How to remove headset cups from Cannondale SR800 frame?
12-04-13, 09:06 PM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Evanston, IL
Posts: 5,094
Bikes: many
Mentioned: 63 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1444 Post(s)
Liked 1,392 Times
in
760 Posts
How to remove headset cups from Cannondale SR800 frame?
I bought a Cannondale SR800 recently for its parts. My intent is to sell the frame and only enough parts necessary to break even. One of those nice parts is a Campy Super Record headset. The only problem is that the headtube on these bikes is thick, then reamed at both ends to accept normal 1" headset cups. The thick center section extends almost all the way to the cup flanges at each end, so the usual flared headset cup removal tool can't expand and doesn't catch on the cups.
I don't want to wreck either part. An earlier thread suggested that Biketools Etc has a set of snap rings that will fit in there to allow a normal tool to do its magic, but I couldn't find it on their website. (I might scout around at my local hardware store to see if they have something in that vein.) I was thinking a bit of heat (hair dryer or heat gun on low) might expand the aluminum just enough to allow me to tap the cups from the outside using a screwdriver and hammer without damaging the cups or the frame. Before I resort to that, I thought I'd check here first.
I don't want to wreck either part. An earlier thread suggested that Biketools Etc has a set of snap rings that will fit in there to allow a normal tool to do its magic, but I couldn't find it on their website. (I might scout around at my local hardware store to see if they have something in that vein.) I was thinking a bit of heat (hair dryer or heat gun on low) might expand the aluminum just enough to allow me to tap the cups from the outside using a screwdriver and hammer without damaging the cups or the frame. Before I resort to that, I thought I'd check here first.
12-04-13, 10:38 PM
#2
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Rochester, NY
Posts: 18,092
Bikes: Stewart S&S coupled sport tourer, Stewart Sunday light, Stewart Commuting, Stewart Touring, Co Motion Tandem, Stewart 3-Spd, Stewart Track, Fuji Finest, Mongoose Tomac ATB, GT Bravado ATB, JCP Folder, Stewart 650B ATB
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4208 Post(s)
Liked 3,874 Times
in
2,314 Posts
Forget the heat. At the hardware store look for a long bolt or spike (nail). File or grind the head to a flat head screw shape. The length needs to be long enough to stick out the head tube end while the edge of the spike/bolt fit's under the headset's skirt. Then wack away bit by bit around the cup's skirt and walk out the cup. Andy.
12-10-13, 06:52 PM
#3
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Evanston, IL
Posts: 5,094
Bikes: many
Mentioned: 63 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1444 Post(s)
Liked 1,392 Times
in
760 Posts
Andy, thanks for the recommendation. It took me awhile to get up the nerve, but I did the deed this evening. I actually used a couple dull long handled screwdrivers. They might have been a bit harder than a bolt, but I was proceeding very cautiously. The upper race (the one with the holes on an SR headset) came out just fine. The lower race (alloy with a pressed in steel race) is a bit dinged up, but not terribly much. A little time with a small file and some emery cloth will clean it up. I plan to install this headset on my Redcay anyway. I'll sell the Athena headset it came with. It's an odd-looking beast to my eye. The frame looks none the worse for wear.
