike---but still stuck!)
>
> --JP
> allbikemag.com
>


Most cotter pins were/are soft and keep loosening up with heavy use. We
used to get hardened cotters that worked very well and stayed tight. You
might want to do a search and see if you can find any of these types of
cotters.

Chas.
 

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