my pedal is rusted and I can't get it off. I have to get it off so I can replace the bent pedal. HELP!!!!!!!

Dear all:

I have a beloved BMX type old bike that I take to work everyday.
You can see it at
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big
.. It is the bike in the picture.

I dropped it the other day and the pedal is bent. I have been
trying to get it off. From what I read, the right paddle is right
threaded (so it is just like a screw) and the left one is left hand
threaded.

The pedal I am trying to take off is the right pedal. I read
that you should have the pedal forward (ie the crank should be
parallel to the ground and pointing to the front of the bike). Then
apply wrench (handle of the wrench should be toward the rear of bike)
to the pedal and push down on the wrench. This should loosen the
paddle.

I tried it with a crescent wrench and I nearly rounded off the
head of the bolt and couldn't get the paddle to budge one bit.

What should I do? I really love the bike and want to use it to
get to work everyday. I live on an air force base and biking is the
perfect transportation (see
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big ). Do
you think a bike shop would be my next step? Will they be able to
help me take the old rusted pedal off?

please help. I really need it.

From:

I tried it with a crescent wrench and I nearly rounded off the
head of the bolt and couldn't get the paddle to budge one bit.

What should I do?


Soak the threads with a few drops of penetrating oil applied from both sides of
the crank. Tap the crank/pedal a few times to help the oil flow deeper into
the threads. One application may do it, or several over a day or two.
I usually support/stabilize the crank ( in the position you describe) with a
block of wood that I can bear down on.
And only use a wrench of correct size for the flats on the bolt.
Clean, dry and lightly grease the crank threads before installing the new
pedal(s).


Sig
Chicago

On 5 Sep 2003 12:56:06 -0700, (wanglu) wrote:

Dear all:

I have a beloved BMX type old bike that I take to work everyday.
You can see it at
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big
. It is the bike in the picture.

I dropped it the other day and the pedal is bent. I have been
trying to get it off. From what I read, the right paddle is right
threaded (so it is just like a screw) and the left one is left hand
threaded.

That's right.

Are you sure that it isn't the crank that is bent? I have seen the
pedal eye of the crank bend while leaving the pedal unaffected
(referring here to one piece cranks):

http://sheldonbrown.org/gloss_m-o.html#opc

The pedal I am trying to take off is the right pedal. I read
that you should have the pedal forward (ie the crank should be
parallel to the ground and pointing to the front of the bike). Then
apply wrench (handle of the wrench should be toward the rear of bike)
to the pedal and push down on the wrench. This should loosen the
paddle.

Yes. You would hold the right pedal with your other arm. You want to
avoid mashing your hand into the chainring teeth, er...cogs.

I tried it with a crescent wrench and I nearly rounded off the
head of the bolt and couldn't get the paddle to budge one bit.

This is not surprising, pedals often get extremely tight just from
riding. You need to make sure that the wrench fits properly - a
crescent wrench will typically be too wide to fit in between the crank
and the pedal; wrenches sold for this purpose are narrower for this
reason. You may also need to take a blowtorch to the crank.

What should I do? I really love the bike and want to use it to
get to work everyday. I live on an air force base and biking is the
perfect transportation (see
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big ). Do
you think a bike shop would be my next step? Will they be able to
help me take the old rusted pedal off?

please help. I really need it.

Any decent local bike shop will have dealt with stuck pedals hundreds
of times and they will get it out. If you need to buy new pedals
there anyway they probably won't charge much to do the whole job for
you. Note: some pedals have 1/2" spindles, some 9/16" (yours are
probably 1/2"). Remember to apply grease to the threads when
installing the new pedals and make sure not to cross-thread them.

--
Chris Bird

On 5 Sep 2003 12:56:06 -0700, (wanglu) may have
said:

Dear all:

I have a beloved BMX type old bike that I take to work everyday.
You can see it at
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big
. It is the bike in the picture.

I see that, not surprisingly, it has an old-style steel one-piece
crank; at least the unit's easily and inexpensively replaced if stern
measures don't produce success.

I dropped it the other day and the pedal is bent. I have been
trying to get it off. From what I read, the right paddle is right
threaded (so it is just like a screw) and the left one is left hand
threaded.

The pedal shaft is unusually hard to bend, but I assume you've checked
to see whether it's really the pedal or the crank that's bent. The
pedal on the chain side is, indeed, right-hand threaded.

I tried it with a crescent wrench and I nearly rounded off the
head of the bolt and couldn't get the paddle to budge one bit.

Not surprising. The average crescent wrench is much more effective at
rounding things off than most people realize; its jaws flex too much.
If your base has an automotive hobby shop, drop over there and see if
somebody has a regular open-end wrench of the appropriate size to fit
the flats on the pedal shaft. If that doesn't work, and if there's
not a local bike shop that you can take it to, then what I would try
(in order) is this:

First, apply a penetrant to both ends of the thread, wait about an
hour, and try the right wrench again.

Second, heat the end of the crank with a propane torch (stopping
before the metal gets hot enough to change color) and try the right
wrench again.

Third, since the pedal's going to be discarded anyway, with whatever
appropriate tools are available, cut the outward end of the pedal off
to allow the rotating part to come off the shaft, and then try to get
a big pipe wrench onto the pedal's shaft to turn it. If this doesn't
work, you're getting perilously close to replacing the crank.

Fourth, using a pair of medium-sized ball-pien hammers, with one
positioned on one side of the end of the crank, use the second to
strike the other side of the end of the crank to try to break up the
corrosion that may be present; three good hits should be enough, and
if it doesn't come loose with a wrench after that many impacts, the
technique is probably not going to be successful without doing more
damage than good.

