Unlike loose ball type bike parts like hubs and BB’s sealed bearings need a tool to get them in or take them out. Some will tell you need to spend a $100 on some special tool while others will say you don’t.

In my time working in a now closed local bike shop I had the opportunity to learn a bit from a old European.  Hailing from the 70’s and early 80’s of bike mechanic’s, he told me stories of creating their own tools from scratch if they had to. And saw it in action a few times.A while ago I had cut down the seatpost from the Monstercross bike I built up. I had a hunch that the scrap bit of seatpost might be useful so I kept it in my work bench. The seatpost size was 27.2 which to some may seem like a odd size these days.

I recently needed to  pull the DMR Revolver Hub bearings as they where done after 2 years. After some thought I grabbed the left over seat post bit and it matched.  I would be able to use this as a way to tap out the bearing and internal sleeve. And when it is time to put it all back together I could use the same seat post bit.

After that was completed I decided to check how it matched a external BB bearing. And again it matched. So now I can tap in those bearings as well. Perfect.

In the end it turns out an excess bit of a 27.2 seatpost that would have ended in the dumpster has found use on my workbench as a bearing press. The best part is that in the end it was free. Winning.