HT2 - What a dufus

slowbike

I've been swapping around my cranks for the last few years - since I got a PM (yes - a Stages - doesn't matter if you don't like it - I do and this is nothing to do with PMs - just the Shimano HT2 fitting) ... and I've always had difficulty in getting the bung off - the one that pushes the crank arm up on the crank.
Method i used has always been:

fitting
put the crank arm on
screw the bung in
press the key down
tighten up the bolts

removal
undo the bung
undo the bolts
lift the key up
remove the crank arm


I have a hand key tool and purchased another one with an arm on it - the one with the arm just had a plastic interface and very quickly rounded off - the hand key one I have to use with radiator spanners to undo ..

There am I - about to take the PM on holiday to fit on one of my other bikes - not wanting to take too many tools but concerned that I can't undo the bung easily ... epiphany moment ... in theory anyway.

I always undo the bung first - but it's clamped in place by the arms of the crank arm - if I undo the bolts first that will release the bung so I shouldn't need the radiator spanners anymore ... won't I?!

ugo.santalucia

You crazy man...

Obviously you undo the bolts BEFORE you undo the bung... otherwise it will either not come off or you will damage the plastic threads

k-dog

I don't think so - you screw in the crank arm fixing cap with the bolts loose so it will have some tightness even if you loosen the bolts completely. I use one of the round ones which doesn't take up a lot of space and you don't need a spanner - it doesn't have to be that tight.



Like that but metal.

slowbike

ugo.santalucia wrote:

You crazy man...

Obviously you undo the bolts BEFORE you undo the bung... otherwise it will either not come off or you will damage the plastic threads

Sometimes people just need the bleedin obvious pointing out to them ... unfortunately nobody with any intelligence has ever watched me swap cranks and therefore haven't pointed out my stupid mistake ... and it's taken me a good couple of years to finally work it out for myself (tbf - I've never given it much thought - other than "where did I leave the rad spanner?") ...

slowbike

k-dog wrote:

I don't think so - you screw in the crank arm fixing cap with the bolts loose so it will have some tightness even if you loosen the bolts completely. I use one of the round ones which doesn't take up a lot of space and you don't need a spanner - it doesn't have to be that tight.



Like that but metal.

that's the one - but mine are plastic as in your picture - I only really thought about it as I'd fitted the PM crank arm to my TT bike in readiness - never rode it as the TT was canceled - thought I'd try undoing it and couldn't by hand - which was rediculous as I'd only tightened it up by hand ... and nothing else had changed - the bike was/is still on the stand!

veronese68

Slowbike wrote:

fitting
put the crank arm on
screw the bung in
press the key down
tighten up the bolts

removal
undo the bung
undo the bolts
lift the key up
remove the crank arm

Removal is nearly always the reverse order to fitting, don't change the order without good reason.

slowbike

tested the theory last night ...
the previously, practically immovable bung ... moved ... what a suprise ... not!
Dufus ...

Oh well - it'll make changing over to the PM easier on holiday