Ive been thru the broken bone phase, and hospital time, from racing dirtbikes, its not as much fun as it looks like. I try very hard not to do the same on mt bikes.
My underrated brand is WellGo, it's chinese but they sell magnesium BMX pedals dirt cheap that work great for MTB because they're indestructible, my set has been abused heavily for god knows how long and they're still going just fine. If pedal thickness isn't really important to you i can't recommend them enough
As a longtime flat pedal rider, I've found that shoe stiffness + rubber needs to match pedal profile and pin type, and even foot position. Those convex pedals that you (and I) don't really like favor a midfoot position and softer shoes that kind of drape over the axle. Concave works best if you position the ball of your foot on or just in front of the spindle. Grub screws pair really well with very soft, tacky rubber like 5.10 Stealth S1 (in Impact Pro, Sam Hill, Freerider Pro). Pins (especially longer ones) work better on harder rubber, like that Ride Concepts uses. The Tenet Occult has a really similar shape to the TMac, and comes with both pins and grubs. I did back to back testing of those with both Impact Pros and RC Tallacs, and found the grubs worked better on the Impact Pros and pins on the Tallacs. I've had some durability issues with the Occults, but not with the TMacs. And for whatever reason, I get a little bit more grip with the TMacs and my Impact Pros than Occults with grubs. With TMacs and Impact Pros, I can actually lift the pedal up a bit, which makes them extremely planted in the rough.
After blowing out a couple pairs of crank brothers stamp 1, I went to the RaceFace Atlas and will never turn back. I rode Chesters for years and never had an issue. Figured the Atlas would be just as reliable. Totally amazing pedal.
Funny, I hade a very similar experience. Loved chesters after riding for a couple years but decided more grip would be nice. Now I have 4 sets of the updated Atlas pedals and theyve been amazing! Wish I wouldve gotten at least one set in a cool color tho 😆
Switched to flats 2.5 years back, tried a number of flats but really couldn’t beat the DMR Vaults or Crank Brothers Stamp 7 Large. I’m also rocking Sasquatch size 15 five tens! Great video Jeff, never tried any of those. Thanks for the heads up!
Foot Size has a huge impact. I’ve had most these and half dozen others. New favorites are Dagga and TMAC as I’m a size 13 and my foot hangs off many the others. Like the Scarab would cause pain between the metatarsals of my pinky toe. Deftrap was my favorite and only pedal on 3 bikes for its grip, size and cost for years but I think the plastic body flexes more and I bent 3 spindles at 220 lbs aggressive rider. Pro Tip: For a little concavity and more grip I often remove the 2 pins in the middle of the pedal like on my Daggas and that adds weight to the other pins and some relief in the middle. 🤙🏼 Great Review!
@@dytrdr5 Yes I have. I had the original Catalyst and the problem with it was it was long but narrow and my pinky toe kinda hung off. I have a Neroma that sometimes bothers me and those pedals really did as they were way narrower than most. Also one axles would come loose all the time since they had no lock nut and both were right hand threads. I then got the Catalyst XL and they still weren’t as wide as many of these other pedals but they were close enough they didn’t bother my foot. The problem was the pins at such a large surface had little gription. I installed the long pins then tried removing half of them to get more weight per pin but they never came close to the grip of a Scarrab, Tmac, Deftrap, Atlas, OneUp, etc.
Yeah i wish he tried dagga with the inner pins out, i hear the same from other owners as soon as they take more pins out it feels way better. I actually have a pair thats been sitting here all month because I couldnt decide whether to keep and try or send back until I heard more about them, but I think Im gonna keep them after I found that advice!
My feet stick out to the sides (must have been too big for the womb), so smaller platforms don't really work for my 'duck footed' natural stance. It's why I absolutely love Kona's Wah Wah lineup, where the extra large platform (almost 120mm x 120mm) really let me keep my feet in a comfortable position. I've found over the years, after observing where my 5-10 shoe soles repeatedly wear-thru, that if I remove the front corner pedal pin, I'll avoid wearing a hole thru my shoe, as my riding stance places a lot of pressure on the front outer corner of any pedal I'm riding. I've found 5-10 freerider and freerider pro's have very thin soles and will wear thru unless you really manage where the pins are on your pedals, whereas the thicker 5-10 Impact sole resists pin wear thru much better. Strategically removing pins is a good trick to dial in your own preference for foot stance on the pedal when using lots of body english thru the feet. I usually get a season from the composite Kona pedals before they crack (still rideable) at one of the diagonal struts off the main axle, and for the aluminum ones, they're much tougher than the composit pedals - well worth twice the price - on my bike for over a year now w/ no issues (I'm 205 lbs too). Great vid for riders considering making the switch, as I have (I finally ditched clip ins for good in 1998).
Great video. I am surprised that you didn't try any other more common pedals like the Nukeproof, DMR or Crank Brothers. In general I do prefer flat pedals too but pin position can be a bit of a hit and miss depending on your shoes. And speaking about shoes, it is very hard to find flat pedal shoes that are waterproof.
