spinnaker

I have had a clicking coming somewhere from my bike that has actually been occurring for a few years now so whatever it is seems to have created no real damage over the long term.

I have had trouble locating the source of the clicking, I have always thought that it was the drive train but never certain.

Tonight I went for a ride and I think I am convinced that it is the drive train.

My problem is that the sound only appears to occur when the drive train is under load (i.e. a steep climb).

First, any idea what would cause clicking in this situation?

Then I do I simulate steep climbing conditions putting the drive train under load while on the bike stand? If I can get my ear close to the clicking then maybe I can locate it but that is impossible while I am riding the bike.

jayp410

Not a mechanic but I just went through this and to summarize, there are several things that could cause this, including: BB not tight enough, no grease on BB, chain ring bolts not tight, pedal issues, cleat/shoe issues, crack in frame, rear wheel not clamped tightly enough, or skewer noise.

In my case I was almost certain that it was something with the BB, but the problem was actually that the rear axle was slipping slightly within the dropout because my axle didn't have a serrated surface on the non-drive side and the skewer wasn't strong enough to hold the smooth surface of the axle in place against the frame. This happened even though I had already clamped the skewer down as hard as I could. Once I switched to a stronger skewer and clamped down harder, the clicking went away.

hillsbreakme

I had the same problem with a cup and cone bottom bracket, once I tightened it up the clicking went away. Try to find out what type of bottom bracket you have.

achoo

If you're getting clicking under load, is it periodic with anything that's rotating? Like once per crankset revolution? Or once per rear wheel revolution? Does it always happen when a pedal is in the same place?

Don in Austin

Does it go away when you are out of the saddle? A seatpost can do this.

Don in Austin

badmother

Look at your rear dropout on the drive side. Is there a hairline crack in the dropout in front of the axel? I have a bike w a broken dropout and it "creaks" when the frame is put under tension from the peddaling. If so, this has been discussed in the forums earlyer. can be fixed but you need a professional.

spinnaker

Yes one click per revolution. It is a Cannodale Sport Road. I am not not a mechanic., just dabble. But I thing everything is sealed in my bottom bracket.

I took it to a friend once and he tried removing the bracket nut (or what ever it is called) but it would not budge. We did not try the wrench in the vise, spin the frame trick.

I would not mind taking it in to the shop if I was 100% certain of where the clicking was coming from. Any way to simulate the load?


Thanks to everyone for your contribution.

spinnaker

You know I am not 100% certain. It seems to go away but I at least think I am still hearing it out of the saddle. It is not a very loud click and my hearing is pretty poor so that is what makes be uncertain.

jayp410

It still could be just about anything mentioned above, including something in the crankset/BB or something in the rear wheel dropout. My problem with the rear wheel not being tight enough also produced a noise once per crank revolution (or sometimes more than one click/creak per revolution) when under load.

If I were you I'd just start trying some stuff.... Remove the bottom bracket and cranks and grease all threads and reinstall, make sure the chain ring bolts are tight, take the rear wheel out and see if you can see any axle rub marks on the dropouts, etc.. You should be able to loosen the BB with a proper wrench - just make sure you're going in the right direction. It seems to work for me to position the wrench so that I can grab both the frame and the wrench at the same time, and I squeeze them towards each other with one or two hands. Or maybe hitting the wrench with a rubber mallet would help.

DTSCDS

I have a creaking/clicking noise that shows up periodically on my Trek hybrid. At first I tried to ignore it hoping it would go away. Then, one day on my commute to work, the NDS crank arm started to come loose. Good thing I use SPD pedals so I could ride in the rest of the way using one leg. If I hear the noise come back I know it's time to tighten the bolt that holds on the crank arm. I hear it LONG before it begins to feel loose in any way.
Moral: If you haven't yet done it, put a wrench to anything that moves and see if it can be tightened up a bit.

jezmellors

A friend of mine had the same symptoms, he was convinced the clicking was from the BB but after exhaustive investigation it turned out to be his seatpost as previously mentioned. He cleaned it and tightened the clamp slightly and it went away. It's an easy thing to check. I think rhythmic clicking is always assumed to come from the drivetrain when sometimes it's not.

tanguy frame

another possibility is a worn power link in a newish chain.

TurbineBlade

Any, and I mean ANY noise I first go after the seat post.

After that, based on your cues, I'd check pedals.

seedsbelize 

I often find it coming from the stem, if not the seat post In fact, I often check that first, as I'm riding.

buffalangelo

I just found out the clicking noise on my bike was a loose cotter pin. Thought it was a bent chainring or something related ie. crankarm. Make sure your crank bolts are tight and you chainrings are straight. Just a thought.

Bachman

When I purchased my first bike and was new to cycling I heard a clicking noise every now and then, once per revolution. It drove me nuts for a while, but I did a facepalm when I figured it out. The cable for the front derailleur was clipped a little too long, so that when I was shifted in the small chainring it would barely scrape the right crank arm as I pedaled. Sometimes the problem can be simpler than you expect...

spinnaker

I have an update in the "click". It appears to be on the down stroke on the right hand side. And it is just not one click but two quick ones (click - click).

I do have the FD version of the dork disk but I do not think that is it. But it looks a bit out of alignment and I am going to try and straighten it anyway.

marley mission

handlebars not tight enough can do this during climbs

catmandew52

Sounds like the same noise I had on my Fuji. Drove me crazy for 3 days. Off the bike, everyting tight and smooth and free spinning, but on a long gradual uphill on the nearby bike path-CLICK----CLICK----CLICK. I finally pulled the pedals apart and found the right pedal was dry as a bone.

cbrown9064

Spinnaker...did you ever resolve this? I am having the same issue.

Steve530

Start with the easy stuff. Tighten the seatpost bolts, the chainring nuts, and the stem.

spinnaker

Yeah I think I did. Believe it or not, it seemed to be the headset bearings. Can't figure out why it did not always click in any condition instead of only when the frame was stressed.

cbrown9064

I think mine was my seat post. Short, hard, test ride tonight seemed OK. Will test later this week. Just tightened the two bolts (fore and aft) on the seat about 1/8 turn. Will advise.

Daves_Not_Here

I had the same exact sound -- one double-click per pedal revolution, always right as I was pushing down on the right pedal.

The quick-release on my back axle was not tight enough and it was slipping imperceptibly with every stroke. For 500 miles. Duh.

RickLafayette

If you have Easton wheels it's the "ratchet" in the R wheel for the casette. You have to take the casette off, remove the right bearing cover to expose the spring loaded dogs and regrease them. Excuse my nomenclature. My memory is aging.