Exasperated !! , what else can be causing this noise ?

Serious Cat

The noise in question has only very recently been happening and its like a dry creaking that occurs when pedalling seated and gets more noticeable when load is increased or bike is ridden out of saddle. Here is what ive looked at so far.

front and rear skewers both greased.
front and rear wheels both sprayed with wd40 at spoke nipples.
front and rear wheels spoke crossover points lightly oiled.
front and rear hubs both sprayed with wd40 both sides where the spokes enter.
front and rear dropouts regreased.
fitted spare front wheel and creaking persists
headset screw greased and reset
stem faceplate bolts regreased.
inside of faceplate regreased
stembolts regreased.
bottle cage bolts regreased.
bottom bracket cleaned and regreased.
chainbolts checked for tightness
spd pedals removed, cleaned and regreased.
spd contact points oiled.
screws on spds checked for tightness.
seatpost cleaned and regreased
seatpost bolts for clamping saddle rails regreased.
seatpost clamp bolt regreased.
chaincatcher mounting bolt checked for tightness
rear deraillure mounting bolt checked for tightness
the crankset, headset and pedals have no play in them


I am not joking when I say I have carried out all the tasks shown above and that dry creaking still persists and it is driving me nuts ! Is there anything else that you think I should try , the bike concerned is a 2013 Cannondale caad 8 type which does not have BB30 bottom bracket.

BillyMansell

Have you tried the top cap rubbing against the top of the stem? Like you I tried most of the practical metal-on-metal friction points only to discover on my bike it was something as innocuous as the top cap.

KINGGARY

Pedal spindles, remove pedals grease threads
Headset lower bearing, remove forks and pack with grease
Try riding it with different shoes, could be the cleat/shoe interface

spankwilder

Pull all the cables out of the frame mounts and clean any grit etc that has accumulated in the mounts - particularly all at the front end of the bike. might as well pull the ends off the cable outers and drop some lube in there at the same time. replace the cables, at least if it doesn't work your brake/gear cables will appreciate the attention

jermas

On the saddle itself, where the rails join the saddle front and back- this area can creak. A quick spray of silicone or lube might be worth a try. Make sure all ancillaries are tight ( bottle cages, pump mounting, saddle bag etc).

manglier

Lube the chain?
Release the stem clamping bolts and increase the pre-load on the top cap before re-torque loading the stem.
Water ingress into pedal spindles?

dee4life2005

any side-to-side play in the front hub? My Aksiums have started to have a little lateral play and do rattle a bit, and get the odd creak when climbing out the saddle from the same area.

spankwilder

It could be your hips, have you tried a different bike?

mattv

Remove and refit the headset and bb, remove and regrease pedal axles, just because there is no play doesn't mean there isno mechanical movement in a headset or bb. Also, put some grease on the axle on the crank if it's a 2 piece arrangement like a hollowtech 2 or sram gxp. These are often dry from the factory. Also check the chainrings are tight onto the cranks.

Serious Cat

I am taking the bike to a tech I know on sunday to have the headset stripped and regreased. Its a real minefield on a road bike as to the origin of a particular noise that drives you mad as the origin can often be in the last place you look before giving up all hope.

davoj

Funny enough ( not really fun though) but I had the same problem and did all the above and still had this creaking under any bit of pressure so eventually found it came from the saddle rail as the paint had come off where it was clamped and even with it been greased it continued to creak. Changed saddle torqued and greased and the creak is gone.

It may not be the above but it's worth a check just in case.

metronome

Cleats?

Serious Cat

metronome wrote:

Cleats?

Can spd cleats produce dry creaking sounds as Ive not heard of this before ?

crankycrank

Serious Cat wrote:

metronome wrote:

Cleats?

Can spd cleats produce dry creaking sounds as Ive not heard of this before ?

Usually not but it's possible. Check for tightness on the cleat screws and notice if any unusual grooves are being worn around the cleat area of your shoes as well.

littledove44

I had a similar noise and it turned out to be the strap on my shoes.

Assuming you have tried that as well, I would try to find a way of someone listening more carefully to identify more closely the area the sound is coming from.

With all that work you might as well just strip and rebuild the bike. Oh sorry, it seems you have already done that almost!

jgsi

My road shoe on one side began to creak making me think that the carbon sole had split ... time and weather takes it toll... but putting a bit of copper slip on the cleat threads in the sole of the shoe cured it.
Probably put up with it for months because I only really noticed on the turbo as they are old shoes anyway.

trailflow

i had a similar noise. It was the headset bearings shell and its centre spacer (both bone dry) rubbing against the steerer. Smeared all surfaces with grease and the noise went away.