Yeah I’ve got nukeproof pedals and there so grippy I actually forget about having to keep my feet on the bike, kind of what I imagine riding clipped in is like
@@hambo76 Crank Brothers Stamp pedals have a large pedal that offers loads of grip and room for your foot to move around. Surprised Raceface didn't make the cut either. Although I find Chesters too small as well.
Jeff I separated my shoulder and shattered my hand because of clipless. After 20 years do clips Went to flats 3 years ago and have had no serious wipe outs. Was surprised by the grip and improved my technique in almost every case. Love them and will never go back.
Love my Race Face Chester flats with fiveten shoes. I have never used anything than flats because i feel safer and ride harder with proper flat pedals.
My personal favorite flat pedal is the Catalyst by Pedaling Innovations. They are quite long (the longest made, I think). So grippy that I suffered a torn calf muscle a few years ago in a freak accident where one foot stayed firmly attached to the pedal while I and my bike somersaulted backward off a short steep climb that I totally screwed up....
Another fantastic vid Jeff! My favorite pedals (after having gone through 10 pairs): OneUp Aluminum (as they're nice and thin, the sealing is the best I've had and one of the few pedals that don't require bushing/bearing removal tools to overhaul which adds cost) with Chromag Dagga pins (as they're long, thin and threaded at the end with a tapered bottom to prevent issues with broken pins. Chromag make the best pins on the market, and agree with what you've said that most of the grip comes from the pins. OneUp pins are long but unfortunately don't aren't threaded at the tip in order to ease replacement, but also reduces grip ).
I rode the WahWah composite pedals on all my bikes. I'm a smaller rider so love that they come in a small size. So far I've had a ton of grip on them when riding with my 5/10 shoes.
I’ve snapped the spindle on those same model Shimano XT pedals and the Kona Wah Wah composites. I’ve come to the conclusion that any pedal that doesn’t have the spindle run the entire width of the pedal is WEAK. Both of these pedals snapped on my single speed while pedalling, not jumping or etc. Running the Chromag Dagga’s now, hopefully they last a while….
I know you’re testing from Jensen only but my socks have been recently knocked off by my Pedal Innovations Catalysts pedals. Out side the box design and philosophy that has completely changed the game for me.
Whatever happened to those new Shimano Saint flat pedals that were announced back in 2021? They looked pretty sweet but were never available from what I can tell.
I've tried a heap of pedals over the last decade. I haven't found a favorite alloy pedal yet, but I favor the composite Wah Wahs and the OneUp composites. As for shoes, I miss the few early years of Adidas' purchase of 5.10 when they were using Stealth rubber on their Terrex line. Soooooo much lighter and water resistant than 5.10s and without the goofy Dollar General version of 2000-era DC look that 5.10 favors. (If that sounds like I'm talking trash about 5.10s, that hasn't stopped me from owning more than a dozen pair of 5.10s.)
I have run One-Up Aluminum pedals, Crankbrothers Stamp 7 Large MacAskill Edition pedals, and the new redesigned Raceface Atlas pedals. The One-Up pedals are now hanging on my garage wall. I don't like how they still use a bushing rather than all sealed bearings, they have too much play after a short time, too much drag, and don't inspire confidence. My Crank Brothers Stamp 7 and Raceface Atlas pedals are both awesome, highly recommend both of those.
I own Endura MT500 and still going strong. They are great with burgtec MK5 and now i'm running MK4 composite pedals and they run AWESOME! Planning to go for RC Tallac BOA maybe next year coz again the Endura MT500 is still going strong.
Recently switched to flats after 10 years of clips out of curiosity. Enjoying it alot, went with crank bros stamps and while i know nothing about flats, the stamps feel super natural. No complaints.
I have been riding the stamp 2 for about a year and a half now. Ive hit them on rocks and a bunch of stuff and still work great. Also recently I been using them with the cranckbrother stamp shoes its a good match (no pun intended). I was riding the freeriders before and they do have a bit more grip but nothing crazy. I had go one full size up on the cranckbrothers shoes tho and they are more comfortable and have more toebox space than 5.10s.
Great job on the video. IMO, the top flat pedals are e*thirteen Plus, or if a person has a smaller foot, or likes a smaller pedal: HopeF20. Nothing else compares to these. One Up are also excellent, but are missing in the middle area, making them just a little less grippy. All three, with 5 10 Freeriders.
For me, Five Ten freerider pro and really any pedal seems to be good. I've had T-macs, DMR Vault, XT, Rock Bros, Funn and some others. Because the Freerider pro grips so well I've just settled on cheapy pedals, Funn on my park bike and Rockbros on the dirt jumper.
Late to the party, but as somewhat of a flat pedal specialist (owing to riding the trials bike far more than the MTB) the Dagga with shortened pins has been the ticket for me. Big enough that some movement over especially chattery stuff isn’t cause for concern, and the slightly shorter pins knock the grip down just enough to reposition my five tens.
