Originally Posted by BigChief

I've given some thought to this issue, but I still have more questions than answers. Even in this case, you can see from the picture that unlike aluminum stems and seat posts in steel frames, corrosion wasn't the cause. Even in the LBS where I worked, mechanics in the day would just hammer cotters in. For a long time, I guessed stuck cotters were just the result of being hammered in too hard. But now I wondering if perhaps the alloy they are made from is involved somehow. I've removed many cotters over the years. Probably not enough to be of any real statistical value, but enough to get an impression. I too have noticed that cotters from bikes from the 50s seem to pop out without much fuss and the only time I've had to resort to plan B was on later models. I have also noticed that the alloy of the old cotters...and Bike Smith cotters as well... looks different than more modern cotters. There's no finish on them. They're not very hard and are highly rust resistant. Just a thought.