Hi All
I need to replace my BB. It will not budge to come out. It is the spline type. LBS worked on it a bit and let it soak with blaster stuff.
Any ideas? I can put heat to it im not too worried aboit the paint but how much is too much heat with out doing any integrity damage?
Steel frame surly xcheck.
Thanks

The first time that you do this you'll probably need a helper.

1. clamp your BB tool vertically in a sturdy bench vise.
2. Carefully thread your BB onto the tool (this is where you might need the helper).
3. Take a minute to think about which direction you need to rotate the bike. Thinking twice is even better.
4. Just do it. Every one that I've ever done this way came loose much more easily than I had expected.

I think mounting the tool in a vise and using the frame as a lever is by far the best solution, as it's fairly easy to both bear down and turn, and one can use both arms, shoulders and torso to exert considerable force.

Also, as the BB is being replaced anyway some hard taps on both ends of the spindle can help the blaster to penetrate as well as break free corrosion.

heat up your bb, not the frame. then use plenty of pb blaster and let it soak for a day
then use retro grouch's method.
you need a long leverage arm, either using the frame (like retrogrouch) or a cheater bar

I put a bar clamp across the BB, tool and bar/ratchet to keep the tool from jumping out of engagement with the BB. This leaves me with both hands free to move the lever and brace the frame. And absolutely give the penetrant (Kroil is the best) plenty of time to work.

nice, never heard of kroil. i'll give it a try w/ i run out of pbb

In addition to the above suggestions also try pouring boiling water over the outside of the BB shell to help expand it a bit. The heat won't be enough to make it easy but may be just enough to help break it loose and won't damage any paint or parts.

See if you can find a bolt that will thread into the axle and allow you to secure the tool in place to reduce slippage...

I've had some tough ones, but nothing works better than the "flame wrench." The other methods mentioned do not put enough heat to make any difference, and that includes propane heat.

Use some never seize for the new install if you want to remove it without any drama later.

-SP

Using a bolt like this to hold the tool on firmly and you can simply STAND on the wrench.

For square taper spindles, an M8x1.0 bolt about 40 to 50 mm long can be threaded through the bb tool and into the spindle end to clamp the bb tool in place so it can't slip under torque. For splined bottom bracket spindles (Octalink or ISIS) a quick release skewer can be run through the bb tool and hollow spindle and used to clamp the tool in place.

Edit: Bill posted a picture of the bolt for a square taper spindle. As noted the bolt must be M8x1.0 mm, not the more common M8x1.25 mm.

Bench-mounted vises are nice, but somewhat limited in availability, and hard to improvise.
Most stubborn (so far) BB I've encountered finally yielded to a combination of a C-clamp locking the tool in place, a 5 foot cheater bar threaded over the wrench handle, and a helper sitting on the rack acting both as counterweight and keeping the bike upright.
I still pretty much had the rear wheel off the ground before the BB finally broke loose though.

Oh yeah, after you finally do get it out, heavily grease or anti-seize treat the cup and bb shell threads when you install it or it's replacement. Actually, I'm a fan of using two layers of plumber's Teflon tape to wrap the threads. It positively seals out water, prevents squeaks and makes later disassembly a snap.

Hillrider I like that idea. Do you also use grease?

Yes, I do rub a thin layer of grease on all of the threads too. It's really a belt-and-suspenders approach and probably unneeded but it always works.

Cheater bar and tool bolted to the spindle usually gets them for me

There you go; thanks, Bill and Hill...

Whacking with a hand sledge works, too; the shock of the impact does wonders for breaking stuff free...