So I have this massive creak / ticking noise from the bottom of my bike Scott foil 2018 that usually happens after 30 mins to a hour into the ride. Since then I have replaced the BB, taken out and cleaned seat post and applied new carbon paste, cleaned saddle rails, changed my chains, changed different pedal, cleaned and regreased the crankset.
This was taken before I replaced the BB so now it makes the same noise but less? Haven't been riding as much recently to tell if it was making as much noise as in the video. I only greased the bottom bracket as I press fit it back in. I didn't check headset or wheels because I can feel the creaking from my feet as I pedal. Does not make noise when I am not pedaling.
What should I try next before I take it into the shop? My fear is the ship can't replicate the noise as I only hear it usually 1-2 hours into the ride.
Creaking Noise From Bike, can't figure it out
byu/jello2good1 inbikewrench
by jello2good1
13 Comments
Have you taken your chainrings and crankset apart? I had a similar noise and taking them apart, cleaning and re greasing them worked. I know you said crankset, but just checking on how far you went with that.
It’s very rhythmic, chain touching front derailleur would be where I looked first.
Sounds like the chain is dragging against something to me.
š¤ My eyes hurt too much from the hairy legs to hear the creak! š
Check out the tightness of the pedals, i have the same issue crack noise and it was that
Maybe put some grease (not chain oil, grease) on the spoke j bends where they connect to the hub
ETA: also check for any obviously too-loose spokes on the rear wheel.
Does it stop when you stop pedaling? It seems to be synchronized to wheel rotations, possibly?
A friend just had a mystery creak that ended up getting solved by regreasing the derailleur hanger-frame interface. I don’t think that’s what you have going on, but it’s a simple enough thing to try, and knock it off your list.
Only when you pedal? If you pedal with one leg? (Press harder with one leg)
what if you brake? (Or brake while pedaling?)
On every gear?
Recently, I spent about a month chasing down a similar noise. I replaced my bottom bracket and cleaned/regreased as appropriate/torqued to spec: crank arms, chainring bolts, saddle/post, pedals (disassembled and reassembled), and everything in the drive train.
It wound up being one of the bearings in my rear freehub. It had shredded apart and I had to replace the whole thing. One of the pawl springs had also come loose.
The frequency of the noise does not match the frequency of pedaling, so that pretty much rules out BB and chainring. Looks/sounds like it matches the wheel rotation freq, so Iād look there, could be the rear cassette picking on the chain or a bearing in your wheel, which you would not hear just spinning, because the wheel is unloaded.
All advice given so far is worth trying, but here are a few other suggestions (all of these were sources of mystery creaks on my bikes):
– check that the bolts attaching the cleats to your shoes are tight. Ā Remove and grease the bolt threads if needed
– check that the pedal axles are tight in the pedal bodies. Ā Iāve had some come loose over time.Ā
– I cant see what pedals you have, but some Shimano pedals have metal plates where the cleats contact the pedal body. These are sometimes held on with tiny screws. Ā Remove these and add some thread lock when you replace the screws.Ā
– check that the cassette lock ring is tight and there is no movement in the cassette.Ā
– I cant see what wheels you have but some have removable end caps/adapters that just pop off by hand. These can sometimes be loose and cause a creak with every wheel rotation.Ā
– recently, I had a similar creak on my road bike that had DT Swiss wheels. Ā Nothing I tried would get rid of the noise. I finally got a new wheelset and the creak was gone immediately. Everything else on the bike turned out to be fine; those were just noisy wheels. Ā
Good luck!
Oh! I had this issue too! FD was rubbing on the chain in certain gears, could only replicate it riding OR on a stationary stand. Thought I was going crazy but you can fix it if you have a stationary stand or take it into the shop and put it on one of theirs. I believe (at least for Di2) you can put it into adjust mode and adjust the FD guide using the shifters.
That said, when you adjust it in one gear, you gotta do them all to make sure itās not grinding on another one. Should only take 30-45 min all said and done
Check if your crank arm is hitting the front derailleur?