Shimano M520 bearing play
 

I've taken this pedal to 2 different LBS's, and both have told me that this pedal is not serviceable. One even suggested that it would be dangerous to use this pedal at all anymore, and directed me to their pedal case to buy the M540s at double the price.

But I *know* I've seen a PDF file on the Internet for servicing these pedals.

The problem I'm having is that the axle has a lot of play (about 1mm) on one of the pedals. Enough play that I feel it creaking when pedaling hard, and can feel the axle clacking around when hitting cracks/potholes on the road.

Should I just buy the TL-PD40 tool and do it myself? Is it hard? How would one adjust these pedals for no more play?

Of course they are serviceable. Geesh. All SPD and SPD-SL types have pretty much the same axle to pedal design and it's just two sets of balls, cups, and cones in each pedal. There was even an article by Park Tool, published on CyclingNews.com about servicing them. Obviously, I cannot say for sure that your specific pedal is not past the point where servicing will solve your problem. At any rate, here is the link to the Park article and my own proceedure which is, in my opinion, more complete than the Park proceedure. I advise getting the TL-PD40 tool.

Exploded view of your pedal:
http://www.shimano.com.au/publish/co...-M540-2234.pdf

Park article:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech/fix/?id=shimano_pedals

My comments and proceedure:
SPD and SPD-SL types are pretty much the same as each other as far as
the axle and bearing mechanism. The Park article shows you how to
disassemble them and just add new grease. Personally, I take them
apart completely and clean everything completely. This takes a lot
of patience as there are 24 3/32" loose balls in each pedal (two sets
of 12). It takes me about 45 minutes to completely disassemble,
clean, grease, and re-assemble one pedal. It's a good winter or
rainy day project. I do mine about once a year. The one
special tool you need is the Shimano TL-40. There are a couple of
other flat open end wrenches you need and you can use a small socket
for the lock nut on the end. You service these just like any other
loose ball bearing set. I also find that an axle vise makes life
much easier to hold the whole thing. Set up over a big rag or in
some kind of a box, as you are guaranteed to drop at least a couple of
those tiny little balls. The last thing you do is to make sure
the tiny rubber seal (it's not an o-ring, but similar) is seated down
in the plastic housing as far as you can get it.
This is what keeps the dirt out of the bearings and it tends to float
away from the plastic housing. Hold the pedal in your hand and
rotate it around the axle, and, at the same time, push that little seal
down into the plastic housing with a fingernail. Once I figured
out what this did and started keeping it pushed in, my bearings stay a
lot cleaner. As with all bearings, if you submerge them in water,
they are going to need a more aggressive maintenance schedule.

I know this sounds like a lot of work, but for most of us DuraAce
pedals are pretty expensive and once you learn how to do this job it's
pretty easy. It just takes time and a lot of patience. A
steady hand and a good pair of tweezers help, too.


I originally posted this elsewhere for a question about DuraAce pedals,
but they are internally the same. I have R600, M520, and M540
pedals myself and they are all pretty much the same on the inside of the
pedal. Good luck with your repair!

In some defense of your LBS's, it's pretty clear to me that servicing these
pedals is time consuming and would be a losing proposition for a shop.
But, that being said, they should have just told you that.

thanks cascade, for that very thorough info. Where do I need to make adjustments in order to get the bearing tight again? I would rather not do a complete overhaul this time, seeing as how much time I better invest. Usually when you say 45 minutes, if it's my first time, I probably should triple that to 2.5 hours.

Ok, assuming it's just an adjustment .....

You said you have 1mm of play, so I think we can assume all the balls are still in place. Remove the pedal from the crank. I looked again and you don't need the TL40 tool for the M540s. You do need it for alot of Shimano pedals (M520, R540, R600, and 6610 need it). In the service diagram you will see a thing called a "lock bolt". Using an open end wrench and holding the pedal body steady, unscrew this lock bolt (the pedal body should move off the axle as you unscrew the lock bolt). The pedal body should come off and reveal the innards of the axle assembly. At the end of the axle you will see two nuts. The one on the very end is the lock nut and the next one is actually a bearing cone. I'll bet your lock nut is loose. Ok, assuming the grease looks good, just do a normal loose ball bearing adjustment on the cone nut and then lock it in place with the lock nut. I usually put the pedal axle in an axle vise while I'm doing this so I can concentrate on the cone adjustment and lock nut. With M540's you can stick an allen wrench in the other end of the pedal axle and then just put the allen wrench in a vise. That will work ok. To do the adjustment of the cone and tighten the lock nut you need (if I recall the sizes correctly) a flat 8mm open end wrench (for the cone) and a 7mm wrench, or socket, for the lock nut. I use a little 7mm socket on a 1/4" ratchet for the lock nut myself. So, tighten the cone until the bearings are running properly and then lock it down with the lock nut. This may take a few tries as the adjustment changes when you tighten the lock nut. I know I never get it on the first shot. Take your time here and get the adjustment as good as you can. I'd say grease as they say in the Park article and then screw the pedal body back on.

Hopefully, that's it. If you are lucky, your lock nut just came loose. If that 1mm of play is due to wear, then you will have to deal with that as best you can. If you have problems, try to take some pictures and post them up. Good luck!

Whoops, I just re-read the title of the thread. You do have the M520 model. Ok, it's best to have the TL40 tool to grab the knurlings on the lock bolt. The lock bolt, BTW, is plastic and pretty soft. If I did not have the TL40 I think I'd just get a pair of common slip joint pliers and very carefully grip the lock bolt and loosen it that way. I'm just guessing that common pliers will work, so you will need to judge for yourself. Once the lock nut breaks loose from the pedal body it should turn pretty easily. None of mine have ever been deadly tight. If you do use pliers and it does not come loose right away I'd suggest you stop and acquire the correct tool. You can get it here:

http://www.biketoolsetc.com/index.cg..._id=SH-TL-PD40

It's too bad ..... Shimano used to include these with the pedal sets.

Don't forget to hold the pedal axle steady when you first try to turn the lock bolt.

I've serviced Shimano pedals (the older SPD-R models). Do not try to undo the plastic collar with anything except the TL-PD40 tool - it is very easy to damage the plastic. The tool makes the job easy. Note that the collar on the right side pedal is left hand threaded.

Once you're in, follow cascade 168's excellent directions. It would be worth having some fresh grease and spare bearing balls on hand, I believe the correct size is 3/32" - it was for mine. You might as well do a full service once you get them apart - they are worth it. My SPD-R pedals have given excellent service, in the last five years I overhauled them twice and they are still almost as smooth as new.

Good luck,

Ed

Yes, I can easily believe this. The tool has, embossed right on it, which way to turn it to "loose" "L" and "R". Good point. Doesn't is make you laugh that people say you can't service these pedals? I wonder who started that myth? People argue the merits of different types of pedals continually, but one thing I love about Shimano pedals is that you can break them down and service them.


Yes, they are 3/32". All of my pedals use two sets of 12 balls per pedal. So, you need 48 to service two pedals (and LOTS of patience to handle each one). I'll say again - this is a good project for a rainy day or mid-winter when there is too much snow on the ground to ride. Thanks for your kind comment, Ed.

^^^Yes, that's the kind of disgusting lie people hate bike shops for. The guy just wanted the OP to buy a new pedal on the spot because that's easy money for the shop with no real work. Ugh.

to be fair to the LBS if you are not a bike geek (I presume the OP ddn't introduce themselves as such) and rely on the LBS for the repair it probably becomes uneconomic and would be cheaper to buy new pedals

Also if the LBS advise you to do the servicing yourself and you screw it up and fall off then you might blame or even sue them.