Originally Posted by
IanHelgesen
Try wiggling the cranks. You should be able to tell if the spindle is loose in the bottom bracket, or if the crankarm is loose on the spindle. If it's the first, you'll have to remove the non-drive crank and tighten the adjustable cup. If it's the second, give the cotter on the loose crank a few taps with a hammer (while supporting the crank with something underneath), and then snug down the nut (these strip easily, so don't go too hard on it). If nothing is loose, that suggests something is probably bent.
this
pics did help - i have a cottered bike and i picked the bikesmith cotter press and also some cotters from the same source
the tool and the cotters work great and i no longer fear the cottered bike
anyway - it may be that the spindle is loose in the BB - which means you might want to just get those cranks off and overhaul the BB anyhow
i also wonder if the fixed cup is properly tightened - could be a culprit too assuming all other factors checked out ok
edit:btw - this is def a good thread for CV - where i usually hang - i sometimes wander in here though and this thread caught my eye
oh - nice bike btw