At that point, I'd just replace the crank. BMX bikes often use a crank
with shorter arms than a regular-size bike, but a regardless of the
length, a one-piece crank for your bike is commonly available for a
relatively low price, and installation is not rocket science.

--
My email address is antispammed;
pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Yes, I have a killfile. If I don't respond to something,
it's also possible that I'm busy.

15 mm cone wrench vs. 15 mm pedal wrench
check out the pedal renawvel method in "diy bike cable luber"!! itsa winner.
rec.bicycles.tech - May 13, 2003 by g.daniels - View Thread (10 articles)

thank you everyone for the responses. It is an old bike but a great
bike that has taken me around to many places and rolled many miles.

I am printing out the response so taht I can try the things on the
list one at a time (there are too many good suggestions to just go by
memory alone). If I print it out, I can take my time and go down the
list.

I will let everyone know how it turns out. (I especially liked the
suggestion of the auto-hobby shop on base. That one is pertinent to
me because I do live on an air force base and we do have an automobile
hobby shop. I just didnt' think of it when I thought of fixing a
bike. Great call!)

sincerely Longtang

Werehatrack wrote in message . ..
On 5 Sep 2003 12:56:06 -0700, (wanglu) may have
said:

Dear all:

I have a beloved BMX type old bike that I take to work everyday.
You can see it at
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big
. It is the bike in the picture.

I see that, not surprisingly, it has an old-style steel one-piece
crank; at least the unit's easily and inexpensively replaced if stern
measures don't produce success.

I dropped it the other day and the pedal is bent. I have been
trying to get it off. From what I read, the right paddle is right
threaded (so it is just like a screw) and the left one is left hand
threaded.

The pedal shaft is unusually hard to bend, but I assume you've checked
to see whether it's really the pedal or the crank that's bent. The
pedal on the chain side is, indeed, right-hand threaded.

I tried it with a crescent wrench and I nearly rounded off the
head of the bolt and couldn't get the paddle to budge one bit.

Not surprising. The average crescent wrench is much more effective at
rounding things off than most people realize; its jaws flex too much.
If your base has an automotive hobby shop, drop over there and see if
somebody has a regular open-end wrench of the appropriate size to fit
the flats on the pedal shaft. If that doesn't work, and if there's
not a local bike shop that you can take it to, then what I would try
(in order) is this:

First, apply a penetrant to both ends of the thread, wait about an
hour, and try the right wrench again.

Second, heat the end of the crank with a propane torch (stopping
before the metal gets hot enough to change color) and try the right
wrench again.

Third, since the pedal's going to be discarded anyway, with whatever
appropriate tools are available, cut the outward end of the pedal off
to allow the rotating part to come off the shaft, and then try to get
a big pipe wrench onto the pedal's shaft to turn it. If this doesn't
work, you're getting perilously close to replacing the crank.

Fourth, using a pair of medium-sized ball-pien hammers, with one
positioned on one side of the end of the crank, use the second to
strike the other side of the end of the crank to try to break up the
corrosion that may be present; three good hits should be enough, and
if it doesn't come loose with a wrench after that many impacts, the
technique is probably not going to be successful without doing more
damage than good.

At that point, I'd just replace the crank. BMX bikes often use a crank
with shorter arms than a regular-size bike, but a regardless of the
length, a one-piece crank for your bike is commonly available for a
relatively low price, and installation is not rocket science.

"wanglu" wrote in message
om...
Dear all:

I have a beloved BMX type old bike that I take to work everyday.
You can see it at
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big
. It is the bike in the picture.

I dropped it the other day and the pedal is bent. I have been
trying to get it off. From what I read, the right paddle is right
threaded (so it is just like a screw) and the left one is left hand
threaded.

The pedal I am trying to take off is the right pedal. I read
that you should have the pedal forward (ie the crank should be
parallel to the ground and pointing to the front of the bike). Then
apply wrench (handle of the wrench should be toward the rear of bike)
to the pedal and push down on the wrench. This should loosen the
paddle.

I tried it with a crescent wrench and I nearly rounded off the
head of the bolt and couldn't get the paddle to budge one bit.

What should I do? I really love the bike and want to use it to
get to work everyday. I live on an air force base and biking is the
perfect transportation (see
http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/index...91190&size=big ). Do
you think a bike shop would be my next step? Will they be able to
help me take the old rusted pedal off?

please help. I really need it.

A pedal wrench is pretty long compared to a medium sized adjustable wrench.

Guys who've been wrenching in bike shops for a while ( look for grey
hairs) know how to position the work and the wrench, know how to hold
themselves, how to move things with less than excessive muscle. If there is
such a person near you, consult him or her. I know I move things here that
my younger broad-shouldered staff cannot - it's leverage more than muscle
sometimes.

Moreover, if it's stuck, an experienced wrench twister will usually be able
to get it out without ruining the crank. And since you're following the
other thread about pedals falling out, you know to lube the threads next
time, right?

--
If you want to try it yourself, I would get the bike's BB between elbow
and shoulder, top tube at 45 degrees pointed away from you. Left pedal up,
right pedal down. Position the pedal wrench parallel or slightly askew to
the cranks and push the left crank with your left hand while pulling the
pedal wrench on the right pedal with your right, the rear tire against your
body. I know that sounds like bicycle ballroom dancing but really that
should do it with a modicum of force unless something is awry.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971