Questions about cranks, which are the pieces of metal the pedals are attached to and then, in turn, rotate the bottom bracket and chainring.
3
votes
3answers
116 views
BMX gearing - for road / commuting
I have a 2010 Haro Pro Race, which I bought for commuting and general tomfoolery.
I commute on it 2 miles a day, and I want to be able to go faster by changing the current single-speed gearing ...
3
votes
1answer
57 views
Should I grease pins when re-installing them on cottered cranks?
I'm restoring a vintage Peugeot with cottered cranks. When reattaching the cranks to the bottom bracket spindle, should I grease the pins or put them in dry?
3
votes
0answers
74 views
Size of Pedal Threading on old German Glockenlager?
I removed the pedals of a Göricke bike from 1934 or 1935 (according to the bike number). It has a Glockenlager (What is that in English? Bell shaped bottom bracket?) as seen in the picture. The crank ...
1
vote
4answers
104 views
Do I need to replace cranks after newly installed pedals torqued out along with some threads in my crank?
I must have crossed threads like an idiot when I installed pedals for my new SPD cleats. After several miles of riding (~100-200 m), I suddenly got this inexplicable rolly, bumpy motion in my foot. ...
4
votes
2answers
187 views
Swapping cranks, but the new crank is wider, how do I compensate for this?
I was swapping the cranks and bottom bracket on my karate monkey from a Truvative stylo crankset (Mountain Double, GXP bottom bracket) to a Race Face Evolution DH (Mountain Triple, Race Face bottom ...
3
votes
4answers
500 views
Replacing Crankset. Do I need to replace chain? Then do I need to replace cassette?
Over the past year, my road bike's crankset has gotten pretty bent up and out of wack. Not due to abuse, just wear and tear I guess. It's pretty bent and has a nice wobble that I can see as I look ...
2
votes
1answer
187 views
Why does my non-drive side crank arm come loose?
I tighten the bolt super hard. Ride for a while. Then it comes loose again. I don't know if its my BB or the bolts. How can this be fixed??
3
votes
2answers
315 views
Shimano Hollowtech left crank arm getting loose
After 2 years of good use, left crank arm on my FC M542 crank set has started to get loose quite often (cca 500 km). It is usually indicated first by few now an then clik-clanks somewhere in the ...
2
votes
1answer
120 views
Help me to attach inner ring
I have cranks with 4 holes for outer and middle rings attachment. There are no holed for inner ring attachment. On my other bikes crankset middlering has 8 holes 4 for cranks and 4 for inner ring. I ...
2
votes
1answer
145 views
How do I re-attach a crank that has fallen off?
I have already read My crank fell off, how do I re-attach it?, but it did not answer my question.
I was biking up a hill in first gear, and I felt my left crank was a bit loose. Never having had ...
1
vote
2answers
135 views
Crank is slipping freely occassionally when pedaling; occasional “clonk” sound
Crank is slipping freely occassionally when pedaling; occasional "clonk" sound-not sure where sound is coming from-crank is tight, no movement or looseness
3
votes
6answers
1k views
Why does my bike make a noise when I pedal hard?
When I pedal forcing a little with my right leg, the bike makes a noise that I don't know how to describe. I'll try to do it. It's like:
a short "ting"
a tiny bell
if a small rock hits the down tube
...
18
votes
7answers
2k views
Are Z-shaped cranks a good idea?
I've stumbled across this kickstarter project, which promotes an original shape for cranks:
They claim a wider arc of useful push during rotation. While their main point is rendered moot by ...
0
votes
1answer
117 views
Right crank arm feels uncomfortable
After a loose bottom bracket and some prevailing knee pain I have made a few adjustments to the bike. I have managed to greatly reduce the pain in my left knee but the right still has some pain. I ...
7
votes
1answer
305 views
The pros and cons of crank self-extractors
I'd like to know more about the reliability of self-extracting crank bolts, but haven't found much information on how they perform (or how they don't).
