Star nut knackered!

Johnny Napalm

I swapped over my forks onto another frame to see how the 140s would suit and I noticed that two of the prongs (whatever they're called) have more or less corroded and come off. The star nut still seems pretty solid, but I will remove it if necessary. Do you educated bunch think it should be replaced, and if so, what's the easiest way of getting it out (might be worth noting that I don't have a vice at hand).

386ka

Dunno what you mean by prongs really, but if it still serves it's purpose, then I would leave it. The stem does all the hard work, you can even remove the top cap after you preload the bearings and set the stem.
Cheers.

Johnny Napalm

Cheers.

You know how they have the six prongs/arms/tabs (not sure of the correct terminology) - well, it's two of those that have corroded, so there are only four of them left.

386ka

Ah, those! I think that it's not a problem, as I stated above, the stem does all the hard work (make sure you tighten it properly). But you can wait for other opinions.
Anyway, to remove the star nut, you should push it through the bottom of the steerer I think...

Cheers.

Johnny Napalm

Cheers, 386. :-)

lugsey2k5

Star nuts are about £2 either way so not really a costly thing to change. You can always just tap the star nut further down the steerer and put the new one above it unless you are concerned about the added weight!

oxocube1

Yep the guys are right, just use a long instrument of some sort just to push the startnut out of the bottom of the forks. A long piece of PVC plastic piping would work or an extra long metal socket arm and just tap the top end of it with a hammer.

cooldad

Often a hassle to knock it out the bottom of the steerer, just knock it down an inch and fit a new one - unless you are an extreme weight weenie.

YeehaaMcgee

As long as it's staying in place, just leave it. Like has been said, it's the stem that actually holds the tension anyway, the starnut is just used to preload the bearings - one the stem bolts are tightened id doesn't need to do anything.

HOWEVER!!!
Knocking the starnut down the forks is a pretty bad idea. It will leave score marks down the inside of the steerer tube, which can lead to fractures occuring at those points later in life.
To be on the safe side, bend the prongs inwards with a long screwdriver, and either let it fall through, or pull it out of the top.

lugsey2k5

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

As long as it's staying in place, just leave it. Like has been said, it's the stem that actually holds the tension anyway, the starnut is just used to preload the bearings - one the stem bolts are tightened id doesn't need to do anything.

HOWEVER!!!
Knocking the starnut down the forks is a pretty bad idea. It will leave score marks down the inside of the steerer tube, which can lead to fractures occuring at those points later in life.
To be on the safe side, bend the prongs inwards with a long screwdriver, and either let it fall through, or pull it out of the top.

So what about the first inch of the tube with score marks down it from where the star nut is installed? Even on aluminium steerer's it barely leaves scratches never mind score marks on them.

Chunkers1980

Yes, but some taper to the bottom.

lugsey2k5

Hence why i suggested just tap it down an inch. My fox's have a plastic plug type thing in the bottom so doubt i could get it out without removing that anyway.

YeehaaMcgee

lugsey2k5 wrote:

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

As long as it's staying in place, just leave it. Like has been said, it's the stem that actually holds the tension anyway, the starnut is just used to preload the bearings - one the stem bolts are tightened id doesn't need to do anything.

HOWEVER!!!
Knocking the starnut down the forks is a pretty bad idea. It will leave score marks down the inside of the steerer tube, which can lead to fractures occuring at those points later in life.
To be on the safe side, bend the prongs inwards with a long screwdriver, and either let it fall through, or pull it out of the top.

So what about the first inch of the tube with score marks down it from where the star nut is installed? Even on aluminium steerer's it barely leaves scratches never mind score marks on them.

First inch or so is something we have to live with, and is ultimately an unusual place for the fork steerer to go. Almost all fork steerers taper inwards, and some are butted, so there's less material in the central section than there is at the top or the bottom.
Also, the standard starnut location leads to scoring over the first inch or two - not the entire length of the steerer.

Plenty of people do knock them down, and you can too. I'm just letting you know of the increased potential for failure later on. It's still your call whether you do it or not.

cooldad

Live dangerously.

Johnny Napalm

Cripes!

Torres

Just get the drill out Johnny

Or just leave it, as long as your headset bearings are loaded properly (ie no play or sticky steering) then you're reet.

supersonic

Just leave it.

DodgeT

And when the other prongs eventually corrode, it'll come out really easy. Then replace.
As others have said, leave it for now.

vala

I followed this guide to remove a star nut.

http://gearinches.com/blog/how-to/how-t ... a-star-nut

Johnny Napalm

Being a lazy so and so, I do like the leave it option. There is no slack in the headset when loaded so I suppose I'll have to leave it then.

Cheers, me dears!