Removing A Seized Seatpost with Coke/Coca-Cola - Does It Work?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 มิ.ย. 2017
- I have read and been told that Coca-Cola will work to free a stuck/frozen seatpost. One person even said that after putting Coke in the seat tube for a couple days, the seatpost would slide right out. So I decided to test the Coke method of seatpost removal. I left the frame with Coke in the seat tube for a little over two weeks to see if it would have any effect. This is a steel frame with an aluminum seat post. So there is most likely galvanic corrosion in there. The results with a steel seatpost in a steel frame might be different. I could have used Pepsi, but most people reference Coke, so that is what I used.
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Thanks for this great honest video! I didn't think you'd waste a drop of that precious Pepsi.....saved a lot of people a lot of time. just taken my single speed apart thinking it would be a quick straight forward job and just spent over a week hacking a way with saw collapsing the tube. Thanks for the video all the best Andy
C4 works pretty good. It's hard to find the seat post and the entire bike
LOL! I ended up cutting the post out after the other stuff I tried failed.
"Do you people want ants? Because, THAT'S how you get ants."
I wonder how many people get the reference or think he really may get ants. 😂
I heard it was a mixture of Pepsi and Mountain Dew. Got any?
I was thinking same mixture too :-)
Iv had a bike sitting outside for 7 years I tried the Pepsi and mountain dew mixture made my seat post slide out really quickly no work needed thanks for the help iceman
of course
IcemanMobile lol
i used vinegar to removal rusty
RJ, I have a problem with my seat post. I need to stick the seatpost clamp which is made of aluminium, to my frame which is made of carbon. Looking for a short to medium term cheap solution (even better if long term). Any suggestions?
Rob, love the subject! One way to bust an urban nike myth!
thanks for the video RJ
RJs the consummate soda lover. Great vid as always.
Hey dude, I was wondering if carbon seat posts bond with steel worse than any other material? A lot of people seems to hate Carbon on steel frames because they get nasty. Is that true?
I'm wondering if leaving the Coke inside the seatpost like that for such a long time (two weeks) caused the sugars crystalize and the syrup to stick to the frame. Maybe if you left the Coke there for just a few minutes or up to an hour the acids could've loosened it up and gave you a window to try removing it before it all sticks up. Doubtful, but I'm not entirely ruling out this method yet.
Yo RJ, I've dissasembled my suntour m3030 and removed the rubber part in the bottom, and now i have more travel, but can it damage my fork?
well if you remove parts that supposed to take the force when you bottom out the fork. i think you can figure it yourself
How did you remove it, or is it stll in there? Thanks for trying that method out though; was doubtful it'd work with the steel,aluminum interaction... Oh, sorry! just noticed the date on the video, lol!!! Let us know how it works out, thanks!
I need help my seat post is a threaded seatpost and it got stuck and the wedge fell inside the seat tube and the I tried twisting but only the part holding the saddle is moving but the rest of the seatpost is not. I need help I don't want to risk anything I want suggestions that will work 100%.
Saved me trying it. Thanks.
Thank you RJ.
Hi, Can you do a video on how to properly tighten spokes? Thanks
th-cam.com/video/f1SHmFBihKM/w-d-xo.html
i live sea side and this is one of the most common problems i run into, aluminum on steel seizes like a weld, i mix a little brake fluid, some used motor oil and let it sit in there, sometimes i mix half water half white vinegar, it is a bit nasty, but works a little faster than the brake fluid/oil mix.
Hi RJ, as the coke didn't work, and if this bike is steel, how about making a video where you try the infamous caustic soda dissolving method? I know you've used caustic soda on the remains of an alloy quill stem stuck in some steel forks, but one removing a post would be awesome! That, or I suppose you could attack this one with a slide hammer. I hate stuck seatposts, they're the only issue I've ever failed to fix on a bike.... keep up the good work.
RJ how much soda do you drink?
Well worth it for the comic relief alone. Thanks for the scientific setup.
