Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

I've just acquired myself a Klein Mantra frame - to be precise, this one
URL:http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3667944572
to experiment with. I've got a few wee problems I need to sort before I
can get it going.

The most serious is that the seat post clamp has an allen bolt rather
than a quick release, and at some point someone has used the wrong size
allen key and rounded off the flats. The bolt is also jammed and I
can't turn it. I'm tempted to take an angle grinder and slice through
the bolt, but I can't tell whether the seat tube clamp is integral with
the frame or not. If it is I would look bloody stupid because I would
then have a seized thread in there I would have no way of getting out.
Does anyone know for a fact whether the seat tube clamp on a Mantra is
integral?

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; Life would be much easier if I had the source code.

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

"Simon Brooke" wrote in message
...
I've just acquired myself a Klein Mantra frame - to be precise, this one
URL:http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3667944572
to experiment with. I've got a few wee problems I need to sort before I
can get it going.

The most serious is that the seat post clamp has an allen bolt rather
than a quick release, and at some point someone has used the wrong size
allen key and rounded off the flats. The bolt is also jammed and I
can't turn it. I'm tempted to take an angle grinder and slice through
the bolt, but I can't tell whether the seat tube clamp is integral with
the frame or not. If it is I would look bloody stupid because I would
then have a seized thread in there I would have no way of getting out.
Does anyone know for a fact whether the seat tube clamp on a Mantra is
integral?

I'd be tempted to cover the whole thing in a liberal quantity of WD40, plus
gas or similar, then take a hacksaw to it and cut a slot in the end of the
allen bolt, then unscrew it with a big screwdriver. If you're feeling flush
you could do it with dremel cut off disks, but they don't last long on
anything very heavy. Did a similar thing on a much smaller scale with a
rounded aluminium screw on some shifters t'tother day and it works fine.

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

In article , Doki
wrote:
I'd be tempted to cover the whole thing in a liberal quantity of
WD40, plus gas or similar, then take a hacksaw to it and cut a slot
in the end of the allen bolt, then unscrew it with a big
screwdriver.

Plus gas then the angle grinder to cut a slot and then a great big
screwdriver should work.

--
A T (Sandy) Morton
on the Bicycle Island
In the Global Village
http://www.millport.net

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

"Sandy Morton" wrote in message
...
In article , Doki
wrote:
I'd be tempted to cover the whole thing in a liberal quantity of
WD40, plus gas or similar, then take a hacksaw to it and cut a slot
in the end of the allen bolt, then unscrew it with a big
screwdriver.

Plus gas then the angle grinder to cut a slot and then a great big
screwdriver should work.

You must be a lot neater with an angle grinder than me ;). Or perhaps angle
grinders come in sizes other than "massive".

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

Simon Brooke wrote:

I've just acquired myself a Klein Mantra frame - to be precise, this one
URL:http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3667944572
to experiment with. I've got a few wee problems I need to sort before I
can get it going.

The most serious is that the seat post clamp has an allen bolt rather
than a quick release, and at some point someone has used the wrong size
allen key and rounded off the flats. The bolt is also jammed and I
can't turn it. I'm tempted to take an angle grinder and slice through
the bolt, but I can't tell whether the seat tube clamp is integral with
the frame or not. If it is I would look bloody stupid because I would
then have a seized thread in there I would have no way of getting out.
Does anyone know for a fact whether the seat tube clamp on a Mantra is
integral?

Why not email Klein if nothing shows up here?
I have a pal who had one, I'll email him.
Cheers
Graham

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

in message , Doki
') wrote:


"Simon Brooke" wrote in message
...

The most serious is that the seat post clamp has an allen bolt rather
than a quick release, and at some point someone has used the wrong
size allen key and rounded off the flats. The bolt is also jammed and
I can't turn it. I'm tempted to take an angle grinder and slice
through the bolt, but I can't tell whether the seat tube clamp is
integral with the frame or not.

I'd be tempted to cover the whole thing in a liberal quantity of WD40,
plus gas or similar, then take a hacksaw to it and cut a slot in the
end of the allen bolt, then unscrew it with a big screwdriver.

Can't do that as the head of the bolt is recessed into the aluminium of
the clamp - which has exactly the same paint finish as the frame, and,
as I say, might be integral.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; Diplomacy, American: see Intelligence, Military

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

in message , Graham Bowers
') wrote:

Simon Brooke wrote:

Does anyone know for a fact whether the seat tube
clamp on a Mantra is integral?

Why not email Klein if nothing shows up here?
I have a pal who had one, I'll email him.

Ta.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
;; Sending your money to someone just because they've erected
;; a barrier of obscurity and secrets around the tools you
;; need to use your data does not help the economy or spur
;; innovation. - Waffle Iron Slashdot, June 16th, 2002

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

Simon Brooke wrote:
in message , Doki
') wrote:


"Simon Brooke" wrote in message
...

The most serious is that the seat post clamp has an allen bolt
rather than a quick release, and at some point someone has used the
wrong size allen key and rounded off the flats. The bolt is also
jammed and I can't turn it. I'm tempted to take an angle grinder
and slice through the bolt, but I can't tell whether the seat tube
clamp is integral with the frame or not.

I'd be tempted to cover the whole thing in a liberal quantity of
WD40, plus gas or similar, then take a hacksaw to it and cut a slot
in the end of the allen bolt, then unscrew it with a big screwdriver.

Can't do that as the head of the bolt is recessed into the aluminium
of the clamp - which has exactly the same paint finish as the frame,
and, as I say, might be integral.

Crikey. I'd be tempted to ask in uk.rec.cars.maintenance, as there are
generally a fair few questions there about getting siezed studs out of
engines and so on. There are special tools you can use, which AFAIK are a
special drill bits which drill in normally, then dig in when you reverse the
drill, however they're generally seen as being useless on a lot of car
stuff, but it's likely a bike seatpost clamp was torqued up with an allen
key rather than a foot long ratchet.

Seized seat post clamp: advice?
 

Paul Moss wrote:

Stud Extractor.
It looks a bit like a square pyramid but very thin and tall. About
two or three inches long. During manufacture it is twisted into a
lefthand spiral.

The bolt must be drilled down the middle and then the extractor is
screwed into the hole until it jams in tightly. Once it jams in you
keep turning it and being a LH thread it should unscrew the bolt.
If it snaps then you will really have a problem as it is too hard to
drill with ordinary tools.

That's the one. My understanding is that they snap often enough to make them
a bad risk when you're faffing around with car stuff. Whether bike stuff has
less time to corrode or gets torqued up less, I've no idea.