Pedal Shame

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

Quoted message said:

I know this sounds really lame and the only thing I can say as an excuse is that I'm a beginner.

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone
give any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner
and wd40.

If you are having much success why do you need help?

One of them is threaded the 'wrong' way.

See sheldonbrown.comgloss p.htmlOpen ↗

T

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

Quoted message said:

I know this sounds really lame and the only thing I can say as an excuse is that I'm a beginner.

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone
give any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner
and wd40.

One is right handed thread and one is left handed thread. I have done the job many times and without
going out and looking at the bike I can't tell you which is which!

They can be tight if they've been on a long time. Once you are sure you are turning them the right
way, support the crank on a block of wood and just give your spanner a good smack with a hammer, or
slip a length of tubing over the spanner to increase torque.

Bill

david said:

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone
give any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner
and wd40.

Depending on how hard they are screwed in, you may well not be able to get them off with an
adjustable. Try a non adjustable 15mm spanner, maybe with a pole over it to get more leverage. You
may however open up the end of the spanner this way esp if its a cheap one.

If you cant get them off, ride to your local bike shop and ask to borrow their pedal spanner for 5
minutes and use that. It will be a big fat thing and that will work

Remember the left hand pedal is left hand thread! (turn clockwise to unscrew). The way to remember
it is like this:

Stand on the side of the bike you want to de-pedal. Move the crank so its at 3 oclock (towards the
front wheel). Place the spanner on the pedal axle so the spanner is pointing towards the back wheel
and slightly upwards. Then hold the front brake on, lean against a wall with your other hand, and
stand on the spanner.

--
-Alex

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david said:

I know this sounds really lame and the only thing I can say as an excuse is that I'm a beginner.

Don't worry, pedals can sometimes be extremely hard for anyone to remove......

Quoted message said:

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone
give any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner
and wd40.

Right pedal undoes anti-clockwise, left clockwise ("Right is right, left is wrong"😉. Make sure
spanner fits properly and isn't too wide.

If muscle power isn't working, try a hammer (pref club hammer or heavy mallet) on the end of
spanner. This shock treatment can do the job nicely. If that fails, try a longer/better spanner or
more force (don't be afraid to give it some huge welly but be careful of slippage: put chain on big
ring). If still no joy, heating the crank with blow torch or stove will expand the aluminium crank
more than the pedal axle thus hopefully making the thread looser.

Make sure pedal threads are well greased for the next time.

~PB

Alex Graham email hidden in said:

Stand on the side of the bike you want to de-pedal. Move the crank so its at 3 oclock (towards the
front wheel). Place the spanner on the

9 O'Clock surely?

--
Two fish suddenly swim into a brick wall. Damn! To reply put only the word "richard" before
the @ sign

Richard Bates said:

9 O'Clock surely?

hehe

If you're standing on the left hand side of the bike, yes 🙂 I was standing on the right hand side
of an imaginary bike in my mind when I wrote all that

;o)

--
-Alex

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----------------------------------

In message <[email hidden]>, Pete Biggs
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Right is right, left is wrong

Not if you're left-handed. "Left is write, right is wrong."
--
Michael MacClancy

Then hold the front brake on, lean against a wall with

Quoted message said:

your other hand,

The spanner will then slip and you will fall [censored] over [censored]!!!!!!!!!!

:-)

--
Mark
____________________________
Practice does not make perfect... Perfect practice makes perfect

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Alex Graham <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

david said:

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone
give any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner
and wd40.

Depending on how hard they are screwed in, you may well not be able to get them off with an
adjustable. Try a non adjustable 15mm spanner, maybe with a pole over it to get more leverage. You
may however open up the end of the spanner this way esp if its a cheap one.

If you cant get them off, ride to your local bike shop and ask to borrow their pedal spanner for 5
minutes and use that. It will be a big fat thing and that will work

Remember the left hand pedal is left hand thread! (turn clockwise to unscrew). The way to remember
it is like this:

Stand on the side of the bike you want to de-pedal. Move the crank so its at 3 oclock (towards the
front wheel). Place the spanner on the pedal axle so the spanner is pointing towards the back
wheel and slightly upwards. Then hold the front brake on, lean against a wall with your other
hand, and stand on the spanner.

--
-Alex

----------------------------------
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----------------------------------

Actually, well done on this description Alex. I've been maintaining bikes for years and can never
remember which way to turn the damn thing. I reckon I can remember this technique for next time.
Hang on, was it 6pm or 8:15pm?

