Pedal spanners
- gorilla monsoon
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Pedal spanners
Postby gorilla monsoon » Tue Apr 09, 2013 5:32 pm
Looking around the interweb I also discovered that pedal spanners can be damned expensive for something that might get used once or twice. Is there any sort of alternative or do I just have to bite the bullet and fork-out 30 or 40 bills for something I will not get to use very often?
I suppose I could just take the pedals off the bikes and put them back on again every few weeks as a way of justifying the expense.
- Bob_TAS
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby Bob_TAS » Tue Apr 09, 2013 5:34 pm
http://www.this link is broken/lifeline-pedal-wrench/
It's just a piece of pressed steel
- QuangVuong
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby QuangVuong » Tue Apr 09, 2013 5:45 pm
Do have a pedal spanner that came together with a tool kit. But its really crap. It bent upon removal. This goes with the brass? threaded headset tool as well. Must have bought low quality stuff.
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby def » Tue Apr 09, 2013 6:24 pm
Firstly, a "normal" 15mm spanner often won't fit as it is too thick to get between the crank arm and the pedal body. Pedal spanners are thinner by comparison.
I've had some cheaper pedal spanners that ended up damaging the pedals as they did not engage properly with the pedal. Improper engagement is even more damaging since the contact area is smaller (remember the spanner is thinner). Also, pedal spanners are necessarily of the open-ended variety which have a higher potential to damage the pedal. And one more point: pedals usually only have 2 flat surfaces to grip (rather than the usual 6 for a hex nut) which leaves you no options if they get damaged.
Eventually I went for the Park Tool PW-4 pedal spanner
http://www.parktool.com/product/profess ... rench-pw-4" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
which is fantastic although expensive. Pedals that haven't been removed for a while often need some decent torque to get moving for which good engagement and a decent length handle is important to avoid damage to the pedal or yourself.
Cheap tools are a false economy.
Of course, most pedals I deal with now use either an 8mm or 6mm hex through the spindle. The pedal spanner hasn't seen much use recently!
def.
- HappyHumber
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby HappyHumber » Tue Apr 09, 2013 7:23 pm
Not best practice, really. Shifter spanners never have the best purchase as it is, mix that with inadequate leverage and you're getting a good recipe for rounding off - or at the very least further increasing the sloppiness of the shifter. I know, I've been there done that myself and learnt.QuangVuong wrote:Small 150 or 100mm adjustable wrench? If you need more leverage, just add a bad to the handle.
It's a fine line with a couple of the 15mm "nuts" you have on bikes; purchase vs. leverage. I know for the odd 15 mm axle cone nut you come across you certainly couldn't use a regular 15mm spanner against anything else. Similar story with pedals.... it's often a narrow area where you need a lot more leverage.
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- bychosis
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby bychosis » Tue Apr 09, 2013 7:29 pm
- MarkG
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby MarkG » Tue Apr 09, 2013 7:33 pm
http://www.bicyclestore.com.au/accessor ... /cone.html
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby orbeas » Tue Apr 09, 2013 7:39 pm
Orbea Erandio Hybrid
- HappyHumber
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby HappyHumber » Tue Apr 09, 2013 7:41 pm
How many different wheels have you worked on?bychosis wrote:cone spanner? I've used one a few times.
How many different pedals have you removed or installed?orbeas wrote:Have you a 8mm is it ? allen key to remouve the pedal from the inside of crank arm
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby LG » Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:32 pm
- Mulger bill
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby Mulger bill » Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:38 pm
Wins!LG wrote:You could try my cheapskate approach, I bought a standard pretty long handle 15mm spanner from the tip shop ($1), hit the sides with angle grinder till it's the right width = pedal spanner.
Nice one MacGyver
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- outnabike
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby outnabike » Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:41 pm
I made one out of a bit of flat bar I had in the shed, cut it out with a grinder. I just drilled a series of small holes for the bottom cut.Finished of for size with a file.Took about an hour though, .
I did use an allan key on a mates bike but found the pedals really strained the key a bit too much, and It required an extension pipe. I coppied a spanner of the internet for the angled spanner entry. I also made it a bit longer than illustrated due to the effort for some pedals to come off, I swear some have been put on by a gorilla.
- HappyHumber
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby HappyHumber » Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:48 pm
Heheh... I'll pay that one!LG wrote:You could try my cheapskate approach, I bought a standard pretty long handle 15mm spanner from the tip shop ($1), hit the sides with angle grinder till it's the right width = pedal spanner.
re: the different angled mouths. I splashed out on a nicer Cyclo (Cyclus?) double ended dedicated spanner a while ago from Wiggle. One end opens square, and the other is angled slightly. When removing old pedals, the choice of different angles can give you a better choice of using leverage against the crank arms, depending on how the flats of the pedal spindle have to come to rest in relation to the arm. It's also probably about 50% bigger/longer than your average 15mm combo spanner for the extra grunt. A nice-ity, not a necessity.
