kanawa 

Looking for help on how to remove this clamp. I’m stumped. Thx in advance

.

Mr. 66

The threaded part unscrews from the base.

kanawa 

thx! Just grab the threaded post with pliers?

madpogue 

That would damage the threads. Options - (1) find a small square tool that will engage the square hole at the end of the studs. (2) thread two nuts onto the stud and lock them together, and turn with a wrench.

kanawa 

philips scewdriver works - thanks so much!!

The Golden Boy 

That's a nice purple!

clubman 

It's supposed to be a Phillips. I don't know why yours appears to have a square profile.

Vintage_Cyclist

It's actual JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) +2. An American Phillips screwdriver can strip out the center of the screw, as seen here.

I've got one of these. https://www.amazon.com/Bessel-Vessel...1DN6RCZKMFXRB8

clubman 

That's interesting because I've only got one special 'Phillips' from a broadcast technicians set that always works and my others do tend to strip. I just assumed it was a Phillips driver but perhaps it's a JIS+2. Cool.

cv350

I recently removed this same Suntour component. A regular Phillips screwdriver did not provide sufficient contact to turn the stud bolt. But the screwdriver bit on my Topeak mini tool fit the stud bolt perfectly and easily turned it for removal.

Vintage_Cyclist

Those clamps are a pain in the neck. Seems like solution in search of a problem engineering.

kanawa 

Yes! I used my Vessel Megadora and it came right out. Originally I tried an Allen wrench but that didn’t work so I turned to you guys. Thx again!

kanawa 

its a new project. Came with a few decent correct appendages but lackluster front mech, brakes, levers, cockpit. Putting it right.

1983 Appel.

The Golden Boy 

Sweet!!!

steelbikeguy

I've got a NIB Superbe front derailleur like this in my parts box... been waiting for a reason to use it. After about 30 years, you'd think that I'd find a chance to install it.

The clamp does look neat, but I agree that it looks more like something the marketing dept. came up with, and less like an engineer thought it actually solved a problem. This was the era of aerodynamics, and a lot of nutty designs were developed.
Considering how much the clamp deformed the paint in the photo, I'm a bit hesitant about using my Superbe with the band clamp.
Maybe it's not too bad if the paint is fully cured and hardened?

Steve in Peoria

pcb 

Yes, definitely starts as a Phillips, but the soft metal, combined with evidently a non-standard, Japanese Phillips size = frequently strips.

pcb 

I posted something about this design in a recent thread, in which the OP broke an earlier Cyclone/Spb fder clamp.

I think the design was meant to minimize broken clamps, minimize seat tube damage from over-torqued hinged clamps, while also being clever, elegant and lightweight. Also could be used for other applications, like attaching a top-of-toptube aero shifter.

Like a lot of designs in those days in Japan, the engineers assumed that proper tools (evidently a JIS #2 Phillips screwdriver, I never knew that), proper torque and care would be used during installation. They assumed that both shop mechanics and end users would actually read the instructions all the way through before attempting to install it.

Since that's not the way the world works, it did ultimately cause more problems than it solved.

steelbikeguy

I've never actually used the endless band style of clamp, but I did feel like it offered an improvement over the conventional clamp-on shift lever. ...and let me insert a shot of my trusty old SunTour Powershifter as an example....


one problem with this style of clamp was that the user had to flex the steel band to fit over the down tube, which did fatigue the steel somewhat, and always felt like it was cracking the chrome plating.
the other problem was that the "ears" that the clamp bolt passed through tended to dig into the paint, often breaking the paint and promoting rust.

Like most things in design or engineering, there's no perfect solution. Each method has some sort of flaw or undesired characteristic.

Oh... I do have to apologize for the comment I made about the marketing department in my earlier post. As an engineer, I recognize that the marketing folks help encourage the public to buy products, whether they need the product or not. Those sales help keep us engineers employed, and it's important to acknowledge this.

Steve in Peoria

tricky 

Haha, I will sometimes make disparaging remarks about "sales guys" but they very much help me stay employed as a Product Manager. I should hold my tongue!

pcb 

The trick to these clamp-mount accessories (bb/downtube-mount cable guides, dt/barcon housing stops) and components (usually dt shifters) is to start in the middle of the clamp and gently open up the radius, working thumb/fingers towards the ends. Kinda like how you spread a metal fender wider to narrow the fender radius around the wheel. What I always did was just grab the clamp ends and yank outwards, and the band would bend at its narrowest/weakest point. The Suntour clamp you show isn't so bad, since the band has a pretty consistent width, but it still often wants to bend sharply just above where the shifters mount.

Campy bands were worse, since they narrow significantly at one point, and always want to bend sharply there.

And the "ears" digging into the underside of the downtube is kinda unavoidable. I've thought about using a file to remove the sharp edges there, but I worry about removing too much metal and potentially weakening the clamp. And if you file away the outer plating, you're inviting more rust.

cv350

Photo of tube where the Superbe derailleur band was located (tube surface had been cleaned prior to photo). There are minor marks from the band, but really not much...paint color and lighting could also be variables.

It’s worth noting the band was tight on the tube until unsprung for removal. So perhaps another consideration is the ease of placement and adjustment a hinged derailleur clamp affords.

pcb 

The endless band design definitely had a higher potential for damaging paint, especially scratching, and was difficult to reposition, even for relatively minor adjustments.

That said, I've never seen one crimp a seat tube, while I've seen plenty of crimped tubes from regular clamp-mount fders.

scarlson 

Those endless band clamps are good for funny sized tubing like on French bikes, too. Vitus 979s, especially the early ones, needed a French sized clamp, but the Suntour would also work.

JIS screwdrivers are often used in the antique Honda motorcycle community. The alternative is to either switch to allen bolts, which takes away from the classic look of your motorcycle, or machine your own lookalike screws with ordinary Phillips heads, which I did. You can imagine most people choose to buy the screwdriver! If you have a friend with an old CB and the screws aren't all stripped, either they never work on it or they have the appropriate tool.

SurferRosa

Take an iron file to the sharp edges of the band before mounting. Apply grease to the seat tube. You won't have nearly the same issues with paint damage.

I like the way that big allen key fitting looks like a brazed on fd piece. Perfect for an '80s bike.

Dannyboy21

I am looking for one of theses clamps. Let me know if you are getting rid of it.