Showerthought: A 5mm Allen key snapped inside a titanium bolt on a customer's $4,000 gravel bike, and I'm still not sure if I did the right thing

Sarah Jenkins · 2026-09-25T06:45:06.025661+00:00

I was in the stand at my shop in Denver last Friday when a guy brought in a Creo with a seized seatpost bolt. I hit it with penetrating oil and a heat gun, but the key snapped flush inside the head. I ended up drilling it out, which took 40 minutes and left me sweating. Half of me says I should have stopped and sent it to a machinist, the other half says a mechanic has to make the call and move on. What would you have done, drilled it or turned the job away?

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Showerthought: A 5mm Allen key snapped inside a titanium bolt on a customer's $4,000 gravel bike, and I'm still not sure if I did the right thing | Bicycle Mechanics - Pinecone Attack