Creak/ clicking sound when i sit down

[JDbiker]

I have a 2009 Felt F-75 road bike with a new longer (400 to 450mm?) ritchey seatpost with the original saddle. When I sit down and pedal, it makes a creaky ticking sound coming from below me. I cannot feel any play in the BB either. But when I stand up to sprint or climb, the sound disappears. I have greased the seatpost, rails, bolts, and the pedals. If anyone knows anything about this problem, please help! Thanks!

[AndrewB]

What part of the seatpost did you grease?? Is that what the specifications called for? I think they usually ask for carbon paste, which is not grease. (Paste increases friction, grease reduces friction)

From a quick web search, and assuming you have the stock bicycle, your seat post is carbon fiber. Have you taken a torque wrench to ensure it's tightened to specification? Be careful, because if you tighten it too much, the fiber may crack.

Lastly, how would you qualify your body mass?

[JDbiker]

the ritchey seatpost is aluminum, because my old one wasn't long enough. I did not torque it with a wrench, but it is pretty tight. I am 6'5" and weight about 200lbs

[AndrewB]

Do you think the creaking is coming from where the seat attached to the post, or where the post attaches to the frame?

[Joe_W]

Hm.... swap out the saddle with another one?
Take a look at the BB? Though that would creak also when standing up.

Those mystery noises can drive you crazy looking for the source. Good luck, you'll need it.

[JDbiker]

(08-18-2010, 04:13 PM)AndrewB Wrote:  Do you think the creaking is coming from where the seat attached to the post, or where the post attaches to the frame?

Its sounds lower, like near the crankset, but the sound goes away when i stand up. I will try quick swapping out my wifes road bike seatpost and saddle on my bike tonight to see if the noise goes away. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks for the input!

[AndrewB]

Hrm! Is the seatpost straight? I could imagine that if there is a small amount of play, it might rub against the interior frame near the crankset. It might be tough to see if it's straight, as maybe a 1mm difference might cause what you hear.

Let us know how your experiment goes.

[JDbiker]

I FIXED IT!!!!!! Turns out that my seatpost was too long (450mm) and when i sat down on the saddle it would flex inside the seattube and make a ticking sound. It sounded almost exactly like a bb going bad so thats why i was so confused! My wifes seat tube was 300mm and hers made the sound go away instantly.