Ooo .. I drive a car - with clutch - in MTB shoes 5+ times a week. A flat pedal shoe. They feel the same as any other sneaker, better than most due to the slight rigidity. It's not like I am going to be heel-toe shifting a diesel truck :O My new favourite is Yoshimura. Still use Hope an I like it (less grip in mud). The new Shimano Saint/XT is good, but it is a very catchy shape when it touches down, bulky too. One thing I look at when trying new is pin width. Skinny pins give a good grip, but they more likely to rip into your clothes or skin. In addition they also destroy shoes super fast. That's why I am pretty much for Yoshimura, Hope.
I am curious as to why he said that. Maybe a mindset thing? I can drive slightly better in my 510s because the added weight and rigidity help me operate my clutch slightly better.
The only difference they'd make is how much you spend to replace them after you've dragged them all over rocks, titanium can break on hits too just look at 5devs cranks lol
Swapped to Deftraps a year or two ago simply because they had a particular shade of pink that matched the accents on my bike. I actually love them a lot - it's nice that they're so affordable too. Been hearing good things about the Etnies entry into mountain bike shoes, but I've got two perfectly good pairs of pre-Adidas 510s that I can't justify grabbing a pair.
I keep hearing nothing but the best about deftraps but i gotta ask Ive heard from some that the nylon pins just break off right away which sounds lame, but even if thats true im wondering if they feel the best even with them missing?
@@LastAphelion mine are all still in tact. I like to ride a lot of tech on my hardtail and they're still going strong. Only 2 out of the 10 pins on each side are nylon and they're the ones closest to the spindle on the inside foot. I imagine they're nylon because that area of the pedal gets the least wear. Probably depends on the shoe used and rider stance too.
Mr. Weed I just came across your channel in my search for the yeti sb140 and mate, you have me in stitches. I’ll need pedals of course, so this popped up. Glad your alive and still charging!
Good stuff! I have been on flats for a long time now and it is extremely rare for me to drop a foot. I can easily keep pace climbing with the guys too. It takes practice.
Yeah me too. If I hear someone talk about slipping pedals these days I’m like- either you have the wrong pedal and shoe setup, or bad technique. The grip on modern flats with proper shoes is incredible. I can actually pull on the upstroke just like in clipless.
I like flats over clipless for sure. To me, spiky flats work just as well as clipless in terms of speed. I don't like the feeling of not being able to bail at low speeds or being stuck of my bike with clipless petals. I wear high top vans because the soles are so gummy that once you put your foot down, it's not coming off
I use to wear vans. Then I tried out some purpose built mountain biking shoes and I was amazed at the difference. If you haven't tried a great pair of mountain biking shoes I highly recommend it. They made a much larger difference than I was expecting.
2:16 On Freerider EPS(winter version ) you have to tighten the laces enough or they take in water, as the tongue only has overlapping material at the bottom. But as these shoes don't have a gaiter they let in water from the top. But I am not a fan of Freerider, as they have too thin outer sole, mid sole is not robust enough, I feel the ground too much. But the summer version was super breathable I felt the breeze trough them. I've ordered RideConcepts Tallac BOA, I will see how they do, I've read and been told they are breathable. I have tried TNT already, which has a great mid sole, outer sole, as grippy as FiveTen, but does not leave black marks on the floor, it's more compostable to walk in, much stiffer sole, great toe protection.
Went from almost 5 years clipped in Mallets. Tried Chesters and went back. Tried again with PNW Loam and actually found them instantly comfortable. Love the in depth review, might have gone a different route if I saw this sooner but I'm loving my current set up. 🤘
@@FrankLempka correction realized I have "range" pedals, the composite version. These seem to be less bulged in the middle. I never noticed the convex wearing my 5/10s and definitely can't slip my feet if I try. Might just be a better pairing than some other shoes.
Really funny you put this out there. I have been riding clipless pedals since the mid 90's as well and this year ditched them for good. Todays features and trails are way more suited to flats. Good buy for good clipless. (shoes are cheaper too)
Pedals are one of the more weird bike parts because most bikes don't come with pedals. So buying pedals are something most people need to do. I get why they don't ship with pedals because of clipless vs flat but my point is more about this one of the most common purchase when buying a new bike. Shoes most new bikers don't buy right away but really should be your second purchase after pedals. I personally like the OneUps. I run their composite on my fatbike and plan to get the aluminum again for my Turbo Levo (left on my last bike when I sold it by mistake).
After ignorantly riding clipped in for so many years, riding flats the last 3 years has revealed my embarrassingly bad techniques and opened a new world of confidence on anything requiring me to leave the ground. I keep coming back to FiveTens FR Pro which beyond grip have held up and protected my feet better than anything else I've tried. I'd submit that OneUp composites should have been on your list. Sold me on their "just the right amount" of flex and best pin layout.
It must be a very personal thing, 4 years on flats and the PNW composite pedals work absolutely great, for me. And they sell cubic yit loads of them, at a nice price. I dont know how many mt bikers ride like you do, and bend spindles and break pelvis's etc. Those are things I wont be doing. Good video! I always see testers saying "almost nearly as a good as 5/10" when it comes to shoes. I cut to the chase and have a couple pair of 5/10's The winter 5/10 you showed looks good.
