tick tick TICK

[uk elephant]

My bike is ticking and it is driving me mad trying to figure out what it is. Any of you have any suggestions? Happens when I'm pedalling (not when I'm coasting), one tick per pedal stroke as the pedal reaches ~4 or 5 oclock. Sometimes it'll miss a tick or two. And it happens in all the gears, but not if I move the pedals very carefully or when I'm not on the bike. Took the bike to the shop today, but it wouldn't tick for the shop guy so he couldn't figure out what the problem might be. It is just such a frustrating noice and seems to be getting louder, or maybe that's just because I am paying more attention. Kind of like a watch ticking when you are trying to sleep. Any suggestions as to where to start looking for a problem/solution? I have just replaced the chain, rear cassette, rear mech and one of the front cogs due to wear and the noice still didn't go away.

[mimitabby]

is it Campy or Shimano?

sometimes if the front derailleur is not just right, it will click.

[Eden]

Most cycling shoes have velcro closures these days but... the last time I had an intermittant tick it was a shoe lace (my mt bike shoes tie and have velcros) hitting the crank arm once around....... (drove me nuts until I figured it out and started making sure the shoelaces were tucked well in)

Of course it could be other things. Loose bottom bracket maybe? or something else that hits the crank arm.

[BethinPR]

I had this same problem last year, and someone told me it was because I was not using the most efficient gear for whatever speed/hill etc I was riding. Usually if I switched to an easier gear the ticking went away. I don't know if that truly solved the problem, but it helped with the weird noise.

[Batbike]

i had a tick that sounds like yours -- spent MONTHS trying to figure it out -- replaced and relubed and repaired all that was recommended, only to discover that my first instinct was correct -- the rear hub needed new bearings. now i am tick free!

[margo49]

I had that and found out it was the tail end of the cable to the front derailleur geting clocked by the pedal as it rotated. Bent it back outta the way and voila!

[DebW]

Didn't you change pedals recently? Did it happen both before and after the pedal change? These kinds of noises can drive you nuts and be extremely hard to find. My last noise turned out (I think) to be a slight twist in the chain. Your noise happens only under pedaling pressure, so maybe something that deflects under tension.

[DarcyInOregon]

I had an equivalent noise too. The LBS replaced a washer (?) in the right pedal crank and that eliminated the noise. I hope I called the metal thing the right name. It is round, flat and with a hole in the middle. The one I had was worn out.

Darcy

[Batbike]

noises can drive you crazy and can come from ANYwhere! as previously stated, it took me MONTHS to find my "tick". what i learned is that you start with the most obvious and change that first. for example, it could be your pedals -- that is a very could guess -- so, change your pedals if you can. Do you have another set of SOMEthing to put on that you can ride and see if noise disappears? if after you change pedals and that doesn't work, how about your cleats -- loose bolts, straps, velco hitting -- can you change your shoes? etc., etc., etc.

just start with most obvious and least expensive and work through it.

in my case, i first thought my tick was in my rear wheel but did not have a wheel to swap and it was the most expensive "fix", so knocked out everything else that i could, eventually found a wheel to replace, and discovered it was the rear wheel after all. Good luck!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I had a tinging noise that used to drive me nuts. It sounded like it was coming from the head tube somewhere. Eventually, I found out it was the little buckle holding my saddlebag to the seatpost- the buckle would ting against the seat post, and the sound apparently travelled all along the top tube until it sounded like it was coming from the head tube up front! I was SO relieved when I figured it out.

[Mimosa]

I also had a tick emerging out of seemingly nowhere at 7 o'clock on the right pedal side. I removed both pedals, lubed the thread again and *pfew* the tick is gone. That's the second (different bikes, different pedal brands) where this happened and both times lubing the thread solved the problem.

[SandyLS]

If you have a cadence counter on your bike computer make sure that the magnate is not hitting the wheel as you peddle.

[DebW]

If you have a cadence counter on your bike computer make sure that the magnate is not hitting the wheel as you peddle.

Actually, even when it's not hitting the wheel, mine make a faint audible tick.

[uk elephant]

Finally worked out what it was! Not shoe laces (I wasn't wearing any), not cadence counter (I don't have one), not rear wheel (put another one on and the noice was still there). Spent another hour at the bike shop this afternoon trying to figure out where it could be coming from. Finally the shop guy had the brilliant idea to try pedalling out of the saddle....voila, no noice. So he greased the seat post, put it back and now it is once again smooth and quiet.