randalll

i really dont want to spend money on a removal tool as i'll only use it once.

ive tried everything thats been recommended so far... sprayed it with WD40. i've been using a screwdriver to connect with the cup, whilst hitting it with a hammer, that didn't work yesterday so i had a friend hold the frame and screwdriver down whilst i hit it with a large rock from the yard

still nothing, not the slightest movement.

is there anything else i can try?

thanks in advance

randall

Panthers007

Unless you wish to destroy them with hammers & screwdrivers...

https://www.biketoolsetc.com/index.cg...tem_id=IC-E221

JohnDThompson 

If you don't want to buy or make the proper tool yourself, take the frame to a shop and have them do it properly. It's false economy trying to remove them using the Fred Flintstone method.

DIYGUY

I have successfully removed these using a very simple technique. Find a largish wooden dowel, about a little less than and inch in diameter (so it will fit) and around 8 to 12 inches or so long. Sometimes an old broom handle will suffice. With the end cut square to the shaft of the dowel position it inside the steering tube on the lip of the cup. Tap the dowel with a hammer forcefully. Move it around and around while tapping it. You will see the cup start to emerge. Keep moving and tapping. It won't take very much effort or time for it to pop free. I use a rubber mallet to put them back. If you don't have a dowel handy a longish flat-bladed screwdriver can also do the job. Good luck!

angelo

Take it to a bike shop and pay them to remove in 2 minutes of labor.

It is not worth your time to struggle with it and if something goes "wrong", you will have trashed your fork or frame.

jccaclimber

Copper pipe cut 4 ways. However, the tools are pretty cheap, and the cost to have a shop do it is even cheaper. Last time I had a set of cups pulled out the guy did it for free, although that is a shop I was going to regularly at the time.

randalll

thanks for your replies, i'll try the dowel idea, if that doesnt work i'll take it to the LBS

peabodypride

You can build the tool with the proper piece of pipe (it has to be stronger than aluminum, but not steel) and some cuts.

tellyho

Buy the tool. I've used every other method, but for the $12 at Nashbar, that tool was the best money I ever spent.

surfengine

if the tool is only $12 then its worth just buying it.

i dont know about your LBS, but the ones near me would probably charge $30 to do the job.

DanBraden

I tried the copper pipe idea, and it didn't work so hot. The cuts were difficult to make, plus the pipe became deformed while I was hammering away (on both ends). Since it was copper, I didn't have to be too careful about damage to the frame or cups. In the end, a hefty piece of dowel did fair job. I WOULD NOT use a screw driver, if I effed up my frame I would be severely irked.

randalll

i wanted to do everything myself really.

it's a 3 year old Giant Rincon frame, the whole bike was £300 back then, so it's not worth a great deal and i don't want to spend anything on it as i've got a new bike to maintain.

all i want is to remove the cups, i dont mind if i completely ruin them i'm not going to keep them either way.

is there any way of destroying them without damaging the frame.

i've tried the other ideas without success, although i'm not sure i understood the dowel idea completely :S

the headset cups are plastic right?

what are their properties, are they brittle?

could i use a lighter to heat them up then try hammer them out?

i just want to get the damn things off by any means necessary

thanks

randall

DanBraden

37 seconds in, all will be made clear, and I really doubt they are plastic. How to remove a threadless headset:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbO8PDrKdP0. Those cups are a matter of force, don't be afraid to give them a good sharp whack.

Mike T.

I guess that's your privilege. I've used one for 5 decades without issue.

randalll

i did do, i hit them with a massive rock earlier

i dont have a clamp or workstand to put the frame in. im thinking a removal tool might not be effective if the frame isn't held still and has leeway to move under force

ideas?

id rather estroy the cups using another method if possible

DanBraden

Yup, my privilege, I would not. Could it be done? Yes. Would I do it? No. The rationale I heard about using softer materials than what my frame or cups were made of seemed to make good sense me.

randalll

for me it'd depend on how much the frame was worth, i wouldn't use a screwdriver on an expensive bike, but the giant frame is worth about £70 and its not the end of the world if it gets a scratch inside the frame

any ideas on how to destroy the cups?

i'll try anything if there's a chance it might work

Panthers007

The cups on my PUCH 3-speed presented no problem - they came out by themselves without an invitation. Fortunately I have a Cyclus headset-press.