Nasty noise when pedalling

[listopad]

I've recently started commuting into central London on my bike. For about half the time, there is a nasty noise coming from the crank/pedal area when I pedal with my left foot. Its the sort of sound that says 'If you don't fix me soon, you're going to end up walking home'. Does this sound familiar to anyone, is there a simple fix or should I take it in for a service? I've had a good look and nothing seems to be out of place/obviously broken.

Many thanks for your comments.

 

[rollers]

I've recently started commuting into central London on my bike. For about half the time, there is a nasty noise coming from the crank/pedal area when I pedal with my left foot. Its the sort of sound that says 'If you don't fix me soon, you're going to end up walking home'. Does this sound familiar to anyone, is there a simple fix or should I take it in for a service? I've had a good look and nothing seems to be out of place/obviously broken.

Many thanks for your comments.

If you're not mechanically inclined and/or do not have the necessary tools to work on your BB/cranks/pedals I would recommend a trip to your LBS. It could be money well spent because the cost of repair will be much lower than the inconvenience, cost, and safety risk of a failure on the road.

 

[Jaguar27]

I've recently started commuting into central London on my bike. For about half the time, there is a nasty noise coming from the crank/pedal area when I pedal with my left foot. Its the sort of sound that says 'If you don't fix me soon, you're going to end up walking home'. Does this sound familiar to anyone, is there a simple fix or should I take it in for a service? I've had a good look and nothing seems to be out of place/obviously broken.

Many thanks for your comments.

Is there any excessive movement when you push or pull the crank towards and away the center of the Bike? If so, it could be your Bottom Bracket (Crank bearing), but in any case, your bike is really saying "I'm mechanical, please service me now and again"

At the same time you can get your Cables re-adjusted, shifting smoothed out etc etc....and a general safety check...well worth a few quid for the peace of mind IMHO.

 

[listopad]

Thanks for the comments, In the end I took the crank off and gave it a clean and a lube and it seems to have done the trick. The noise made me think it was something reasonably serious as I wouldn't expect that much noise to be made just because of a bit of grit. Will still take it to the LBS though for a service.

 

[John Picton]

Thanks for the comments, In the end I took the crank off and gave it a clean and a lube and it seems to have done the trick. The noise made me think it was something reasonably serious as I wouldn't expect that much noise to be made just because of a bit of grit. Will still take it to the LBS though for a service.

I had the same thing, though not as serious as yours. The bike shop checked the tightness of everything and greased what needed greasing - problem solved. Good luck!

 

[bmonkey]

I recently had my bike serviced by my LBS, and a couple weeks later it started making a noise during pedaling. I couldn't quite place it--it sounded like my rear derailleur was rubbing on the chain, but it wasn't. I talked to the shop, thinking that they had screwed something up, and was told that it was probably just that the chain needed lubing. I thought he was wrong, but tried it and it worked! They told me that you should probably lube every 5 rides or so, and sure enough, if I go too much more than that, the noise will start to come back.

I used to go months without lubing, and just ignore the little creaks and squeaks. Now I lube every couple weeks.