How To Make A Cheap & Easy Cotter Pin Press For Cottered Cranks

I show how to make a cotter pin press tool for cottered crankset removal from old bikes. This can be made for around $5. Park Tool used to make a cotter pin press (CR-2) to remove cranks, but they don't any more. To make the press, I use wide throat top beam clamps that I bought at Fastenal.
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[@RJTheBikeGuy]

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[@RJTheBikeGuy]

@Ian Brown Yes, I did.

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

@Ian Brown Looked it up. It's about $20us and about $35us shipping. Sort of looks home made.

[@rixretros]

I can't begin to tell you how many bikes you've saved with this tool.......and that's just in my personal experience. I've resurrected at least 6 bikes in the last 2 years that are now back on the road with happy new riders just because of using your tool and its companion tool, the right hand bottom bearing bracket cone removal tool. These 2 tools are must-have items for anyone dealing with many bikes from the mid 1970s and earlier. One suggestion for your viewers using this tool: it helps greatly with cotter removal IF, before using this tool, you back off the nut almost flush with the end of the threads and then, placing a piece of suitably wide/thick flat steel on the threaded end, give it 3 or 4 smart raps with a 1 pound hammer. Having the nut out at the end of the cotter's threads helpt to prevent mushrooming the threads out which is likely to happen if you strike the cotter directly with the hammer. The raps you hit the end of the cotter with will help greatly in loosening it up just that tiny little bit and makes using the pusher tool that much easier. Another tip is to put a dab of grease on the concave end of the pusher bolt before you start turning it with the the wrench. The grease prevents the two metal surfaces from binding and allows you to turn the bolt a LOT easier. 2 thumbs up for you, RJ !!!

[@merlehiebert7212]

Great video. I used a vise and socket to get the cotter pins off a 1953 Gitane. They hadn't been removed in 40 years and took a lot of force. However I made this tool for future use. The hardest part was getting the Fastenal clamp as the local Fastenal store only sells to other retailers in our area.

[@davidnaumes1750]

I just made own cotter pin press based on your video. My new tool worked great--what a time-saver to remove stuck pins. Thank you so much!

[@jimg691]

Wow! what a great video. I made one of these today and it worked perfectly. I removed the cotter pins from my newly acquired 1967 Raleigh Sports. Those pins were in there for 49 years. Thanks for the very helpful video.

[@marchantwentworth5227]

Thanks for the great video and all the tricks and hints you offer for us old Raleigh bikies. Two things I customarily do in prep for this job is to 1) make sure I have replacement cotters. The Nottingham Raleighs tend to have 9,5 mm but they may have to be filed. Harris Cyclery has 'em. 2) soak the cotter in penetrating oil like Liquid Wrench for as long as you can. Stuff works wonders. If it looks particularly corroded, hit it with a few heating and cooling cycles. Liquid Wrench is flammable so heat it first before dousing. Note that cotters go in from a particular direction; looking down at the crank with a crank arm forward, you should see the nut side of the cotter.

[@solomon4750]

Hey RJ. Love your videos. After watching your video I tried something similar with what I had in my workshop. Worked like a charm. C-clamp. I drilled a 7/16 hole for the pin in the throat of the c-clamp. Thanks for your idea.

[@Hertog_von_Berkshire]

Wish I had one of those back in the 1960s. Come to think of it, I need one now for one of my restos.

[@DCox-nx9nq]

It looks like a cool tool. But if you don't do a lot of cottered cranks, just loosen the nut slightly and smack it with a hammer, the use a drift and hammer to knock it the rest of the way out. It works almost every time, and saves the threads so you can reuse the pin.

[@Metal-Possum]

Bike Smith Design. Never failed me, I also like to support small-time manufacturers.

[@nc3826]

Or just use a deep enough socket and a large clamp and press it out (ie into the socket)... but a vise to hold the arm would be nice too... still love these make a tool posts...

[@markpeterson8978]

Thank you Sir. I found some a resource for the 1/2 clamp in your video. For under $10 I purchased 2 clamps, a 1/4" cutting / grinding disk for my angle grinder and some Dremel grinding bits. I made one a cotter pin tools and it worked perfect for the first 3 cotter pins, then one of the pins bent. I over tightened the press breaking it at the neck. Good thing I bought 2. I made a second and have learned some lessons. 10 star review. This is THE answer to this very crappy situation. Heck, I may end up liking cotter pin cranks! 🤣

[@DCox-nx9nq]

You can also put a 3/8 socket (you might need a deep well) over the non threaded end and use a regular clamp to press it off.

[@curierfromxibalba1155]

like a car ball joint press! how i didnt think of that. thanks mate.

[@51-FS]

U would have to modify the clamp...

[@nc3826]

No modification needed... just a deep enough socket and a large clamp... but vise to hold the arm would be nice too...