Thank you! :)
Hey rj I haven been watching the videos for years now and never subbed so hey subbed now wanted to ask I've got an old Marzocchi bomber z2.5 fork and I need to replace the steer tube do you know how to re press them and is there any cheat methods as getting it sent off and done professionally is going to cost me the equivalent to about $150
I would have it professionally done. $150 is a lot less than the medical bills if your fork fails,
this never worked for me either. my best method is to drill a hole through the seat post, insert a thick bolt so it sticks out both ends, and secure the post in a shop vise, positioning the bolt at the pivot point. then grab the frame and wrench away.
The frame tubes are sized for compression, the torques you are applying on the framecan do serious damage. Pulling upwards with various tools are safer.
it’s unbelievable but it worked thanks mate
Good to know, thanks!
I'm having similar problem with a stuck stem in a trike. Wedge is free and can rotate it, but will not come out.
man the best method i found to remove a seized seatpost includes really hot water and a rubber mallet works like a charm every time ..... just poor the hot water over the seattube and repeatedly heat and cool it then try to twist the saddle should come right off in no time
i have a trek 820 model 2007 and i have bontrager seat post i cant even movit it stuck
Thanks RJ for busting this myth now I won't be wasting any coca cola for purpose like this
Alloy seat posts are a pain for getting stuck! Bottom brackets on alloy frames love to get stuck too.
Stems and seat posts. I don't usually have too many problems with BBs.
Any suggestions for a stuck aluminum seatpost on a carbon frame?
how did you get it out in the end?
had the same problem, coke, a week of waiting and some old handlebars for leverage got me there finally
He does it all folks!
Hi RJ, always enjoy your videos!
Just a thought: Next time you go on holiday how about pouring Evaporust down the seat tube to see it that will do the trick?
Very informative as always.
Works on rust (iron oxide), not galvanic corrosion (aluminum oxide).
Tried it with a big screw jack jig setup specially made for this and the jig began to deform. Ended up sawing out the post from inside with a large saw blade sandwiched between two strips of steel and after an hour I was able to twist the post out with a huge wrench and a lot of sweat. Here in rainy Scotland after even a short trip the post and tube are soaked in water thrown up from the rear wheel, so now the new post lives on the bench and only goes in while I'm riding the bike.
RJ the Bike genius.... brilliant...good to debunk the nonsense. I will say though, a week for something to soak in anything seems a bit excessive lol
This was the dimise of my 97' Raleigh M-50 in 2005, I tried soaking it in penetrating oil for months but no avail. Since I had already purchased a brand new 05' Trek 6500 it was time to let it go. I ended up totaling the frame and repourposing all the componets on to a green 99' Trek 800 Sport that I found in the trash, so it lives on.
Its really funny the bike in this video is a Raleigh M-45 and is the same vintage and color as mine
I used citric acid for a really stuck quill stem AND THEN some serious power.
Very interesting... oh well, at least now you can pull out the Drillo Pad and remove the Coke syrup from the seat tube : )
Any suggestions for a stuck, threaded handlebar set? I know you did a video where you cut them off but I'd rather not do that.
th-cam.com/video/7GvN7w386U0/w-d-xo.html
RJ The Bike Guy Thank you!
What's next?
So something that is considered safe to drink can dissolve rust and corrosion?
Vinegar and molasses both remove rust.
what size of seatpost?
What is the relevance to the video?
Its the molasses in the Coke that dissolves stuff but not in every case.
Great video! I hope you don't mind, but my name is Jason and I've a question. I can't find it anywhere, and RST can no longer be communicated. It's as if they want you to buy their product but hopes you won't contact them. I have an RST Omni 181 that I took apart. I took pictures, but no longer have them for whatever reason. Do you have a way/e-mail that I can contact you with and send pictures? Maybe you can help me solve it? I really want to get this bike together, it has been sitting in my basement for really too long.
You can post photos on my facebook page.
Hopefully I've pressed the correct green post button on your home page, I'm also following you now, hopefully you can see the video I sent you. Thanks!
Love it :-)
So I've just bought a road bike with aluminium frame and seatpost, and it's real stuck in there. I've been spraying WD40 into my frame and around the outside of the post for 24 hours, with no luck. I've tried everything I can think of like twisting it(didn't move), pulling it, hitting it with a rubber mallet.. Still nothing. Anyone got any ideas?
