Bicycle Mechanics - Taking off neck of bike

I couldnt remove the bar that holds the handle bar. That part snapped and i tried to remove but it wont move. I removed all the brackets and stuff but still no luck. Is that part(neck) connected to the forks, like melted in/>?


http://upload.serverseed.com/pictars3/sssss.JPG

Yes, the head stem (or "goose neck", as we used used to call them) could be 'fused' to the fork due to corrosion.

You can try to twist the handle bars whilst holding the front wheel still between your legs, but make sure the bolt at the top of the "neck" (where the top yellow arrow is) is loose.

There are guys on this forum that know much more tech than I do, but I'd suggest squirting some WD40 down there to try to help free it up.

the thing that connects the handlebarb actually snapped so i cant get a good grip to turn it

hmmm....you might have to go the local bike shop.

If you haven't ridden the bike for a long time you really should check almost every bolt, but especially the seat post and the bottom bracket (the axle thingy that screws into the frame where the cranks bolt on).

Can you post a close-up picture of the snap?

the thing that connects the handlebarb actually snapped so i cant get a good grip to turn it

I'm assuming the bolt snapped due to corrosion. WD-40 it or some other penetrating stuff, PB something or other...If it snapped soon after you tried to loosen it, then the wedge is probably still "wedged" in the steerer of the fork. Can you remove the bolt from the stem (neck)? If so then you may be able to gently hammer the stem out of the headtube after lots of penetrating lube, perhaps screwing up the steerer at the same time. Other than that I don't know how you'd go about taking it off. Don't take my word for it though...someone else may have better info. Good luck!

Pipe wrench.
WD40, then smack it with the wrench-then attach-hold the wheel between your legs-crank the wrench>twisting and pulling upward.

It's called a quill stem I believe.

That part is the stem. When you say "that part snapped", what exactly snapped? The bolt, or the stem "body" itself? If the bolt is snapped, then the wedge that it pulls and tightens to the fork tube has probably fallen into the fork. If the stem still isn't coming out, then there has probably been some "electrolysis" going on over the decades, bonding the relatively soft stem and the relatively harder fork tube. Same thing happens, for example, between hard steel spark plug threads and soft aluminum cylinder heads. Straying further, I've got that problem right now with the hard-metal mainshaft of the demised rear wiper motor on my '96 Saturn and the soft-metal wiper arm to which it's splined.

Try holding the front wheel between your legs, and jerking (geez, this is getting to sound dirty...) the handlebar from side to side. ONLY do this if you know the stem bolt is loose or broken off. Also, I read somewhere (IIRC, somewhere else on this site) that ammonia will break the electrolytic bond between soft and hard metal parts. Heat might help, with the usual caveats.

Nice hat, BTW. Is that scented cat litter? If so, change to unscented; scented litter drives cats away from the box, and it's bad for them. Oh, and don't leave your tools on the floor.

First apply WD40 or whatever. Invert the bike and squirt it into the steerer tube, as well as down through the top.
Leave for a few days
Unscrew the bolt of the stem a couple of turns, but DO NOT remove it.
Tap down on the bolt. This will losten the wedge at the end of the bolt.
Turn the stem using a pipe wrench until you get some rotational movement, but dont bend the frame.
You can then slide out the stem.
I think Sheldon Brown has some drastic action on his website.

http://upload.serverseed.com/pictars3/DSC01992.JPG

I just applied some WD40 onto it and im gonna give it a few minutes.
Im definetely going to try tapping it out like you said MichaelW.

Also i've tried turning it upside down and smacking it out, but no luck.

update it finally got loose after a couple of hard smacks. look at the rust on this baby.

anyways in the process of smacking this thing fell out, i assume is that part where the bolt is connected to. now which way do i put it back. because its smaller on one side and bigger on the other.
http://upload.serverseed.com/pictars3/DSC01993.JPG
http://upload.serverseed.com/pictars3/DSC01994.JPG

That is the expander wedge. It is part of the stem, not the fork, so it won't go back in. The new stem will have one of it's very own. Remember to grease the stem before inserting it into the steerer tube. ALso, do not overtorque the stem bolt when you tighten it. You want it to give if you crash, so the stem and bars don't snap instead.

BTW, when you get a new stem, you might want to consider one that looks like this (http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?sku=10926). Look at the enlarged picture, and you'll notice there are two bolts for the part that holds the handlebar.

I'm guessing you tried to take the handlebar off by prying open the stem. Some stems will do that, some won't. Yours didn't; oh well. The tedious method is to take everything off one side of the bar (tape, brake lever, etc.) and slide the bar of the stem. A way to save that trouble is to get a "front-load" stem like the one referenced here. By being able to take off both bolts, and the front "half" of the section that holds the bar, you can put a bar on and take it off without disturbing anything else on the bar. One disadvantage is that, with the extra bolt, it's a bit heavier.

I'm not recommending this particular model of stem, or this vendor. I just found it as a reference.

hmmm....you might have to go the local bike shop.

If you haven't ridden the bike for a long time you really should check almost every bolt, but especially the seat post and the bottom bracket

Yeah, at LEAST check the stuff that goes into the frame, like the seat post and, if you can be bothered, the bottom bracket.

I usually consider wheels and brakes to be more important to check than anything else. :)