Seized on pedals

[MrGrumpy]

Any tips on removing very stuck on pedals ? Think the alloy and steel have welded together!

 

[Slick]

Plus gas worked a treat on my seat post.

 

[sleuthey]

Before you stick a blow torch on it try heating it with some boiling water for a few minutes before resorting to a heat gun. Get as bigger adjustable wrench as you can find and position it about 10 degrees from the crank arm and squeeze the crank and wrench together with both fists

 

[raleighnut]

Plenty of penetrating oil and leave to soak/creep in then point the pedal forwards and the spanner back and stand on the spanner.

EDIT keep the back brake on.

 

[ColinJ]

Plenty of penetrating oil and leave to soak/creep in then point the pedal forwards and the spanner back and stand on the spanner.

I was going to remind everyone that the left pedal has a reverse thread but you have effectively beaten me to it!

If someone didn't know that and was trying to undo an UN-seized left pedal as if it had a normal thread then it would certainly FEEL seized.

 

[davidphilips]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tia5y9kfVk0


If the bike is carbon or even on a really nice bike i would recommend removing the cranks and using a vice and long spanner.

 

[sleuthey]

Plenty of penetrating oil and leave to soak/creep in then point the pedal forwards and the spanner back and stand on the spanner.

EDIT keep the back brake on.

This is what happened to me when I did that using a Chrome Vandium Spanner. In the end I used an adjustable wrench.

 

[robgul]

Tales from the LBS : Make it easier by removing the crankset and holding the crank arm in a vice - flat with the pedal uppermost if a 15mm spanner flat to remove, or downwards if an inside face Allen key to remove. Pad the vice jaws with some corrugated cardboard and a thick rag wrapped round the crank arm. Holding the crank arm firm lets you get some real effort behind the spanner/Allen key (the big Park workshop pedal wrench works wonders!)

... but try the penetrating oil/boiling water first. AND you could, with the crank arms off, immerse the pedal end in a bath of a penetrating fluid (diesel fuel would be the cheapest) and leave to soak for a bit.

Rob

 

[Hacienda71]

Put a longer hollow metal pipe over the spanner if you have one to give extra leverage.

 

[Racing roadkill]

Galvanic corrosion ( what you have there ) is a sod to deal with. Heat the pedal / crank interface with a brazing torch, let it cool, spray on some GT85 or WD40 ( the only time WD40 should go anywhere near a bike ) re heat it, then put a pedal spanner on it, and smack it with a hammer, until it shifts. Alternatively get an Allen key, weld an extension on, then stand on it, till it shifts.

 

[raleighnut]

This is what happened to me when I did that using a Chrome Vandium Spanner. In the end I used an adjustable wrench.

Got there in the end:
View attachment 489691
Cut off the corner of the pedal (bottom left in pic) with a hack saw to get a sturdier wrench onto it.
View attachment 489692
The first spanner was branded Hilka

There's your trouble, they were always crap.

 

[overmind]

Put a longer hollow metal pipe over the spanner if you have one to give extra leverage.

Seconded. Cheater Bar, my favourite bike tool; and make sure you turn it the correct way. The Rule of thumb I use is 'always towards the back wheel' (where the spanner is above the pedal).

 

[MichaelW2]

After leaving some penetrating fluid in place, I remove stuck pedals as follows:
Position crank forward and up
Position spanner rearwards and up.
Apply brakes
Stand carefully on spanner. Bounce my weight . You need a spanner that will not slip or twist. Add some length with a "Tommy bar" extension made of suitability dimensioned steel tube.
This only works on the ground, not in a repair stand.

If using hands on the spanner, wear gloves and always be aware of where your hands and fingers will end up if something slips.

 

[oldwheels]

I bought a new bike from a now defunct LBS. My first move was to change the pedals after about a week. In order to get them off I had to resort to a 4ft section of scaffolding pole to extend the spanner. When next in the shop I mentioned this problem and the owner showed me the spanner he used to fit new pedals. It was about a foot long and he said he used his full weight to tighten the pedals. Surprised he did not strip the threads using this method.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

This is why you grease the threads