My interest stems from touring and ...
3
votes
1answer
251 views
Can't remove crank arm on older Mercier
I'm rebuilding an older Mercier and have decided to tackle the bottom bracket. I've read a few articles and watched a few videos on how to remove the crank but none of them look anything like what ...
7
votes
4answers
1k views
What should a big guy look for when buying a road bike?
I'm 6ft 4" (1.8m) and 22st (139kg). I do a fair bit of cycling, mainly spinning and mountain biking.
I would like to get into road riding so I'm looking to buy a road bike. I want to spend between ...
6
votes
3answers
587 views
Solutions for pedals screwed in the wrong sides?
I have a Focale44 fixie with a single speed on the other side of the gear (this is called a flip-flop I think?) and I LOVE it so far! I've ridden it for about six months and haven't had to fix ...
2
votes
1answer
175 views
Problems with gears after re-attaching front chainring
I had to remove the pedal crank arm together with the front chain set when fixing a bottom bracket problem, but now that I've re-attached it, gear changes in my front derailleur are completely off.
...
3
votes
1answer
225 views
Short cage derailleur: how to find out maximum sprocket differences?
I'm building a kind of new bike and would like to put a triple or compact crankset on it.
I've still got this NOS huret derailleur set (front, rear and shifters) laying around which would match the ...
1
vote
3answers
617 views
Noise from crankshaft spindle and then the pedal falls off
In the last 6 months I have been getting really bad noises, creaks, clunks, etc coming from somewhere around the spindle connecting to the crankshaft. Every time I put pressure down on the left hand ...
3
votes
4answers
211 views
Trick or tool to help line up 48 splined crank arms
Besides eyeballing it and comparing the line to the seat tube, are there any tricks to getting 48 splined crank arms perfectly aligned? I must have spent a solid 15 minutes looking at them from every ...
2
votes
1answer
317 views
What crankset should I buy to suit an 8 Speed Campy freehub?
I've just bought a pair of campagnolo/mavic wheels without a freewheel.
I'm finding it very hard to understand what will fit on the rear hub.
It's English thread, does this mean that any 8 speed ...
0
votes
2answers
2k views
Will 10 speed cranks work with an 8 speed freewheel?
I'm looking at building a road-bike, and I've just purchased some wheels with campagnolo hubs, with an 8 speed freewheel on the back.
Can I use Campagnolo Daytona / Veloce cranks on the front? I ...
4
votes
3answers
444 views
Crank arms are not parallel to each other. What could have caused this?
It is a cottered crank. Crank arms themselves don't seem to be bent. It is a non-cartridge style spindle. Any ideas as to why they are not lining up?
0
votes
2answers
166 views
Is there a way to know what size of smallest chainring will be compatible with a given frame?
I've been slowly changing a Devinci Milano I bought to be more like a touring bike than a hybrid. I've installed drop bars and sti shifters. Everything is working pretty well, except that I'd like to ...
3
votes
3answers
275 views
Single Chainset
just wondering if there is much point in having a tripple chainset on my MTB, I very rarely change gear on the crank and I feel like having a single cog would make the bike lighter and also tidier as ...
1
vote
2answers
911 views
Stationary bike “clicks” when pedaling - crank axle is moving sideways. How can I fix this?
I've got this stationary bike, a York C202, which has developed a problem - namely it "clicks" when pedaling. This is highly annoying, as there's nothing I seem to be able to do about it.
I diagnosed ...
5
votes
2answers
875 views
Can I run a dual crankset with a chain guide tensioner?
We recently got a new mountain bike for my son via craigslist, it is a couple year old Transition Bottle Rocket and came with a E-Thirteen SS+ chain guide/tensioner.
He would like a lower gear for ...
21
votes
10answers
12k views
Triple vs Double chainring?
I'm bike shopping for my first road bike, and I've asked for a lot of advice from my father who was a serious cyclist once upon a time. After showing him one prospective bike, he dismissed it with a ...
