unbelievably stuck pedal

daffyavfc

Hi

Servicing a marine muirwoods hybrid I bought 2nd hand last week. Everything done apart from removal of pedal from left Truvativ crank arm. Not movable whilst on bike so removed crank and have tried every way possible that has proved to be impossible! Have soaked it in wd40, used an allen key on the reverse side, left it standing in boiling water etc... it will not budge. Am lookin at getting a cheap crank arm off the net but disappointed I've not been able to remove it. Always managed to get them off in the past.
Any thoughts?

Daffyavfc

arlowood

You seem to be down to the drastic measures stage so what about a bit of more aggressive heat treatment.

I was thinking of playing the flame of a blowlamp or similar onto the crank for 10secs or so then try the allen key with a bit of piping attached for extra leverage

I reckon the differential expansion properties of the crank arm and the pedal spindle might do the trick.

It's worth a try if all else has failed.

daffyavfc

Not got or know anyone with a blow torch, could buy a cheap crank arm for cost of them in halfords today. Would a large candle heat it enough and which part am I aiming at, front or rear part of pedal on crank arm

elcani

Have to ask... you know it has a reverse thread?

Do you have (or have access to) a vice? Clamp crank arm, then add something to the end of spanner/allen key for extra leverage. Whack with a hammer!

Good luck :-)

wishitwasallflat

Try sticking it in the freezer overnight maybe - temperetature change would surely only help if contraction/expansion rates differed between pedal axle and crank metals so if heat hasn't worked maybe cooling?

ilm_zero7

soak overnight in penetrating oil

and get a longer lever arm - less aggression and more lever length will be easier on the componentry

also check this website
http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-hel ... w-5-hcw-16
and as the last posting suggested - direction!

daffyavfc

yes, I'm turning the pedal the correct direction .
I have a vice but not anything to add to it to increase lever length.
Will have another go tomorrow after leaving in freezer O/N, will then try soaking in penetrating oi if no joyl.
Want to use this if possible, would be a pain to buy another.

thanks

wishitwasallflat

What metal are the two parts made of - do you know? Alloy crank and steel pedal axle ?

wishitwasallflat

Also I had a broekn metal lawn mower handle stuck in the metal mount of the lawnmower that I needed to get out to replace. I just kept spraying WDF40 down into the gap (no visilbe gap but the interface) as often as I could each day for about a week. Evnetually I got it out and you could see where the WD40 had penetrated down and dissolved rust - if you have the time might work?

turkeytickler

You may not want to hear this because when this happened to me, the only option I had left - after my father, a lifelong engineer with more tools than a branch of screwfix failed to shift a stuck pedal - was to drill the pedal out, obviously totalling the pedal in the process.

If you don't want to keep the pedal, or are prepared to sacrifice it for the crank arm, drill through the pedal from the inside (i.e. where the allen key goes in), starting with a narrow bit, then gradually going wider, until all that remains of the pedal thread is a thin, flexible cylinder - this'll shift in no time

Twostage

Apparently a 50:50 mix of acetone and automatic transmission fluid is the best penetrating fluid. Acetone is nail varnish remover. Might be worth a try.

wishitwasallflat

C'mon then daffy give us an update did it work?

Bluestoesonnose

I've used this method to get bearings / stuck bolts out of motorcycle engine cases, as well as other stuck items in alloy

So if you strip the crank off the frame you can pu it in the oven, if you heat it for an hour or so at 60 to 80 degrees the alloy will expand more than the steel as it has a higher thermal expansion rate

Be ready with some oven gloves and a pedal spanner or allen key held firmly in a vice and undo the pedal (check direction)

If you can't do this then I've also had good results with a paint stripping hot air guns applying local heat to the area.

on-yer-bike

Coca Cola instead of wd 40. Its used for stuck seat posts

wishitwasallflat

I've heard Coco Cola dissolves pretty much anything - it's especially good on teeth I understand!

daffyavfc

Hi guys, in freezer O/N and the bugger still wont budge, have knackered my pedal spanner I'm trying that hard. I dont need the pedal but struggling to make any headway with metal drill bit. I've taken the crank arm off my other bike in the interim. Not impressed. I can buy a cheap lightish crank from halfords for £10 but that's not the point.

wishitwasallflat

Bugger - thanks for letting us know. Maybe try the oven suggestion?

daffyavfc

not really that hungry TBH

e999sam

I recently got one of these http://www.parktool.com/product/pedal-wrench-pw-3 after suffering the same problem. I managed to snap an allen key trying to remove it but it came of easily with this tool. I have always found the best way to remove a pedal is to leave the crank on the axle.