2nd the Hope F20! Probably the best pin design IMO. I have them on them on my HT, FS, and DJ and use 510s, and had to remove 5 pins/side to reduce grip enough to reposition.
Raceface Atlas pedals are the grippiest I have ridden, currently riding the oneup alloy pedals and they are just okay I guess, gonna try the Kona Wah-wah composites soon though!
@@samc821 large Wah Wah II’s it is!!!! You can’t go wrong!!! I will note that if you ride rocky techy terrain you will eventually crack the composite wah wah’s/ but they still kick major ass/ if you absolutely don’t want them cracking grab some aluminum one’s🏄♂️
From my personal experience what I look out for when buying pedals and shoes is the pedals must have a cromoli shaft that is really a must, I used a few pedals back in the day once I used nylon pedals it felt diferent, as they feel diferent it seems they tend to absorb impacts like when you go over a rock garden instead of shaking your shoe out of the pedal, shoes I mostly buy skateboard shoes as the sole bends easily to grip whatever surface it's standing on, so my pedal choice as of right now are race face chester, I had them for maybe a year so far so good.
I've been on flats for over 10 years, so far my favorites are Tectonic out of Durango, CO. Carbon fiber reinforced plastic, concave, very grippy, light.
Interesting: I found TMACS to be the most grippy and have tried about a dozen different pedals - though a bit chunky and made pedal strikes more likely to blow your foot off (no slanted leading edge). I preferred riding TMACS with Shimano shoes, not fancy Five10s - that was too much traction and made it feel like my foot had to be raised a foot off the pedal before I could reposition when needed. I tried Chromag Contacts and they're my least favorite. Marin's new OSO pedals were good composites, OneUps were good in both alloy and composite, Giant has some really good pedals (the grip at least) but developed some bearing play a bit too soon. Crank Brothers fit nicely into good traction, slim profile, and longevity - for me it would likely be Crank Brothers, Marin or OneUp as my favorites
I spent sometime on the Deity Deftraps and really enjoyed them. I did find the plastic that made up the body was too soft and caused bad gouging when stricken by rocks. This also caused stripping of the nuts places where the pins are at, when trying to remove snapped off pins makes me loose a pin placement on the pedal.
No Raceface Atlas or One up pedals? There are a couple others id include as well. However you did include a lot of popular pedals and your content is always on par. Great video.
Jeff, love the content, keep it up! I switch back and forth between clips and flats, and have ridden both in most all conditions. One big thing I’ve noticed riding fatbikes the snow is that a shorter spindle pedal with that little “gap” towards the outside (like the Kona or Shimano you mention) work better than the longer spindle (Dagga or Scarab) that carries out to the width of the pedal. What I find is that ice builds up on the longer spindle pedals, where the gap of the shorter allows that snow to fall through and ice does not build up. I also notice a difference in ice build up elsewhere on the pedal between composite and metal, where composite seems to ice faster (maybe because of the pours in the material).
Since I started using Pedaling Innovations pedals I’ve found the big platform supports my ankles better and offer an amazing pedalling platform. Shoes were then my next issue, I’ve had 510s and tried others but went back to my old 510s. I thought I should buy myself some new ones, same model, size and guess what? They sucked, nowhere near as comfortable. Almost by accident I realised my daily cheap old Vans work amazing on the P.I. pedals. The amount of grip means I might as well be clipped in. I’ll never throw money at overly expensive “flat pedal mtb shoes” ever again. It’s great having one pair of shoes that can cover all my needs.
I'd be curious to see how the RaceFace Chester would stand up in your line up. I also liked the shoe review part, shoes are tough bc you have to basically wear a pair out to know how good/bad they are. I had some Ride Concepts with the gum hex sole pattern that were really grippy, my first dedicated MTB shoes, and I thought the grip was insane. A year into riding with them, and a few hundred miles on the trail, I got a hole on both left and right soles from the pedal pins wearing through. I grabbed some 5/10 Freeriders and realized the grip was even better than the RCs! However, only 6 months into riding, about the same mileage, the 5/10s are already getting holes in the soles :( and both were pedaling the Chesters. I still love the grip of the 5/10s but not the longevity.
Im chewing through soles on RC Vices and Five Ten freeriders with Chesters too. Maybe we’re just shredding too hard, and shoe wear is something that comes with the territory.
@@ManualVorlaufer I have certainly considered that, and I found the FRs for $50-60 before Christmas, so I grabbed 2pr. That's basically the same cost/wear ratio haha
Not sure why everyone raves about the Deity TMacs when the Deity Bladerunner is FAR superior. Better grip than the TMacs and much thinner, resulting in fewer rock strikes.
Bent one of the spindles on an aluminum Wah Wah pedal last week. Rebuilt it, got them back on the bike and bent the other pedal spindle today with a hard strike. They went to live in the trash can.
Been running the Deathtraps for a bit over 2 years now on my Sight. Plenty of rock hits, but never had any issues. Plenty of grip, and can attest to the durability. I also find that composite pedals have better grip due to the thinner pins.
