Pedal Off?

Richard Pattle said:

The project that is my car boot bargain is loathe to let
me change its pedals. Any tips for shifting pedals that
appear to have welded themselves to the cranks?

Your friendly neighbourhood hardware store will probably
have penetrating oil, or equivalent thereof (the mech
workshop downstairs use stuff called "PlusGas"😉. A good long
soak in that (at least overnight, not a few minutes)
followed up by the attentions of a [censored] Size pedal
spanner (your LBS may well lend you one for a brief attack
if you take it along) is probably your best bet.

A proper pedal spanner designed specifically for the job
should improve your chances over a standard spanner. If it's
possible to extend it with a bit of pipe that'll give you a
little more leverage.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111
ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382
640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net
[email hidden] dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗

Peter Clinch said:

the mech workshop downstairs use stuff called "PlusGas"

That's the one I use, when the need arises, long experience
having shown that it is vastly superior to anything else
which I could find back in the 80s when mending sick motor
cars was my main hobby.

--
Guy
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Victory is ours! Down with Eric the Half A Brain!

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Peter Clinch said:

the mech workshop downstairs use stuff called "PlusGas"

That's the one I use, when the need arises, long
experience having shown that it is vastly superior to
anything else which I could find back in the 80s when
mending sick motor cars was my main hobby.

--
Guy
===
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after posting. chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

Victory is ours! Down with Eric the Half A Brain!

Thanks guys.

I've succeeded in moving it now. At first I thought I
couldn't get my largest adjustable spanner on it because the
pedal cage got in the way, but then it dawned on me (doh!)
that as I was going to be throwing that one away I could
easily dismantle the old pedal from the other end, leaving
just the axle. Then the application of said spanner and my
considerable bulk did the trick.

"Richard Pattle" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

The project that is my car boot bargain is loathe to let
me change its pedals. Any tips for shifting pedals that
appear to have welded themselves to the cranks?

Park Tools produce a pedal spanner that matches Peter's
description. I couldn't shift the pedals on one of my bikes,
took it into the LBS and they set to it with a Park spanner
and shifted it in seconds. I bought one on the spot.

Penetrating oil Patience Hair dryer or other tame source of
heat to crank Pedal spanner (usu 15mm) Patience Remember
left pedal comes off clockwise (ie left hand thread) 20
stone friendly helper Patience Strip thread

SWEAR!

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden] Edgware.

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

Penetrating oil Patience Hair dryer or other tame source of
heat to crank Pedal spanner (usu 15mm) Patience Remember
left pedal comes off clockwise (ie left hand thread) 20
stone friendly helper Patience Strip thread

Quoted message said:

SWEAR!

And, in my case, give up and buy very nice new bike.

Roos

Richard Pattle said:

I've succeeded in moving it now. At first I thought I
couldn't get my largest adjustable spanner on it because
the pedal cage got in the way...

A good long pedal spanner is a cheap and useful tool :-)

--
Guy
===
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after
posting. chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

Victory is ours! Down with Eric the Half A Brain!

Richard Pattle said:

The project that is my car boot bargain is loathe to let
me change its pedals. Any tips for shifting pedals that
appear to have welded themselves to the cranks?

A big pedal spanner, with a piece of scaffold pole over the
end if necessary. Forget allen keys.

Richard Pattle said:

The project that is my car boot bargain is loathe to let
me change its pedals. Any tips for shifting pedals that
appear to have welded themselves to the cranks?

Having had exactly that problem yesterday, all of the
previously aforementioned, plus a blowtorch on the crank for
a minute or so to expand it.

Just zis Guy said:

Richard Pattle said:

I've succeeded in moving it now. At first I thought I
couldn't get my largest adjustable spanner on it because
the pedal cage got in the way...

A good long pedal spanner is a cheap and useful tool :-)

And a 4ft length of old car exhaust pipe or scaffold pole
even cheaper. Possibly one of the most useful large tools I
own, can be used to massively increase leverage on a mirriad
of stuck threads.

However, you do need a decent quality spanner of the right
size fitted over the nut/bolt first, otherwise things just
get rounded off.

