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Appreciation post: a customer's seized seatpost in the Florida heat

Last week, a guy brought in a bike that had been sitting in his garage in Tampa for two years. The aluminum seatpost was totally seized in the steel frame. I tried the usual tricks, but it wouldn't budge. I ended up mixing up a batch of ammonia and dish soap, let it soak overnight, and it came free with a solid twist the next morning. What's your go-to method for a really stuck post when basic penetrating oil doesn't cut it?
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4 Comments
carter.mila
Ever try freezing the whole frame? I had a steel bike where I stuck the seat tube in a bucket of dry ice for a bit, the aluminum post shrank just enough to break the corrosion bond.
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owens.jenny
Just a heads up, ammonia can be risky on aluminum. It can cause corrosion. I've had better luck with a 50/50 mix of automatic transmission fluid and acetone.
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quinn606
quinn6061mo ago
Acetone can eat some plastics too, careful.
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oliviatorres
Yeah, @quinn606 is right, that stuff is no joke.
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