Strange noise coming from Crank area when under load
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Strange noise coming from Crank area when under load
Good day guys,
Recently a friend of mine decided to buy my felt z85 from me since I no longer use it and he wants to start riding. We went for a test ride and we noticed something new. Under loads of power when going uphill it does a loud "click" sound on the crank, maybe bottom bracket, area per each revolution. it sounds like bending mettal somewhat but very quick. Sorry for the vague description but that is the closest I can describe it.
Any Ideas?? I dont want to sell my friend a crappy bike and I feel I am giving him a good price for it. The bike has been droped 4 times. 3 Times by my fiancee learning how to use the cleats and 1 time by him yesterday on the test ride due to the same reason, so you know it hasnt been hard.
Thanks in advance.
Recently a friend of mine decided to buy my felt z85 from me since I no longer use it and he wants to start riding. We went for a test ride and we noticed something new. Under loads of power when going uphill it does a loud "click" sound on the crank, maybe bottom bracket, area per each revolution. it sounds like bending mettal somewhat but very quick. Sorry for the vague description but that is the closest I can describe it.
Any Ideas?? I dont want to sell my friend a crappy bike and I feel I am giving him a good price for it. The bike has been droped 4 times. 3 Times by my fiancee learning how to use the cleats and 1 time by him yesterday on the test ride due to the same reason, so you know it hasnt been hard.
Thanks in advance.
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Doesnt seem to be. It rides fairly well and shifts pretty crisp. I do see the crank moving though (hope its not my imagination)
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^ you mean you see the crank moving laterally, like in and out of the bottom bracket?
BTW, what kind of BB and crankset you have?
BTW, what kind of BB and crankset you have?
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I dont like it.... It is exactly a creak!
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change out the BB and see if it goes away
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#9
creaks can be very deceiving. I would take apart the head set and re-grease the upper and lower bearings. Especially where they contact the steer tube. I had the exact same problem and i thought it was coming from the bottom bracket or rear wheel. Turned out to be the headset.
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I've had a few riders with me that have had various creaks and ticks. Something like 2 out 3 turned out to be loose (or not tight enough) skewers.
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creaks can be very deceiving. I would take apart the head set and re-grease the upper and lower bearings. Especially where they contact the steer tube. I had the exact same problem and i thought it was coming from the bottom bracket or rear wheel. Turned out to be the headset.
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for me the BB is a bike tech thing. it never hurts to have a good tech check your BB - it gets a lots stress and all my creaks were the BBs. I've had 3 changed over the years and always glad about it. I had one guy though "tighten" one up but that was a mistake cuz it was trash and it only got more trashed. went to another tech and he just swapped it out quick as can be! :-)
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Before you embark on the BB overhaul or replacement, I would definitely trying to grease/tighten other things. Bike noise is very ellusive; seldom the noise cames from the actual problem area. Something about the bike tube transmitting the noise and our ability to pinpoint sound source conspire to make us chase down a wrong rat hole a lot of times. The areas I would look re-grease and tighten to the right torque would include saddle/seat clamp, seat post clamp, headset, stem, and skewers.
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Before you embark on the BB overhaul or replacement, I would definitely trying to grease/tighten other things. Bike noise is very ellusive; seldom the noise cames from the actual problem area. Something about the bike tube transmitting the noise and our ability to pinpoint sound source conspire to make us chase down a wrong rat hole a lot of times. The areas I would look re-grease and tighten to the right torque would include saddle/seat clamp, seat post clamp, headset, stem, and skewers.
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Try putting a little grease on the rear skewer first. Before going the BB route, you can also check the seat and seatpost maybe even water bottle cages. Can be the headset like others have mentioned as well. If you don't have a lot of miles on the BB might want to try and use loctite on it before replacing. There are a lot of useful posts here if you do a search on bottom bracket creak/sound etc.
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I had the same issue with my Felt F5. Pulled apart the bottom bracket and re-greased. problem solved.
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If you have an extra set of pedals, swap them out and see if it changes. Also, check around your seat. Seats can make noise themselves, plus if you have a saddle bag, contents can rock back and forth while pedaling, or zipper tabs can hit the seat post, or any of a number of other things to make noise. It ends up being a process of elimination.
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If its making a creaking noise with each pedal revolution, very good chance it's the crank, bb, or pedals.
And if you think you see the crank moving laterally, then it's likely the crank or the bb needs tightened.
Crank arms get loose on squared tapered bbs, and if you don't tighten them, you can eventually f up the cranks as they warble out.
So, pull the crank arms. Then see if the spindle is turning smoothly, and not loose side to side. Assuming that's ok, grease the ends of the spindle and reinstall the crank arms tightening them down snuggly.
And if you think you see the crank moving laterally, then it's likely the crank or the bb needs tightened.
Crank arms get loose on squared tapered bbs, and if you don't tighten them, you can eventually f up the cranks as they warble out.
So, pull the crank arms. Then see if the spindle is turning smoothly, and not loose side to side. Assuming that's ok, grease the ends of the spindle and reinstall the crank arms tightening them down snuggly.
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creaks can be very deceiving. I would take apart the head set and re-grease the upper and lower bearings. Especially where they contact the steer tube. I had the exact same problem and i thought it was coming from the bottom bracket or rear wheel. Turned out to be the headset.
If pedaling standing exacerbates it, and no handed eliminates it, something in the front end ( headset, or front wheel skewer) is a likely culprit.
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If you have an extra set of pedals, swap them out and see if it changes. Also, check around your seat. Seats can make noise themselves, plus if you have a saddle bag, contents can rock back and forth while pedaling, or zipper tabs can hit the seat post, or any of a number of other things to make noise. It ends up being a process of elimination.
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You could hit a tree and die.
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Those FSA BBs are junk and wear out quickly. That's most likely your problem. Swap it out for a Token 103 spindle unit. And regrease all the metal-on-metal contact areas. Also, check that all your chainring bolts are tight.