Generic Headset and Bottom Bracket Bearing Press

harringtonp

Does such a tool exist ?

Thought I saw saw something a couple of years ago but cannot find it. Any of the custom park tools for replacements I've looked at are not cheap (and probably not that generic too) for the odd occasion on which they would be used

harringtonp

A generic extraction system would be good too

07Lapierre

A wooden broom handle (cut to size) and a Mallet!

A bearing press: one treaded bar, some washers and 3 nuts.

harringtonp

07Lapierre wrote: »

A wooden broom handle (cut to size) and a Mallet!

A bearing press: one treaded bar, some washers and 3 nuts.

Okay, just trying to picture this. So I assume the threaded bar just needs to be long enough to fit through a headtube and thinner than 24mm so it will get through any bottom bracket. You would get a set of washers which all have to fit around the bar but have different diameters. One nut is placed against a washer at one end and the second nut against a washer at the other end. Tighten whichever one is easiest.

Is this broadly correct ? And why 3 nuts ?

For extraction would the width of the broom not need to be specific to the job ?

ednwireland

https://wheelsmfg.com/presses-tools/presses-extractors.html

i was looking at this stuff - they have a generic budget bearing press and bearing extractors look cheap.

but in the USA

07Lapierre

harringtonp wrote: »

Okay, just trying to picture this. So I assume the threaded bar just needs to be long enough to fit through a headtube and thinner than 24mm so it will get through any bottom bracket. You would get a set of washers which all have to fit around the bar but have different diameters. One nut is placed against a washer at one end and the second nut against a washer at the other end. Tighten whichever one is easiest.

Is this broadly correct ? And why 3 nuts ?

For extraction would the width of the broom not need to be specific to the job ?

Yep thats it...most if not all are available in your local DIY (Woodies, B&Q)

3rd nut used to "Lock" one end of the bar.

As for washer, the old bearings that you remove are a perfect size, so you only need small washers to make sure they sit "Square" on the treaded bar.

as for the Broom handle...its wood..if its too big, just get out your pen knife and "whittle" it down to size.

harringtonp

07Lapierre wrote: »

as for the Broom handle...its wood..if its to big, just get out your pen knife and "whittle" it down to size.

For extraction aren't both ends usually the same width with the diameter inside the ends wider and it this wider circumference that you need to apply even pressure to. In other words something that requires the likes of:

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/park-tool-press-fit-bottom-bracket-bearing-tool-set-bbt-90.3-42905

How does a broom handle top do this ?

harringtonp

ednwireland wrote: »

https://wheelsmfg.com/presses-tools/presses-extractors.html

i was looking at this stuff - they have a generic budget bearing press and bearing extractors look cheap.

but in the USA

This kits are really the domain of bike mechanics who are replacing BB's/Headsets all the time aren't they. However

https://wheelsmfg.com/presses-tools/presses-extractors/universal-bottom-bracket-press.html

shows the general idea well

07Lapierre

harringtonp wrote: »

For extraction aren't both ends usually the same width with the diameter inside the ends wider and it this wider circumference that you need to apply even pressure to. In other words something that requires the likes of:

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/park-tool-press-fit-bottom-bracket-bearing-tool-set-bbt-90.3-42905

How does a broom handle top do this ?

Easy... You hit it really hard!

Actually i just used a thin piece of wood a tapped gently one side of the bearing cup (a headset), then the other side, and repeated around the bearing cup and out it came. Maybe i was just lucky, but it worked for me.

The link above is the correct tool for the job and is a much better option.
I've only used a bit of wood on headset cups as i was too impatient to order the correct tool online.

Eamonnator

harringtonp wrote: »

Does such a tool exist ?

Thought I saw saw something a couple of years ago but cannot find it. Any of the custom park tools for replacements I've looked at are not cheap (and probably not that generic too) for the odd occasion on which they would be used

Here you go:

https://www.ebay.ie/itm/Bike-Headset-Road-Bicycle-BB86-90-91-92-Bottom-Bracket-Cup-Press-Install-Tool/232380261609?hash=item361af164e9:g:ALEAAOSw401aASMv

cajonlardo

Eamonnator wrote: »

Here you go:

https://www.ebay.ie/itm/Bike-Headset-Road-Bicycle-BB86-90-91-92-Bottom-Bracket-Cup-Press-Install-Tool/232380261609?hash=item361af164e9:g:ALEAAOSw401aASMv

had planned on buying threaded rod but that is too good to miss, ordered one just now.

doozerie

DIY bearing presses will certainly work. Some/many people swear by them and don't see the appeal of inevitably expensive purpose-made tools for the job, some see DIY options as a temporary stopgap until in a position to get the latter. Personally I'm falling more into that second camp these days.

Much like anyone else, out of necessity over the years that I've been tinkering with bikes I've relied on all sorts of bodges and home-made tools to get me by. It can be very satisfying to concoct your own tool, as well as being very cost effective obviously. But inevitably there is some degree of compromise and/or pain and/or risk involved, and certainly for me my patience has started to run short with some of the more awkward tasks that are made more awkward for not having exactly the right tool.

