Bottom bracket clicking/creaking. How much to fix?

[Mark Mitchell]

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I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my BB
as the left crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock position.
I didn't think too much of it as I thought that the sound
was actually my shoelaces hitting the frame. (Most of my
riding is done in very quiet conditions)

I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like a
2-3 clicks close together, or a very small creak.

The bike is a late 90's Trek 6000. (don't remember the exact
year I bought
it)

My questions. This is probably the BB, right?

I don't have the tools (or knowledge) to replace it myself,
how cheaply can I hope to get away with at LBS? (I only have
one in reasonable driving distance)

Assuming it is a BB, how long can I let this go before I do
expensive damage?

Thanks, Mark

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[Ie]

I would take it to a good bike shop to have them look at
it....might not be a big thing, but it could be. A good
wrench should be able to throw it into a work stand and
evaluate fairly quickly. Greater possibility of it being
serious if you have not had it worked on since it was
new...could be bottom bracket...could be loose chainring
bolts...could be the bottom bracket shell... might be solved
with a little lock-tite or a few turns of a wrench. It's
better to find out now than when to wait and chance losing
the bottom bracket or crank or frame....That silly old
thing...a stitch in time saves nine.....

Hope it's nothing serious! Cheers! ie

"Mark Mitchell" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1
>
> I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my BB
> as the left crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock
> position. I didn't think too much of it as I thought that
> the sound was actually my shoelaces hitting the frame.
> (Most of my riding is done in very quiet conditions)
>
> I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like a
> 2-3 clicks close together, or a very small creak.
>
> The bike is a late 90's Trek 6000. (don't remember the
> exact year I
bought
> it)
>
> My questions. This is probably the BB, right?
>
> I don't have the tools (or knowledge) to replace it
> myself, how cheaply
can
> I hope to get away with at LBS? (I only have one in
> reasonable driving distance)
>
> Assuming it is a BB, how long can I let this go before I
> do expensive damage?
>
> Thanks, Mark
>
> - --
> Remove both wrongs to make the email address right.
>
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[Chalo]

Mark Mitchell <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my BB
> as the left crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock
> position.
...
> I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like a
> 2-3 clicks close together, or a very small creak.
>
> The bike is a late 90's Trek 6000. (

Aluminum frame? If so, it may just need the BB pulled out,
threads greased, and reinstalled. Cheap. The cranks have to
come off first, and that's a good opportunity for an
experienced shop mechanic to inspect the components for
cracks or other problems.

It could be anything from loose chainring bolts to a cracked
frame, though. If you are overdue for a tune-up, now would
be a good time to get one. A decent LBS will be likely to
include the bottom bracket removal/replacement in the deal
if you make sure to ask for it.

Chalo Colina

 

[Dave Pushee]

Mark Mitchell wrote:

> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1
>
> I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my BB
> as the left crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock
> position. I didn't think too much of it as I thought that
> the sound was actually my shoelaces hitting the frame.
> (Most of my riding is done in very quiet conditions)
>
> I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like a
> 2-3 clicks close together, or a very small creak.
>

Another possibility to consider is the pedal. I had a
similar sound at about the same point in crank rotation.
Eventually, I tightened the left pedal to the crank arm.
Click went away.

- Dave

 

[Paul Ricklefs]

I'll second the pedal possibility. I had the same thing
happen on two sets of pedals before I went out and bought
some high end pedals. Give the pedals a wiggle to see if
there is any play in the bearings.

--

Paul Ricklefs

"Dave Pushee" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Mark Mitchell wrote:
>
> > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> > Hash: SHA1
> >
> > I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my BB as the left
> > crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock position. I didn't think too
much
> > of it as I thought that the sound was actually my shoelaces hitting the
> > frame. (Most of my riding is done in very quiet conditions)
> >
> > I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like a 2-3 clicks
> > close together, or a very small creak.
> >
>
> Another possibility to consider is the pedal. I had a similar sound at
> about the same point in crank rotation. Eventually, I tightened the
> left pedal to the crank arm. Click went away.
>
> - Dave

 

[Mark Mitchell]

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On 2004-07-09, Chalo <[email protected]> wrote:
> Mark Mitchell <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>> I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my
>> BB as the left crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock
>> position.
> ...
>> I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like
>> a 2-3 clicks close together, or a very small creak.
>>
>> The bike is a late 90's Trek 6000. (
>
> Aluminum frame? If so, it may just need the BB pulled out,
> threads greased, and reinstalled. Cheap. The cranks have
> to come off first, and that's a good opportunity for an
> experienced shop mechanic to inspect the components for
> cracks or other problems.
>
> It could be anything from loose chainring bolts to a
> cracked frame, though. If you are overdue for a tune-up,
> now would be a good time to get one. A decent LBS will be
> likely to include the bottom bracket removal/replacement
> in the deal if you make sure to ask for it.
>
I must admit that I've neglected this bike. I've put (at a
guess) 2000 miles on this bike and never done any work other
than patching tubes, replaced brake blocks and tires.

I broke the chain and cleaned the bike up today. Two of
the four chainring bolts were somewhat loose. Also there
is a kind of shield thing between the smallest chainring
and the frame. When I cleaned, I found a small rock wedged
between this and the chainstay. Don't know if that could
have cause my noise.

Mark

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[Mark Mitchell]

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On 2004-07-09, Dave Pushee <[email protected]
not.net> wrote:
>
> Mark Mitchell wrote:
>
>> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1
>>
>> I noticed approx 100mi ago that I'd get a click from my
>> BB as the left crank passed through the 11-10 o'clock
>> position. I didn't think too much of it as I thought that
>> the sound was actually my shoelaces hitting the frame.
>> (Most of my riding is done in very quiet conditions)
>>
>> I was wrong, it's gotten a bit worse. Now it's more like
>> a 2-3 clicks close together, or a very small creak.
>>
>
> Another possibility to consider is the pedal. I had a
> similar sound at about the same point in crank rotation.
> Eventually, I tightened the left pedal to the crank arm.
> Click went away.
>
> - Dave
>
On your advice I checked that, tight.

Mark

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[Zoot Katz]

Sat, 10 Jul 2004 01:40:50 GMT,
<[email protected]>, Mark Mitchell
<[email protected]> wrote:

> Two of the four chainring bolts were somewhat loose.

"creak"

> Also there is a kind of shield thing between the smallest
> chainring and the frame. When I cleaned, I found a small
> rock wedged between this and the chainstay.

"click"

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