How do I remove a hollowtech crankset?

The original hollowtech, not hollowtech II.

Pic here:

Assumed the allen bolt in the middle was a cap, but I can’t budge it. Didn’t want to force it too much incase it was a reverse thread or something?

Thought I’d just remove that cap and use a crank puller, but not sure. Is that right?

Had a look in the big blue book but couldn’t find anything specific about hollowtech.

That’s the crank bolt – you’ll need some decent force to shift it…

Yes unbolt that bolt insert the crank puller the tighten then center of the puller. If it is a little tight try a pipe on the end of the allen key, if its not shifting put end cap in pocket and go for a ride this should loosen it up a bit.

What he said.

What he said.

Which one? they both said different thing! 😆

Insert big Allen key into the Centre bolt and give it a good swing to the left to undo.

Once removed you will then need to screw in the correct crank puller/removal tool to ease the crank arm off the BB splines.

Its a 5 minute job if you have the correct tools.

Is it a normal crank puller? read something about some shimano ones needing an adaptor (or coin) to go over a hole in the spindle?

I’ve got an ISIS puller.

This might help

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/crank-removal-installation-isis-drive-or-octalink

Make sure the crank puller is the right size for an octalink axle. If you have an older puller I think you’ll need to put a couple of 5p pieces in there first for the puller to push against.

Is it a normal crank puller? read something about some shimano ones needing an adaptor (or coin) to go over a hole in the spindle?

I’ve got an ISIS puller.

If you use a normal square taper crank puller you need either the little metal plug to fit into the end of the BB or I have got away in the past with using a couple of 5pence coins.

I think the Isis puller is the same as a Octalink puller (I’m on Hollowtech 2 so nut used my old puller for a while)

A pair of old handlebars make a great lever if you need more force.

remove the end cap with an allen key…if its tight then use a pips as mentioned to increase leverage to undo it.
then assuming its a square taper axle then you’ll need a shimano crank extractor tool (not sure if your ISIS tool will work)
if its an octalink axle then you will need the octalink plug tool which you need to insert first before fitting the tool…i have heard of people using small coins as a substitute to do this….but i’ve never tried this method so i cant say if it works

Sorted, I’ll give it a bash tonight. I’ve got a 2′ knuckle bar that’ll give plenty of force, didn’t want to break anything with it last night.

On a related note, any idea how to keep a crank on 🙂 ?

Mrs B’s non drive side Octalink crank keeps falling off, no mater how tight I do the bolt.. do I need to Loctite it?

On a related note, any idea how to keep a crank on ?

Mrs B’s non drive side Octalink crank keeps falling off, no mater how tight I do the bolt.. do I need to Loctite it?

if its just the axle bolt that keeps coming undone then loctite should do the job.
if once the bolt is off, the crank arm slides off the axle then you need to check the condition of the splines on the axle and the crank. if the axle splines are worn down on either then you’ll most likely need to replace one or both.

Well, if you need a replacement, give me a shout before I ebay it! 😀