I would also like to add that GM (General Motors) makes, sells, a fluid for unseating "frozen" valves. And I think its called just that. Thanks to the abundant use of salt on the roads in upstate New York, my old Colnagos' seatpost was frozen for life-or so I thought. Master metal manipulator, Glenn Swan, and I tried about everything. We even heated up transmission fluid and poured it into the upside down seattube. Still no luck. One of his customers (who worked at the local Chevy garage) happened to be in the shop at the time and suggested this fluid. He said that this was a high penatrating oil that never fails to work. Lo an behold, it worked. We heated the fluid on top of a wood stove and poured it down the seat tube with the frame upside down-Bingo! I would try clamping the pedal flats in a vise, then using the crank arm as the lever. This method has saved a few knuckles.
Don Andersen
>I address the pedal removal issue only. The principal question is the
>value you place on your time, and the quantity of patience you have.
>
>1) Pedal removal. It is easy to brute-force the pedal out, stripping the
>threads along the way. If this happens, see #2, below. If you can tease
>and coax them to free up, that is better. Here's what I recommend.
>--> Take the pedal apart, so you have the bare naked spindle on the crank
>arm.
>--> While cooling the spindle in icewater (lots of ice), warm the crank arm
>with a propane torch. The trick here is that aluminum has higher rate of
>thermal expansion than steel, so warming the crank will expand it relative
>to the cold spindle.
>--> Try a leeeetle torque while it is quite warm, then repeat until fully
>frustrated. If successful at getting it started, use lots of penetrating
>oil (liquid wrench, etc). That's why you do this outside: next heating
>will fry the oil.
>--> If successful, it is easy to retap the cranks to 9/16", the pitch is
>essentially identical. Wanna buy some real dull taps? :-)
>
>2) Brute force method. Just back out the pedal, as though it were
>untreading. I'd take the pedal apart and clamp the spindle firmly in a
>vise, then turn the crank (covered with towels). It will give, stripping
>the alloy threads in the crank arm. Then drill to the ID required for a
>helicoil, and tap with helicoil threads. If you are quick, you can still
>get this stuff from third hand...
>
>The undersigned accepts no responsibility for broken skin or bones,
>frustration, inhalation, or other consequential or inconsequential damage
>to self, parts, or psyche... However, I have managed to do the helicoil
>trick several times.
>
>harvey sachs
>
>At 09:00 AM 1/4/2001 -0600, KCTOMMY wrote:
>>Does anyone recognize the pedals in this sale?
>>http://www.honesty.com/images/imageTemplate.html?img=http://images.honesty.c
>>om/imagedata/h/324/10/23241094.jpg.
>>
>>Seller says the pedals are stuck in the cranks. Are they of sufficient
>>quality to match the Stronglight crank and to be worth keeping?
>>
>>If the decision would be to remove the pedals, and assuming they are
>>french
>>threaded (ze pedals look very gallic), can french pedal threads be
>>retapped
>>to english specs (under the assumption that there will be irrepearable
>>damage the french threads from forcible extraction)?
>>
>>What would be the best way to entice frozen pedals from the crank arm,
>>hopefully saving both parts, but at all costs preserving the cranks?
>>
>>Thanks in advance.
>>
>>Tom Adams, still showing my new International to anyone too slow to avoid
>>me
>>in Kansas City.