Pedal problems on my first fixed wheel bike

A while back my father dumped on me his old collection of bikes. In amoungst the numerous bits of junk, were 2 bikes of interest. A Holdsworth fixed wheel "british club bike" as he called it, and a ten speed touring bike made by Carlton. The carlton was in abit of a shit state and is in desperate need of a refurb, which is in progress.

The holdsworth however was in reasonably good nick. The tyres and tubes had perished during storage, I had to source a new set. Which due to the obscure wheel size (26 x 1.25 aka 32-597) took me a while to source. Also due to its age the pedals are the good ole fashioned toe clip jobs. I got a cheap set of spd pedals off 'bay, which whilst abit of an inconsistant part for such an old machine, it is my one consession to modernity.

This evening I spent putting new tyres and tubes on, which look really good. The only part left to do, is to swap the pedals. And here I have come abit stuck. I cant seem to get them undone, my spanners keep slipping off. I keep getting confused by which thread is on which, I know one of them is the opposite thread to normal. But I am entirely stumped to remember which. I think the cheapy adjustable spanners I am using aren't helping me in the slightest.

So my hope of a quiet first ride on the fixed this evening has floundered. Doh.

Adding insult to injury, the heavens have just opened as well.

Doh.

J

PS will post pics in day light.

when the bike is upright, the top of the pedal axles (actually called a "spindle") **rotate towards the back **of the bike to come off. just think "back up, to get out"

http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=83

or for a quick reference click on these:
http://www.parktool.com/images_inc/repair_help/PW_leftside.jpg
http://www.parktool.com/images_inc/repair_help/PW_rightside.jpg

Think about it logically - The threading is designed so that when pedaling, the axle won't unscrew from the crank. You should be able to work out which way they unscrew.

Ok I'll spell it out anyway:
Right hand side - Anti-Clockwise
Left hand side - Clockwise

Ahah!

Now I know that, I am getting somewhere. Unfortunately my crappy adjustable spanners aren't enough to get these off. They either are to short, but fit on, and thus I get no leaverage. Or long enough to get a decent lever on, but too wide to fit on the pedal to undo it. Looks like a trip to screwfix tomorrow to get some real spanners...

Thanks

Julia

Think about it logically - The threading is designed so that when pedaling, the axle won't unscrew from the crank. You should be able to work out which way they unscrew.

Ok I'll spell it out anyway:
Right hand side - Anti-Clockwise
Left hand side - Clockwise

completely untrue. it's quite the opposite.

Explain, please.

http://www.expertvillage.com/video/4849_remove-pedals-bicycle.htm

@ pifko

i refuse!!!

no, just think about it.

i can't explain the logic behind it being this way, but if you pedal the bike forwards with a wrench, the pedals come off.

might be to prevent over-tightening.

You have new pedals, look at the threads on the pedals and work it out.

@ pifko

i refuse!!!

Refuse? More like 'cant'! :D

Meh, I'm most likely wrong anyway - I usually am.

great thread

badum chhhh!

when the bike is upright, the top of the pedal axles (actually called a "spindle") **rotate towards the back **of the bike to come off. just think "back up, to get out"

Think about it logically - The threading is designed so that when pedaling, the axle won't unscrew from the crank. You should be able to work out which way they unscrew.

Ok I'll spell it out anyway:
Right hand side - Anti-Clockwise
Left hand side - Clockwise

err... you're both right.

turning the spindle on the right-hand side anti-clockwise turns it towards the back of the bike!

Well, I for one am glad that we have managed to display our collective knowledge of this complex technical matter for the benefit of a newcomer.

J, get yourself a 15mm spanner from Leyland SDM for £3 and you should be all set. Only Pifko's assertion that the threading is designed so the axle won't unscrew from the crank is false, his advice on thread direction and Jersey's tip are correct.

Use your new pedals for refferance.
Buy a pedal wrench or other 15mm wrench (not too thick).
Spray with WD40 and leave over night, if they are seized (this will only help a little though).

You lot missed a crucial step (as did the LBS who helped me in the end). This is a 30+ year old bike. It predates all this metric lark, so a 15mm spanner didn't fit. Had to use a 16mm one at the LBS instead. But I got them off, and now fitted a pair of shimano spd's...

Thanks for the help everyone.

J

If it was a test, we failed.

5/8" pedal spanner FTW. I have a spare one.

Not a test, don't worry.

Now for the tricky part of learning to ride fixedwheel without killing myself...

J

26 1 1/4 & 26 1 3/8 tyres are both really easy to get hold of. Both schwalbe & michelin still make loads.

In terms of your pedal problem. ditch your adjustables and get a real spanner. You may have to add a bar for leverage if they are siezed (likely)

You lot missed a crucial step (as did the LBS who helped me in the end). This is a 30+ year old bike. It predates all this metric lark, so a 15mm spanner didn't fit. Had to use a 16mm one at the LBS instead. But I got them off, and now fitted a pair of shimano spd's...

Thanks for the help everyone.

J

I feel ashamed :(

Enjoy the bike.

Can we have some pictures of your Holdsworth?