alohaboy

I was going to get new pedals tomorrow, but just thought of something. Can the pedals on any bike be changed? I have a Trek 7200 that I bought last year, and I'm planning on getting a road bike late next year. I don't want to have to buy all new pedals and shoes next year, on top of a new bike.
So, can I change out my current pedals, and then transfer them to my next bike? Thanks for any info.

Velo Dog

Agree--you just unscrew 'em and screw in the new ones. But as the other post said, remember that the left one unscrews "backward." You turn it clockwise to get it off.

Mr. Beanz

Hmm, new pedas and new shoes? Why not just buy a set of pedals that are the same as the present bike. No need for more shoes. I can use the same shoes on all 8 of our bikes. All have the same model of pedals.

alohaboy

My bike just has regular bike pedals, no toe clips or cleats. I've been using my North Face trail running shoes. Not real stiff, but they have so many little grip spots on the bottom that they rarely slid off the pedals. But I'm going to start riding seriously so this'll be my first real pair of cycling shoes and pedals. I've already prepared myself for the first "fall over at 0mph".
Thanks for all of the info.

alohaboy

Well, I bought LOOK Keo Classics, and a pair of Specialized Sport Road Shoe, which seem to fit better than the Shimano R075 and Peal Izumi Vagabond R4. Here's hoping everything goes well.

DieselDan

There are typically only two different pedals, and the difference is in the size of the spindles. (The part that threads into the crank arm) On one piece cranks, usually cheap big box store bikes and old USA made bikes, use a 1/2" spindle. All cotterless cranks (the ones with removable crank arms and absent a cotter pin) use a 9/16" spindle. That includes your bike alohaboy and whatever new bike you buy later.

wahoonc

Another thing related to pedal swapping is to make sure and check your seat height...after the pedal swap. I had a problem with that after a pedal swap, I was getting leg pain and it was because the seat was a tad high.

Aaron

alohaboy

Well, I got the pedals on after about a hour and a half. A couple of questions popped up though.
First, it was a *$%&# trying to get the spindle into the crankarm hole. Surprisingly, it was more difficult than getting the old ones off. Is this normal?
Second, should the flat part on the pedal, behind the threads be flush against the arm? Mine isn't, and there is a slight gap between the two, but that was as tight as I could possibly get it.
And lastly, i could not get clipped in. Now, I tend to think I'm fairly intelligent, so is there some sort of trick, or do I need to adjust the spring?
I've contacted my LBS to see if I can bring in my bike and shoes and if they'll help me out. I probably should have asked when I bought them for a demonstration.
Any info you guys can give me in regards to my questions would be great. Thanks again.

Jeff

jl0703

No....that's not normal. Pedals should go on relatively easy. Are you SURE you installed the pedals on the corrects sides ?? Left Pedal on left crank arm, right pedal on right crank arm?. If you installed them incorrectly, you may have toasted your pedals and crank arms.

DieselDan

I doubt he hosed the pedal threads, but the crankarms are not exactly toast either. He can have a Helicoil tapped into each arm.

The "r" and "l" stamping meant right and left. Rarely, because I've dealt with thousands of bikes, you get "d" and "g" for driote and gauche.

Nermal

There's only two threads being used. BMX, kids bikes, and all the rest. Don't buy at a kid's store and they'll be okay

alohaboy

So yeah, I put them on backwards. There was no R or L, but at least I know what the g and d stand for that I saw. I don't know why, but for some reason I thought the large part went in the front.
I went out at 9:30 last night, after looking at this thread, took them off and put them back in on about 10 minutes. Muuuuuuuuuch easier. I was worried that I had ground down the inside of the crank arm, but there was still enough thread for the spindle to grab. Thank god.
This could be a sign that I'm not supposed to do my own mechanical stuff.
Thanks for all of the help.

jl0703

Hey..I glad no major harm wasa done to your bike. For reference to and repairs you wish to venture into, Park Tools has a great area on bicycle repair and maintenance. Very detailed instructions to follow. Check out their site and you will see that most maintenance jobs are relatively easy.

https://www.parktool.com/

Cheers

wahoonc

Nah...it is called learning curve I have made my fair share of strange mistakes over the years...and if it makes you feel any better I would have been scratching my head too trying to figure out "d" and "g" and I have been wrenching for over 30 years

Aaron