As one example, using old/removed bearings as the surface to bear against the new bearing while pushing it in can be tedious - if it's not lined up correctly you are likely to damage the new bearing and perhaps risk damaging what you are pushing it into if it racks even a little. Care and attention are usually enough to avoid that, but my reserves of patience are not what they used to be when it come to fiddling with what tend to be multi-part tools (one hand to hold the washers and bearing in line with each other, another hand to tighten the nut on the home-made press, another hand to try to stop the threaded rod from turning with the nut, another hand to pick up the tool you dropped while focused on something else, another hand to shake a fist at the sky, etc.).

As another example, while installing new bearings in a hub a few months ago, using a hammer and an old screwdriver to tap it in, on the very last hammer blow the screwdriver slipped and I drove it into the dust cap. At 15euro per bearing that's an expensive moment's inattention. I packed the bearing with more grease (it wasn't a calamity after all, it was an "opportunity"!) and pushed the (dented) dust cap back in place, and I try not to think too much about it though I know I'll have to replace it again soon enough.

Things that can act as bearing presses:

* Threaded rod, plus nuts and washers, as mentioned. Readily available in various diameters for different tasks (headset, bottom bracket, hubs, ...), and you can cut it to your desired length(s).

* A long quick-release skewer, plus washers. Best suited to pressing bearings into hubs, could work with something larger like a headset in a pinch but might be hard work. Can be hard to get the pressure "even" though, depends on the quality of the skewer to some extent.

* Drifts, plus a hammer. You can use a screwdriver, though I'd use this as a last resort personally, or you can buy a cheap socket set and pick a socket that matches the size of bearing. Whether screwdriver or socket, apply to appropriate part of new bearing (depending on whether you are pushing the bearing into a recess or pushing it onto a spindle), and have at it with the hammer. You can also buy purpose-made drift sets (here is one from Wheels Manufacturing: LINK)

* Purpose-made bearing presses. Having looked at the options here recently my personal preference would be for brands like Enduro and Wheels Manufacturing (one source of their economy one: LINK). I'm sure the Park Tools ones are good too but I've become less enamoured with them as a brand. This is clearly the pricy option but value for money is subjective and I now find myself looking at this category first. There are many many cheaper brands too of course, but personally I'm willing to spend more for tools I'll have more faith in.


Things that can act as bearing removers:

* Drifts, as above, plus a hammer. Or a screwdriver plus hammer, but obviously that will require more care and attention when using it close to carbon parts (head tube, b/b shell, etc.). If removing sealed bearings from a hub, you may be able to use the axle as a drift, but best to use a non-metal hammer (and caution) for this.

* 2- or 3- legged bearing pullers might suit depending on the type and location of the bearing.

* For some bearings you might be able to work a bearing press into a position to press the old bearings out.

* Blind bearing pullers. They are sized for specific bearings, you can buy them individually (from Wheels Manufacturing for one) or you can buy a set (for example: LINK). Again, the good quality tools here are not cheap so it all depends on what you consider value for money. Puller sets are just slide hammers so they are still a "brute force and ignorance" approach to removing bearings but at least they allow you to focus that force in the right place, and I'm happier belting out the bearings in my PowerTap hub with one of these than I ever was when I used a screwdriver.

When it comes specifically to hub bearings, it's worth looking at some of the online MTB forums for ideas on brands to choose (or even DIY approaches). Downhill MTBs in particular can have various fiddly bearings around the rear suspension pivots so the MTB community tend to be quite familiar with methods and tools to remove and replace them. ...give me a set of Enduro tools (LINK <-- g'wan, click on it, you know you want to!) any day though, life feels too short for certain bodges these days

07Lapierre

Eamonnator wrote: »

Here you go:

https://www.ebay.ie/itm/Bike-Headset-Road-Bicycle-BB86-90-91-92-Bottom-Bracket-Cup-Press-Install-Tool/232380261609?hash=item361af164e9:g:ALEAAOSw401aASMv

Hard to argue with that price!

devonp

i got this, install and removal capability but doesn't cover all the sizes (I think)



https://www.mantel.com/ie/bbb-cycling-brackettoolbox-btl-95&utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhI7qmOWr2wIVhjobCh2IywqFEAQYASABEgIh-fD_BwE





it worked fine for installing a PF86 BB GXP
haven't had to use the removal part yet!!


not sure if its intended for headsets maybe it can be adapted? , might depend on the length of the threaded rod ?

cdaly_

doozerie wrote: »

but my reserves of patience are not what they used to be when it come to fiddling with what tend to be multi-part tools (one hand to hold the washers and bearing in line with each other, another hand to tighten the nut on the home-made press, another hand to try to stop the threaded rod from turning with the nut, another hand to pick up the tool you dropped while focused on something else, another hand to shake a fist at the sky, etc.).

Isn't that what children are for?

Things that can act as bearing presses:

* Drifts, plus a hammer. You can use a screwdriver, though I'd use this as a last resort personally, or you can buy a cheap socket set and pick a socket that matches the size of bearing.

I prefer to use (wherever possible) a vice instead of a hammer and the socket is always my preference over the screwdriver.

* Blind bearing pullers.