--
Mark
____________________________
Practice does not make perfect... Perfect practice makes perfect

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I`ve sometimes found that really tough ones are best removed by clamping the crank in a sturdy vice
(well padded, natch) and using a spanner on one side and a hex driver in a big torque wrench on the
other in a sort of "push one, pull the other" type motion.

A good squirt of WD40 will help - more so if you can leave it over night (wrap it in plastic
bag) to soak.

As above a smear of grease on reassembly is a good idea

Alex Graham <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Richard Bates said:

9 O'Clock surely?

hehe

If you're standing on the left hand side of the bike, yes 🙂 I was standing on the right hand side
of an imaginary bike in my mind when I wrote all that

;o)

--
-Alex

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----------------------------------

Does it really make a difference what time he does it?

--
Mark
____________________________
Practice does not make perfect... Perfect practice makes perfect

---
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In "]news:[email hidden], Bill <[email hidden]> typed:

Quoted message said:

They can be tight if they've been on a long time. Once you are sure you are turning them the right
way, support the crank on a block of wood and just give your spanner a good smack with a hammer,
or slip a length of tubing over the spanner to increase torque.

If it an aluminium crank and steel pedal it can be corroded in. Much easier to play a blow torch on
crank until it sizzles if you spit on it and then it will undo easily. Just make sure you don't burn
yourself on the hot crank and pedal

Tony

--
raven-family.comraven-family.comOpen ↗

"All truth goes through three steps: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed.
Finally, it is accepted as self-evident." Arthur Schopenhauer

In "]news:[email hidden], MSA <[email hidden]> typed:

Quoted message said:

Actually, well done on this description Alex. I've been maintaining bikes for years and can never
remember which way to turn the damn thing. I reckon I can remember this technique for next time.

The way I remember it is "back off" ie in the position you would normally work, crank vertically up,
spanner sticking up you turn the spanner back to get the pedal off. Works for both sides.

Tony

--
raven-family.comraven-family.comOpen ↗

"All truth goes through three steps: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed.
Finally, it is accepted as self-evident." Arthur Schopenhauer

MSA said:

Then hold the front brake on, lean against a wall with

Quoted message said:

your other hand,

The spanner will then slip and you will fall [censored] over [censored]!!!!!!!!!!

Left or right?

~PB

In article <[email hidden]>, david <[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

I know this sounds really lame and the only thing I can say as an excuse is that I'm a beginner.

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone give
any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner and wd40.

help

David

So long as you are standing on the same side of the bike as the pedal, and the bike is standing on
the wheels, and your hand holding the spanner is above the pedal (all of which are the 'normal'
stance), then the hand holding the spanner goes towards the back of the bike to unscrew. Beware of
the spanner slipping, resulting in fist punching down onto the chainwheel. Have scars to remind me
of that. Usually an adjustable spanner is too wide, you may need a thinner one. 15mm from memory,
but not sure.
--
Peter Grange

remove crude spam trap to reply

Peter Grange said:

Usually an adjustable spanner is too wide, you may need a thinner one. 15mm from memory, but
not sure.

Yes, most pedals require 15mm, some 16 or 17mm.

The £3.50 Bike Hand pedal spanner from Dyason's works well enough:
mwdyason.ltd.ukshop.aspOpen ↗

~PB

Quoted message said:

Remember the left hand pedal is left hand thread! (turn clockwise to unscrew). The way to remember
it is like this:

Stand on the side of the bike you want to de-pedal. Move the crank so its at 3 oclock (towards the
front wheel). Place the spanner on the pedal axle so the spanner is pointing towards the back
wheel and slightly upwards. Then hold the front brake on, lean against a wall with your other
hand, and stand on the spanner.

I remember "right is right".

John

david said:

I know this sounds really lame and the only thing I can say as an excuse is that I'm a beginner.

I brought some new pedals and I'm trying to remove the old pedals with much sucess. Can anyone give
any hints or is the a website I can look at. I must stress I have an adjustable spanner and wd40.

help

David

I would like to thank everyone for the suggestions. With a little manpower, a 15mm (non adjustable)
spanner, parktool.comparktool.comOpen ↗, and wd40 I managed to changed and it fit my new SPD pedals. I
haven't manged to get the cleats to fit in the pedals yet but I'm sure I will work it out.

Once again thanks to everyone.

David