[JaredP91]

I recently made the decision to switch to clipless pedals after 2/3 months of riding on the stock plastic flat pedals that came with my Boardman SLR 8.6 road bike. However, when I attempted to remove the pedals using a 6mm allen key, they would not loosen no matter how much force was applied (honestly they felt welded on)!

I know that the right pedal follows the standard ‘righty, tighty, lefty loosely’ rule, while the left is the opposite, but despite following this the pedals wouldn’t shift at all.

As a complete novice when it comes to road bikes I fear I am doing something completely wrong and don’t want to damage my bike.

Can anyone offer some advice?

Topic

[Nick T]

I once had to cut off the

I once had to cut off the plastic pedal housing to expose the axle, remove the cranks and clamp the mostly rounded spanner flats into a solidly bench mounted vice then whack the shit out of it to release the fused screw threads

[Oberon]

I had the same problem

I had the same problem recently with a BTwin bike. Using a Park Tool Pedal spanner, I still managed to round-off the pedal flats! Was thinking about drilling out the pedal, but found an easier solution: 1-2 litres of boiling water, which seemed to give enough expansion to free the thread. And to overcome the rounding, I had to use two pedal spanners side-by-side, which gave enough grip.

[Welsh boy]

This is starting to sound

This is starting to sound like a good reason to buy a new bike to me ?

[iso2000]

try this:https://www.youtube

try this:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTtxoheAG10

 

 

[brooksby]

Sometimes it’s no use even

Sometimes it’s no use even when the pedals DO have spanner flats! 

(I find a small sacrifice to the Gods of the Velo sometimes is the only thing that works…).

[Welsh boy]

And what good would a pedal

And what good would a pedal spanner be on a pedal which doesnt have spanner flats?

[Gus T]

I don’t want to sound pompous

I don’t want to sound pompous but I think that the best thing to do is to invest in a good pedal spanner. In the meantime try putting some tubing over the hex key to get some more leverage. Stay safe.

[Hirsute]

Do you mean ‘pedal spanner’?

Do you mean ‘pedal spanner’? Either way, I thought if you can use a spanner, a normal one would fit – used that in the past (plus a long metal tube I borrowed from the local builders merchant to slot over the spanner then stand on the tube to get my wife’s pedal off !)

[Rome73]

It sounds as if you just need

It sounds as if you just need more leverage. Get a hex key with a longer handle. Or can you not use a peddle scanner? If they are factory fitted you should be able to use a peddle scanner on the ‘outside’ of the peddle. To loose the peddle stand over the peddle and turn towards the back wheel. 

[Woldsman]

Shops such as Halfords don’t

Shops such as Halfords don’t want the bad publicity of a customer’s pedals falling off and might err on the side of caution by overtightening if the bike was built for you. 

If your existing pedals were supplied out of the box at the point of sale I’d be surprised if they only took a 6mm Allen key and didn’t have 15mm flats on the spindles.  Do they? 

[VeloUSA]

I concur, penetrating oil

I concur, penetrating oil should do the trick. As other have stated grease the threads prior to reinstalling your pedals. To prevent future binding use a thin washer between the pedal and crank arm face.

[Chris Hayes]

WD40.  Both sides.  You could

WD40.  Both sides.  You could extend the allen key leverage with a metal tube, as mentioned below, or threading the end through a ring spanner… Sometimes a knock with a mallet might help – if you can administer it accurately.  Wear gloves or cover up the chain ring (to avoid a nasty cut).  On my Ti / steel bikes I’d be happy to stay the frame by standing on the top tube (nearest the head tube or down tube).  If it’s carbon I wouldn’t bother… 🙂

Failing that…the bike shop where you got it. 

[David9694]

some sprays of Plusgas or

some sprays of Plusgas or similar might help.

are there flats on the outsides of where the pedals screw in that you could get a pedal tool around? 
 

[Hirsute]

They should be greased. Are
They should be greased then. Are you definitely turning correct direction ?
If you have a socket set, does it have any extra attachments? If not, you could buy some allen key (and others) for the socket set separately. This should give you enough leverage.
Or if you have any mole grips, that might allow more leverage with the current key.

[Spangly Shiny]

If all else fails a gentle
If all else fails a gentle application of heat from a blowtorch to the crank arms at the pedals. This will allow the alloy to expand enough to extract the pedals. I’m not talking cherry red here, just 10 or 15 seconds worth should do it.

[Author]

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