I'm trying to remove the steering head from a C11G frame I've been given, but it won't budge. I suspect that the piece circled, described in the parts list as the "Steering stem adjusting sleeve", part no. 29-5290, is threaded on the inside as well as the outside, but how do I take it off? The head does turn from side to side so it's not as if the whole thing has rusted in place after decades of no movement.
The sleeve is threaded on the inside and screws onto the fork stem. It screws down to take the play out of the bearings. A number of choices comes to mind. Try WD40 down the inside of the sleeve, see if that frees the thread. Try some heat to see if that breaks the rust seal by expanding the sleeve, or cut through the sleeve length wise. You could try drilling a series of holes and split the sleeve with a sharp chisel. If you touch the tread it won't stop the forks being usable.
Good tips, thanks.
(The short version of this is that the head is now off the bike - thanks idie for your suggestions. Now because it's Sunday morning and I've little else to do, let's dress it up a bit and give you the long version)
I'm delighted to report that the steering head has now been removed. My solution incorporated three of the suggestions provided by idie in the post above.
I tried WD40. Nothing happened. I tried again and left it to soak. Same result. With the weather not being too great and the inclination and motivation not being too high, I left it for a while. Then I came back to it with a Stilson. it still didn't budge! Finally I bought my first blowtorch.
Initially it looked like that had made no difference either. But as I looked closer at the head and moved the frame closer to the shed door to get some natural light, I could see something new - there were two slots in the sleeve running down the bottom 3/4 of its length, and the heat of the torch must have melted whatever crud has built up in them to expose them to sight. So with the head still smoking a bit from the torch, I tried the Stilson again.
Nothing happened.
(Here's some backstory. My Dad died suddenly last August and when I was emptying his shed I found most of a B33 engine. I wrote about this in an article for the Irish Veteran & Vintage Motor Cycle Club magazine at the start of this year. One of my Dad's friends gave me a frame and front end for the engine but it turned out to be for a 4-speed C11G, so I now have two projects to build in his memory and as a bit of therapy for me, and perhaps the basis for a couple of articles in The Star if I manage to actually complete the build.)
I had another look at the head and applied the Stilson again, and sent a silent plea for help to my Dad. I swear on all I hold dear that the bloody thing moved IMMEDIATELY! I turned it as quickly as possible, shifting over to my gloved hand for a few turns but it was still too hot for that. It got about half-way off and then got stuck again. But it had gone up far enough for the top of the slots to be visible over the stem of the head. I decided to sacrifice the sleeve and broke out the Big Hacksaw. This made short work of the sleeve and I was then able to remove the head and experience the joy of ball bearings falling onto the floor. :)
So now I'm a step closer towards the full strip-down of the frame and I can move on to the next part.
It all sounds promising. I bet your old Dad is having a few chuckles at your antics.