Excess grease coming out of speedplay after first ride

[iscarrr]

Just got myself some speedplay zero's, mainly as an experiment, and after the first ride (which was quite wet), this is how my left pedal looked? The right was fine.



Do i just clean it up and carry on? Or should i be adding more grease, or looking to return them?

Thanks.

[howler]

this is not at all unusual for speedplays. I get teh same (though not quite as much) after i re-grease mine. Might be a little too much grease was in there from the factory? The pedals use a needle (loose ball) bearing (not a sealed cartridge) which pushes grease out a little as it spins. This is one of the reasons for speedplays needing to be re-greased more often than other pedals.

Just wipe excess off, check that the o-ring is in place (there should be a small rubber seal just inside the pedal body where the grease is coming out in your photo), and it should be fine

[5shot]

Speedplays use both cartridge bearing and needle bearings and needle bearings are not loose "ball" bearings. I've had many, many pairs of Speedplays over the years and I've never seen them leak like that straight out of the box. I'd check to make sure that the o-ring is in place. It should be just out of view inside the inboard side of the pedal body. If it's not there, it is easy to replace.

[Rick]

That looks like a lttle more than normal, but not really too alarming. Excess grease weeping out is a standard occurance on speedplays. It happens every time I regrease mine. I just wipe it off and it will stop after a couple rides. Do check to make sure you can see the O-ring in there just to be sure.
I don't think many other pedals have a way to inject the new grease under pressure, so that is why speedplays weep. The grease is actually under some pressure when injected.

[howler]

thanks @5shot- i stand corrected on the bearings.

[seandonovan]

Bit more info on the roller bearings: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Needle_roller_bearing

Not something that one seals easily, but when you're doing for low bearing height, they can't be beat.

[iscarrr]

Thanks for all the replies guys. Will check the o ring when i get home tonight.