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- Mulger bill
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby Mulger bill » Tue Apr 09, 2013 9:06 pm
If you don't want to go down the DiY route Gorilla, ebay "Park PW3", thinks mine came in at $21 posted about 12mo back. I stumbled on it and impulse bought, happy i did.
It's one of those tools that make a rare job so much easier, no excuse to not grease the threads twice a year now
Shaun
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- jacks1071
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby jacks1071 » Tue Apr 09, 2013 10:00 pm
Take a grinder to a spanner to thin it out.gorilla monsoon wrote:I'm considering swapping-out my old pedals for some nice new ones and note that I may need a pedal spanner if I can't find a thin 15mm spanner in my regular tool box.
Looking around the interweb I also discovered that pedal spanners can be damned expensive for something that might get used once or twice. Is there any sort of alternative or do I just have to bite the bullet and fork-out 30 or 40 bills for something I will not get to use very often?
I suppose I could just take the pedals off the bikes and put them back on again every few weeks as a way of justifying the expense.
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- HappyHumber
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby HappyHumber » Tue Apr 09, 2013 10:12 pm
+1 in retrospect, I reckon I should've done this myself, rather than go to the expense of the Dux-nuts dedicated tool that I did. Even if you don't have a bench or angle grinder yourself - ask around your mates or rellies - and go buy a couple of old combo 15mm spanners from the tip shop as suggested. I've also seen a heap of misc. loose spanners at various pawn & second hand tool shops.jacks1071 wrote:Take a grinder to a spanner to thin it out.
Also recommended for the kids and their Ficksies, with the 15mm bolt wheels
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby RonK » Tue Apr 09, 2013 10:32 pm
You have tyre levers, cone spanners and pedal spanner (using both), and they open bottles too.
- bychosis
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby bychosis » Wed Apr 10, 2013 8:54 am
Quite a few, between 12" and 27 1/4". The cone spanners I have are thin enough to use and have 4 different size options, one of which is the right size for pedals. Fro some reason the first one I pick is always the wrong end. Have used the cone spanners a few times on different pedals when the standard spanner wont fit.HappyHumber wrote:How many different wheels have you worked on?bychosis wrote:cone spanner? I've used one a few times.
Make sure you add a bit of grease to the thread before reinstalling.
- silentbutdeadly
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby silentbutdeadly » Wed Apr 10, 2013 9:21 am
Used cheap cone spanners...they all got turned into spanner shaped pretzels by too many reluctant pedals.
Ground down a spare 15 mm open ended spanner (Supatool brand)...worked though I'd bang my knuckles on occasion because it was a straight spanner - then I used it on a nut in a large not bicycle related machine which snapped one side of the spanner off and resulted in me snap punching the machine to much discomfort and not a little foul language.
Sucked my knuckles and bought a Pedro offset pedal spanner for $30...no more banged knuckles; no way it can be snapped; no chance it can be mis-used for anything else. Happy camper.
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby jasonc » Wed Apr 10, 2013 10:12 am
remember to clean and regrease the threads - easy!
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby jacks1071 » Wed Apr 10, 2013 9:52 pm
Cone spanners are not nearly strong enough for taking pedals on and off - too thin.bychosis wrote:Quite a few, between 12" and 27 1/4". The cone spanners I have are thin enough to use and have 4 different size options, one of which is the right size for pedals. Fro some reason the first one I pick is always the wrong end. Have used the cone spanners a few times on different pedals when the standard spanner wont fit.HappyHumber wrote:How many different wheels have you worked on?bychosis wrote:cone spanner? I've used one a few times.
Make sure you add a bit of grease to the thread before reinstalling.
Use a propper pedal spanner or if you are poor, buy a 15mm spanner from super cheap auto for about $2 and grind it down. Depending on your bike and pedals you might not even need to grind it down so check first
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby MarkG » Wed Apr 10, 2013 11:29 pm
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby eeksll » Thu Apr 11, 2013 12:06 am
My speedplays dont require a thin spanner, I can use one pretty much as big as you can get, so I'd use something big and chunky to spread the force if it s stuck. It also has a larger than normal hex option on the side.
Grease does not guarantee a non stuck pedal. Removing them twice a year would be the only sure way I reckon. The one that was well and truly stuck was well greased by me.
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Re: Pedal spanners
Postby stevexg » Thu Apr 11, 2013 9:26 pm
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