I knew it wouldn't work!
The polar bears said so!
What's with your left bicep? Did you tear it or burn it?
Burn. Hot water when I was about 22. 2nd and 3rd degree. 7 weeks in the hospital.
@@RJTheBikeGuy sorry to hear that. Dare I ask how you did it?
Had the flu. Passed out. Fell into bath tub. Hit my ear on the hot water knob and hot water poured over my arm while I was unconscious.
I bought the bike new 3 years ago and had it in for maintenance every year. the shop never mentioned anything about the post until it was stuck. Now they say I should have been taking it out and cleaning it
Ouch.
You must put some tequila in the coke, oh and a couple of ice cubes also.
🎯🤣👌
But how did you fix the problem? Or you didn't?
Try boiling hot water. I suggested this before but it didn't work for you - as you say, prolly worked because my post was not that stuck to begin with but the expansion did make a very visible difference from totally locked post to being able to move it somewhat and get it out. Nothing else came close but it was a high end bike and i couldn't hammer or sacrifice the post. I did have a carbon post in alum frame also. Different materials and some corrosion. I think the timing is important, boil water in kettle, pour on tube for a good 15 seconds with bike on its side then twist immediately. Mine came out after doing this 2-3 times.
if t is a aluminium seatpost and steel frame heating will have an opposite effect. try cooling the alu seatpost (alu reacts double as much with expansion/shriking as steel. so cooling with an ice/oil spray is a good idea. heat is not. But it highly depends on the combination of materials. steel/steel heating might work
Shouldn't you try a fine VSOP cognac made from champagne grapes?
leverage is key...I finally had success on my seized aluminum post by opening up the seat post clamp with lockring plyers, squirting lemon juice inside, and prying out with a 6 foot steel pipe
J I'm not a scientist but my guess is the acidity from the juice eats away at the corrosion
I once had to use a saw saw to cut out a seat post.
best way I have ever found- soak seatpost day before w penetrating oil, PB Blaster is good. leave the seat on the seatpost. took the bike to my workbench with a face style woodworkers vise invert bike upside down and clamp onto seat only. use the total length of the bike front forks to chainstays for leverage and slowly... slowly lean into it first one way then the other twisting. works most of the time. you will probably lose the seat, vise action will collapse the seat rails but that sucker will break loose
mike manikowski i did exactly that with 'Rust Eater' and and gt saddle
It was an rly long uncut thomson elite seatpost, in my toyoframe godzilla. Im so greatful.
The "magical" ingredient of Coca Cola for rust removing is the phosphoric acid , you can adquire this acid in local bussines of chemical products , the porpose of the phosphoric acid in the Coca Cola (and others "sodas")is the invisibility of the hiper sweet flavor for the high sugar content .
Sorry for my "english"😀
Coke sucks as a rust remover. th-cam.com/video/DZVdkLWAurE/w-d-xo.html
@@RJTheBikeGuy 😅😅😅the problem whit the Coke its her low content of phosphorif acid , the phosphoric acid disolved in whater is other history th-cam.com/video/O89OBnnTd5c/w-d-xo.html
I love u
I have a dropper seat post stuck in a carbon frame.
Ouch. I have't messed with dropper seatposts. Or seatposts stuck in carbon frames. I don't know the best course of action for that.
Try the Mountain Dew and Pepsi (sitting behind you) before you give up!
if it's rust that's making it seize then the coke should work. if it's the same issue I have which is the wrong sized seatpost then nothing short of a dremmel to the frame or maybe using two cars to pull them apart will work. with mine the seatpost was too big for the frame. it kind of looks like you have the same issue. but try some liquid wrench just to make sure.
Mole Grips & a Hammer. Failing that, turn the bike upside down & use a Slide Hammer. Can't use heat or you may fluff the frame up?!
Has anyone experience in using ~30% Phosphoric-Acid instead of 'sugar-water'?!
In my experience this should definitly desolve any rust and limesone (but have no idea what it does to the alluminum of the seatpost).
This is NOT rust. It's aluminum oxide. th-cam.com/video/bGqV5KE7cb8/w-d-xo.html
I can see it work if the sticking is due to rust but not so much if not.
