Tech Talks: Pedal Service, Presented by Park Tool - Video

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HairyLegs (Oct 27, 2016 at 2:55)

LOL, is it April Fools Day already .... one does not service a Shimano pedal, they just keep spinning year after year, hit after hit. Now with the Crankbrothers pedals though .... let's just say that those users should be very skilled at servicing and replacing bearings on their pedals!

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bearded-ed (Oct 27, 2016 at 3:17)

Honestly after seeing how many tools are needed for the Shimano one I imagine it's cheaper and drastically less hassle to just buy new pedals. That is assuming that, like you say, the pedal even needs a service!

14 1

bigtim FL (Oct 27, 2016 at 4:28)

One day I'll probably need to service my original M737 SPD pedals that I bought in 1990. (And yes, they get daily use on my commute!)

1 1

macross87 (Oct 27, 2016 at 5:18)

@isaacschmidt could disagree, to a point...

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RedBurn (Oct 27, 2016 at 5:20)

Shimano pedals last 10 years without maintenance... shimano for the win

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jonbrady85 (Oct 27, 2016 at 7:21)

I've been riding lower end Shimano SPD pedals for two years. I've done nothing to service them and they still work perfectly!

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atrokz (Oct 27, 2016 at 8:37)

@EDBProductions: looks like one specialized tool, the rest are pretty standard affair.

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corvus1 (Oct 27, 2016 at 8:48)

Alright, it seems I'm the only one in the world that has serious maintenance issues with SPDs. In one year alone I warrantied the same pedals three times (complete axle assembly). It seems I can't make a pair of Shimano pedals last longer than a year before they develop extreme play and or seize up. Perhaps those pedals from the '90's were great and lasted forever but the XT and XTR pedals these days just don't seem to last.

and @EDBProductions is right. Maintenance is a serious PITA. It's relatively easy to find SPDs for close to 50% off online. When I've inquired about maintenance (either having a shop do it or getting the parts) it was about the same cost as a new pedal.

I love the engagement of my SPDs far better than CB, but I'll be looking for something else (issi) for my next pair. Tired of wasting my $ on Shimano...

3 3

pinnityafairy (Oct 27, 2016 at 8:57)

Crap bros suck. Shimano 4 life.

1 1

JacobSpera (Oct 27, 2016 at 9:03)

@corvus1: I've killed a pair of the base model SPDs... ripped off the dust cover early in the year. They rode great until about a month ago and after I bent the crank on a log they developed a hefty amount of play. Got over a thousand miles of hard riding out of them so I'm pretty impressed.

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TheR FL (Oct 27, 2016 at 9:39)

I don't know. I had some problems with the bearing units on my XT pedals last year. They wouldn't stay tight. Took them into the shop, and they took care of it. So far, so good. I've had good experience with my pedal over all, but I did have a slight problem.

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rickybobby84 (Oct 27, 2016 at 11:09)

Never had a problem with my mallets. Smashed off rocks, never serviced, no play, still spin as good as the day I got them. I've had them long enough I've worn out the cleats that came with them. That being said, after seeing this I may give them a service.

1 1

bmxer72 (Oct 27, 2016 at 11:57)

True !

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myanh (Oct 27, 2016 at 14:53)

@rickybobby84: same here ride Mallet since 3 years no services they take the beating lové them

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cobisan (Oct 28, 2016 at 13:07)

@corvus1: issi is no bueno. engagement and release is iffy at best. best bet is shimano @ 50% off or look into time, xpedo, or possibly the speedplay syzr. all the adjustability in the cleat might be good for you especially.

1 0

fishboy316 (Oct 30, 2016 at 5:46)

@corvus1: Ihave a pair of iSSi pedals and I love em. Super smooth.

1 0

doakwolf FL (Oct 30, 2016 at 14:19)

@EDBProductions: Haha yeah I'm not a fan of any proprietary tools but I felt like the list of tools required for the Crankbros pedals was a lot longer than the Shimano list!

BTW I've literally never done anything to my M647s but tighten them once a year. I've had them for 4-5 years and move them between DH bike and AM, smashing regularly.

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multialxndr (Oct 31, 2016 at 2:36)

One simply does not service a crank brothers pedal, one just replaces them when they break

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sammybikes916 (Oct 27, 2016 at 8:45)

How to service crank brothers pedals:

Step 1: remove from bicycle.
Step 2: deposit in nearest trash bin or scrap metal bucket.
Step 3: Replace with XTs, which don't even require that silly shimano tool.

4 1

bikindad (Oct 27, 2016 at 4:57)

Had the privi to meet Calvin at Cyclofest in Charlotte.....awesome guy, running a killer display trailer. Thank's Calvin for swinging by the Bikin' Dads Adventures bike rodeo, hanging with the crew and the encouraging words in moving forward. Keep up the awesomeness! #ParkTool @pinkbikeaudience

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bbeak (Oct 27, 2016 at 5:07)

More How-To videos like this, please! (I tried to come up with the usual snarkiness that is expected here but failed. Sorry! This really is good stuff.)

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PierreVonHuck (Oct 27, 2016 at 0:25)

I'm sick of Park Tools pedaling their wares on this site.

