Don`t think you`ll believe this one

[Norm]

Now i want you all to be completely honest!

How many of you have had a pedal seize solid on the spot without any prior warning?

Not me. My MTB pedals did need re-greasing recently but you can feel when they are getting tight. And I have spent a lot of time riding through fords over the past few months.

 

[Old timer]

IMO, I'd be wary of using either of those techniques. I have my pedals off fairly frequently and have never had a problem with them unscrewing themselves.

There's also potential for the pedals thread to be ferrous and the crank to be alloy, a good environment to promote corrosion. Over-tightening them might mean you'll never get them off again.

Norm
When I built my wifes bike I used the spanner provided (didn`t have a slim spanner of better quality) and the pedal came off in my hand when I had it strung up on the rafters tuning those gears yesterday. Now, I`m no cycle wizz kid but have been a hydraulic engineer for most of my working life so am familiar with hand tools and am renowned for tightening things up where people can`t undo them so! why did that pedal come off in my hand? poor machining maybe with to loose a thread? although I must admit when I put it back on it seem a nice snug fit on the threads.

I know now after reading the article that it`s been done that way for 100 years but we used to think the world was flat once

 

[Norm]

... but have been a hydraulic engineer for most of my working life so am familiar with hand tools and am renowned for tightening things up where people can`t undo them so!

Oops! Sorry. I was just trying to stop you making the sort of mistake that I'd make.

"Hey, Gran, wanna watch this? This is how you suck eggs..."

 

[Old timer]

Oops! Sorry. I was just trying to stop you making the sort of mistake that I'd make.

"Hey, Gran, wanna watch this? This is how you suck eggs..."

Norm

I wasn`t moaning but just stating that I had done the pedal up tight and making a point that even after that and not in road conditions the pedal came loose.(maybe that`s the key? when you spin the crank with no weight on it this precession effect comes more into play?)

And I make you right, a bit of preventative maintenance is always the best. I`ll use a flexible lock tite that will come undone and I`m going to select a spanner and grind it down to fit the nut rather than use the toy town spanner that was supplied.

Thanks for your input.

 

[Norm]

Thanks for your input.

Any time, sir. I went through it all just a few months ago, I recognise so many of your tales from my recent past.

Although I've never had a problem getting a normal spanner onto the pedal axle. I did get lucky with my tools, as a friend was giving away some Snap-Ons but they are normal-sized spanners and they have fitted all my bikes, so far.

 

[GrasB]

This is a paraphrase of the installation instructions for some peddles:

Clean & grease the peddle crank thread
Do not reuse the crush washers.
Note there is a right peddle & a left peddle. The left peddle is threaded counter-clockwise & the right peddle is threaded clockwise.
Use a torque wrench & an 8mm Allen key socket inserted from inside of the crank. Use a tightening torque of 45Nm.

 

[Old timer]

This is a paraphrase of the installation instructions for some peddles:

Clean & grease the peddle crank thread
Do not reuse the crush washers.
Note there is a right peddle & a left peddle. The left peddle is threaded counter-clockwise & the right peddle is threaded clockwise.
Use a torque wrench & an 8mm Allen key socket inserted from inside of the crank. Use a tightening torque of 45Nm.

I`ll pick up some washers. Can`t use an allen key on these pedals but I can more or less judge 45Nm as I have been using Nm in my trade for years. Thanks

Dave
BTW has anyone else ever doubted the wisdom of the threading of pedals?

 

[ASC1951]

I know now after reading the article that it`s been done that way for 100 years but we used to think the world was flat once

No, that is an Urban Myth which probably started in the Middle Ages. All cultures have known the Earth is curved, as far back as we have records - certainly for the last 5,000 years. Every continent has mountains high enough to see that for yourself, quite apart from the deduction from ships' masts. Let us not forget that we could predict eclipses and comets 2,000 years before the Pyramids were built, and that wasn't learned overnight.

As to pedals, I just keep the threads clean and do them up firmly (but not muscle-bulgingly) with a long spanner. I have never had one come undone.

 

[Old timer]

No, that is an Urban Myth which probably started in the Middle Ages. All cultures have known the Earth is curved, as far back as we have records - certainly for the last 5,000 years. Every continent has mountains high enough to see that for yourself, quite apart from the deduction from ships' masts. Let us not forget that we could predict eclipses and comets 2,000 years before the Pyramids were built, and that wasn't learned overnight.

As to pedals, I just keep the threads clean and do them up firmly (but not muscle-bulgingly) with a long spanner. I have never had one come undone.

I still think the world might be flat! but then again my mum keeps me in short trousers at the age of 64

Thanks for your reply

 

[Norm]

I still think the world might be flat!

The ruddy bits that I ruddy cycled today certainly weren't ruddy flat!

 

[jay clock]

As to pedals, I just keep the threads clean and do them up firmly (but not muscle-bulgingly) with a long spanner. I have never had one come undone.

me too. When I tour and take them off on a plane I never overdo it and have never had a problem. the only problem was when an LBS overdid them with a 4 yard spanner and I had to take it back to get them off. The night before a tour

 

[youngoldbloke]

If a pedal is coming loose one usually becomes aware of an unusual slight click/jump feeling on each revolution of the cranks before the pedal becomes loose enough to cause a problem. Stop, investigate and tighten.