Mine was so seized I had to cut the top of my seat post off and the bottom (enduro frame), so i could get a hacksaw blade down it and cut a slit along the seat post internally, then try and fold it in, after using mole grips to crush it, i ended up managing to hammer it out. It took me hours!! This is not an easy task if its proper seized!
th-cam.com/video/LJLZ9Ojtr80/w-d-xo.html
th-cam.com/video/P-YpmDx86d0/w-d-xo.html
@@RJTheBikeGuy Yeah i did the saw method, accept i only cut one slit down the length of the post and just crushed it in with mole grips so i could then get a better purchase on it.
Considering the cartons in the background, I'm surprised you didn't use Pepsi (Coke vs. Pepsi challenge?).
time for heat
It's pure hell when this happens.
I've been so annoyed I've scrapped a bike over it
I got it out eventually. th-cam.com/video/LJLZ9Ojtr80/w-d-xo.html
I have a bike with a seized to seat post. I've tried everything. I guess the last thing to do is drill a hole through it, then put a screwdriver through it and try to twist it out.
You've tried everything? Really? I have never tried everything yet. Did you try a slide hammer? th-cam.com/video/S3ek2GeZzE0/w-d-xo.html
RJ The Bike Guy no I didn't try everything lol
I am always looking for new ways to remove seized seatposts and stems.
Couple of weeks 😂😂
Ever tried Ammonia? Some people claim that it can remove galvanic corrosion from aluminium.
Yes, and it didn't work. Supposedly it eats aluminum oxide. But keep in mine, the corrosion is the length of the seat post contact, and the ammonia only reaches the edge.
@@RJTheBikeGuy Thanks for the info. I have a frozen seat post (aluminium in steel) and I was hoping for an easier task. I guess there're no shortcuts for this job...
th-cam.com/video/S3ek2GeZzE0/w-d-xo.html
Fill it with PB Blaster instead of cola. Let sit for a day or two
@RJTheBikeGuy Mate try to use vinegar... it has a high level of acidity and it will react very good with the rust.... but don't leave it weeks, just couple of days... BTW I haven't done it myself but perhaps it will work... Cheers.
The issue isn't rust. It's aluminum oxide. Vinegar doesn't do anything to that.
Maybe the Pepsi in the background works....😅
why not use a heat gun and heat it up a little bit (like 200 degrees C) and try to pull it out that way ( careful though it will be pretty damn hot to the touch) we do that all the time to machine bearings and it works all the time.
Because this video was to test coke. And I am guessing heating the frame to 200C will damage the paint and maybe the frame too.
Mohamed Ali It's an aluminum seatpost in a steel frame. Aluminum has a higher thermal expansion than steel. Heating will make it stick worse, not loosen it. Cooling, using liquid nitrogen, would be more likely to work, because the aluminum will contract more than the steel.
oh! I thought the materials were the opposite (ie aluminum frame and steel seat post) which is the case in my bike.
liquid nitrogen would be an over kill though. let me do the math, and I might be able to get you the right temprature .
Has anyone tried citric acid, CITRIC ACID, Lemi shine or equivalent?
Citric acid doesn't touch aluminum oxide. It will probably make the galvanic reaction worse.
Seems as lye may be about it. This has been a subject machinists, chemists have at least looked at. Interesting I have a steel seat-post in an aluminium frame...I greased it and took the entire thing apart and had a look. Perhaps a trade war with China will be a good thing?
All that excess sugar in soda might make the seat post stick more, particularly if the post was heated up afterwards. It seems like a bad idea to start with.
Two weeks !!🤔😳😂😂
Hola yo he usado.salfuman y ha salido fácilmente he hecho la.misma operación el salfuman es peligroso pero con guantes y gafas
Then yours wasn't seriously stuck.
RJ The Bike Guy sí que estaba atascado pruébalo sustitúyelo la coca cola. Por salfuman
Two part Acetone, one part Transmission Fluid. Mix the two together and use an eye dropper. Doing so from the top of the seat post to the frame. Takes three days of constant dripping into seat post. The mixture will eat rust and old grease. Use pipe wrench and it will come off......taken seat posts off from bikes sitting in snow banks... lol
The problem wasn't rust, but galvanic corrosion which is aluminum oxide. I want to come up with a test for the acetone/ATF mix (which is 50/50 from everything else I have read) and compare it to other penetrating oils. I am guessing it is an overrated exaggeration just like Coke.
