Originally Posted by
Giorgio Moroder
Thanks! I've been doing research and what you mentioned is definitely an option. My question is; If i drill out the head and the expander is in fact stuck..won't I be screwed?
I have only seen a few occaisions in my life where a stem was completely stuck. However, if you remove the bolt and the stem won't budge, even after giving the top of the bolt a few good whacks with a hammer, then you can likely ride the bike without the bolt.
TAlso, the few times I have seen a seized stem, it was the quill of the stem, not the expander, that was stuck.
The trick is to use massive brute force and multiple blows with the hammer from the underside - either directly to the underside of the neck of the stem, or to the underside of the expander with a bar or big screwdriver.