Mountain Biking - How to take out Cassettes?

I dont need any service on mine yet, but I was just wondering if there is any "ghetto" way to take the cassettes out yourself. I'm the kind of "do-it-yourself" guy and dont like to go to shop unless it's really neccesary.

try Park Tool's Guide (http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=48)

http://www.coomber.co.uk/gifs/ProdSptStock/Cassette_loading.gif

and no, there isn't a good ghettofix without mangling up your lockring. You need the lockring tool and a chainwhip.

Actually you can get by w/o a chain whip if you have an old chain and a bit of McGyver in ya. You do need the lockring tool though.

Why would you need to service your cassette (or cassette's as you put it)? Your cassette is a cluster of cog's/gears that you clean when it's dirty and replace when it's worn out. There are bearings inside the hub and lots of parts in the freewheel assembly. Is that what you're talking about?

To remove the cassette you will need a Park or Shimano lockring tool. Shimano is better. Then you need a method to keep the cassette body from moving as you loosen the lockring. The other tool required is the chain whip. As said before you can use some old chain to hold the cassette. Also, I have used a rag and my hand to keep the cassette from moving. This may or may not work because the range of allowable tork (lockring) is quite wide so it may be tight (requries the proper tool) or not really tight.

NIce nice I c ic... so there's no "Home Depot do it yourself" way. I was curious because stupid LBS can charge you like $20 for allen wrenches when you can get the same freaking thing at Home Depot for fraction of the price. I just want to know in advance like.. if I rip a tooth out from one of the gears, how will i able to take it out. so yea.. thanks for all the info!

I was curious because stupid LBS can charge you like $20 for allen wrenches when you can get the same freaking thing at Home Depot for fraction of the price.

Never mind that your (former) local hardware store couldn't compete on price with Home Depot either...:rolleyes:

Chances are the tools at the bike shop are Park, which in cycling makes them the equivalent of Snap-On (including a commensurately higher price). Most people don't see a difference, but some do - including the mechs at your LBS.

As with most things worth keeping, you get what you pay for.

I mean.. I'm not extreme enough to get Home Depot chain for my bike. I'm just saying... simple tools like hex wrenches (3mm and 5mm), pipe cutter for fork, cable cutter, and some other stuff, can be picked up at Home Depot for a great low price compare to LBS. Yea I understand LBS needs to make profits to survive, but so do I =P

you should be able to find a lockring tool and chainwhip for pretty darn cheap. I have a nashbar one of each, and I use them all the time, neither has failed me yet.

Also: I have those little folding sets of hex wrenches in standard and metric from home depot. I've never found those at a bike store that don't also have tons of other tools on them. I like to keep my tools seperate if possible, like my peas and my mashed potatoes.

You could get away with the chainwhip, but it would be a pain in the butt trying to hold down the larger chain rings while you undo the smaller chain rings. Your definitely going to need the tool to unlock the smaller rings. The reason I'm saying this is I just did this today on a wheel.

Your going to want to put the lock ring tool into the cassette, after taking off the skewer. You use the chain whip to hold the larger chain rings in place, while you rotate the lock ring tool counter clock wise to unlock it. Sorry, if I reiterated anyones posts, as I didn't bother reading previous posts :)

Buy a toolkit, it will have a lockring remover and a chain whip.

http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/14585-325_SET215-2-Accessories-42-Tools/Sette-Torx-ST-21-Tool-Kit---21-Tools.htm
http://www.pricepoint.com/images/styleImages/D_325%20SET215.jpg

The "ghetto" way to remove it would be to get a hacksaw and chop through the gap between the cassette body and the drive side flange.

I mean.. I'm not extreme enough to get Home Depot chain for my bike. I'm just saying... simple tools like hex wrenches (3mm and 5mm), pipe cutter for fork, cable cutter, and some other stuff, can be picked up at Home Depot for a great low price compare to LBS. Yea I understand LBS needs to make profits to survive, but so do I =P

Pipe cutter for the fork steerer? What's wrong with a hacksaw?

pipe cutter makes a nicer, square cut

hacksaw can cut it very unevenly. but the pipe cutter you just clamp it on, make a few rounds, and you're done. but you still need it to file the edges.

pipe cutter makes a nicer, square cut
it can also flare out the cut edge a bit ... (speaking from experience).

i'd recommend the hacksaw. if you're worried about uneven cuts, i'd suggest looking into getting a cutting guide.

I believe the moral here is....use the right tools or mess up your stuff.

I use almost all ghetto tools. A MacGuyvered chainwhip works fine (actually better, I macguyvered one because I broke the lever on the park one, stupid thin metal) But generally for those types of areas the right tool for sure. BB, and Cassette especially.

I prefrer a pipe cutter for the steerer. I found it cut faster and made it more even. Then a few quick brushes with a circle file and the flares were gone.