stuck seatpost in carbon frame

ebola said:

anyone experienced this ?

My seatpost (alu) in my (carbon) scott cr1 refuses to adjust (even removing the clamp completely).
It's adjusted correctly for me fortunately but I was trying to let someone else ride it.

Anyone experienced a problem like this, and know how to remedy it.. I'm very reluctant to apply any force to it with the phrase 'Catastrophic Faliure' ringing though my mind..

do seatposts and other metalic bike parts expand/contract in heat much ?? it is pretty warm at the moment. or is it more likely to be dust having worked its way in?

( for the record i was trying to let the people in admin at the office ride it to pursuade them we need to sign up to this 'cyclescheme' thing and get tax-free bikes for staff... trying to explain to the uninitiated exactly why you need to spend 1000's on a bike and consequently potential 50% discounts are a good idea.. )

Oh boy, that sucks. Next time use a very small amount of grease. My carbon seatpost is stuck in my aluminum frame. I didn't use grease.

I'm not looking forward to getting it out, but I know how. Take the wheels off. Take the seat off. Turn the bike upside down. Take the business end of the seatpost and stick it in a vice attached to a work bench. Tighten the vice. Turn carefully. Have a spare frame before you start.

Best of luck and I hope someone has a better solution as mine is just plain ugly.

Hmmm. This could be a case of oxidized aluminum giving you a problem. Since AlO2 takes up more space than Al, a bit of corrosion will cause a nice interference fit. The typical remedy is to apply a coat of grease to the aluminum before installation, which prevents the oxidation from happening in the first place. However, I've heard that some types of grease don't react well with the epoxy and/or clear coat of carbon fiber. That could make an aluminum seatpost with a carbon frame a risky venture.

Usually, a good deal of mechanical force (i.e., whacking the hell out of it) will set seized parts free. Liberal amounts of heat also help. When all else fails, you can drill out the seat post, too. I'm not sure you want to do that here.

My suggestion is to contact Scott directly and see what they have to say about the whole thing.

John Swanson
www.bikephysics.com

ebola said:

anyone experienced this ?

My seatpost (alu) in my (carbon) scott cr1 refuses to adjust (even removing the clamp completely).
It's adjusted correctly for me fortunately but I was trying to let someone else ride it.

Anyone experienced a problem like this, and know how to remedy it.. I'm very reluctant to apply any force to it with the phrase 'Catastrophic Faliure' ringing though my mind..

do seatposts and other metalic bike parts expand/contract in heat much ?? it is pretty warm at the moment. or is it more likely to be dust having worked its way in?

( for the record i was trying to let the people in admin at the office ride it to pursuade them we need to sign up to this 'cyclescheme' thing and get tax-free bikes for staff... trying to explain to the uninitiated exactly why you need to spend 1000's on a bike and consequently potential 50% discounts are a good idea.. )

Ride it with the seat clamp bolts laxed (but dont remove), surely it'll budge.

Put an old saddle on and tap the nose to either side with a rubber mallet, the torque should loosen the bind or just tap the seat post itself on the side to break the bond.

Also you a large flat screwdriver, protected with electical tape to lever open ever so slightly the gap at the top of the seat tube. All you need to do is twist the screwdriver a little bit.

ok, after taking it to a shop - I mentioned the oxidation theory - they suggested the following (and reasured me 'it will move eventually..'😉

Spray WD-40 around the rim, leaving it overnight; repeat this for several days.

Before i do this - anyone know if this is going to be ok on carbon. they didn't seem to think so there but i read this above..

Quoted post said:

However, I've heard that some types of grease don't react well with the epoxy and/or clear coat of carbon fiber.

ebola said:

ok, after taking it to a shop - I mentioned the oxidation theory - they suggested the following (and reasured me 'it will move eventually..'😉

Spray WD-40 around the rim, leaving it overnight; repeat this for several days.

Before i do this - anyone know if this is going to be ok on carbon. they didn't seem to think so there but i read this above..

Hi

I'd email Calfee and ask for their advice, they seem to the most visible carbon frame repairers, they should be able to tell you what wd-40 could do to the frame internally. I've also read that certain mineral oils on bare carbon could damage the unprotected surface.

kleng said:

Hi

I'd email Calfee and ask for their advice, they seem to the most visible carbon frame repairers, they should be able to tell you what wd-40 could do to the frame internally. I've also read that certain mineral oils on bare carbon could damage the unprotected surface.

My carbon post became stuck in my steel frame. I tried the whole lubing, untightning the seat bolt thing to no avail. I finally had to have it cut out. The key going forward is to periodically exercise the seat post. Mark where you keep the seat post and every couple of weeks loosen the bolt and move the seat post around. It is the most effective thing you can do going forward to prevent it from happening again.

Ok thanks for the advice everyone,
I contacted Calfee and then Scott and they got back to me with this; good to know I wasn't being over-cautious on this one...

WD-40 could damage your frame due to the solvents.

Our European engineers recommend using the following product, but I don’t know if it’s readily available in the US. Wurth – rust-off-ice…maybe Checker or NAPA might know what it is or know where to find it??

Rostloeser
ROSTLOES-(ROST-OFF-ICE)-400ML
SABESTO

ebola said:

Ok thanks for the advice everyone,
I contacted Calfee and then Scott and they got back to me with this; good to know I wasn't being over-cautious on this one...

WD-40 could damage your frame due to the solvents.

Our European engineers recommend using the following product, but I don’t know if it’s readily available in the US. Wurth – rust-off-ice…maybe Checker or NAPA might know what it is or know where to find it??

Rostloeser
ROSTLOES-(ROST-OFF-ICE)-400ML
SABESTO

Here it is, tell us how it goes, hope it works.

autogeek.netwurooffice.htmlOpen ↗

Nooooo... dont ever use grease on any carbon components. The chemicals that make up grease break down the carbon.

http://www.velonews.com/tech/report/articles/9023.0.html

StartTday said:

Nooooo... dont ever use grease on any carbon components. The chemicals that make up grease break down the carbon.

http://www.velonews.com/tech/report/articles/9023.0.html

Those Gunnars are really cool.