Clicking in the BB

[bumperjohn]

Well, I am still new to this and trying to learn. I have taken to commuting to work on my fixed gear and I noticed that there is a clicking noise coming from my bottom bracket. It happens twice on each revolution of the pedals at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions. I do not have any experience yet in the mechanics of bicycles other than changing tires, chains, and adjusting brakes and derailuers. I was hoping someone could help me diagnose the problem and what I may need to do to fix it. Thanks in advance!

John

[Kevan]

you might want to do a search here on the subject of creaks, everyone has experienced them. You think it's the bb and it might be. It might be the pedals, the crank arms, your cleats, or even your fillings too.

I've had bb creak before and have had the shop tighten it up first, then on another visit add some teflon tape before giving it the wrench. I've been click free since.

[maunahaole]

or the chainrings, seatpost, or even the front derailleur. Get in there and check stuff out

[bshell]

grease the dropouts and the ferrules

[Ti Designs]

grease the dropouts and the ferrules

Grease the dropouts???

[Blue Jays]

Yep, definitely hit everything that should be lubricated with some spray first. Coat the seatpost with the correct material-specific (ex: aluminum, carbon fiber, titanium, etc., etc.) prepatory lubricant for the frame in question.

[bshell]

yes, grease the dropouts

[bshell]

very common source of creaks. think of your aluminum fork tips, your titanium rear drops, or even a painted frame. the interface is dry metal. And there's a lot of torque and twist going on.

[bshell]

maybe not a "very common" source but I've seen it several times when "there's an annoying creak. it's definitely coming from the bb". Plus, it takes 5 minutes to do (10 if you do the ferrules also) and can save a LOT of frustration.

[csm]

check your crank arms.... you might have something hitting them in the rotation. looks for marks.

[Ti Designs]

very common source of creaks. think of your aluminum fork tips, your titanium rear drops, or even a painted frame. the interface is dry metal. And there's a lot of torque and twist going on.

It's a fixed gear. I don't know what kind of rear hub is being used, if there's a QR or track nuts, what material the frame is or even if the locknuts are hardened and serrated. If you grease steel dropouts while using the track nuts with the integrated washer you're gonna spend a lot of time stopping and pulling your wheel back.

I tell people the noise is coming from my knees - seems to work.

[Ti Designs]

check your crank arms.... you might have something hitting them in the rotation. looks for marks.

Or blame it on Mark's knees - that works even better!

[bumperjohn]

I will take a look at all of this, thanks for the advice. The sound is not so much a creak as a click.

John

[regularguy412]

Start at the BB and work your way out. Teflon tape on the BB cup threads. Torque to spec. Grease (I prefer anti-seize) on the chainring bolts. Grease or anti-seize on crank arm fixing bolts. Light grease or light oil on the BB spindle where the cranks fit. Torque properly. Light lube on cleats and pedal surfaces (where the wear of the cleat fits). Re-torque pedals to crank arms. Do all these adjustments/checks one at a time. If none of the above are the issue, work your way up from the BB and toward the front and back of the bike. As others have said, sounds travel in a funny way on a bicycle. You may eventually find the click is from handlebars in the stem shifting slightly, or a couple of spokes in the rear or front wheel needing a drop of lube on the nipple/ferrule interface. It's a time consuming process.

Good luck. :beer:

Mike in AR

[stevep]

loose bb cups

[superunleaded]

I will take a look at all of this, thanks for the advice. The sound is not so much a creak as a click.

John

More info here (http://www.bikefanclub.com/forum/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/6308/page/0/view/collapsed/sb/5/o/all/fpart/1)

[bshell]

Duh.

I managed to read right past the part where he said it was a fixed gear. That ferrule suggestion seems pretty unhelpful at this point as well!