I had to replace some hollowtech bearings recently and bought decent angular contact bearings. To remove the old bearings, I took a 'penny' washer, ground the edges to a taper, cut the washer in thirds and wedged two pieces in behind the bearing in the blind cup. A little bit of tapping loosened things enough that the washer parts could slide in behind the bearing and I could press it out with the vice. This is in place of the 'collet' you might get in a professional set.


Like you, I appreciate a good tool but I'm too cheapskate to spend on a tool for a one-off* job if I can bodge something together.





*which invariably becomes a job I'll have to repeat at some stage in the future...

harringtonp

New BB arrived, see attached image. Assuming the existing one is something like this what are the options for getting it out apart from trying tapping all around with a hammer and screwdriver or buying something like

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/park-tool-press-fit-bottom-bracket-bearing-tool-set-bbt-90.3-42905

Both ends are the same width but narrower than the inside circumference which pressure must be applied to get it out. I realise that once one side is out there are a lot more options for getting the other out.

cdaly_

harringtonp wrote: »

buying something like

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/park-tool-press-fit-bottom-bracket-bearing-tool-set-bbt-90.3-42905

Make one out of copper/steel pipe. Push it through the BB until it clicks into place and use hammer on other end.

doozerie

In order of (my) preference:

* Use a blind bearing puller. No worries (if using a slide hammer) about hitting the inner face of the b/b shell, or a hammer slipping generally, etc.

* Use purpose-made or DIY pipe to hammer it out. You'll want the end of the pipe to sit evenly against the bearing (so a clean perpendicular cut on the end of the pipe and if you've splayed it, splay it evenly all round), you'll also want to ensure that the end of the pipe you are hammering has fairly perpendicular cut and won't collapse as you hit it. There is obviously some margin for error here, but you really want to avoid the force hitting the bearing unevenly, in so far as possible, as the tool (even a purpose-made one) could damage the inner face of the b/b shell. People (me included) get away with murder here, to be honest, but where you can eliminate risk, I would.

* Last resort: Use screwdriver + hammer, and be *really* careful to go slowly and cautiously. If it's a carbon b/b shell you don't want to rack the bearing for fear of damaging the shell, if it is an aluminimum/steel shell but you still don't want to gouge the surface the new bearing will bear against.

harringtonp

doozerie wrote: »

In order of (my) preference:

* Use a blind bearing puller. No worries (if using a slide hammer) about hitting the inner face of the b/b shell, or a hammer slipping generally, etc.

Lot of new jargon here, from youtubing the best I've seen on how a blink bearing puller works is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27YCUMzKcfE

and the best price I've seen on something like this is

https://www.ebay.ie/itm/16pc-Inner-Bearing-Blind-Hole-Remover-Extractor-Puller-Set-Pilot-Bushes-Housing/281904082538

Do you think that set might cover most bike bearing/cup removal jobs ? No point buying it for a once off...

doozerie

harringtonp wrote: »

Lot of new jargon here, from youtubing the best I've seen on how a blink bearing puller works is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27YCUMzKcfE

and the best price I've seen on something like this is

https://www.ebay.ie/itm/16pc-Inner-Bearing-Blind-Hole-Remover-Extractor-Puller-Set-Pilot-Bushes-Housing/281904082538

Do you think that set might cover most bike bearing/cup removal jobs ? No point buying it for a once off...

The individual puller diameter will determine what each one can be used for. Because of the way they splay outwards each puller will cover a range of sizes. The size you need is determined by the internal bore of the bearing you want to remove i.e. the diameter of where the axle slots into the bearing.

That set seems to cover a wide range of sizes - between the 8-11mm and 12-17mm pullers that should cover most wheel hub bearings for example, the next sizes up will cover some/most bottom bracket bearings, etc.

You can buy individual pullers too, as per my earlier post (as I mention there, you can buy them from Wheels Manufacturing as one source). If you don't have the slide hammer part, but have access to the bearing from both sides, then it may be an option to install the puller and wallop it form the rear side with a hammer and something like a screwdriver or a socket.

As with any tool, you tend to get what you pay for. That eBay set of pullers is quite cheap for what it contains. It could well be more than adequate for your needs but my experience of cheap tools is that they tend to not be very robust (e.g. if the lips/ledges on the puller which bear against the back of the bearing being removed are brittle that'll be a real problem), can make the task more difficult (e.g. if the slide hammer doesn't slide well you'll be fighting against the tool as much as with it), and can generally be a source of real headache.

Basically, cheap tools can be real bargain, or they can be a nightmare, it's a bit of a lottery, especially when you can't handle and inspect them before buying. (Mind you, some expensive tools can be ****e too, but you'd expect some kind of comeback from recognised and reputable brands in that case).

TheBlaaMan

I've successfully used a basic Expansion Bolt such as the below - available in most good hardware/builders providers - for removing wheel bearings where you cannot access one side to drift the bearing out with screwdriver/hammer. It relies on an interference fit in the face of the inner ring, which is a less than ideal compared to the proper tool that would have tines to grab the vertical side of the inner ring - but it does work.

cajonlardo

After you expand that bolt into the bearing
What happens? Do you tap it out from the far side?

I've seen that idea before but not sure