Torquing the pedals on -- what special tool is needed?

[amberwolf]

Simply attach the Tork-Grip to the pedal wrench https://sheldonbrown.com/tork-grip.html

That's an interesting hack, though I don't have much confidence in vice grips.

assuming it isn't obvious from the photoshop of the "tool", if you read the full page, you should realize it is an april fool's joke.

there are several such on that site:

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/bicycleHumor.html

 

[dogman dan]

Just get a good park tools or similar long handle pedal wrench, and crank on it like they said. If you want serious torque, then secure the wheel like they said, and tap the handle with a hammer.

Others have had issues that related partly to their weight, but also sometimes because they got a loose pedal, then did not have any tool to tighten it with them. By the time they got home, the crank gets stripped and can never be tightened right again.

Use the locktite, if you think your weight will be an issue.

 

[speedmd]

All of my pedals have allen socket axles making my park pedal wrench near obsolete.

Good riddens IMO. :wink:

 

[xtinctionRebeller]

Just get a good park tools or similar long handle pedal wrench, and crank on it like they said. If you want serious torque, then secure the wheel like they said, and tap the handle with a hammer.

That may be good general advice for those with the same issue who find this thread in the future, but in my case I cannot avoid buying a torque wrench because sometimes I have motorcycle lug nuts to tighten. So I might as well use it.

Others have had issues that related partly to their weight,

I'd say likely. I'm a bit of a heavyweight and I often ride without sitting. So with all my weight on the pedals and the fact that the threading is such that pedals would loosen should enough pressure hinder the pedal bearings from doing their job, this seems likely. If pedals were threaded the opposite direction this probably wouldn't be an issue. There were moments when my right pedal would momentarily fail to spin, or make a clicking noise as if unlubed. I oiled the pedals whenever I oiled the chain, and with the same oil. It was proper chain oil but probably not viscous enough for pedals. OTOH I'm not sure how I would get a proper thick grease into the pedal bearings which presumably aren't designed to disassemble.

Use the locktite, if you think your weight will be an issue.

I found a quite insightful post (#24) from someone favoring plumbers tape over locktite. (I hate to publically reference a CloudFlare site [cruel to Tor users], so I've pointed to a cached version of it.)

All of my pedals have allen socket axles making my park pedal wrench near obsolete.
Good riddens IMO. :wink:

It's a shame that pedal bolts use a harder metal than crank arm sockets, because it'd be better if we had to replace the pedal rather than the crank arm. In which case riders could switch to allen pedals without being wasteful.

 

[speedmd]

Most pedals have weight limits. You may want to check that out, just to make sure your not overloading the axles. That may explain the failure to hold tight.

 

[dogman dan]

Fine, get a good torque wrench for your motorcycle or automotive stuff. But a good park tools pedal wrench might help you with the pedals, since its designed for pedals. Crank it down good and hard, the long handle will make more than 100 ft pounds easy to apply.

Works on the undamaged crank, is what I mean.

 

[amberwolf]

It's a shame that pedal bolts use a harder metal than crank arm sockets, because it'd be better if we had to replace the pedal rather than the crank arm.

they use hard metal because they have to for simplicity, as the bearing races are also the pedal spindle itself, and because the leverage on them is much higher than on the cranks, for their dimensions. some lightweigth pedals probably use cartridge bearings with their own races, but the common pedals i see use loose or caged bearings riding directly on the spindle (like old bb spindles used to, before cartridge types became common; even now there's plenty of cheap bikes that still do that).

since it's easier and cheaper to machine and manufacture items from softer metals, and they are generally lighter (for metals used on bikes), those are used for the cranks because there isn't typically a need to do it differently, and it would cost more to do so.

there *are* harder steel cranks. they used to be common as cottered cranks, but it's been at least four decades since then. now the only places i usually see them are on some bmx-sized bikes built for stunt / bashing / etc., where weight doesnt' make much difference, but bending or breaking stuff in a crash every few minutes would suck.

 

[xtinctionRebeller]

I appreciate the explanation amberwolf. I think it would be an improvement to recess a nut into the crank, and screw the pedal into the nut. Then an expendable nut takes a hit for the team rather than the crank when stripping happens.

 

[amberwolf]

doing it that way would make changing-angle-leverage against hte crank (normal in pedalling) more likely to damage the crank, because the nut/crank interface would probably have to be an interference fit (difficult for an end-user to either remove or reinsert) to ensure no movement / rocking of the nut in the crank. if there was *any* movement, the harder nut would destroy the softer crank, even more easily / faster than a loose pedal, as the nut is "stirred" inside the hole in the crank's metal.


as long as pedals are correctly tightened down, and not seeing forces that exceed their ratings (or the cranks', or the bb shaft's/shell's), they dont' generally damage the cranks, or come loose. (with the exception of poorly made cheap parts that dont fully/correctly fit the standard threading, allowing them to rock).

at least, that's been my experience. i've never had to have a car...used bicycles (and trailers where needed) and trikes for decades now, though these days i have to use motors cuz i can't pedal like i used to.

 

[speedmd]

as long as pedals are correctly tightened down, and not seeing forces that exceed their ratings (or the cranks', or the bb shaft's/shell's), they dont' generally damage the cranks, or come loose. (with the exception of poorly made cheap parts that dont fully/correctly fit the standard threading, allowing them to rock).

Exactly. One could get into a bad spot relying on a torque wrench if the threads are no longer smooth, meshing correctly or metal galling as forces increase. Actual screw pressure could be way under spec in these situations and torque wrench settings are no longer reliably accurate. Lots of bike shops are overly concerned with over torque and damaging - breaking fragile components- hardware and actually end up with stuff that loosens up in normal use. Carbon cranks are now common place, and some are very expensive. Some shops are the opposite and hardware breaks or nearly so when removing screws without extreme caution. I am with Dogman in the OP's situation. Hammer it tight (vise grips, pedal wrench, or pipe wrench) to overcome the mangled threads. Grease helps also. So does most any any liquid threadlocker. Parts (the little we know about them in this) do not appear to be kept in any respectable level of service (pedal bearings locking up while riding) or of much value to begin with, and goal appears to be that they just don't come loose.

 

[xtinctionRebeller]

When a pedal wrench includes a 24mm closed wrench for the cassette remover, it can be used to torque a pedal: