KurskKnyaz

Has anyone been able to do this. I am thinking of using a candle to heat the crank so the metal of the arm expands and then hammer it off. It is a square taper.

GV27

A crank puller is like 10 bucks.

I don't think a candle's gonna cut it. Perhaps a torch?

Either way, you might as well use a hack saw - you're gonna ruin the crank or bottom bracket or both anyway......

supcom

Hammer it off? Do you live in the third world? Maybe you should price a set of replacement cranks before you resort to percussive maintenance.

Today, Nashbar will sell you their house brand crank puller for $7.39 with free shipping. Depending on your state, you might not even pay sales tax.

Chrysiptera

Before I had a crank puller I managed to get my cranks off using a set of pry bars. This was a stupid idea and I would never do it again.

Get a puller, any LBS will have one for $13 or less.

GV27

If you're really broke a lot of car parts shops (Autozone, Advance, Checker, Pep Boys, etc.) will lone you tools for free. You just have to put down a deposit. Maybe a two-jaw gear puller might do the trick? Might still ruin the crank but ya never know.

That being said, the deposit will be more than a crank puller costs.

Wino Ryder

Using a set of pry bars would work. I've even taken crank arms off with a big screwdriver and a block of wood. You could also use a couple of large chisels (the kind that are wedge shaped) to get them off. The amount of damage you do is up to you though, but take my advice and just get a crank puller. You go prying crankarms off and you can easily damage the square taper interface of the crankarm, which is designed to be a tight fit when its bolted down.

The crank puller pulls the crankarm straight off, without any side to side forces ruining the square taper.

heyjaffy

The first time that I tried to remove cranks, with a puller, I managed to strip the threads (my fault entirely). My only option was brute force of some kind. It took me about two weeks using a variety of tools, pieces of wood, hammers and mallets, to get the crank off, and nothing was technically ruined by the process. I chose not to install the crank again, because I knew I'd have to go through the same BS should I want to remove them in the future and they weren't worth going the helicoil route. The point is, sometimes you can't use a crank puller.

manman

This is the way I do it.
This will work with tapered spindles. Remove the nut or bolt out of the non drive side arm, now ride the bike and the arm will start to loosen within a few hundred revolutions. To speed things up youcan repeatedly hop up and down on the pedals alternating right and left foot forward. This has worked 3 times on different cranks Alivio, 300ex and Stronglights. Yes I once tried pry bars and yes they were a stupid idea.
Good Luck mm

DMF 

It will get them off, but there's a good chance it will deform (i.e. ruin) the cranks. Also a fair chance of hurting yourself.

operator

This is completely ********. Spend the $10, get the proper tool instead of wasting time on some home hack job.

tellyho

We had this discussion a month ago. It's a dumb idea. Buy the puller.

nova

Buy the puller but if some reason you insist on doing it with out one get a "pickle fork" Used to pop the ball joints loose on cars. Place the forks flat side towards the bb tapered side toward crank arm. Add some wood strips behind the flat side to protect the various bits on the bb. Then use a hard rubber mallet to hit the end of the pickle forks handle. Its the only other tool that you can use to pull a crank with out trashing something. FYI pickle fork = 15+ and hard rubber mallet another 10 crank tool 10 to 15.

The only time i used the pickle fork was when the crank arms threads for the puller were stripped out on a old bike i bought.

KurskKnyaz

Thanks for your advice. I figured that the amount of time it would take me to do the job without the proper tool was far more valuable then the tool itself and the bike I risk damaging. I got the puller at bike nashbar for under $8. I learned from working in an auto shop that doing a job without the right tools is a disaster.

mike

Don't even think of trying to remove a crank arm without a crank puller. I can understand the temptation, but it isn't worth it.

In the process of banking and crowbaring, you are likely to damage the bottom bracket or at least get it out of whack.

You can get a crank puller for under $15.00. Consider that the $15.00 is cheaper than having it done by a bike shop and it is a lot cheaper than any repair you might have done on a car.

Also, you might be glad to know that a standard crank puller will fit very nearly all cranks with just a couple of exceptions

Dr.Deltron

+1!!!

GOOD idea!

+1! From someone else who has followed the above steps!

mr.tool

if you stripped the threads,var, cyclus and stein make repair kits for this. a good bicycle shop would have one.

arakhnidef

I stripped the threads yesterday off an old crank by using the large pin head as opposed to the small one. I almost went nuts, i tried almost everything like using a screwdriver as a chisel and hammering away, the only thing that worked was to get on the bike and ride it with the crank bolt off, it came off in less than a block. Thanks manman.

cew

I also recently stripped the threads trying to take off a crank to try to tighten a loose bb. I have tried almost every single method I could find on the internet, including a gear puller, to no avail. Sigh.

Panthers007

Come on, Monkeys - just buy the right tool. Here's one variety:

https://www.parktool.com/products/det...26&item=CCP-22

And here's what I think is the better variety:

https://www.parktool.com/products/det...=26&item=CWP-7

To those who already have the CWP-6, this CWP-7 is much beefier. It's worth upgrading. You can always donate your old -6 to your local bike-collective, etc.

cew

What do you do when the right tool strips a seized crank arm?

Panthers007

Take it to a bike-shop and see if they can get it out and cut new threads. Or buy a new crank-arm. Resolve to use grease on the threads the next time.

Sixty Fiver

If the proper bb tool does not work you can use a gear puller... riding it off is not a suggested practice as it can damage an otherwise decent crank arm.

HillRider

If the threads are stripped, I would think it is no longer "an otherwise decent crankarm".

I'd "ride it off" as that is least likely to damage the bottom bracket or frame. All of the pry and beat techniques have a strong likelihood of doing collateral damage.

Benjamino

I agree, a stripped crank is no good. If you can get it off without damaging anything, can you do it twice? But seriously, the "ride it off" method is dangerous. I tried going up a short, but very steep hill several times and gave up. I turned around (with my feet off the pedals) and the crank fell off with no warning. Had I been on the pedals I doubt the vasectomy debate would still be relevant (it was a large bike).

joejack951

Hence the gear puller suggestion. It's the closest thing to a true crank puller and the only damage you are likely to do is superficial damage to the back of the crank.