Lucky Douglas

Maybe try putting something on the end of the spanner to give you a really long lever. I cut the end off a golf club and that worked for me.

Nelson Longflap

Soak/apply PlusGas for a few days. It's available from car mechanics' supply shops (not yer average Halfords - although they do their own version) It's a dismantling lubricant meaning it's indicated for problems like this and specially developed for freeing up stuck engine components, rusted bolts etc etc. Have recently loosened a pedal which hadn't been removed for thirty years after trying everything else (save the oven/blowtorch methods), and previously to remove a well rusted in stem from another old steel bike, after everything else had failed. The coke thing is pretty much a myth I'm afraid (according to my local bike fettlers and my attempts with it). Always handy to have some PlusGas around. Costs about £4.50.

ilm_zero7

Lucky Douglas wrote:

Maybe try putting something on the end of the spanner to give you a really long lever. I cut the end off a golf club and that worked for me.

did it improve your golf?

Simmo72

Leverage was the only thing that helped me. In the end I got a 4ft steel rod and hooped it through the spanner handle, clamped the crank and it moved so easily. Leverage, its about the only useful thing I remember from gcse physics.

RDW

Did anything work? If not, and you haven't chucked it out yet, 'PlusGas' is well worth trying, together with a really big pedal wrench (the Park PW-4 is a few inches longer than the PW-3). This combination worked well for me with a pedal that nothing else I tried could shift. I used the PlusGas aerosol, but would probably go for the tin next time (easier to control). WD-40 isn't really formulated as a 'dismantling lubricant'.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/English-Abrasiv ... 0001P02RA/
http://www.amazon.co.uk/English-Abrasiv ... 0001P02S4/
http://www.parktool.com/product/profess ... rench-pw-4

Edit: Didn't notice Nelson's post. So that's another vote for PlusGas.

spasypaddy

no blow torch? Use a gas stove...

porlyworly

Bumping old thread but have the same, incredibly frustrating problem! New bike turned up today and can only get one pedal off my old bike grr, tried a pan of boiling water which got the first one off but the second is stuck fast and I've wrecked two of those cheapo multi tool spanner things you get free with bikes. Mates a plumber so have sent him a text asking if he has a blow torch and decent spanner and have ordered a proper pedal wrench!

pdw

I've got a set of hex bits with a 3/8" square drive adapter, and I've had some success shifting pedals with those and a 2' breaker bar.

daffyavfc

hi to all those who have helped with comments but after leaving the pedal for a month (using a separate crank arm in the meantime) my brute force and ignorance prevailed over the glued on pedal.
still not 100% sure why it was stuck, not cross threaded and the new pedal with mountains of grease went on fairly easily.

used an old adjustable spanner after soaking the pedal thread in 3 in 1 oil for an hour then whacked the spanner to death on the floor moving the pedal very slowly but surely. after removing most of the garage floor I was able to use my sheer strength to complete the final few rotations and have put the offending pedal well and truly in the bin.

all done, new pedal on, jobs a gooden.

regards

JustinLeeAtkinson

I suceeded in getting a pedal off that even my DIY/All round maintenance genius of a father couldn't get off.

With the cranks still connected I put the pedal wrench into position, held the bike and stamped on the edge on the wrench handle. Hey presto.

I still got the old man to saw the steerer tube on my self build however.

graeme_s-2

JustinLeeAtkinson wrote:

I suceeded in getting a pedal off that even my DIY/All round maintenance genius of a father couldn't get off.

With the cranks still connected I put the pedal wrench into position, held the bike and stamped on the edge on the wrench handle. Hey presto.

This is my preferred method. Usually just standing on it is enough to get it moving, but I'm sure a good stamping would do the job in many cases when a pedal is stuck fast in the crank.