My Five Ten Freerider soles delaminated, they had very little use when it started to happen. It was CLEARLY a manufacturing defect, and they were only a few months old. The center of the tread developed a huge bubble on both shoes. Five Ten literally sounded like they could care less, they told me to take them to an Adidas store, because they didn't deal with warranty anymore. Adidas told me they don't deal with Five Ten warranty claims, and told me to take them to a Five Ten dealer. The Five Ten dealer told me to contact Five Ten, because they don't deal with warranty. Don't plan on any help AT ALL if anything goes wrong with Five Ten shoes!
Your video about flat pedals and shoes was very informative. I adore the wah wah plastic pedal and am riding 3 pairs of them on 3 different bikes. Sturdy, robust not one changed spindle or bearing. As I work in a bike shop and I will just hint you that I adore the Kona Process in your video, I love the front wheel! Nice touch! If you would be interested I would suggest you do a video about xpedo spry pedals since they offer I think 3 or 4 variations of pins they offer and that are changeable. And the pedals are magnesium they are really lightweight. But the pins they offer are interesting, different shapes and you had such a detailed video that I would personally love a video just about the grip on one pedals with different shape pins. Cheers!
Had to size up with the Enduras, and for my wide shovel feet they are a good fit. Strangely the sizing up was more for the length. I also found the ankle pad rubbed, but it stopped after my second ride as it broke in and is now not a problem. I ride a lot of rocky trains and these shoes give loads of protection. I couldn't be happier. In fact if I ever return to clipless they some ina clipless version, so hopefully a future iterarion is similar. I love the cooler, and wish more shoes would escape the blacks and dull greys.
TEST FOR THE BEST MTB TYRE SEALANT ! An actual independent test of the best tyre sealant would be interesting i think silca might be the winner I personally use oneup pedals and think there really good !
Hands down my fav pedals are the OneUp aluminum pedals. I also recently tried the new Leatt shoes instead of my five ten freerider pro’s and I’m loving them!
I own a set of Shimano Saint PD M-828's, they allowed me to recreate the concave platform I was accustomed to with the now ancient, but still venerable, Shimano DX pedals from my freestyle BMX days in the 80's. By using the long pins on the outer perimeter, & shorter pins in the center around the spindle I was able to create the concavity I was looking for. Though I currently ride a set of OneUp Aluminum pedals, which with my 5.10 Trailcross GTX's have all of the grip you could possibly ever need, or want, IMO.
Ive gone back to the Catalyst pedal on both Mt bikes, my feet and ankles have issues and the big platform is a really good thing for me. My trick is to run every other pin, but run the longer pins, and drill all the other holes out for that really bitchin look. 10 pins is plenty and makes great traction. But not too much. In general, they sell a ton of flat pedals on ebay, and elsewhere, people are definitely running flats these days.
Canfield crampons are the one of the best flat pedals to me. Convex pedals feel very good to me vs concave, convex matches the natural shape of your foot and thus grips better in my opinion.
Having used pedals with no concavity, felt wildly sketchy, and then concavity in both directions, amazing upgrade, on bmx bikes, I have a hard time understanding how going past the wildly sketchy shape to convex could feel better. Our foot is not naturally curved around a circle, it can actually cause a lot of damage to have your foot curved too much in a downward fashion like that.
Great vid as usual Jeff. You should check out Ride Concepts Vice mtb shoes. They have essentially the waffle sole of Vans on a stiffer last. I absolutely love the waffle sole because the pins actually sit in the holes of the sole. The soles, while super grippy, don’t just rely on the grippiness of the rubber for the grip, but actually lock the pins into place by having the pins sit in the holes of the sole. Also, they seem to be having a lot less wear than 510s because the pins aren’t tearing up the soles, they just sit in a hole made for them. I can pull up on the upstroke and actually have to lift my foot off the pedal ever so slightly to move my foot. Absolutely love the the shoe. They were a bit narrow in the toe box for me, but unlacing and then lacing looser seems to have worked. Re pedals, I think the other things that are important are the number of pins and placement location of the pins on the pedal. Probably every rider will feel differently about location depending on how they place their weight on their foot and where they like to have their foot on the pedal when they ride. For me, Tmacs for my smasher bike because of their durability and DefTraps for everything else paired with the Ride Concept Vice shoes is a match made in heaven.
I couldn't find Kona Wah Wah 2 composite anywhere in Australia so I went with Deity Deftraps and I'm not disappointed! My shoe is a size 48 Specialized 2FO Roost.
The secret to riding well with flat pedals is learning to use them when you’re a kid riding BMX. Otherwise not happening, at least IME I rode clipped in my whole 25 years riding mtb & never learned to get air or climb steep pitches on flats; also never got hurt due to clip ins not releasing when necessary
A year ago, I found some pedals that I found pretty much indestructible.. the DMR VALT11 which are expensive but looks good and easily serviceable. And the Yoshimura bike pedals. Which in my opinion are the best on the market... And I tried the Yoshimura on a bike that wasn't even mine. It's that good.
