provisional

So I just got this old road bike, circa late 70s I believe, and as soon as I test rode it, the wooden seat post snapped right off. How might I be able to remove the rest of this seat post? There's nothing left to grab on to.

StephenH

Maybe drill a hole in it, insert a large lag bolt, thread it in, and see if that lets you pull it out?

Sir Lunch-a-lot

Do you have a swiss army knife (or a knock off)? A lot of those have a corkscrew in them. Depending on how hard the wood is, you may be able to screw in (will take a while) and pull it out that way.

If you try StephanH's bold trick, I would suggest clamping onto the bolt with a pair of vicegrips once it is fully threaded (if you are not already using vicegrips to thread it) and twist the whole thing clockwise as you are pulling it up. In my experience, twisting while pulling/pushing helps things move that pulling or pushing on its own.

If you put the bike on its side to keep wood shavings from winding up in the bottom bracket (because in my experience, there is often a little hole leading from the seat post tube into the bottom bracket), you could also get a long boring drill bit (they are long bits designed for drilling very long holes through wood) that is a bit smaller than the seat post diameter, and drill that sucker out. Or, you could get a smaller boring drill bit and drill sequential holes across the diameter of the post to spit it apart. Maybe, you could even get away with a regular long drill bit (depending how long this seat post is). Although, don't try this until you have given the bolt thing a try, because once you get carried away with this idea, I doubt you will be able to go back and try either the bolt or the corkscrew thing.

On a completely different note... wooden seatpost? Was this common in the 70's (does anybody know?) or would this just have been a custom job?

To the original poster: If you have a camera/if there is enough left of the post/if you have the ambition, snap a shot of it when you are done. I'd be curious to see a wooden seat post.

Torchy McFlux

Wooden seatpost = extremely bad idea. Wood expands and contracts depending on humidity. Not a good characteristic for something clamped into a metal frame. It's not strong enough on its own to hold a whole person's weight either - as you've found out.
Cut the post relatively flush with the collar of the frame and use a spade bit to drill most of it out. A jab saw can be used to cut through anything that's left if it hasn't loosened up enough already.

pagh

How about putting a screw halfway in, and a mole-grip to take the seatpost out?

JanMM

Don't remember ever hearing of a wooden seatpost, at least not from the '70s-'80s.

artimus

Sounds like someone used a broom handle to flip the bike.

Retro Grouch 

I'd love to hear the story of how and why that broomstick got in there in the first place.

I could be wrong but I'm thinking getting the broken seatpost out will be just the start of your problems. I'm envisioning some kind of additional damage to the bike frame's seat tube. If it's not pretty true and round you're going to have a heck of a time finding and fitting an appropriate size seatpost.

artimus

^^^Do they make tapered mandrels to help correct oval seat tubes?^^^

I personally think the best way to remove it would lag bolt and pull (no corrotion like a AL post in a steel frame), or bore drill and section it out (with a hack saw blade) the same way that would for a seized metal post.

Shimagnolo

I'm guessing it must have been the 1870's - 1880's.

mrrabbit 

Witches gotta ride too you know...

Bianchigirll 

I would love to see some pics of this bike and the seatpost.

ClarkinHawaii

Must have been a uniquely emotional experience--everything's fine, bump, seat falls off . . . hope you weren't riding "no hands" . . .

ClarkinHawaii

Cleverest post of the week!

Retro Grouch 

Damm! I didn't think of that. Now I've got to rent the "Wizard of Oz" so I can take a close look at the bicycle at the start of the movie. Do you suppose that could have a broomstick seatpost? Might the OP's bike even be the one used in that movie? If so, I'm thinking he should keep it original.

CACycling

I'd drill it out. The problem with the lag bolt method is it will tend to expand the dowel when you screw in the lag even if you drill a pilot hole. A spade bit slightly smaller that the seat tube ID will be easy to control and it won't be hard to break out the remnants of the post (assuming they didn't insert the entire broomstick).

Bianchigirll 

we still would like to see some pics of the post and the broken portion in the frame

unterhausen

I'd set it on fire

Jakedatc

that would take care of the witch too..

Raiden

Termites! Or cover it in soil and worms for a few years.

Retro Grouch 

Nope. In the Wizard of Oz Dorothy splashed water on the witch. Not only that but she was the kind of witch who rides a bicycle too.

ARider2

Troll

Jakedatc

see i'm conflicted.. i was born in kansas.. where water seems to be choice.. but grew up in Mass where the salem witch trials burned them.. so... what to do what to do...

JohnDThompson 

A spade bit might do, otherwise if you can drill all the way through the dowel, run a section of all-thread through it, put a washer and a couple nuts on the inside end (drop the all-thread down to the bottom bracket to thread this stuff on) and then use that to pull the dowel out.

S14-Racer

I'd love to see pictures too. I have never seen a wooden seat post.

There is no way I would want any type of wood snapping off near my back-side.