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Karlkarlton (Oct 27, 2016 at 0:28)

Can't blame them, they're just trying to crank out more product.

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Arnoodles (Oct 27, 2016 at 0:50)

I'm getting tired of your complaining. I'm glad they spoke up to help all those poor crankbrothers customers.

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Samplidude (Oct 27, 2016 at 1:11)

@Arnoodles: Exactly, at least they are also providing us a Service with their Commercials.

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vinay FL (Oct 27, 2016 at 1:33)

Folks, these puns are screwing the comment section up. I'm not bearing it any longer. I'm off to the Park now and when I'm back, you'll have it fixed.

1 1

seismicninja (Oct 27, 2016 at 3:00)

This talk helps me fix my pink bike!!! Off to my job at the tech park.

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mammal (Oct 27, 2016 at 5:56)

I was going to buy the cheap shimano tool to disassemble my pedals (same as the white ones in the video), but since there was a creaking problem with no play in the pedal, I decided on a ghetto solution that worked really well.

I drilled a very small hole in the splined plastic sleeve that the releases the pedal axle. I drilled between the plastic spline and the pedal body, about half way between the two, and only large enough to get my needle head grease gun to get in there. There's a few millimeters between the inner surface of the sleeve and the axle, so there's a channel to push grease through. I pump a bunch of light grease (slickoleum) through, and rotate axle, tap the pedal on it's end, rotate axle, push more grease... repeat. Then sealed the hole with a small band of gorilla tape and a really small cable tie. You can barely see that it's ghetto fixed, and the pedal has lasted as long as it originally did before creaking.

I fixed all 6 of my pedals this way, works great. Not a fix for a loose axle though. I still haven't encountered that in the 4 years of owning these.

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DirtbagMatt (Oct 27, 2016 at 11:36)

Way to go, MacGyver!

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ThePriory1978 (Oct 27, 2016 at 1:53)

I don't think i've ever serviced my spuds in many many years of riding. Still going strong with no play.

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columbine (Oct 27, 2016 at 14:51)

I service my XT pedals every 6 months, I only use 2 tools and grease. (Spanner & Allen Key)
I only clean the pedal body, and put in new grease, the new grease pushes the old grease out of the bearings when you screw them back in.
I have about 6,000kms on my current set with no issues.

Also buy marine grease for an auto store, $5.00 worth of grease will be enough for a lifetime of services.

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ivankvkharkiv (Nov 1, 2016 at 18:17)

For all those people who say something like "I don't need to maintain my pedals I just replace them" or "shimano XTR works for ages"... This video is interesting, useful and awesome! Because of my riding style I have a flat pedals. I have been riding them for 3 or 4 years already without maintain at all. But I watched the video with big interest anyway! So thanks ParkTools for all those videos you film for us I always watch them with interest.

PS: humor is awesome

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GumptionZA FL (Oct 27, 2016 at 3:44)

I once tried to service my shimano DX pedals, i screwed it up so badly my friend had to redo it, and even then, it accelerated the process of buying new pedals

1 1

nvranka (Oct 27, 2016 at 9:03)

Hah! Well on the bright side, I've ran DXs for 4+ years and usually just replace fhem

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kilgore-trout (Oct 27, 2016 at 8:56)

I've had my fair share of issues with older generation CB pedals but the last few generations have been super solid for me. My DH and Enduro Mallets have been running strong with lots of use and no service.

1 1

bikekrieg (Oct 27, 2016 at 9:01)

I just retired my old SPDs that I inherited from the early 90's. They had never been serviced and were only retired because I wanted a slightly larger platform. Now i've got some shimano trail pedals and I bet they'll last just as long.

1 0

chrscshly (Nov 1, 2016 at 13:29)

I only use the red shimano 636s. You know the Godfather of all clipless. I still have an original red pair from 1995, and several other red ones. I've tried other pedals but all they do is BREAK in 6 months.

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7chasecool (Oct 28, 2016 at 7:00)

idk u guys but i loove this tech videos ,they are like presents in a xmass morning lol

i really like them keep them coming pb!!

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Corbotron (Oct 29, 2016 at 23:05)

"And these are all the tools you'll need to service a Crank Brothers pedal" Yea f' that. Shimano's last for years and at least XT's are easy af to rebuild,

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topsedit (Oct 27, 2016 at 1:22)

Great for those learning basic maintenance and getting to know contact points

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cebelar123 (Oct 27, 2016 at 3:23)

Servicing Crankbrothers what a joke. Crankbrothers are Avids among the pedals.

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kiwi-in-ns (Oct 28, 2016 at 4:25)

nah not a fair comparison. I've never seen an avid fail as bad as an egg beater snapping clean off at the spindle. Happened to a guy I was riding with on Sunday.

1 1

markbowden (Oct 28, 2016 at 20:42)

Ive got cheap end Shimano pedals which have had for like man 10 years!!! Think if or when they finally go, just buy another set as cheap enough to do so.

1 1

rikroach (Oct 29, 2016 at 10:35)

NYC freeride glory hole pedals - 10 years old and spin like brand new.