I know, new ones are pretty cheap but I give a dozen or more bikes to neighbor kids every year and they leave them stashed all over the yard. And new pedals rarely look good on a lot of the older bikes that I rebuild.
These new plastic pedals are tough to open up and grease properly and the old ones on the 70s Raleighs and Schwinns aren't any better. I've taken to standing them on end and putting a bunch of chain lube in the slot between the spindle and the body and repeating till I get the feeling that some of it has dripped down into the outer bearing. It's slow and I know a lighter oil would be faster but I want something that will last at least a summer.
I'm thinking I could mix a little bit of some kind of solvent that would let it flow down in there better and then evaporate and leave the nice thick oil. I wonder what kind of solvent would be best.
Any thoughts? Any better techniques?