Re: Which pedals: nylon or metal?

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article >,
(Joe Samangitak) wrote:

> Help me decide on nylon/plastic or metal alloy pedals. My older bike
> had metal pedals and my newer bike, a Mongoose hybrid, came with these
> newer Wellgo nylon pedals; like in the picture below:
>
> http://harriscyclery.net/site/page.cfm?PageID=49&SKU=PD1037
>
> Both pedals are of comparable design. Some of the pro's and cons I see
> between the two are: nylon pedal lighter (which is good), doesn't spin
> as easily (which is good), but the teeth will wear out faster than the
> metal one (however, its cheap to replace). Only advantage I can see to
> using the metal pedal instead is that the teeth don't wear down.
> Between these two, which would generally be considered the better
> pedal?

Always the paradigm-breakers, we cyclists.

Why go with either design? If you are resolved against clips/straps and
clipless designs, the current state of the art in flat pedals comes from
mountain bike/BMX, where they make these beautiful flat units with
little pegs studded all over the platform. On the better models, the
pegs are very small allen-headed screws, which means when you wear them
out you can replace them.

These pedals are remarkably tenacious: step onto them, and your foot
will not slide off.

I have found pedals with replaceable pegs at my favourite shop for C$17,
which is like US$12.

Looks a bit like this:

http://harriscyclery.net/site/page.cfm?PageID=49&SKU=PD9144

--
Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine
President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

[Bob]

"Ryan Cousineau" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> (Joe Samangitak) wrote:
>
> > Help me decide on nylon/plastic or metal alloy pedals. My older bike
> > had metal pedals and my newer bike, a Mongoose hybrid, came with these
> > newer Wellgo nylon pedals; like in the picture below:
> >
> > http://harriscyclery.net/site/page.cfm?PageID=49&SKU=PD1037
> >
> > Both pedals are of comparable design. Some of the pro's and cons I see
> > between the two are: nylon pedal lighter (which is good), doesn't spin
> > as easily (which is good), but the teeth will wear out faster than the
> > metal one (however, its cheap to replace). Only advantage I can see to
> > using the metal pedal instead is that the teeth don't wear down.
> > Between these two, which would generally be considered the better
> > pedal?
>
> Always the paradigm-breakers, we cyclists.
>
> Why go with either design? If you are resolved against clips/straps and
> clipless designs, the current state of the art in flat pedals comes from
> mountain bike/BMX, where they make these beautiful flat units with
> little pegs studded all over the platform. On the better models, the
> pegs are very small allen-headed screws, which means when you wear them
> out you can replace them.
>
> These pedals are remarkably tenacious: step onto them, and your foot
> will not slide off.
>
> I have found pedals with replaceable pegs at my favourite shop for C$17,
> which is like US$12.
>
> Looks a bit like this:
>
> http://harriscyclery.net/site/page.cfm?PageID=49&SKU=PD9144
>
> --
> Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine
> President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

I have some Shimano PDMX-30 which are just as you describe. Metal with
small allen screw pegs. Comes with 1 short set installed and another longer
set if you want your shoe just about bolted to the pedal. They stick real
well in rain, snow etc. A bit pricy but I put 8k miles per year on my
hybrid and its worth it. I suspect if you do much trail riding they also
are very good at removing layers of skin from your shins

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article >,
Rick Onanian > wrote:

> On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 07:16:49 -0700, Ryan Cousineau > wrote:
> > But except for clips and straps, I can't think of a pedal model that will
> > both hold your foot well and not make a big mess if you hit your shin
> > against it.
>
> 1. Clipless pedals -- not all of them will destroy your shin

Yeah, I guess a Speedplay pedal might be okay, though I still wouldn't
want it to hit my shin. Most mainstream pedals, SPDs for sure (I can
prove it...) will take a nasty chunk out of your shin.

> 2. Shoes with ballsy soles, with less aggressive plastic
> pedals -- Baseball cleats worked for me, but golf
> shoes (with their replacable metal spikes) would do
> even better

Hm. Interesting idea. Maybe this will be the latest trend.

But that last solution means you need funny shoes, just like clipless.
Most people with pegged platform pedals are using them either because
they don't want to be attached to their bicycle--they are already
wearing shin guards. The rest are using them because they work with
street shoes. They aren't wearing shin guards, but they don't want to
wear funny shoes. If they're really worried about their shins, these
people just go to rubber block pedals and take the grip penalty.

If I was going to set up a bike for use in civilian shoes, I'd pick
pegged platforms. rubber pedals would annoy me, and my experience with
road bike leads me to believe that I wouldn't bang my shins against the
pedals often enough to matter.

--
Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine
President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

[Bernie]

Ryan Cousineau wrote:

> In article >,
> Rick Onanian > wrote:
>
> > On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 07:16:49 -0700, Ryan Cousineau > wrote:
> > > But except for clips and straps, I can't think of a pedal model that will
> > > both hold your foot well and not make a big mess if you hit your shin
> > > against it.
> >
> > 1. Clipless pedals -- not all of them will destroy your shin
>
> Yeah, I guess a Speedplay pedal might be okay, though I still wouldn't
> want it to hit my shin. Most mainstream pedals, SPDs for sure (I can
> prove it...) will take a nasty chunk out of your shin.
>
> > 2. Shoes with ballsy soles, with less aggressive plastic
> > pedals -- Baseball cleats worked for me, but golf
> > shoes (with their replacable metal spikes) would do
> > even better
>
> Hm. Interesting idea. Maybe this will be the latest trend.
>
> But that last solution means you need funny shoes, just like clipless.
> Most people with pegged platform pedals are using them either because
> they don't want to be attached to their bicycle--they are already
> wearing shin guards. The rest are using them because they work with
> street shoes. They aren't wearing shin guards, but they don't want to
> wear funny shoes. If they're really worried about their shins, these
> people just go to rubber block pedals and take the grip penalty.
>
> If I was going to set up a bike for use in civilian shoes, I'd pick
> pegged platforms. rubber pedals would annoy me, and my experience with
> road bike leads me to believe that I wouldn't bang my shins against the
> pedals often enough to matter.
>
> --
> Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine
> President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

Geez! I keep telling you. Just use toe clips less straps or Mt. Zefal toe
cups. Any shoe will fit, you won't slip out, will spin as fast as you choose,
even on rough ground, rr tracks, whatever and will not lose your footing on the
pedal. What's wrong with that?
Bernie

[Buck]

"Bernie" > wrote in message
...

> Geez! I keep telling you. Just use toe clips less straps or Mt. Zefal
toe
> cups. Any shoe will fit, you won't slip out, will spin as fast as you
choose,
> even on rough ground, rr tracks, whatever and will not lose your footing
on the
> pedal. What's wrong with that?

I suppose it depends on how often you ride with toe clips and straps. I
tried out those toe cups for a few weeks. I kept forgetting that just
because I had some pressure on my toe it did not mean that I could pull up.
I had a number of incidents where I tried to pull up and ended up getting
all squirrelly when my foot lifted completely of the pedal. I went back to
full clips and straps on my commuter.

The big trick for me is to use mountain clips which have a wider top to
spread the strap. I ride in everything from cross-trainers to dress shoes
and rarely have a problem. It also helps that I use an aggressive all-metal
"rat-trap" style pedal. I found that nylon pedals get a little too slick
when combined with certain shoes. Of course, I still have clipless pedals on
my mountain and road bikes....

-Buck

[Steve Knight]

On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 07:16:49 -0700, Ryan Cousineau > wrote:

>Yes. They're the universal choice of MTBers who don't use clipless. Note
>that this is primarily a freeride tool, and that most freeriders are
>aready wearing shin armor.
>
>But except for clips and straps, I can't think of a pedal model that
>will both hold your foot well and not make a big mess if you hit your
>shin against it.

I just got me some off of ebay. 1/2 the price of local. about 62.00 with
shipping. Must of my riding is in the city with short hops and frequent stops.
the short pegs were worthless I found today when I first tried them out.

--
Knight-Toolworks & Custom Planes
Custom made wooden planes at reasonable prices
See http://www.knight-toolworks.com For prices and ordering instructions.

[Bernie]

Buck wrote:

> "Bernie" > wrote in message
> ...
>
> > Geez! I keep telling you. Just use toe clips less straps or Mt. Zefal
> toe
> > cups. Any shoe will fit, you won't slip out, will spin as fast as you
> choose,
> > even on rough ground, rr tracks, whatever and will not lose your footing
> on the
> > pedal. What's wrong with that?
>
> I suppose it depends on how often you ride with toe clips and straps. I
> tried out those toe cups for a few weeks. I kept forgetting that just
> because I had some pressure on my toe it did not mean that I could pull up.
> I had a number of incidents where I tried to pull up and ended up getting
> all squirrelly when my foot lifted completely of the pedal. I went back to
> full clips and straps on my commuter.
>
> The big trick for me is to use mountain clips which have a wider top to
> spread the strap. I ride in everything from cross-trainers to dress shoes
> and rarely have a problem. It also helps that I use an aggressive all-metal
> "rat-trap" style pedal. I found that nylon pedals get a little too slick
> when combined with certain shoes. Of course, I still have clipless pedals on
> my mountain and road bikes....
>
> -Buck

Each to his own taste of course. I find them such a no brainer easy ride
accessory that I doubt I will change to clips with straps at any time. If I
finally do get a decent road bike then I'll <choke> spring for clipless pedals
and shoes. Til then I'm good with the aforementioned.
I agree the metal pedals give the securest grip.
Bernie