4
votes
3answers
925 views
How do I remove these crank bolt plugs
I have an old 10-speed bike (presumably 80's vintage). I'm trying to remove the bottom bracket and cranks but have struck a problem.
The crank bolts have a plastic cap over the top of them and I'm ...
2
votes
1answer
390 views
Older road bike: squeaky crank?
I have an old Free Spirit road bike. It's in good shape and runs fine, but I started noticing that when I'm going uphill or pedaling in a high gear there is a squeaky sound coming from what seems to ...
3
votes
4answers
2k views
My crank fell off, how do I re-attach it?
I was out riding on my mountain bike when my crank unexpectedly fell off (video).
How do I reattach the crank? There's a torque range specified (25-30 Ft-Lbs):
how critical is this? I don't own a ...
2
votes
4answers
529 views
Cruiser bottom bracket is clicking and grinding
My Trek Pure Deluxe 3-speed cruiser has been making a clicking noise when riding for some time. The problem is faint, and is more felt than heard. However, it's been getting worse; it now makes a ...
1
vote
3answers
381 views
Are there research graphs for the Rotor Q Ring system?
I was looking into Rotor Q Ring system that supposedly increases power by 4% which is rather significant especially when climbing. It should shave off quite some time off your resulting time due to ...
1
vote
1answer
283 views
ideal dérailleur height for a Deore on a Biopace?
Reading on every site about front dérailleur adjustment, the distance from the bottom of the outer dérailleur plate to the bigger crank cog should be "one penny".
Mine is around 1cm! it does shift ...
1
vote
2answers
1k views
Does anyone have experience with Bottom Bracket Tap/Facing sets?
I'm interested in recommending my boss get the workshop in which I work a bottom bracket tap and facing set.
As it's quite an investment it's important to me to know what you're getting for your ...
1
vote
3answers
666 views
How do I remove a pedal from a crank with a crossed thread?
I've part stripped, and ultimately crossed the thread on my crank and can't remove my pedal now. This was done whilst riding and then trying to remove the pedal from the damaged crank. I figure the ...
4
votes
2answers
362 views
How to get enough leverage to remove pedals when their cranks are not attached to a bike?
I'm trying to troubleshoot a weird barely-felt click on my cruiser. The nest step of the process is to swap out the pedals and see if the problem goes away (if not, the problem is likely the bottom ...
3
votes
2answers
278 views
How can you tell how far apart your chainrings are?
I just replaced my cassette and my crank with one from the LBS that the guy said would work. I've had no problems with the cassette, but the crank is too wide so that my front derailleur does not ...
8
votes
7answers
8k views
How to remove a crank arm with stripped threads?
A friend called me up yesterday after a mis-adventure during his attempt at a bottom bracket overhaul. He stripped out the threads on the (left) crank arm while using a Park crank puller. In a pinch, ...
11
votes
4answers
4k views
Differences between Biopace and Rotor cranks
On mountain bikes of a certain age, "Biopace" chainrings are ubiquitous. These chainrings are (purposely) not circular. It seems that most people today agree that Biopace rings didn't live up to the ...
3
votes
1answer
393 views
What MTB 10 speed double cranksets exist with 180mm cranks?
I am looking for a a 10 speed dual crankset that has 180mm cranks.
I see the SRAM cranksets only come in 170 and 175mm.
18
votes
1answer
297 views
Selecting the right crank length
What is the best way to determine the correct crank length for my height and more specifically my leg length?
4
votes
2answers
388 views
Which Phil Wood bottom brackets are compatible with Shimano XT cranks?
As far as I can tell just the Outboard BB is.
18
votes
12answers
25k views
Creaking from cranks/spindle. How to fix?
Recently the cranks on my bike started to creak.
I checked with my usual "bike-bible" Park Tool. They recommended dis-assemble, lubricate, re-assemble.
So I did that.
Remove cranks.
Remove spindle.
...
