Removing pedals

[Prince Albert Cycles]

I have been battling to remove a set of Eggbeater pedals from Shimano cranks. The bike has been standing unused for years. Eggbeaters do not have a 15 mm space outside of the crank to fit a crank spanner but only have the allen key inside  of the crank . Will heat/cold treatment work without weakening the cranks?

[Vetseun]

A good soaking with spook piss..Should do the trick

[Prince Albert Cycles]

Have tried spookpis

[MudLark]

Spanjaard sell a special penetrating oil, which will often get in and release seized interfaces when nothing else works. But the bottle isn't cheap… :-(

 

I would not apply heat to cranks, especially not if you're talking about using something like a Benzomatic. The cranks are normally made of aluminium and aluminium has a pretty low melting point.

[SwissVan]

Shimano again!! Do any of their products work? Sorry I can't be of more help than that.

Sorry, you shouldn’t blame shimano for bad maintenance practices of the last person who installed them

[Swany05]

Yeah dont use heat man, 

 

Personally id remove the crank arm and shove it in a vice. try and extend the allen key using the spanner trick. That should work 

[Jewbacca]

Yeah dont use heat man, 

 

Personally id remove the crank arm and shove it in a vice. try and extend the allen key using the spanner trick. That should work 

This, but I would put the allen key in the vice and a tube over the crank arm for more leverage.

[DjCyclist]

Try brake fluid. Works for me.

[DjCyclist]

Try brake fluid. Works for me.

[stefmeister]

I've used a propane torch on alloy cranks before with success. No need for red hot metal heating to get the metal to expand. A few hundred degrees should be enough without altering the structure.

 

I've also used the vice clamping to remove a carbon crank, but you'd need a vice and something between the contact points to protect the crank. 

[SwissVan]

I have been battling to remove a set of Eggbeater pedals from Shimano cranks. The bike has been standing unused for years. Eggbeaters do not have a 15 mm space outside of the crank to fit a crank spanner but only have the allen key inside of the crank . Will heat/cold treatment work without weakening the cranks?

EDIT:

Make sure you are loosening in the correct direction....

You won’t be the first or last to tighten instead of loosening.

 

Make sure the Allen key end that engages the pedal is not worn and is a good tight fit, once it slips it will damage the pedal end making it harder to loosen.

 

Put the longest Allen key you have on there, and then add some leverage by putting a longer pipe over the end of the Allen key. Take a hammer and hit the pipe in both loosening and tighten directions for

a bit of shock treatment. Stand on the other pedal to try stop the rotation. Do the same to the other side before you loosen it completely.

 

Failing a suitable pipe you can also use a spanner ???? with the ring end over the Allen key to add some leverage. Carefull tho this method tends to “slip” a bit

 

Good luck

Edited August 6, 2019 by SwissVan

[Jewbacca]

EDIT:

Make sure you are loosening in the correct direction....

You won’t be the first or last to tighten instead of loosening.

 

Make sure the Allen key end that engages the pedal is not worn and is a good tight fit, once it slips it will damage the pedal end making it harder to loosen.

 

Put the longest Allen key you have on there, and then add some leverage by putting a longer pipe over the end of the Allen key. Take a hammer and hit the pipe in both loosening and tighten directions for

a bit of shock treatment. Stand on the other pedal to try stop the rotation. Do the same to the other side before you loosen it completely.

 

Failing a suitable pipe you can also use a spanner with the ring end over the Allen key to add some leverage. Carefull tho this method tends to “slip” a bit

 

Good luck

Or if you just put the allen key in the vice and turn the crank you have more than enough leverage and it's way simpler.... 

 

Push down on the pedal end, rotate the crank. Pretty sure that with a bit of lube dropped on the threads the night before that will comfortable solve the problem

[madmarc]

Make sure you turning in the right direction

 

facing drive side crank its a right hand thread tightens clockwise / loosens anticlockwise - However a lot of people get confused when inserting the Allen key from the rear they tend to turn it the wrong way.

[Veebee]

this and a solid rachet or powerbar, with someone holding the bike steady.

 

https://www.takealot.com/hex-bit-set-7-piece/PLID42267741?gclid=CjwKCAjwyqTqBRAyEiwA8K_4O3fJgEKhXrm_IIAWNnDx_TygzVTjyeHImJZJgxPBrXaxEe0mQsAzHxoCL2MQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

[DieselnDust]

I have been battling to remove a set of Eggbeater pedals from Shimano cranks. The bike has been standing unused for years. Eggbeaters do not have a 15 mm space outside of the crank to fit a crank spanner but only have the allen key inside  of the crank . Will heat/cold treatment work without weakening the cranks?

 

 

leverage, you need leverage.

Local wrecking yard should be able to help with a piece of 1m length pipe that will fit over a 8 or 10mm allen key handle. Apply pressure and a bit of JMSP and it'll free it self.

[solty]

I'd still give heat a try, not a blowtorch, just dip the crank end in boiling water. Like when opening a stubborn jar.

Fractional thermal expansion of aluminium is 24, vs 13 for steel (and 9 for glass). So aluminium will expand almost twice as much as steel for same change in temperature.