Stuck bar end shifters

Evening people, I trust I find you all in good spirits.

I'm attempting to swap over Campag aero bar end shifters from some ITM TT bars to some Cinelli ones - on paper a simple and swift job. Alas, said shifters have been in the bars for over 10 years and the internal bracket simply will not be moved - soaked with wd40 overnight and will not move a mm.

so, any thoughts on how to get the bracket out from the bars without ruining either the bracket or the bars?? see attached picture - the near side is the bolt attached back into the bracket which is inside the tube, far side is what i'm attempting to remove from these blasted bars!!

thanks and a prosperous new year to all on RB...

Try something better than wd40. It's a water displacer rather than anything else. Try the same procedure but with Plus Gas.

Iwasgoodonce":3bsl3rlz said:

Try something better than wd40. It's a water displacer rather than anything else. Try the same procedure but with Plus Gas.

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magic that is precisely the sort of answer i wanted - thankyou very much - i shall order some right now.

I would also try heat shocking it by pouring boiling water over it and the bar tip. Often this will break the bond. A more drastic method is with a blowtorch, but not yet, gently doesn't it.

hamster":158w7a5t said:

I would also try heat shocking it by pouring boiling water over it and the bar tip. Often this will break the bond. A more drastic method is with a blowtorch, but not yet, gently doesn't it.

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Try this first? You never know. You only need the two materials to expand at very slightly different rates and out it'll pop.

boiling water was the first point of call - that's when I knew I was in for trouble getting the shifters out. really don't want to chop the bars up so it's plus gas or broke I reckon. will await the postman to deliver then leave it overnight and hopefully i'll be in business. doesn't help that the bracket is fairly deep down into the bar-ends - not the best design in the world given it's not something that needs servicing as such!

I've only ever dismantled the Shimano ones, but IIRC you have to tap the bolt in a little to break the wedge effect like a threaded stem. You have probably done this already if you are past the boiling water stage... :?

hamster":2ehd642t said:

I've only ever dismantled the Shimano ones, but IIRC you have to tap the bolt in a little to break the wedge effect like a threaded stem. You have probably done this already if you are past the boiling water stage... :?

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certainly did try that - haven't got much room to play with as the bracket is quite far into the bars. it moves further into the bars but when I try and pull outwards it gets stuck again, which is massively frustrating!

such a simple job and yet one of the most annoying things i've tried in a while - simply shouldn't be this much hassle

:roll: