Carpet

Rebuilding a Knee Kicker: Teeth, Pads and Heads

Rebuilding a knee kicker: replacing pin plates and teeth, setting pin depth, and swapping the bumper pad on Roberts and Crain kickers.

Updated · 2 min read

A knee kicker takes a beating, but it's built to be rebuilt. The parts that wear are the teeth, the nap grips and the bumper pad. Replace those and a good kicker lasts for years.

What wears out

These are the usual replacement parts on two popular kickers.

Part Roberts deluxe kickers[1] Crain 605[2]
Teeth / pin plate 10-412-07 kicker teeth; 10-412-04 base plate 1601-B pin plate (16 hardened steel pins)
Nap grips 10-412-03 1505-K
Bumper 10-412-09 bumper assembly; 10-422-09 3" pad 1600-C bumper
Body and dial 10-412-01A See parts list

Pins are replaced as a plate or base plate, not one at a time.

Pin depth

Pin depth is the adjustment that matters most day to day.

  • The Roberts 10-422BK has 17 fine depth settings and extends pins up to 1/2".[3]
  • The Crain 605 has 9 depth settings.[2]
  • Set the pins to grip the backing without going through it. Too deep snags the pad; too shallow slips.

Rebuild steps

A basic rebuild takes a few minutes with the right parts on hand.

  1. Set the dial to minimum depth so the pins retract.
  2. Remove the base or pin plate screws and take off the worn plate.
  3. Clean carpet fiber and grit out of the head.
  4. Install the new pin plate and nap grips, tightening the screws evenly.
  5. Replace the bumper pad if it's compressed or torn.
  6. Check that the length adjustment and depth dial move freely.
  7. Test on a scrap of carpet at a few depth settings.

Signs it needs work

These usually show up before a kicker fails completely.

  • It slips on carpet it used to grip.
  • Pins are bent, broken or rounded.
  • The bumper is flat and the kick hurts your knee.
  • The depth dial won't hold its setting.

Keep in mind that the installation standard doesn't treat a knee kicker as a stretching tool.[4] See Power stretcher vs knee kicker.

Kickers and parts we carry

These are the kickers we stock, with links to their parts.

References

  1. Roberts 10-412-2 deluxe knee kicker parts list
  2. Crain No. 605 Deluxe Knee Kicker
  3. Roberts 10-422BK knee kicker (product page)
  4. CRI 105: Residential carpet installation standard

Linked PDF documents are archived copies saved by PreFloor Tools so they stay available if the publisher moves or removes them. Check the publisher's website for the latest revision.

Tools for this job

Shop by category

More Carpet guides

Parts for these machines

OEM replacement parts, organized by assembly, with the manual for each machine.