Is the pic showing a home made tool?
Fixed cup removal (with pics)
- Thread starter rmwesley
- Start date
Dface
Retro Guru
No it’s purpose made. Never failed either.
Any ideas what you can do with an adjustable cup that is seized, of the type where you can’t remove the spindle? I.e no option of putting a large bolt through the holes? Have tried a punch in the pin holes and a hammer but nothing budging. Not bothered about re-using the bb or ruining the paintwork on the frame (am going to repaint it anyway once I get the bb out) but want to keep the threads in the frame intact. Is a blow torch worth a try?
bikeworkshop
Old School Grand Master
Have you removed the drive side cup?
Usually the cups are pressed over the axle bearing, and a sharp tap will knock the bearing and axle assembly free, if the opposing Cup has been removed first obvs.
Heating the frame will often loosen seized parts as the expansion at different rates forces the bond to break.
200⁰will burn the paint though, and sometimes it needs to be hotter than that.
Welding a bar across the bb cup face usually does it. The massive surge of energy/ heat helps break it free, and the bar acts as your release lever leaving the paint undamaged
Usually the cups are pressed over the axle bearing, and a sharp tap will knock the bearing and axle assembly free, if the opposing Cup has been removed first obvs.
Heating the frame will often loosen seized parts as the expansion at different rates forces the bond to break.
200⁰will burn the paint though, and sometimes it needs to be hotter than that.
Welding a bar across the bb cup face usually does it. The massive surge of energy/ heat helps break it free, and the bar acts as your release lever leaving the paint undamaged
No cups have been removed. I was just starting with the ‘easier’ one! I don’t have the means to weld a bar on to it sadly. I’m not worried about the paint, so might give the blow torch a go anyway. Thanks for the reply.Have you removed the drive side cup?
Usually the cups are pressed over the axle bearing, and a sharp tap will knock the bearing and axle assembly free, if the opposing Cup has been removed first obvs.
Heating the frame will often loosen seized parts as the expansion at different rates forces the bond to break.
200⁰will burn the paint though, and sometimes it needs to be hotter than that.
Welding a bar across the bb cup face usually does it. The massive surge of energy/ heat helps break it free, and the bar acts as your release lever leaving the paint undamaged
bikeworkshop
Old School Grand Master
Bolt the tool onto the axle end first, then grip it in a bench vice.
And don't forget to turn it the right way
And don't forget to turn it the right way
So glad I found this thread again. A brilliant post. 
Going to have a go with this method soon - possibly this weekend even - to remove this:
It's been impossible to find the right tool (and even what to look for to be honest) and my normal vice method would certainly not work (and besides I would need to mount my replacement one on the bench too
after an unfortunate incident with another fixed cup removal)
It's a thin walled fixed cup and the flats are super thin and made even thinner with a chamfered edge. Not a lot of beef on them at all - I've reluctantly been on the look out for a quality open ended spanner with totally parallel sides, but I sort of convinced myself it won't work.
I can't even use a normal socket either - a specialist one be would need to be found that does not pop up on Ebay.
It's French threaded pre-Stronglight which my sober brain hasn't yet figured how to go about it with this new method to me. It's been in there for a little over 70 years. I can't even see any witness marks on the flats so suspect a specialist tool carefully mounted, wine, fags and the Pope was involved.
Totally expecting to break something / generally make a mess.
Going to have a go with this method soon - possibly this weekend even - to remove this:
It's been impossible to find the right tool (and even what to look for to be honest) and my normal vice method would certainly not work (and besides I would need to mount my replacement one on the bench too
after an unfortunate incident with another fixed cup removal)It's a thin walled fixed cup and the flats are super thin and made even thinner with a chamfered edge. Not a lot of beef on them at all - I've reluctantly been on the look out for a quality open ended spanner with totally parallel sides, but I sort of convinced myself it won't work.
I can't even use a normal socket either - a specialist one be would need to be found that does not pop up on Ebay.
It's French threaded pre-Stronglight which my sober brain hasn't yet figured how to go about it with this new method to me. It's been in there for a little over 70 years. I can't even see any witness marks on the flats so suspect a specialist tool carefully mounted, wine, fags and the Pope was involved.
Totally expecting to break something / generally make a mess.
bikeworkshop
Old School Grand Master
You can fit an adjustable over the flats, put a square taper axle into the bb, space accordingly and bolt the spanner down so it can't ride up.
Heat it up for good measure.
Heat it up for good measure.
The large Facom adjustable big enough that the neighbour's got did not have parallel sides. A custom profiled wedge gizmo would need to be made of wood or something to keep it altogether like you say. I'm convinced by the design for this to come off a minimum of four flats would need contact (or actually all eight sides); so I'm rejecting the "grip / spanner / vice" way. Normally don't hesitate with a blow torch on welded frames but this is lugged and don't want to disturb anything really.
It's been a head scratcher so this method is very interesting.
I think I can cobble all the right diameter bits up too to at least have a go
bikeworkshop
Old School Grand Master
Id get some 4mm plate and cut the right size "square" in it, clamp it down from the axle end with a large socket.
You'd need a lever - the outside edges could be cut to match the wonky spanner?
In this scenario though, I'd just weld a long bar onto the cup.
The zapping of the 'letric usually breaks the bond, but with a couple of runs of mig and a metre- long bar, it will definitely come out
You'd need a lever - the outside edges could be cut to match the wonky spanner?
In this scenario though, I'd just weld a long bar onto the cup.
The zapping of the 'letric usually breaks the bond, but with a couple of runs of mig and a metre- long bar, it will definitely come out
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