Good Afternoon all,

I am looking for some help with my Specialized Crosstrails. I recently bent the smallest front chain ring on my bike when the chain came off. The chain was wedged in there pretty tight.

I like to work on my own stuff when I can, so I started taking the front chain ring assembly apart last night. There were four allen head bolts holding the front chain rings to the crank assembly. Once these bolts were out, the large chain ring slipped off easily enough, however the two smaller chain rings are trapped behind the crank.

I found and removed a bolt in the center of the crank, but the crank does not want to come off. I figure the crank joins to the center shaft via a spline or something similar, and it is now just a matter of persuading it to come off. However, I may be wrong. I certainly don't want to break anything! If it is just being held on by the spline, some advice on how to best persuade the crank to come off without damaging the bike (and with minimal damage to my knuckles) would be appreciated!

Regards,
Jeff