hazelnutracer

howdy folks,
first time poster. my name is Steven. i've recently purchased a used Sampson titanium road bike with Look carbon fork and quill type stem. it's stuck. previous owner claims to know nothing about it. i've drowned it with penetrating oil from top and bottom. i tapped the expander bolt with a hammer and the wedge dropped down the steerer tube. carefully put forks in bench vice with wood blocks and whacked stem with hammer on each side and bottom. still not budging. i'd like to save the stem but don't have to as i plan to use the one off my old bike. what's my next step? any help is greatly appreciated. thanks.

moxfyre

Welcome Steven! It sounds to me like you've tried the right things. Just a few more?

Did you let the penetrating oil soak in for several DAYS? Have you tried putting the stem in the vice, and then attempting to ROTATE the whole bike around it? As soon as you can get some rotational motion in the stem, it's as good as free, because you can start squirting oil down around the sides and before you know it you'll be able to pull it out.

unworthy1

Do you know what material the steerer is made of? If you have an alloy stem in an alloy steerer then I don't think penetrating oil will do much, cause you will be dealing with AL corrosion and ammonia is more effective against that. You might also have luck with a mild phosphoric acid solution.

hazelnutracer

thanks maxfyre & unworthy1,
i'll try the stem in the vice and research what materials i'm working with. i'll be back, good or bad.

hazelnutracer

still stuck. I called Look and a tech told me it was probably aluminum and recommended heat with a torch. anyone tried this before? any tips before I set my bike on fire? I can borrow a torch from work, but i'm gonna give the ammonia a try first.