How to Loosen a handle?

[Bill B]

Anyone have a trick to loosen a Penn 24-349 handle?  It turn but feels like it's way too tight.....I suspect old grease in the handle shaft but can only get a little oil inside......Bill

[broadway]

Hey Bill,
   You can try a shot of carb cleaner (keep off the plastics just in case) and then try some ts301... it's done well for me but some are just too far gone.  I have one that looks straight as an arrow but its so stuck and I've tried everything including heating from the rivet which was my last hail mary.  Let me know what you come up with if it works.
Good luck and don't forget to breathe between the expletives ,
Dom

[Bill B]

#%$%^^%$^& , $%^&*^&()(,         Will try the heat and carb cleaner.....slowly getting better.......thx brother.......Bill

[sdlehr]

I've loosened some up with penetrating oil; the one I have comes in a spray can with a nozzle like WD-40 (which might also work to loosen up old grease).

Sid

[Bill B]

Thanks guys.......careful application of cleaner, torch and new grease all is well....Bill

[foakes]

If I run into a really tough knob that won't spin free -- my approach, if after soaking and heat, and there is still no joy -- is a little different.

First, I assume that this handle will never work correctly unless it is fixed --

The bakelite knob will come off -- it is pressed onto a fluted sleeve.

Cut a 1/4" slot in a piece of 3/4" Oak -- slip the slot under the knob -- then just tap the knob off with a hammer against the Oak after I heat it very slightly with a soldering gun on the sleeve.

1 out of 5 times, the knob splits -- but the other 4 times, it comes right off.

At that point, it gets soaked in Carb cleaner or Lacquer Thinner until the varnished grease dissolves inside the sleeve.  Oil it good, and press the knob back on with a wood faced vise.

If the knob breaks, frankly I haven't lost anything that wasn't already inoperative.  So I just drill out the old sleeve, and install an aftermarket knob and sleeve like Alan's or Lou's.

Best,

Fred

[Midway Tommy]

My first course of action is pretty mild in comparison and it works about 80% of the time, at least to loosen it up to get started. I soak it in extremely hot, not quite boiling water with Dawn for about 5 or 10 minutes to soften/melt the waxy buildup. Then keep turning and dipping it by hand until it doesn't stick. Once free you can cobble together an adapter to turn it with a drill at low speed while adding a little mineral spirits or other non-plastic melting liquid. You can add penetrating oils or lubricants later.   

[alantani]

it's more hassle than it is usually worth, but this might help.  submerge the entire handle in your lubricant of choice and let it soak.  while that's going on, find a drill and an old heavy wire coat hanger.  i use my drill press.  chuck one end of the wire into the drill and bend the other end so that it wraps around the grip and will spin the grip.  pull the grip out of the lube, put it in a vise, line everything up and spin away at high speed for 5-10 minutes, or until it's free.  if you're lucky, enough of the oil will get in and down the entire length of the spindle that it will spin freely.  

i've had to do this a few times and it does work, but it's usually better to just replace the grip.  

[Nasty Wendy]

When I run into problems such as that I usually fix it with a hammer.  If the hammer doesn't work I try a bigger hammer.  Worst case I clamp it down in a vice and drive a wood splitter wedge with a 8 lb sledge hammer to "free" it.

[Dominick]

When I run into problems such as that I usually fix it with a hammer.  If the hammer doesn't work I try a bigger hammer.  Worst case I clamp it down in a vice and drive a wood splitter wedge with a 8 lb sledge hammer to "free" it.

yep works every time.  Dominick

[mo65]

   Tommy's suggestion of hot water has worked well for me too. I've had a few knobs I thought were going to be a challenge, only to be surprised to see them loosen up while I was scrubbing the handle in warm water and soap.

[Cor]

When I run into problems such as that I usually fix it with a hammer.  If the hammer doesn't work I try a bigger hammer.  Worst case I clamp it down in a vice and drive a wood splitter wedge with a 8 lb sledge hammer to "free" it.

yep works every time.  Dominick
The bigger the problem the bigger the hammer?

[Nasty Wendy]

Not always.  I've never gone bigger than the 8lb sledge even on situations that are worse than others that called for the 8 lber.  One has to be able to "finesse" the sledge hammer into position to free what is stuck.

[Bill B]