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Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 27 Sep 2024, 10:33pm
by plancashire
I have read topic
Getting rubber bar grips to stick?. We use the hairspray method in our volunteer workshop. For my 2004 Brompton grips I just clean them and the bars very well with alcohol, add a few drops more then push on quickly. They stay put without glue and can be removed non-destructively.
A customer yesterday added an ingenious method to our standard removal technique.
Usually we loosen any brake levers or gear shifters and move them to make a gap at the end of the rubber grip. We insert a spanner which just fits over the bar tube then hit it with a mallet against the grip. This expands it and drives it off. Pulling contracts it. I usually introduce some washing up liquid into the open end of the grip first.
Our customer said he'd seen, presumably on YouTube, a "profi" method. We bored a tiny hole in the end of the grip, inserted a football inflation needle, connected it to our compressor and blew. It worked like a charm. The grip expanded off the bar, freeing any glue, and we could slide it off with a loud pop. During the process we held the grip on the other end tightly. Fortunately we needed to remove only one grip.
Must find a champagne cork.
Does anyone have any other non-destructive methods?
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 27 Sep 2024, 10:47pm
by 531colin
Move brake/gear levers out of the way ( inboard) lay bike on its side on the floor with one handlebar end in a bucket of hot water. Once the grip is warm , insert a small screwdriver between grip and bar, and place back in the water.
The warm soft grip with water under it will slide off the bar; as above, pull it off by the inner edge, not by the outer end, as this will stretch the grip and tighten it
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 28 Sep 2024, 8:34am
by rjb
Similar to Colin's, move levers out of the way, slide a thin screwdriver under the grip, squirt some wd40 in the gap, remove screwdriver and twist the grip until it comes free.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 28 Sep 2024, 9:23am
by 2_i
When putting the grips on or removing them, I only squirt water, making a gap with a screwdriver. I put a piece of cloth tape onto the handlebar to prevent the grips from slipping.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 28 Sep 2024, 12:13pm
by squeaker
rjb wrote: ↑28 Sep 2024, 8:34am
Similar to Colin's, move levers out of the way, slide a thin screwdriver under the grip, squirt some wd40 in the gap, remove screwdriver and twist the grip until it comes free.
Similar, but I use the same hairspray that will later be used to secure the replacement, rather than WD40.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 28 Sep 2024, 1:48pm
by mattsccm
WD40 or similar and a thin screwdriver. It does dry sticky so then keeps the grips on later.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 28 Sep 2024, 2:26pm
by Will
plancashire wrote: ↑27 Sep 2024, 10:33pm
I have read topic
Getting rubber bar grips to stick?. We use the hairspray method in our volunteer workshop. For my 2004 Brompton grips I just clean them and the bars very well with alcohol, add a few drops more then push on quickly. They stay put without glue and can be removed non-destructively.
A customer yesterday added an ingenious method to our standard removal technique.
Usually we loosen any brake levers or gear shifters and move them to make a gap at the end of the rubber grip. We insert a spanner which just fits over the bar tube then hit it with a mallet against the grip. This expands it and drives it off. Pulling contracts it. I usually introduce some washing up liquid into the open end of the grip first.
Our customer said he'd seen, presumably on YouTube, a "profi" method. We bored a tiny hole in the end of the grip, inserted a football inflation needle, connected it to our compressor and blew. It worked like a charm. The grip expanded off the bar, freeing any glue, and we could slide it off with a loud pop. During the process we held the grip on the other end tightly. Fortunately we needed to remove only one grip.
Must find a champagne cork.
Does anyone have any other non-destructive methods?
This
YouTube video shows hacks using a compressor. Hack #3 (@ 03:44) shows the removal of rubber grips using a compressor and a gun - no need to drill ahole.
Will
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 28 Sep 2024, 2:43pm
by Brucey
it is always worth trying compressed air (for doing golf club grips like this, I built a kind of 'iron maiden' to stop them from bursting). I have designed a tool for this very job. The tool has QD jaws which fit reasonably snugly around a standard 22.2 mm handlebar. These are attached to a slide hammer. This tool, plus a kettle full of hot water, is all you need for most grips.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 29 Sep 2024, 2:07pm
by plancashire
Will wrote: ↑28 Sep 2024, 2:26pm
This
YouTube video shows hacks using a compressor. Hack #3 (@ 03:44) shows the removal of rubber grips using a compressor and a gun - no need to drill ahole.
Will
Thanks. This might work with a needle football inflator under the end of the grip, which incidentally in the video already has a hole.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 29 Sep 2024, 2:26pm
by Carlton green
Brucey wrote: ↑28 Sep 2024, 2:43pm
it is always worth trying compressed air (for doing golf club grips like this, I built a kind of 'iron maiden' to stop them from bursting). I have designed a tool for this very job. The tool has QD jaws which fit reasonably snugly around a standard 22.2 mm handlebar. These are attached to a slide hammer. This tool, plus a kettle full of hot water, is all you need for most grips.
I don’t doubt that the tools you propose are better but they prompted a thought which seemed worth sharing. The spanner and hammer approach seems to work for some but I’d be concerned of damage to the grip. It occurs to me that a split collar on the handlebars (between spanner and grip) would spread the impact (reducing damage) and that split collars can be bought for not much off of eBay.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 29 Sep 2024, 7:34pm
by Cyclothesist
I prefer 'finesse' over 'force' where the problem allows and plancashire's approach just seems brutal and likely to scratch the bar with the spanner. I go for soapy water introduced under the grip with the aid of a strip of rigid plastic. Then I wiggle the grip until a portion of it moves on the bar, at which point I introduce more soapy water and keep repeating until I can push the grip off with a twisting motion. Stubborn grips sometimes need WD-40 if soapy water fails. Never needed anything else.
I don't have a compressor but that sounds like a cool way to do it (with eye protection!)
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 30 Sep 2024, 9:07pm
by djnotts
Remove: washing up liquid and chop stick (saves scratching bars).
Replace: cheap hair spray.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 30 Sep 2024, 10:00pm
by plancashire
Thanks for all the suggestions. When I wrote "usually we ... (hammer method)", I meant that my colleagues usually use it, particularly M, who is also keen on the angle grinder (for other things). I prefer less force, as suggested by many contributors here. I'll try water, soap, lamp oil and a plastic spudger.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 1 Oct 2024, 7:39am
by rogerzilla
Pushing rubber hoses off metal stubs, the same scenario, is standard car mechanic practice. Poisson's ratio applies very much to rubber, so trying to pull off a grip only tightens it onto the bar.
I usually lift the edge of the grip with something non-scratching and squirt liquid soap in there. Work it around a bit and the grip slides off easily.
Re: Removal methods for rubber bar grips
Posted: 1 Oct 2024, 6:55pm
by Eyebrox
The "tool" to use is a medical tongue stick, which is handy for loads of jobs on the bike. Firm enough and won't mark the bar or nearby fittings. Push it inside the rubber grip and use a hammer to tap it off the bar, with a squirt of washing up liquid, if required.
Also handy for cleaning out gunge from cassette cogs.