[stampz]

Seriously…I am going to throw the bike in the river! 😉

So…I have a Specialized Allez Elite which is giving off the faintest clicl/pop/tick on my left when riding (its very quiet…but to me is unbearable). It’s not even as loud as the tick of a watch, but it’s deafening to me!

Now, please bear with me, I know I sound like a madman, but I am at a loss…I have taken apart the all the usual culprits…pedals, cleats,l tightened saddle, headset, cleaned everything…swapped the pedals completely, rode a test with different shoes and it is still there…I have checked the internal cabling to ensure it isn’t rattling…all good…!

Now the thing is, it doesn’t sound like any of these normal sounds you would expect…its no a mechanical click or creak…it is the faintest sound, and seems to occur when the left pedal crosses just about 12 o clock…even so, I have now convinced myself it isn’t coming from the pedals…I even tried as I say changing the pedals completely, and have just been out in flip flops and its still there!

To my ear it 100% sounds like it is coming from left handlebar end or near the shifter or break…or “inside” the handlebars…I have removed the end caps and rode, still there, tried with brakes pulled on and off…still there…

You can’t “feel” the click…the ride is silky smooth, but it is seriously driving me insane…my ear is very sensitive…I can’t even have a watch in a drawer in the bedroom or it will keep me awake!…..this is now ruining my riding 🙁

Has ANYONE got ANY ideas…? I beg you… 🙂

Update…So…the plot thickens

Just been out for a quick 30miles to try to get to the bottom of it…still no joy…however.

It only happens when I am seated AND holding the handlebars. Let go of the handlebars..stops..stand and pedal…stops. I stopped a couple of times and tweaked the saddle position, I even stopped and undid all the bolts and loosened and retightened the handlebars. No joy 🙁

I appreciate everyones comments, but I really dont think it is anything rubbing, or BB or derailer, it just isn’t that kind of sound. The only thing I can compare it too is that air bubble pop you get when you crack your fingers, but much fainter…this is ridiculous I know!

Topic

[Rick_Rude]

I thought my BB was knackered
I thought my BB was knackered but it turned out to be internal cable routing. When cracking on I’ll tend to probably put too much into the bars and move them slightly so it corresponded with pedal strokes. It wasn’t much of a sound but it was annoying. It was only when I stripped the bike down on my stand I accidently moved the bars and it made the same noise.

[peted76]

And do em up tight! I’ve had

And do em up tight! I’ve had clicking with cheap ‘lightweight QR;s before – a bike needs decent QR skewers.

[ktache]

Ooohh, dynaplug ends.  Ive

Ooohh, dynaplug ends.  Ive had the little bit that Mavic put over the join in their rims come loose, inside the rim.  At speed no noise, only when the going gets slow do the move about and make noise.  Dribbleing in a bit of superglue stopped it.

[Hirsute]

Since you bookmark it, I’ll
Since you bookmark it, I’ll add in my 2.
After replacing BB and pedals traced it to not quite tight enough rear sprockets ( only heard under load up inclines).
Clicking noise at low speed up hill turned out to be a dynaplug brass end tubeless repair that had come off inside. I think at normal speed, it sat in the tyre and didn’t drop.

[nniff]

So have you actually taken

So have you actually taken the seat post out, cleaned it all and re-positioned it? My money is still on that

[Richard_pics]

Woldsman wrote:

Undo then retighten the front (and why not rear) QR skewer? 

 

Id put my money on this being the culprit!

[waldner71]

Bookmarked this thread! Hope

Bookmarked this thread! Hope you get it sorted. One of the sources of ticking noise when pedal goes down on left (after checking /greasing all bolts, seat post pedals and BB) was rear wheel QR Axle not tight enough after rear tyre replacement- Could have sworn was coming from left hand crank/BB, but no, was just the rear QR axle!!

 

 

[srchar]

Two things it could be that

Two things it could be that you don’t say you’ve checked:

• Saddle rail clamp (undo/light lube/tighten)
• The saddle itself (dab of lube where the rails attach to the base)

[Spokesperson]

PS you just shorten the

PS you just shorten the derailleur cable, or bend it in a bit so it doesn’t hit your pedal/cycle shoe.

[Spokesperson]

I know this one!! Or at least
I know this one!! Or at least I had a similar issue that was resolved after months of me agonising over it. It was the end of the derailleur cable on the RIGHT side of my bike that touched my right pedal as I passed it. It was the slightest of touches but was enough to resonate through the frame and annoy the heck out of me. I couldn’t locate the source of the click. Theresa from Mosquito Bikes in Islington sussed it out in seconds when about four other bike mechanics said they were baffled (is she/are they still there? This was years ago).

[ibr17xvii]

Woldsman wrote:

Undo then retighten the front (and why not rear) QR skewer? 

Light coating of grease on them as well doesn’t hurt particularly on the ends.

I had a clicking noise a while ago that went as soon as I reseated the wheel & greased the QR’s front & back.

[Woldsman]

Undo then retighten the front

Undo then retighten the front (and why not rear) QR skewer? 

[Drinfinity]

So the noise changes

So the noise changes depending on where your weight is – no weight or lots of weight on the front end suggests headset or front axle to me. I’ve been spending lockdown chasing creaks on various of the family bikes, especially coming out of the back of a cross season. Pretty much silent now. So far:

Four bottom brackets 

Freehub bearings, and greasing ratchet/pawls

Tightened drive side rear dropout, and greased threads on axle

Greased and tightened direct mount chainring

Loctite on chainring bolts

Headset check

Spokes – found two loose ones, also a bit of lube on the crossovers

Seatpost greasing

Pedal threads – copper slip again

Tested pedals using soft soled shoes to eliminate cleat noise as source

Tightened lock rings on SRAM cassettes (XD especially needed more grease and more torque)

[Flâneur]

If you’ve checked your

If you’ve checked your drivetrain, seatpost & handlebars, check your headset next. I had this once. Nearly drove me insane tracking it down

[No Sweat]

I have a Specialised Langster
I have a Specialised Langster – it had a click, which seemed to coincide with crank revolutions. I sequentially swapped out the pedals, installed a new BB, swapped out the freewheel, new chain and chainring. It still clicked.
I took apart the headset bearing, and found a cracked ball-bearing (crappy loose ball-bearings)! I knocked out the horrible Specialized headset and fitted a new set of sealed bearings – no click! It seems that the slight regular movement of the steering with pedalling was enough to cause the bearing to click.
Laborious and expensive, but it’s now practically a new bike.

[Author]

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