RubeRad

While on a 60+ mile day of riding Saturday, I developed a click. It's usually at the bottom of my right pedal stroke, and as long as I am JRA casually (cruising about 10mph on the flats), it is every pedal stroke. If I coast or even pedal lighter, it goes away. If I mash it, it goes away, and then comes back after a few light revs, can come back to a different part of the pedal stroke, but eventually migrates back to bottom/right.

It has advanced to sometimes be a double-click. Usually my solution to a new noise is to put my earbuds in, but this is loud enough I still hear it over my podcasts.

I captured it on a video during my commute this morning. The part where it goes away is because I PUT THE HAMMER DOWN (I think I may have reached 15mph)

Do I just need a new bottom bracket? Current is a UN-whatever square taper.

making

I just got back from a ride that I noticed a click on every pedal stroke. Sounded a lot like that click a brooks saddle makes and took me forever to figure out. Anyway, I got home, started cleaning up my chain and actually got those tools out that fit down in the sprockets etc and really started cleaning. I must have neglected to do this for quite a while because it looked like very black mud in my derailleur, got the drive train all cleaned up actually shiny. As I was cleaning my pedals, I noticed my air pump handle had come loose and had extended into the bottom part of my pedal. Yep, that was the click, my air pump.

Rolla

I try to rule everything else out before pulling the BB. Noises travel in weird ways.

Check/lube/tighten pedal threads, chainring bolts, crankarm bolts, NDS BB cup, seatpost binder and cradle bolts, stem and handlebar bolts. Check for front derailleur cable end or shoelaces hitting the crank arm.

If none of these are the culprit, pull the BB, clean and lube the threads and re-install. If it persists, replace it.

RubeRad

Tell me more about that -- I do have a Brooks.

RubeRad

Trying to 'feel' where the click is coming from in my feet, I get the impression it is the BB/chainring area. If it were the pedals it seems like I'd feel it stronger in my feet, if it was the saddle, it seems like I'd feel it in my butt. But you are definitely right, noises travel in weird ways!!

A few weeks back I was able to diagnose a pedal-synced noise on my MTB turned out to be a granola bar wrapper crinkling in my pocket. Another sound I keep having to re-figure out is ice rattling in my water bottle.

I did make sure a few weeks ago the chainring bolts were tight, I can check them again.

I should check stem and handlebar though. On that ride, after we broke for lunch I got on the bike and my drop bars pitched down! No problems on the 30mi before lunch, but suddenly my stem bolts were super loose! It was so suddenly bizarre I think it's most likely somebody pranked me

making

When you have not put that brooks dressing on the leather after a while it starts to click. I at first thought it was the BB, then the pedals or even my shoes, ever revolution on my right side. Some one on this forum told me to put that dressing on my seat and make sure I did the bottom of seat and some type of lube on the metal parts. I did and the click was gone forever. Drove me nuts. Still am.

RubeRad

wow I will look into that. I got the brooks used, on a bike I bought, I've never done anything with it. I have a jar of sno-seal I could apply, and I can try to figure out if there are metal parts clicking

making

They call is Proofide and it is silly expensive. But a little can lasts a long time.

Iride01 

BB is the first place everyone suspects for noises. Very likely few BB's were the actual issue for any.

Do you feel the noise as well as hear it? If so, then I'd suspect the pedal. But usually that's just before the bottom of the stroke and not at the bottom of the stroke. Change pedals and you can quickly find out yay or nay. Cleaning, re-lubing and adjusting the pedal spindle bearings fixes it if you have pedals that can be re-built.

I'd check all your chain ring bolts. That made a funny somewhat clicking noise for me once.

Might just be the normal out of true chain rings sometimes get and your chain is bumping the side of the front DR cage. Do you have trim on your shifters and do you know how to use it?

Saddles as mentioned are a good thing to check. Seat post might rock in the seat tube too if extended too high. That's usually a squeak though.

And once, after about three months of casually looking for a click that sounded like it was in the BB, I found it to be the metal zipper tag from a bag under my saddle banging on the brake caliper when I started putting power into the pedals.

I wouldn't be in a hurry to fix things until the noise has shown you exactly what it is from. You can spend a lot of money chasing noise. It is unlikely to cost you any more to fix the problem once it actually is a problem.

Rolla

I don't think this is the source of your noise, but I always drip a little lubricant or melted Proofide wherever the rivets connect the saddle to the frame.

RubeRad

I can feel it, but not strong enough for me to get the impression that it's the pedal. But I can def test a pedal swap, see if it goes away.

Good thought, I do have a rather wonky little ring, and there was a time early in my BF history that I had trim and didn't know how to use it. But my current situation is my FD got mangled so I threw it away. I have a friction FD shifter up on my brake (Retroshift/Gevenalle) that is connected to nothing. I only ever use the 34T ring anyways, so I'm fine leaving the 50T there just as a bashguard.

lol it's so often something dumb like that! I'll check, but I don't think so. Right now my seat bag is vinyl-strapped to my seat rails, and since the velcro strap around the seat post broke, I'm using an old shoelace to keep it from swinging. The loose dangly aglets are way in the back, in open air, and I'm sure could never click that loud anyways. I can double-check though.

Oh I'm really good at not spending money, and not being in a hurry. (See FD, above)

RubeRad

Yup, that's why I bought sno-seal instead

RubeRad

last night I had time to flip the bike and drip some chain lube around Brooks frame metal contact areas, and double-check chainring bolts were tight (they were). No change to the Click.

Not riding tomorrow, but might be able to rustle up some other pedals for a test swap on Thu.

MidTNBrad

Make sure your cassette lockring is torqued down to spec.

RubeRad

It could well be loose, but wouldn't that make a noise that is dependent on what cog I'm on, not always synced to pedal stroke?

MidTNBrad

Yeah, just trying to suggest the easy things first.

Iride01 

No, if the cassette is loose, then any movement resulting from it being loose will likely be synced to your pedal stroke.

timdow

I changed out a BB a while back only to find it was a pedal. A bit difficult because you don't have a spare set, but if I were a gamblin' man........

RubeRad

I do, I just have to take them off another bike. Just adds another couple minutes to the swap. Plan to do that today actually

RubeRad

It was the pedal(s). Took me about a month to get around to testing a swap, but I noticed right away the swapped-in pedals feel smoother, and no noise.

Rotating the spindle of the noisy pedal by hand, I can't feel any clicking or crunching, just smooth (but greasy/thick) friction. I guess it has to be under the right load or something.