PSA: I spent 6 months greasing my pedal threads wrong

I was rebuilding a pair of Shimano pedals last week and couldn't figure out why they kept creaking after a few rides. Turns out I was putting grease on the threads that go into the crank arm, but I should have been greasing the pedal spindle itself where it meets the bearing. A mechanic at my local shop in Portland pointed it out after I complained about the noise for the fourth time. He showed me how the grease on the threads just attracts dirt and doesn't help the actual moving parts. Now I only put a tiny bit of anti-seize on the crank threads and pack the spindle bearings properly. Has anyone else had a similar screw-up with pedals or bottom brackets?

3 comments

3 Comments

flores.emma14d agoTop Commenter

Greasing the pedal threads wrong" hit home lol. I did the same thing for like a year until my crank arm started feeling gritty and I figured it out. Now I just hit the spindle with a tiny smear of grease and call it good.

eva_moore14d ago

Oh man I did the exact same thing! I greased the threads on my pedals for like two years before I learned it's actually a bad idea. I was just being generous with the grease because my dad always said "grease everything" but there's a limit I guess lol. Now I'm super careful to only put a tiny bit on the spindle and wipe away anything that gets near the threads. Feels so obvious now but it really isn't when you're just starting out.

jordan_henderson1313d ago

Wait until you factor in pedal washers. I started using thin plastic ones between the pedal and crank arm and it solved my creaking way better than any grease ever did. They stop metal on metal contact where the pedal body sits against the crank face. Most people overlook that spot completely but it's where a lot of that annoying noise actually comes from.