Crank/pedals creaking clicking ?

[J4CKO]

Driving me mad, any ideas of what to try ?

[Comacchio]

Press fit BB?

[J4CKO]

Comacchio said:

Press fit BB?

Dunno, how do you tell ?

This is the bike.

https://archive.trekbikes.com/us/en/2014/Trek/doma...


Might be pedals actually, might swap onto my other set.

[monty999]

I'm having exact same issue at the moment. Brand new (couple of months old) full groupset including BB so can't see it being that. I think mine is being caused by worn cleats so have ordered new ones, hope that's the answer. OP, I feel your grief, it is so annoying pinning down a mysterious noise and sometimes it can be caused by the most obscure component. My mate has just solved his rattle, turned out to be loose bottle cage screw.

[anonymous-user]

It can be lots of things. BB is my first port of call, but I have had the seat clamp/seat post once! Just loosened it off a bit and did it back up again. Noise gone.

[Comacchio]

J4CKO said:

Dunno, how do you tell ?

This is the bike.

https://archive.trekbikes.com/us/en/2014/Trek/doma...


Might be pedals actually, might swap onto my other set.

Looks like it is a press fit:

https://www.rutlandcycling.com/102528/products/tre...


https://www.bikeradar.com/features/bb90-vs-t47/

Creaking is a common issue on a press fit BB unfortunately..

[BlueComet]

Does it creak when pedaling out of the saddle? Dirt between the seatpost and frame is a common cause of creaking.

Other areas to check are dry and dirty pedal axle threads (where it screws into the crank) and the bottom bracket failing.

[johnpsanderson]

What pedals/cleats are you using? I have Look Delta and they always squeak once they get a bit worn. Clean everything really well, then spray the cleats and pedals liberally with GT85 and it goes, for a while.

Could easily be the cleats, or the pedal axles, or the bottom bracket. I once had a squeak which was the gear cables rubbing against the sides of the head tube. Took ages to find that one!

[J4CKO]

I tried one foot at a time, seems to be more the left side, will swap the pedals and see if that helps, its so annoying !

[BlueComet]

J4CKO said:

I tried one foot at a time, seems to be more the left side, will swap the pedals and see if that helps, its so annoying !

Coat the pedal axle threads in a light oil or grease before installing. Doesn't need to be dripping in the stuff just a tiny drop.

[gl20]

As above. Or before that have you tried simply smearing the clear springs with grease? That’s where I get a squeak and it cured it straight away. Nothing to be lost trying the simple stuff first.

[Deefor62]

I had that with a Campagnolo ultra torque bottom bracket. Used to drive me mad. Fitted new cups and bearings and it was still there. For some reason I thought I’d check that the pedals were tightly attached and hey presto, annoying creak disappeared.

[anonymous-user]

Creaks never seem to come from where you think they are coming from.

Things to check:
- the wheel axle/frame/QR interface. Grease, tighten, check using highest gear out of saddle.
- saddle rails/saddle clamp // seatpost/frame interfaces. Does it creak when you’re out of the saddle? If yes, it’s none of these. If no, it might be one of these.
- stem/bars interface.
- chain and/or chainrings.
- BB. A good one if you like chasing shadows.
- pedals. Rarely this. Except when it is this.

Good luck, but most times it’s quicker to burn the bike and buy a new one TBH.

[sociopath]

Press fit trek BB is made of cheese, I had an earlier domane and had a whole heap of trouble, even got it sent back to trek who claimed the issue was it wasnt kept clean (Id had the bike less than 12 months and been assiduous with my cleaning)

That bike now lives in my shed, and i wont be buying another trek

[BOR]

J4CKO said:

I tried one foot at a time, seems to be more the left side, will swap the pedals and see if that helps, its so annoying !

Don't swap the pedals, they are handed.

Left must stay on the left, right on the right.

The left side has a left-handed thread.

[Comacchio]

BOR said:

Don't swap the pedals, they are handed.

Left must stay on the left, right on the right.

The left side has a left-handed thread.

I think they mentioned they had another set of pedals they were going to try.

[Neil1323bolts]

sociopath said:

Press fit trek BB is made of cheese, I had an earlier domane and had a whole heap of trouble, even got it sent back to trek who claimed the issue was it wasnt kept clean (Id had the bike less than 12 months and been assiduous with my cleaning)

That bike now lives in my shed, and i wont be buying another trek

Trek no longer use press fit BB they’ve changed to a T47 threaded BB , so issues should be resolved on the new bikes , saying that I’ve never had a problem with my press fit BB on my Emonda in 4 years , I guess you get a bad one now and again

[Gareth79]

BlackWidow13 said:

Creaks never seem to come from where you think they are coming from.

Things to check:
- the wheel axle/frame/QR interface. Grease, tighten, check using highest gear out of saddle.

Every time I've had it, it was simply that the rear wheel QR wasn't tight enough.

[J4CKO]

Comacchio said:

BOR said:

Don't swap the pedals, they are handed.

Left must stay on the left, right on the right.

The left side has a left-handed thread.

I think they mentioned they had another set of pedals they were going to try.

Yeah, got another set of identical MTB Shimano pedals, the kids have been using my MTB so they wanted flats on it, so have those spare, will wang them on tomorrow.

[J4CKO]

Swapped them over and no clicking or creaking

Funny as the pedals feel perfect, bearings are really smooth.