Crank extractor not screwing in properly I'm trying to insert my crank extractor into the crank of a square taper (Shimano Tourney). It won't really screw in properly. On several attempts it will go in a little bit (about 1 or 2 mm) and quite abruptly won't turn anymore, as if it didn't go in properly. It doesn't feel right. I've tried it enough times that I'm fairly sure it's not the angle I'm using causing the problem. I am starting with the inner part of the extractor fully inside the outer part, so it isn't that the inner part is simply already pushing into the spindle or anything. The crank extractor is the Birzman universal crank extractor. What am I doing wrong here? ![square taper]( It's at this point that the extractor will 'stick', only going in a very small amount. Shouldn't it go further? ![Extractor in crank](

I've got the cranks out - I used the Park Tool CWP-7 instead of the Birzman.

It still wasn't as smooth as I hoped it would be -as others have commented - but much better. Scraped a little of the black paint off of the tool but I'm assuming this is normal. Not entirely sure what is so different between the two extractors just by looking at them, I guess the moral is to make sure your tools are fit for the job before forcing anything. Thanks all for input.