Rusty bolts

[huwsparky]

Hi

Was wondering weather it's possible to buy a bolt kit to replace the ones I have that are getting rusty?

I'm talking about the handlebar and seat clamp bolts etc. Not really very good buying a new bike and less than a year later parts of it looking rusty! A titanium or stainless set would be ideal I guess.

Thanks.

 

[Drago]

Don't think you'll have much luck finding a kit, but individual bolts are easy to source.

 

[Lilliburlero]

Or you could try this...


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHKxJTxyzP8

 

[Pale Rider]

If the rust is more akin to surface staining, you may be able to remove it with a stiff brush and a mildly abrasive cleaner or polish.

Being careful to dry the bike after washing or when it gets wet will make the problem less likely to return.

 

[Deleted member 23692]

Stainless bolts are dirt cheap, so just nip down to your local engineering suppliers and buy those you needt.

 

[huwsparky]

If the rust is more akin to surface staining, you may be able to remove it with a stiff brush and a mildly abrasive cleaner or polish.

Being careful to dry the bike after washing or when it gets wet will make the problem less likely to return.

Call me sad but I wash the bike after every ride if it's wet and often enough if I only ride in the dry and always wipe the bike and leave a fan on it after to aid the drying. Most of my bolts are rusty and I only bought it in August.

I see it on pretty much every bike and think to myself, these cost from 1k upwards usually and manufacturers can't even supply bolts that don't rust.

 

[huwsparky]

Stainless bolts are dirt cheap, so just nip down to your local engineering suppliers and buy those you needt.

Think I'll do that, not third world problem, just annoying!

 

[Deleted member 23692]

Think I'll do that, not third world problem, just annoying!

It is very annoying that they still put cheap poorly chromed plated mild steel bolts on bikes.

If you know what size(s) you're after, these have done me proud on numerous occasions in the past - http://stores.ebay.co.uk/aboltftb/

 

[Drago]

I clean my commuters once a week, though in foul weather I spray the the fasteners with ACF50, no problems with the tin worm.

 

[Pale Rider]

Call me sad but I wash the bike after every ride if it's wet and often enough if I only ride in the dry and always wipe the bike and leave a fan on it after to aid the drying. Most of my bolts are rusty and I only bought it in August.

I do much the same and haven't noticed a rusty bolt problem, although I will check more carefully now.

I also spray with GT85, dunno if that makes much difference.

Your cleaning regime ought to be sufficient to avoid rust, so I guess upgrading to stainless is the next step.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Some bolts on bicycles are critical, others not. I consider the stem bolts that hold the handlebar in place as critical, as well as the seatpost bolt. I won't die if I break a crank bolt but if the handlebar comes loose whilst sprinting you will die. I know, I'm now on my second life.

Critical bolts are made from high-tensile steel and then chromed. It may seem obvious that the bike company should just have fitted stainless steel bolts in the first place but there is method to their frugality. Stainless steel bolts are not high-tensile and cannot withstand continuous cyclical stresses such as those experienced by seatpost clamps and stem clamps. A rusty head is a small price to pay for safety and reliability. The reason the heads are rusty inside where the allen key goes is because such a recess is a Faraday shield and the electroplating doesn't work so well in there.

I would replace high-ten bolts with stainless on my bike only if there is redundancy. Some stems have a front loader cap with 4 bolts. I may risk stainless there if they are four 5mm bolts in there but not 4 x 4mm ones. Seatposts, never, but that's just me.

Further, if you are going to replace paired bolts with stainless ones, make absolutely sure you torque them up incrementally and evenly. It is very important that in a stem clamp, all four bolts are evenly tightened otherwise one of them strains more than the other and fails quickly.

Not everything is what it seems to be.

 

[huwsparky]

Some bolts on bicycles are critical, others not. I consider the stem bolts that hold the handlebar in place as critical, as well as the seatpost bolt. I won't die if I break a crank bolt but if the handlebar comes loose whilst sprinting you will die. I know, I'm now on my second life.

Critical bolts are made from high-tensile steel and then chromed. It may seem obvious that the bike company should just have fitted stainless steel bolts in the first place but there is method to their frugality. Stainless steel bolts are not high-tensile and cannot withstand continuous cyclical stresses such as those experienced by seatpost clamps and stem clamps. A rusty head is a small price to pay for safety and reliability. The reason the heads are rusty inside where the allen key goes is because such a recess is a Faraday shield and the electroplating doesn't work so well in there.

I would replace high-ten bolts with stainless on my bike only if there is redundancy. Some stems have a front loader cap with 4 bolts. I may risk stainless there if they are four 5mm bolts in there but not 4 x 4mm ones. Seatposts, never, but that's just me.

Further, if you are going to replace paired bolts with stainless ones, make absolutely sure you torque them up incrementally and evenly. It is very important that in a stem clamp, all four bolts are evenly tightened otherwise one of them strains more than the other and fails quickly.

Not everything is what it seems to be.

Thanks for your input, not even though about the integrity of the bolts in question.

 

[gbb]

Call me sad but I wash the bike after every ride if it's wet and often enough if I only ride in the dry and always wipe the bike and leave a fan on it after to aid the drying. Most of my bolts are rusty and I only bought it in August.

I see it on pretty much every bike and think to myself, these cost from 1k upwards usually and manufacturers can't even supply bolts that don't rust.

One thing I found with regular wetting of the bike...my down tube cable adjusters siezed up. I didnt know of course until I eventually wanted to tension a cable, absolutely siezed solid.
Nothing would shift them and it eventually i reluctantly decided id have to cut them off and re tap the bosses. This required a long hexagon extension, modified tap, hex bit drill etc to clear the headtube.
When I got a new bike..and will with every bike I buy, I removed them and applied antisieze.
That was on an alloy frame with I assume steel threaded adjusters.

 

[e-rider]

Hi

Was wondering weather it's possible to buy a bolt kit to replace the ones I have that are getting rusty?

I'm talking about the handlebar and seat clamp bolts etc. Not really very good buying a new bike and less than a year later parts of it looking rusty! A titanium or stainless set would be ideal I guess.

Thanks.

put a drop of oil in/on them all, that will stop them rusting in future - that's what a lot of people do - I have bikes 20 years old and not a single rusty bolt! Every bolt thread on a bicycle should be greased before installation - most bike manufacturers don't bother - shocking really!

 

[Yellow Saddle]

put a drop of oil in/on them all, that will stop them rusting in future - that's what a lot of people do - I have bikes 20 years old and not a single rusty bolt! Every bolt thread on a bicycle should be greased before installation - most bike manufacturers don't bother - shocking really!

I am sure the OP meant rust inside the hex cavity. Other than plugging it with a blob of grease, nothing will stop it. It a) traps water and b) has very little plating inside.