Part of reason coke won't work is sugar and water its based on. The trick with Acetone & Transmission fluid was something a Auto Mech told me. Its used to remove rusted heads on cars. But it will take skin off so use Plumber's gloves and it will take off paint. Used it once on taking pedals off that were rusted and on 30 years. Love the videos RJ.
When I was a child I had few rust spots on my bike. Someone told me to use coke to remove it, so I splashed my bike with coke and next morning I had the rust all over my bike. It ruined my bike and I quit drinking coke since then.
Coke is fine to drink. Sucks as a rust remover.
thought u were a pepsi man? :)
You should try diet coke and mentos lol that would be fun
couldn't you have used a couple of your cans of diet Pepsi rather than buying a bottle of coke?
Another myth busted.
Perhaps you should've tried the Pepsi or mountain dew.
Heat and a work bench (vise) will do it.
LOL except when it doesn't. I ended up have to cut this one out.
@@RJTheBikeGuy which tools did you use to cut it out? are there any special saws you could recommend.
I'm facing the exact same problem at the moment and wanted to try the coke thing till I found your video. Another guy told me to use Ammonia to remove the corrosion, any thoughts on that?
boiling water out in the frame and inside the saddle post.
*HEY GUYS!*
Mr. , do it simple : [ luminous ] petroleum and brake - fluid around the seat-post. Wait the necessary amount of time to work its magic. Et vóilà !!!
Yes, I've heard the same thing. So, not true? Coca-Cola doesn't work?
I have the same problem with a beautiful old Peugeot bike. But with the stem. Completely stuck.
I got thd post out I put cold packs on it for about 45 mins. Did that trick. 😆
I have tried heat, and also cold, and they have never worked. Even tried dry ice on a seat post. This same seat post actually. It didn't work. I think maybe it only works on lightly seized seat posts.
@@RJTheBikeGuy
I had been putting penatrating oil in the down post for aroind 6 months
That couldn't hurt. I not sure how much penetrating oil will help if the issue was galvanic corrosion. th-cam.com/video/bGqV5KE7cb8/w-d-xo.html
put some coke into a frozen stem and it sure did work for me (soak time was three days)
Or just drink the Coke. Works better for that.
Heat it up
Two weeks soaking in water! That could case the seat post and frame to rust/corrode together. I would only leave it soaking for a day or two. He didn't waste too much soda, just a glassful. I like 7-Eleven Super Big Gulps with mostly Diet Pepsi mixed with about 15% regular Coke - best (worst?) of both worlds, cancer and cavities.
I'd say use a air hammer. Mechanics use it to get siezed stuff out all the time.
I actually did try an air hammer and many other methods. I ended up cutting the thing out. I hadn't made my puller tool yet.
@@RJTheBikeGuy ah cool, i rode my motorized bicycle with a 24 inch wheel in the back and a 26 in the front, which slightly bent it, but the other day i hit a hard bump and it bent it way far back, along with that it was siezed in the first place, so i think im gonna get a hacksaw blade and make a custom saw to fit into the hole of the seat post to cut it out then hit it with a chissel and a hammer
@@propabilityfpv303 You can try this: th-cam.com/video/S3ek2GeZzE0/w-d-xo.html
A whole load of WD-40 works good too
Try White Viagar . It eats the rust right off my tools when they get mistreated. Another good Penetration / Release compound Mix about a oz of Acetone with equal parts ATF. Let it set a hour. Rusted bolts Break free because of what it does to the Rust. Converts the Rust into a Crumbly Powder with no more lock up strength.
It's not rust. th-cam.com/video/bGqV5KE7cb8/w-d-xo.html
In that vid your talking about Electrolysis. I was talking about Rust. Steel on steel. Sorry. I have Cheap Bikes. LOL
maybe petroleum or W.D. 40 . But coke l wouldn't trust : it's too sweet .