Stuck Seat Tube

[TheBALDpuma]

I have mainly been riding my Stanton on DJs, BMX tracks and a bit of light DH runs over the last few months, and this weekend went over to Gizburn to find that my seat post is well and truly stuck! I tried taking the saddle off and using a massive adjustable spanner to get some twist into it, it wouldn't budge, even with two of us tugging. It is well and truly stuck in there. I have been periodically dousing with WD40 and GT85 to try and get it free, but as yet no luck.

Any thought or home remedies? I had to do the whole red route (25km ish) out of the saddle! Don't fancy that again.

[TheBALDpuma]

adam85 said:

Have you tried a good penetrating spray or a bit of heat? My seat post was cold welded and this eventually worked.

A guy at halfords on the way to Gizburn tried something called "shock and unlock" to no avail.

Not tried heat, what kind of heat are we talking? And to the frame or the seat post?

[TheBALDpuma]

TwistingMyMelon said:

Is it alu post in an alu frame?

Steel frame no idea about the post.

[TheBALDpuma]

pablo said:

You need to get to the seat post from the other side too. Turn the bike upside down, remove a bottle cage bolt and pour oil, lube, coca cola etc into the seat tube. If you leave it for a few days then apply some heat with a hair dryer or a heat gun, it should come out.

I don't think I've got bottle cage bolts on the seat tube part of the frame. I will keep applying oil over the next few days then get a hair dryer on it!

Thanks for all the advice.

[TheBALDpuma]

been oiling up this week. going to get the hair dryer in it tomorrow.

[TheBALDpuma]

A weeks worth of WD40 and then hairdrying and brute force did not yeild any results.

It needs a service anyway so I might see if the LBS have any bright ideas/let them deal with it!

[TheBALDpuma]

Fluid said:

You have loosened off the stem clamp, haven't you?

What's a stem clamp?

[TheBALDpuma]

Last night after another week of GT85ing I drilled a hole in a 80cm long piece of wood, and clamped this in place of the saddle. I then heated the frame for 5 minutes with a hairdryer pressed against the frame. I was confident. I straddled the bike twisted with all my might and with one swift tug... the wood snapped in two. fking arse.

I have tied a rag soaked in GT85 around the seat tube/top of frame in an attempt to constantly feed the frame with penetrating oil. Mole grips attached and I'm going to have one more tug tonight, and then take it to the bike shop tomorrow for them to try their best.

[TheBALDpuma]

Cheers chaps.

This plus gas stuff, can it do any damage to the BB? Just something someone said on that forum above made me think it might be possible? I've never heard of it before.

I'll nip to homebase tomorrow and get my hands on some rather than taking it to a bike shop. Also I'll try freezing the seat post as well as heating the frame.

If there is still no luck I will take it to the lbs next week.

[TheBALDpuma]

Although it doesn't look like HB sell it.

Any ideas where to get it from?

ETA couldn't find it locally so I've ordered from Euro Car Parts.

Edited by TheBALDpuma on Monday 7th July 07:00

[TheBALDpuma]

RCBRG said:

Turn the bike upside down, remove the BB, and fill the seat tube with coke. Used that technique a few times with good results

Well I've ordered this stuff now so I'm going to try plusgas + freezing seattube + heating the frame.

If that doesn't work I will have to take the BB out. TBH I need to replace that anyway as it's a little tired, so buying the tools won't be too much of a PITA.

[TheBALDpuma]

EggsBenedict said:

I'm sorry, but a hairdryer will do feck all.

You'll need a blow torch - a DIY one will do, but it will feck the paint over on the frame.

Then you'll need a stilsons wrench (google). They're not expensive. These tighten as you apply more pressure. Once you've twisted it free (broken the cold weld you get with the ally and steel dissimilar metals), it should come out easily.

I have the same problem, a couple of bike shops have basically said that they'll need to heat it, and it will shag the paint. I decided to leave it where it was.

There are storys of hairdryers/boiling rags doing the job so I'm going to give it a try along with freezing the seat tube.

Don't fancy messing the paint up.

[TheBALDpuma]

Rocksteadyeddie said:

Why do you want it out OP? Sometimes best just leaving it be.

Because it's set as low as it will go as I was riding BMX tracks and dirt jumps for a few months, now I want to hit some trail centre stuff and in the current seat position my knees are by my ears if I sit down. First time I realised this was an issue I did Gizburn (25km) out the saddle. Not fun.

[TheBALDpuma]

UPDATE:

It's still not out.

I doused in plus gas a few times a day for a week, heated the frame and cooled the seat tube and it still wouldn't budge. The next day (yesterday) I took it to "estates" at work (the fix broken stuff at the uni) and borrowed their vice. This just pulled the top part off the seat tube which was heatsealed into the tube it self. Drilled a hole through the top of the post and inserted an allen key for leverage, attached this to the vice and bent a 7mm allen key trying to turn it.

I've dropped it off at a bike shop now who are going to try cutting it out, then blow toching the frame. Obviously this will trash the paint but the paint isn't in perfect nick anyway, and is silver, so I'll just clear coat the melted bit so it doesn't rust and leave it like that.

I did get an email from "theseatpostman" off the back of this thread who makes good claims about getting posts out, but he's 2 hours away in lancs, and charges £50 - totalling nearly close to £100 inc fuel. I'm tight so I took the cheaper option with a possibility of messed up paint.

[TheBALDpuma]

Rocksteadyeddie said:

DoubleSix said:

TheBALDpuma said:

I'm going to have one more tug tonight, and then take it to the bike shop tomorrow for them to try their best.

Yeah, I can't see how that's going to get your setpost out. I'm skeptical you could get a firm enough grip on the shaft for starters.

Plus gas wasn't working! I was desperate for something that might, and thought it was worth a shot.

[TheBALDpuma]

gazza285 said:

TheBALDpuma said:

Rocksteadyeddie said:

DoubleSix said:

TheBALDpuma said:

I'm going to have one more tug tonight, and then take it to the bike shop tomorrow for them to try their best.

Yeah, I can't see how that's going to get your setpost out. I'm skeptical you could get a firm enough grip on the shaft for starters.

Plus gas wasn't working! I was desperate for something that might, and thought it was worth a shot.

Oh God, somebody stop this now...

Why? Rocksteadyeddie was about to come over and give me a hand...?

[TheBALDpuma]

WOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO It's out!!!!!

Left it at the LBS (Woodrup cycles) and they ended up blowtorching the frame and eventually got it out. The paint was obviously trashed, but I rubbed it down and laquered it and the burnt steel effect actually looks awesome!

Today I took it to "Bike Hub" at Leeds uni - this is a service offered to students and staff (me) at the uni and they have all the tools, stands and consumables you could need and a mechanic (whos main job is at the afformention bike shop) who will help and show you how to do any work you need to do - and it's all free!!! So today I swappd the back wheel over for a spare I had as the bearing were gone on the other one, changed the gear cable and outers and tuned them, replaced the front disc and sorted the pads out on the discs. All stuff I know how to do, but stuff I haven't done for years, so was great having the mechanic there for when I drew a blank as to what I was supposed to do.