I've been using the composite Wah Wahs (aka the Wee Wee!) for years and they are my favorite so far. The huge platform and great grip haven't been beat by anything else I've tried. I started with composite Crank Brothers Stamp, but I kept sliding around and losing my footing on those. They've been relegated to the commuter bike.
At 260lbs, I've bent the spindles in many different flat pedals. It wasn't uncommon for me to bend the spindles on the first or second ride. I now ride crank brothers mallet (clipless) pedals and I have yet to bend one spindle. Maybe this is should be considered when deciding between flats and clipless pedals?
Jeff, a really fantastic review Sir. Your time and efforts are greatly appreciated. By the way, and for what it's worth, that's a really good looking shirt that you are wearing.
I think Etnies line of MTB shoes deserve a shout they have the Michelin soles you been missing from the Shimano durable as all hell too and oneup for the pedals those are quality as well
I have used the t macs. Didn’t like them. I really liked the specialized boom slangs! Nice platform really comfortable. Good talk pins needed servicing a lot. Now I am hooked on the pnw loam pedal! It just feels fine in my bike feet! I wear 5 10s all the time! Have been wearing since 2010 I think. And lastly I have never tried clipping in. Always rode flat shoes from my bmx and trying freestyle days! So I am ok with not being attached to the bike. You can still go fast plenty fast with flats!
“Rather than do anything foolish like stop riding mtn bikes”😆😆😆
Ive been thru the broken bone phase, and hospital time, from racing dirtbikes, its not as much fun as it looks like.
I try very hard not to do the same on mt bikes.
Surprised oneup pedals weren't included - by far the most popular flats around Vancouver Island, and much better priced compared to competition
worst pedals,i will return second in one month for noise cracking...total 💩
I like mine and bearing are so easily replaced super grippy
Mine make some noise but they have been working great for years. Definitely my go to.
My underrated brand is WellGo, it's chinese but they sell magnesium BMX pedals dirt cheap that work great for MTB because they're indestructible, my set has been abused heavily for god knows how long and they're still going just fine. If pedal thickness isn't really important to you i can't recommend them enough
Love my oneup pedals. Zero issues. Insane grip.
As a longtime flat pedal rider, I've found that shoe stiffness + rubber needs to match pedal profile and pin type, and even foot position. Those convex pedals that you (and I) don't really like favor a midfoot position and softer shoes that kind of drape over the axle. Concave works best if you position the ball of your foot on or just in front of the spindle. Grub screws pair really well with very soft, tacky rubber like 5.10 Stealth S1 (in Impact Pro, Sam Hill, Freerider Pro). Pins (especially longer ones) work better on harder rubber, like that Ride Concepts uses.
The Tenet Occult has a really similar shape to the TMac, and comes with both pins and grubs. I did back to back testing of those with both Impact Pros and RC Tallacs, and found the grubs worked better on the Impact Pros and pins on the Tallacs. I've had some durability issues with the Occults, but not with the TMacs. And for whatever reason, I get a little bit more grip with the TMacs and my Impact Pros than Occults with grubs. With TMacs and Impact Pros, I can actually lift the pedal up a bit, which makes them extremely planted in the rough.
This makes sense. I installed slightly longer pins on my Stamp pedals, and subsequently shredded the soles of my Five Tens.
I have read and watched a lot of shoe/ pedal reviews and somehow none of them managed to mention this very important aspect. Nice work dude
I have 2 words for you. One Up. Super low profile, indestructible, mega grippy, and they come in some awesome colors.
Shout out to One Up composite pedals. Nice and light, good grip.
After blowing out a couple pairs of crank brothers stamp 1, I went to the RaceFace Atlas and will never turn back.
I rode Chesters for years and never had an issue. Figured the Atlas would be just as reliable. Totally amazing pedal.
Also been riding Chester's for years, never had a problem, but I'm mostly just trail riding with some shorter drops/jumps
Hi. Would you still recommend them?
Can’t go wrong with RaceFace.
Funny, I hade a very similar experience. Loved chesters after riding for a couple years but decided more grip would be nice. Now I have 4 sets of the updated Atlas pedals and theyve been amazing! Wish I wouldve gotten at least one set in a cool color tho 😆
Switched to flats 2.5 years back, tried a number of flats but really couldn’t beat the DMR Vaults or Crank Brothers Stamp 7 Large. I’m also rocking Sasquatch size 15 five tens! Great video Jeff, never tried any of those. Thanks for the heads up!
Foot Size has a huge impact. I’ve had most these and half dozen others. New favorites are Dagga and TMAC as I’m a size 13 and my foot hangs off many the others. Like the Scarab would cause pain between the metatarsals of my pinky toe. Deftrap was my favorite and only pedal on 3 bikes for its grip, size and cost for years but I think the plastic body flexes more and I bent 3 spindles at 220 lbs aggressive rider.
Pro Tip: For a little concavity and more grip I often remove the 2 pins in the middle of the pedal like on my Daggas and that adds weight to the other pins and some relief in the middle. 🤙🏼
Great Review!
