CharlesC

Cottered cranks are easy to remove if you use the correct technique. On this one Sheldon is dead wrong. Do not use a hammer to pound on the threaded end of the cotter! 100% of the time this will destroy the cotter and may upset it in it's hole making it even harder to remove. The cotter is purposely made from soft stel compared to the axle and crank arm. The first thing you do is loosen the cotter's nut and soak the cotter and crank with Kano Industries Kroil. Nothing else works. Set it aside for a day, reapplying Kroil a couple of times. With the nut loose place a 3/8" drive socket backwards over the round unthreaded end of the cotter so the cotter can pass thru it. Use the biggest C-clamp you can find to press on the nut and socket with the swivel on the adjustable part of the C-clamp on the socket. I use a giant clamp that is a foot long. Really crunch down on the clamp. This may be enough to unseat the cotter. If not tap the C-clamp with a steel hammer. Tap, not bash. A good part of the time the clamp will shift and you may have to reset it on the cotter. I have worked on many neglected cottered cranks and have never found one this technique won't do the deed on.