[@chrisbliss2034]

Something of an irony, but the flat vice used to clamp the tool he was making is itself perfectly good to remove cotter pins! For bicycle work, the deep spacer washer found on older cassette blocks axles is perfect : just pop it over the unthreaded end of the cotter pin, then use the vice to pop the pin out.

[@ragavvijayadev8900]

I am a huge fan of your videos, however something need not require a specific tool. I just use a small 3" C-Clamp and socket bit that's slightly bigger then the girth of the pin's head to act as a catching area for it while using the C-Clamp pressed with the socket to push the pin out. Still your videos are very well explained and im always hooked on to your channel.

[@VirtualBikeKitchen]

Great video. We were just contemplating how we were going to remove cotter pins from a 1970's Peugeot without a cotter pin extractor. Now we know how to make one.

[@123clis321]

Great idea! I've been using a c clamp and a piece of tubing. This just looks cooler!

[@doylerabjohn3435]

Great homemade tool

[@walterdalpiaz4349]

Amazing!!! You have a real gift. I enjoy your repair videos tremendously, keep up the good work

[@mariovelasquez3296]

I made followed your steps and it worked like a charm. Thanks for the information.

[@Vike29]

I use a C-clamp and a universal grip wrench. The fixed side of the C Clamp on the threaded side of the pin and the adjustable side on the grip wrench and the key falls right in. Reuse pins very easily that way without damaging the threads.

[@prhurwitz]

I used the same method (C-clamp and socket)--it worked on one pin, but not the other because the screw end of the clamp would keep rotating off the edge of the pin.

[@Vike29]

@@prhurwitz You have to use the fixed end of the C-clamp on the pin and the rotatable end of the C-clamp on the universal grip wrench.

[@magpiemarc1962]

I use a small G clamp ana a socket.

[@stefarina]

Thanks, RJ The Bike Guy. Were can I buy this item in Europe?

[@markbattista6857]

Great job RJ, I can definitely make use of this video and tool

[@bicycletechniciandhruvkuma9730]

Good Idea sir

[@pilgrim32mn]

great tool looks like it will make removing cotter pins a lot easier

[@riggermortisfpv526]

Cool tip, Ill make one of these as I rarely see raleigh type cotter cranks and don't want to buy the one tool I can find online.

[@leox2837]

Muy interesante.gracias por la idea.saludos desde argentina

[@dayjn]

Wonderful, great idea and so helpful. Thanks RJ.

[@wackedoutdude]

Very good idea. I made mine out of a piece of steel plate and cut it out. your way saves you alot of time but i'm tight and did'nt want to spend a penny. LOL.

[@julians6861]

Honestly RJ you could make and sell a kit with all of your ingenious low tech tools and I’m sure lazy buggers like me would buy em all! Hell even others with the tools could make “generics” and sell em nice and cheap on eBay etc.- nice little business model right there!

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

I have seen some versions of my tools on ebay.

[@Brummiejohn200]

Great idea, thanks for sharing with us, atb John.

[@brendaleetv]

Awesome!

[@vinaytalks]

Interesting idea, something new

[@forestfirestarter]

super! worth saving in my email .thanks!

[@patwang84]

nice helpful video thanks!

[@unbalancedcrank]

Have you tried the Bikesmith tool?

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

Nope.

[@RyansuBike]

I have and its worth every penny if you work on old 10 speeds

[@maxthemax65]

thanks

[@bucketrobbert]

thank you i think you just saved me 8 pounds

[@jc-mt8ot]

Do a cotter pin installation vid. Some you have file, some are better quality than others, etc. Can you do a vid on how to install them properly?

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

j c I do it in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aqvTgntqZql8d5I Though I could make a standalone video of the process.

[@useport80]

what vise is that? how do u like it?

[@DamianoZerneri]

veeery good

[@luisguillen6078]

MAS RAPIDO ES USAR UN PUNZON Y UN MARTILLO Y LISTO

[@stockton350]

Nice!

[@the_blair_bike_project]

Wow, i totally forgot those existed.

[@songsandverses]

You could be selling those custom tools

[@littlemanhuerta4442]

I have a 60's reighley bike cotter pins are a pain

[@Hertog_von_Berkshire]

My Hercules Hustler had the tightest cotter pins on the planet.

[@williamgass9262]

I needed the cotter pin press in 1965, but there was no computer, and the bike shop wanted to charge me to do it, My mom would not pay him so she threw the bike away. I should have not told her

[@fritzwalter1112]

who the hell invented that shitty crank type?

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

Someone who was creating bicycle technology long before you were born, and before your father was born, and probably before your grandfather was born. This was high tech stuff at one point, and is still in use today. You could show a little respect for bicycle history.

[@joeysosa7158]

A SIMPLE HAMMER IS EASIER DUDE

[@grumpus27]

Great way to wreck the bottom bracket bearings.

[@joeysosa7158]

CAN YOU SHOW ME HOW TO MAKE A TOOL TO SHUT YOU UP?

[@salvadorolivares4837]

Gracias. Por tu enseñanza. Saludos amigo