Crank Cotters
$7.00-$10.00/Pair

S&H $9 (in the USA)

No additional S&H charge for Cotters when mailed
with Cotter Press and/or Fixed Cup tool.

Click here for ordering, payment and shipping info
I have to collect Sales Tax from Minnesota residents.

When emailing me about cotters or cotter presses, please include the word "Cotter" in your subject line.

Unfortunately prices have gone up. My cost per cotter was up significantly since my last order.
Also, S&H for 800 cotters was $228 USD and the international bank transfer cost $50.

The quality of cotters available to most bike shops from the major suppliers is pretty sad. (See examples below) 

 ALGI Cotters - I import these directly from the factory in France. They are fully machined from 3/8" (9.5mm) or 9.0mm steel. Both ends are domed to prevent mushrooming when they are installed or removed. The threaded stems are larger, 7mm, and the washers are thicker and harder.

When you compare the moments of inertia for the actual root diameters of rolled 6mm and 7mm threads, you see that the larger threads have twice the resistance to bending. This doesn't mean much in use, but is potentially a big deal when trying to remove them.

There is no comparison between ALGI cotters and those made in Asia. The primary market for Asian cotters is OEM on mass produced bikes that sell for about $30 USD in 3rd world countries. The European market is different, collectors and commuters. People who are willing to spend real money to buy and maintain their commuting bikes. ALGI Equipements is now a large manufacturer and distributor of pneumatic and hydraulic equipment. The great-grandfather of the current CEO started out by manufacturing bike parts in 1923. One was a patented hose with inflation fittings, which lead to their current product line. Today, the bike parts are Legacy products, representing only 2% of their sales and a single page in their catalogs. But they are still manufacturing crank cotters, fishing rod holders and cable clamps.

BTW I think plain 7mm nuts look wrong on a high quality bike. I finally found a US source for M7 Nyloc nuts & I'm enclosing them with every 7mm stem cotter.

Standard Cut ALGI Cotters, 9.0 or 9.5mm (AKA 3/8")    $7/pair

ALGI 9.5mm cotters, Modified to fit Raleighs   $10/pair
I do not have any cotters that will accept Raleigh "R" nuts.

9.5mm ALGI cotters are not cut deeply enough to be a good fit for Raleighs.   For non-Raleigh owners, this is a good thing.  Cotters cut to fit Raleighs go in too far in other cranks.  Filing cotters to fit whatever cranks you are working on used to be the norm.

These days, not everyone is comfortable trying to file a pair of cotters to the correct depth, and at the same angle. And most of my customers ride Raleighs or Raleigh sub-brands like Dunelt. So, I made a fixture that allows me to accurately machine them to be a good fit for the typical Raleigh crank.  Unfortunately modifying the cotters eats up time, so I have to charge $10/pair for the modified ones vs. $7/pair for the unmodified cotters.

Peugeot cotters are a special case. They are cut so deeply that a 7mm threaded stem will not pass through the gap between the crankarm and the notch in the spindle.

As of 11/12/23 I am out of the Peugeot compatible cotters. I order 800 cotters at a time and still have a good supply of the other types. So I don't expect to get any more for at least a year.

There are a few online vendors that seem to carry them. Search for "ALGI 8.7mm Cotters". 8.7mm does not refer to the diameter, which is 9.0mm.

9.0mm Peugeot Compatible ALGI Cotters  $9/pair

Shown here with an original Peugeot cotter. 

  Not all Peugeots take the "Peugeot Cut" cotters.  Some with Nervar cranks take a ¾ cut and they may require some filing to fit.     Do the flats on your current cotters extend all the way to the end, like the "Peugeot Cut" cotter shown above?

For 8.0mm and 8.5mm cotters try Bike Tools Etc.
Get their "Machined" cotters. Their "Stamped" cotters are like the Grade Ds shown below.

These are what the major importers are bringing in today. The newest cotters are just pinched off a piece of rod, rolled and mashed into a usable shape. Since the bevel is just stomped into place, there is a bulge at the sides. So they have to use undersized, 9.2mm or 8.7mm rod so the bulge won't keep them from fitting into a 9.5mm or 9.0mm hole.