clipless pedals

[robsy]

After owning several pairs of SPDs and a pair of Diadora clipless i have brought myself to asking someone whether there should be any play? Even my new pair of KEO classics, when i grab the pedal i can feel a very slight up and down movement. I have felt this in every pedal i have owned so am thinking it is normal? I must repeat that my new KEOs, the movement is fractional, having not actually ridden the bike since fitting them.

Thanks
Rob

 

[accountantpete]

No - there should be no play in the axle at all.

With Shimano's the play that develops is down to wear at the end nearest the crank.

If the pedals are new, then any play is down to how they are set up - it's basically a minature version of bearings and cones - so you should be able to adjust them exactly the same as wheel bearings etc.

 

[marzjennings]

Agreed (with Pete), there should be no movement at all. I test mine on a regular basis and if there's any movement they get stripped down and new bearings inserted if required.

 

[stavros]

After owning several pairs of SPDs and a pair of Diadora clipless i have brought myself to asking someone whether there should be any play? Even my new pair of KEO classics, when i grab the pedal i can feel a very slight up and down movement. I have felt this in every pedal i have owned so am thinking it is normal? I must repeat that my new KEOs, the movement is fractional, having not actually ridden the bike since fitting them.

Thanks
Rob

None at all - the whole point is that there is maximum energy transfer to the crank, which would be compromised if there were any free-play. Soz.

 

[battered]

But a bit of wear is hardly a big deal and the cones will take up a bit of slack so it's hardly urgent that you rebuild them unless you are a time triallist trying to shave that last tenth of a second off.

 

[robsy]

The play in my new pedals seem only to be apparent when they are fitted to the cranks. There is no play otherwise. To me the most obvious reason is that the crankarms do not fit as well as they might to the pedals so giving very slight movement. I have shimano cranks and look pedals. Could this be the case?

 

[battered]

No.

 

[accountantpete]

The play in my new pedals seem only to be apparent when they are fitted to the cranks. There is no play otherwise. To me the most obvious reason is that the crankarms do not fit as well as they might to the pedals so giving very slight movement. I have shimano cranks and look pedals. Could this be the case?

Shouldn't really but you could try some ptfe tape on the thread - it's only 60p a roll and comes in handy elsewhere on the bike.

 

[accountantpete]

The play in my new pedals seem only to be apparent when they are fitted to the cranks. There is no play otherwise. To me the most obvious reason is that the crankarms do not fit as well as they might to the pedals so giving very slight movement. I have shimano cranks and look pedals. Could this be the case?

Shouldn't really but you could try some ptfe tape on the thread - it's only 60p a roll and comes in handy elsewhere on the bike.

 

[battered]

Shouldn't really but you could try some ptfe tape on the thread - it's only 60p a roll and comes in handy elsewhere on the bike.

Be my guest, but this won't make a difference unless you habitually use your bike to seal leaking water!

If you think aboiut the mechanics of what you are doing, a thread is a slope wrapped round a bar. It slides along a matching slope inside a hole of the same size until it gets to the end of the thread, and then you start to force the slopes further together. They have no further to go, so they start stretching. The tightening up is the slopes being wedged tightly together, and stretched. This is what stops them undoing. You can therefore have a slightly rattly thread, it will stop rattling when you tighten it up. The only time a thread will rattle is if it's not tightened up. If it's not tightened up, plumbers tape will not solve your problm.

 

[Biggsy-]

Helloo CycleChatters

There should be no play if everything is perfectly made, but pedals often aren't perfectly made. I'd rather have a trace of play than stiff/rough-turning pedals.

Every Look pedal I've owned (that's quite a few) has had some play from new. It's not enough to feel when pedalling, just when testing by hand.

Keos don't have cones, by the way - there's nothing to adjust.