Have you tried the catalyst pedal by pedaling innovations? They’re massive
@@dytrdr5 Yes I have. I had the original Catalyst and the problem with it was it was long but narrow and my pinky toe kinda hung off. I have a Neroma that sometimes bothers me and those pedals really did as they were way narrower than most. Also one axles would come loose all the time since they had no lock nut and both were right hand threads.
I then got the Catalyst XL and they still weren’t as wide as many of these other pedals but they were close enough they didn’t bother my foot. The problem was the pins at such a large surface had little gription. I installed the long pins then tried removing half of them to get more weight per pin but they never came close to the grip of a Scarrab, Tmac, Deftrap, Atlas, OneUp, etc.
Yeah i wish he tried dagga with the inner pins out, i hear the same from other owners as soon as they take more pins out it feels way better. I actually have a pair thats been sitting here all month because I couldnt decide whether to keep and try or send back until I heard more about them, but I think Im gonna keep them after I found that advice!
My feet stick out to the sides (must have been too big for the womb), so smaller platforms don't really work for my 'duck footed' natural stance. It's why I absolutely love Kona's Wah Wah lineup, where the extra large platform (almost 120mm x 120mm) really let me keep my feet in a comfortable position. I've found over the years, after observing where my 5-10 shoe soles repeatedly wear-thru, that if I remove the front corner pedal pin, I'll avoid wearing a hole thru my shoe, as my riding stance places a lot of pressure on the front outer corner of any pedal I'm riding. I've found 5-10 freerider and freerider pro's have very thin soles and will wear thru unless you really manage where the pins are on your pedals, whereas the thicker 5-10 Impact sole resists pin wear thru much better. Strategically removing pins is a good trick to dial in your own preference for foot stance on the pedal when using lots of body english thru the feet. I usually get a season from the composite Kona pedals before they crack (still rideable) at one of the diagonal struts off the main axle, and for the aluminum ones, they're much tougher than the composit pedals - well worth twice the price - on my bike for over a year now w/ no issues (I'm 205 lbs too). Great vid for riders considering making the switch, as I have (I finally ditched clip ins for good in 1998).
Great video. I am surprised that you didn't try any other more common pedals like the Nukeproof, DMR or Crank Brothers. In general I do prefer flat pedals too but pin position can be a bit of a hit and miss depending on your shoes. And speaking about shoes, it is very hard to find flat pedal shoes that are waterproof.
Yeah I’ve got nukeproof pedals and there so grippy I actually forget about having to keep my feet on the bike, kind of what I imagine riding clipped in is like
I find Nukeproof pedals to be too small. If they made an XL version I'd happily switch back as they're great value and look great!
@@hambo76 Crank Brothers Stamp pedals have a large pedal that offers loads of grip and room for your foot to move around.
Surprised Raceface didn't make the cut either. Although I find Chesters too small as well.
@@dvs620 they'll be releasing new ones in 2 sizes soon
not sure if they have already
@@jameswhyte3834 nope, no where near it lol
No oneup components? I think they're top three in today's pedals. I don't feel you can make a realistic comparison without them.
I ride the oneup flats and I can’t fault them. Love them
Alloy OneUps aren’t compatible with carbon Sram cranks. Limiting factor for sure.
Maybe Jenson doesn't sell them? My go to pedals last 3 years
They're super squeaky if you don't grease them once in awhile. Regardless I really like mine.
Jeff I separated my shoulder and shattered my hand because of clipless. After 20 years do clips Went to flats 3 years ago and have had no serious wipe outs. Was surprised by the grip and improved my technique in almost every case. Love them and will never go back.
Have to wonder how the OneUp pedals and CB Stamps compare in this lineup.
Really surprised no OneUps
Every alloy pair of Oneups I’ve had have squeaked pretty badly….love the look/feel but really distracting noise.
I like the One Up alloys, but that huge inboard bearing and relatively short pins really hold them back, imo.
Love my Race Face Chester flats with fiveten shoes. I have never used anything than flats because i feel safer and ride harder with proper flat pedals.
Same here. I ride clipped on the road, but that is a whole different ballgame.
I loved mine till I tried the deftraps. Now the see the Chester's as pedals that come on walmart bikes lol
You don't know how much I love that you but the concavity and other stats in, that is very thorough
My personal favorite flat pedal is the Catalyst by Pedaling Innovations. They are quite long (the longest made, I think). So grippy that I suffered a torn calf muscle a few years ago in a freak accident where one foot stayed firmly attached to the pedal while I and my bike somersaulted backward off a short steep climb that I totally screwed up....
omfg
Im a Catalyst user, got 3 pair of the things. I dont ride anything like a maniac mt bike rider, but I go as fast as I can.
Another fantastic vid Jeff!
My favorite pedals (after having gone through 10 pairs): OneUp Aluminum (as they're nice and thin, the sealing is the best I've had and one of the few pedals that don't require bushing/bearing removal tools to overhaul which adds cost) with Chromag Dagga pins (as they're long, thin and threaded at the end with a tapered bottom to prevent issues with broken pins. Chromag make the best pins on the market, and agree with what you've said that most of the grip comes from the pins. OneUp pins are long but unfortunately don't aren't threaded at the tip in order to ease replacement, but also reduces grip ).
