Deore doubts

[Fiona N]

Well, it's been an interesting morning. I wanted to remove the pedals (Crank Bros Candies) from the mtb to swop them for eggbeaters now there's so much snow around and I'd also got a rebuild kit to renovate them for when I put them back on. But I hit a problem with the right hand pedal and couldn't shift it. Normally I don't tighten the pedals too much - barely more than hand-tight and I've never had one come loose - so I'm not exactly expert at shifting them.

I tried everything I could think off including hot water run carefully down the crank-arm in the hope that differential expansion might ease things a bit. Part of the problem is that the Candies are Alan key removal only - they don't have flats for a (nice long) pedal spanner so I've using a longish 6mm Allan key with an extension tube.

In the end I decided the only way forwards was to remove the crankset so that I could put the Allan key in the vice and lever with the crank rather than risking injury with the Allan key/tube arrangement in proximity to sharp bits of bike. This brought up the next problem - I've never removed this (ca. 2005 Deore) crankset before myself but there were the usual one-key-release bolt heads recessed for an 8mm Allan key so I expected that removing those would release the crankset from the axle even if I wasn't exactly sure what form that would take i.e. splined, octalink etc.

But once the bolts (left and right) were out, it wasn't obvious what happened next. If fact it wasn't obvious that the cranks did pull off - as opposed to coming out with the whole axle (as with Hollowtech).

So can anyone help here? Do I gently pull the cranks off the some-sort-of-splined axle or will it require application of hammer (carefully), brute force or do I need a special tool to remove the axle?

I realise I probably should have taken a photo before reassembly (i.e. screwing the bolts back) but I reckon anyone who knows what I'm on about won't need a photo to explain. I should emphasise it's not a hollowtech crankset with the external bolt holding the lefthand crank onto the axle which is an integral part of the righthand crankset.

 

[spence]

I'm thinking you'll need one of these crank pullers

http://www.chainreac...x?ModelID=34314

and posible one of thses if it's an octalink BB

http://www.chainreac...imano+axel+plug

 

[potsy]

Crank puller for removal and then just a hex key to re-fit,had to take mine off the other week,really easy with the right tools

Could you not have tried a longer extension bar? Foot on bar and push with your big cycling muscles

 

[Gerry Attrick]

I have a Deore crankset on my tourer which removes easily with a cotterless crank puller.

Just to clear the obvious, you are aware the right hand pedal uses a right hand (i.e. normal) thread as opposed to the left hand pedal which is a left hand thread? Bear in mind it can be a bit confusing using a hex key as you are operating from the inside of the crank.

 

[Fiona N]

Crank puller for removal and then just a hex key to re-fit,had to take mine off the other week,really easy with the right tools

When I've used the one-key-release (which I've got on various other Shimano cranksets) previously, the cranks come off as you unscrew so I was a little perplexed this time - nice to know they go back more eaasily

Could you not have tried a longer extension bar? Foot on bar and push with your big cycling muscles

The problem was the Allan key wasn't made for such abuse - it was starting to flex at the neck - hence the idea to put it in a vice so just the business end stick out.

 

[Fiona N]

Thanks guys - I belately realised I'd purchased a crank puller a while ago for just this occasion - and completely forgotten

 

[GrumpyGregry]

as has been said crank puller.

grease your pedal threads once a year. I use copaslip. Prevents electrolytic bonding between steel pedal axle and allow crank. or so I'm told.