Crown race removal

[olivertomberry]

Hi all, has anyone got any good hacks for installing/removing a fork crown race without the bespoke tools? I don't want to use the old flat-head screwdriver hack... has anyone used a PVC pipe successfully?

Or is it easier just to hacksaw a split in the crown race and use it like that? I did that on an FSA Orbit pretty successfully.

Cheers

Oliver

 

[rogerzilla]

I have a tool but it's not that useful. A hammer and punch used judiciously works as well as anything for steel forks, where you can generally get at the underside of the race. I have a crown race setter for installation.

What headset is it, and what fork? A photo will help.

 

[si_c]

I get my LBS to do it, one of the few jobs I don't do myself, usually costs about a tenner to remove the old and fit the new.

I've done the whole remove with a punch and refit using a PVC pipe but it wasn't massively effective as the pipe became frayed at the end and didn't want to push the race on. The LBS use the proper tool and it usually takes about a minute.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Or is it easier just to hacksaw a split in the crown race and use it like that?

Case hardened bearing parts cannot be easily cut with a hacksaw. An angle grinder will work, but one slip of the tool and you've put a stress-raiser into a safety-critical part! The hammer and screwdriver method is highly effective. I'm not going to bugger about with bits of PVC. If I drift a bearing race on to a shaft using a piece of pipe or tubing, it will be made of steel not anything else.