--
NC - Webmaster for 2mm.org.uk2mm.org.ukOpen ↗ Replies to
newsgroup postings to the newsgroup please.

NC said:

Just zis Guy said:

Richard Pattle said:

I've succeeded in moving it now. At first I thought I
couldn't get my largest adjustable spanner on it because
the pedal cage got in the way...

A good long pedal spanner is a cheap and useful tool :-)

And a 4ft length of old car exhaust pipe or scaffold pole
even cheaper. Possibly one of the most useful large tools
I own, can be used to massively increase leverage on a
mirriad of stuck threads.

However, you do need a decent quality spanner of the right
size fitted over the nut/bolt first, otherwise things just
get rounded off.

A wooden mallet has proved invaluable for this - just
be careful.

--

J u l i a n

__o
_`\(,_
(_)/ (_)

"Richard Pattle" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

The project that is my car boot bargain is loathe to let
me change its pedals. Any tips for shifting pedals that
appear to have welded themselves to the cranks?

With the bike on its side I put a bucked under the stuck
crank and poured a kettle full of boiling water over the
crank and pedal then quickly got my weight on the spanner.
This worked like a charm. Be very sure you have worked out
which way to turn the spanner :p and be carefull of the hot
crank... its hot!

Julian Symondson said:

A wooden mallet has proved invaluable for this - just be
careful.

Yes, whack end of spanner with club hammer or mallet.

~PB

"Ricardo" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Richard Pattle said:

The project that is my car boot bargain is loathe to let
me change its pedals. Any tips for shifting pedals that
appear to have welded themselves to the cranks?

Having had exactly that problem yesterday, all of the
previously aforementioned, plus a blowtorch on the crank
for a minute or so to expand it.

This will also neatly buggerise any heat treating that was
performed on the crank at the time of manufacture.
--
"I would recommend Iowa or North Dakota for your dip
into reality."
- Ed Dolan in alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent

Just zis Guy said:

A good long pedal spanner is a cheap and useful tool :-)

Especially if acquired by Stealth. Mine materialised in the
back of my car after a BHPC race meeting...

--

Dave Larrington - legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uklegslarry.beerdrinkers.co.ukOpen ↗
===========================================================
Editor - British Human Power Club Newsletter
bhpc.org.ukbhpc.org.ukOpen ↗
===========================================================

Mark South said:

Quoted message said:

Having had exactly that problem yesterday, all of the
previously aforementioned, plus a blowtorch on the crank
for a minute or so to expand it.

This will also neatly buggerise any heat treating that was
performed on the crank at the time of manufacture.

Only if you overdo it. Sheldon as usual is on hand to tell
you to heat it until water dropped on it sizzles and then
apply the spanner. Used it once or twice myself in the past.

Tony

"Tony Raven" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Mark South said:

Quoted message said:

Having had exactly that problem yesterday, all of the
previously aforementioned, plus a blowtorch on the
crank for a minute or so to expand it.

This will also neatly buggerise any heat treating that
was performed on the crank at the time of manufacture.

Only if you overdo it.

Which is pretty easy to do. I mean, blowtorch.

Quoted message said:

Sheldon as usual is on hand to tell you to heat it until
water dropped on it sizzles and then apply the spanner.

Water dropped on it will sizzle as long as it's above a
certain temp. It doesn't tell you that you have kept the
temp low enough.

Quoted message said:

Used it once or twice myself in the past.

"If it doesn't move, don't force it. Use a very large
hammer."
--
"Mango sorbet is clearcut proof that we have progressed
beyond the bare needs of survival and have progressed to the
transcendant."
- Marc Goodman in talk.bizarre

Mark South wrote: plus a blowtorch on the crank for a
minute or so to

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

expand it.

This will also neatly buggerise any heat treating that was
performed on the crank at the time of manufacture.

'tis true. I should've mentioned I wasn't planning on using
the crank again, just the pedal. :-)

Mark South said:

"If it doesn't move, don't force it. Use a very large
hammer."

"If it jams, force it, if it breaks, it needed replacing
anyway" ;-)

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111
ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382
640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net
[email hidden] dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