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Hi,

My bottom bracket / crank has been creaking lately. More and more lately. It's almost 100% able to reproduce by putting the left pedal / crank parallel to ground facing the front wheel, and then putting lots of weight and pushing forward.

Not the pedals since I have tried different ones.

Tightened my chainring bolts.

I go to tighten the crank bolts and the left side moved pretty easily and also made a loud creaking noise. The caps say 35-40Nm and that one is only around 23ish right now. After the creaking noise stopped it kept turning a bit. But I stopped.

Should I keep going?

This bike is a surly steamroller and has the stock bottom bracket + crankset. So its probably a $20 bottom bracket equivalent to this one..

https://www.benscycle.net/index.php?m...oducts_id=9452

Not worried about ruining it. Just worried about getting myself into a situation where the bike is un rideable, or extremely difficult to get it removed (bolt breaking for example).

Maybe better to just get a new bottom bracket? Get tools needed and take it apart while learning how to take a crank / bottom bracket off and check the torque on the bottom bracket? Pretty sure its cartridge based, so not sure if anything else could be done besides that to the actual bottom bracket.

Or keep tightening the crank bolts?

Thanks.

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Ended up just torquing to just under 40 and still creaking.

So I guess I want to remove the crank and make sure the bottom bracket is tight. Need tools. Worst case will need a new bottom bracket and will already have the tools.

As far as specialty tools...

https://www.parktool.com/product/cran...-cranks-ccp-22

That should be all that is needed to remove the crank, correct? Park tools does mention this tool in their instructions, which just looks like a glorified socket and hex key wrench.

https://www.parktool.com/product/crank-wrench-ccw-5

As far as the bottom bracket..

https://www.parktool.com/product/bott...et-tool-bbt-22

So really all I need is the ccp-22 (crank puller) and bbt-22 (bottom bracket tool).

I was going to bring it to the shop, but they would probably charge $10 - $15 to do this I bet, when if these are the only 2 tools I need, might as well just do it myself for a few bucks more and end up with tools.

Just not sure if those are the exact tools I need. Thanks.

hartphoto 

Sounds like you've done your homework

If you already have the allen wrench, then you just need the CCP-22 and BBT-22.

Just recently bought a couple tandem bikes off of CL, and both had worn BBs.....turned into a BB changing demon (total of 4) the past month....

HTH.

andrewclaus

A squeaky saddle can sound just like the BB. Are you out of the saddle when you reproduce it? A way to verify it's the BB or a crank is to get off the bike, rotate a crank arm parallel with the seat tube, and squeeze hard with your hand(s). Repeat with the other crank. You might be able to feel movement, too, as well as hear the sound.

The only other tools I've ever needed for a BB removal (not that I've done all that many) was a heat gun, penetrating oil, and a rubber mallet for tapping the wrench on really stuck ones.

I agree with your plan of collecting tools as you need them. Standards will change over the years, but hopefully you'll get some more use out of them before they're obsolete (or you'll be posting in the classics forum).

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Yes, when I reproduce it I am basically off the bike standing on left pedal. Either smashing the pedal from a complete stop and rolling forward, or someone holding the bike and bouncing on the pedal. On the road its when I mash hard, or resist hard (its a fixed gear) is when it happens. Annoying, and can feel it through the pedal into my foot. Always left side to make the sound.

Also, when I tightened it and heard that sound, it was almost identical to the creaking sound. So its something definitely in that area.

When I put the crank arm parallel with the seat tube and squeeze, I hear no sound, there is movement, but just seems like the crank flexing. Definitely not rocking / loose /creaking when moving by hand.

skeem

bb may not be worn, could just need to be removed and reinstalled. remove the bb, clean the threads and the shell, grease the shell like crazy and reinstall the cups. I would almost guarantee this will work (works 99% of the time in my shop).

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Yeah, that is what I read. Need to be greased, or just tightened.

Grabbed the tools just now from the bike shop. So will be working on it tonight after work. Will report back how it all turns out.

Thanks again.

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That worked. Thanks. Happy and relieved now. For a minute I didn't think I was going to get the drive side bottom bracket loose. Have to rig something up for the future to keep that tool in place. Slipped twice, but appears that system is pretty hard to strip.

And total newbie mistake - I went to test ride and realized my crank arms weren't 180 degrees apart. Didn't even realize until I was on the bike and couldn't catch the pedal.

Just a quick question....

This was the exact bottom bracket in the bike..

https://www.benscycle.net/index.php?m...ducts_id=10815

The left side unscrewed and it was like a thin threaded cylinder that came off, and after the right side came loose, I was able pull the thing out. Following the park tools directions, I did NOT torque the drive side. Just went by hand until it bottomed, and then snugged it a tad. And torqued the opposite side to 360 inch pounds per park tools directions. Sound about right?

Thanks again.