Remove cap from FSA Gossamer Mega Exos

Scott Gordo said:

I have a set of FSA Gossamers with a Mega Exo bb.

Over time play developed, which I didn't notice until I had a good 2mm
side to side.

Tried removing the cap. IIRC from installation, it's NOT like a
headset's compression cap, but pretty much just a dust cap that could
hold the non-driveside crankarm on in case of some kind of emergency.

Loosened the two crankarm bolts and tried to remove the cap, but no
go. I can turn it, but it's stripped. I think that maybe the crankarm
moved down the spindle and stripped the cap's threads.

Any recommendations on how to get the cap off? The cap is a very soft
aluminum, so the small allen key hole was stripped in no time. I
drilled holes for a pin spanner, and ground out a slot to jam a
screwdriver in there but so far no go.

Also: using a screwdriver, I'm able to pry the cap against the crank
arm to load the system and then bolt the crank down and remove the
play so this isn't a showstopper.

you have about .7 inch of threaded shell into the bb spindle to
remove, 25 tpi, you need to turn ccw to extract. the thread is
probabally damaged and cross threaded, meaning every turn will be as
painful as the first ones. you can try screwing it in a bit to see if
it will realign with the thread on the bb spindle inner core. if that
doesn't work , you can try drilling it out from the opposite side of
the bb with a drill ( shouldn't use anything larger than 11/16 dia.)
but you have to ensure you're correctly centered, you can try
wrapping a thin cloth on the drill bit that might help grab the edge
and turn the cap to get the extraction going. just in case, I would
want to have a back up bb available in case things get royally screwed
up- if it works now and you can afford to f it up, it might be better
to leave it alone just in case. good luck

Scott Gordo said:

Any recommendations on how to get the cap off? The cap is a very soft
aluminum, so the small allen key hole was stripped in no time.

Since the threads are stripped anyway, can you stick something in from
the other side, where that big hole is just open, and drive it out with
a mallet? The only real purpose of that cap is not as a dust cap, or
else the other end would be plugged. The purpose is to adjust the
preload on the bearings before clamping down the pinch bolts.

--

David L. Johnson

Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics, I can assure you
that mine are all greater.
-- A. Einstein