I rode the WahWah composite pedals on all my bikes. I'm a smaller rider so love that they come in a small size. So far I've had a ton of grip on them when riding with my 5/10 shoes.
I’ve snapped the spindle on those same model Shimano XT pedals and the Kona Wah Wah composites. I’ve come to the conclusion that any pedal that doesn’t have the spindle run the entire width of the pedal is WEAK.
Both of these pedals snapped on my single speed while pedalling, not jumping or etc.
Running the Chromag Dagga’s now, hopefully they last a while….
i’m so glad you liked the kona wah wah! that was my first ever flat pedal experience and i don’t like anything else now. i’ve had 4 pairs since 2017
A man who calls the clip pedals..... Clip pedals.... Subscribed
I know you’re testing from Jensen only but my socks have been recently knocked off by my Pedal Innovations Catalysts pedals. Out side the box design and philosophy that has completely changed the game for me.
Love my Wah Wahs and really love my catalyst pedals. I wish the Pins were better though, and the sharp edges really leave a mark on your shins.
Whatever happened to those new Shimano Saint flat pedals that were announced back in 2021? They looked pretty sweet but were never available from what I can tell.
I've tried a heap of pedals over the last decade. I haven't found a favorite alloy pedal yet, but I favor the composite Wah Wahs and the OneUp composites. As for shoes, I miss the few early years of Adidas' purchase of 5.10 when they were using Stealth rubber on their Terrex line. Soooooo much lighter and water resistant than 5.10s and without the goofy Dollar General version of 2000-era DC look that 5.10 favors. (If that sounds like I'm talking trash about 5.10s, that hasn't stopped me from owning more than a dozen pair of 5.10s.)
I have run One-Up Aluminum pedals, Crankbrothers Stamp 7 Large MacAskill Edition pedals, and the new redesigned Raceface Atlas pedals. The One-Up pedals are now hanging on my garage wall. I don't like how they still use a bushing rather than all sealed bearings, they have too much play after a short time, too much drag, and don't inspire confidence. My Crank Brothers Stamp 7 and Raceface Atlas pedals are both awesome, highly recommend both of those.
I own Endura MT500 and still going strong. They are great with burgtec MK5 and now i'm running MK4 composite pedals and they run AWESOME! Planning to go for RC Tallac BOA maybe next year coz again the Endura MT500 is still going strong.
Recently switched to flats after 10 years of clips out of curiosity. Enjoying it alot, went with crank bros stamps and while i know nothing about flats, the stamps feel super natural. No complaints.
I have been riding the stamp 2 for about a year and a half now. Ive hit them on rocks and a bunch of stuff and still work great. Also recently I been using them with the cranckbrother stamp shoes its a good match (no pun intended). I was riding the freeriders before and they do have a bit more grip but nothing crazy. I had go one full size up on the cranckbrothers shoes tho and they are more comfortable and have more toebox space than 5.10s.
@@boyongo0700 good to hear was worried about the durability because of crank bros old issues with their clipless pedals
@@hootie_owl2771 well no issues here so far!
Great job on the video. IMO, the top flat pedals are e*thirteen Plus, or if a person has a smaller foot, or likes a smaller pedal: HopeF20. Nothing else compares to these. One Up are also excellent, but are missing in the middle area, making them just a little less grippy. All three, with 5 10 Freeriders.
Just got 7 stitches in my calf from 2 OneUp pins chewing into me on a fall yesterday. Was thinking of going back to clipless...
shin smashes are far more acceptable injuries than what clipless can cause 😂
For me, Five Ten freerider pro and really any pedal seems to be good. I've had T-macs, DMR Vault, XT, Rock Bros, Funn and some others. Because the Freerider pro grips so well I've just settled on cheapy pedals, Funn on my park bike and Rockbros on the dirt jumper.
Late to the party, but as somewhat of a flat pedal specialist (owing to riding the trials bike far more than the MTB) the Dagga with shortened pins has been the ticket for me. Big enough that some movement over especially chattery stuff isn’t cause for concern, and the slightly shorter pins knock the grip down just enough to reposition my five tens.
What a great video! Concise review and comparison with no BS filler, plus some great riding!
Ooo .. I drive a car - with clutch - in MTB shoes 5+ times a week. A flat pedal shoe. They feel the same as any other sneaker, better than most due to the slight rigidity.
It's not like I am going to be heel-toe shifting a diesel truck :O
My new favourite is Yoshimura. Still use Hope an I like it (less grip in mud). The new Shimano Saint/XT is good, but it is a very catchy shape when it touches down, bulky too.
One thing I look at when trying new is pin width. Skinny pins give a good grip, but they more likely to rip into your clothes or skin. In addition they also destroy shoes super fast.
That's why I am pretty much for Yoshimura, Hope.
Never purchase a "trail activity support vehicle" that one can't drive (including a clutch) with their bike shoes, ski boot or snowboard boots on. 😁🤘
@@Soulslider70 lol .. maybe not ski boots :) But one can drive an automatic with a peg-leg, so an MTB shoe should be just fine..
I am curious as to why he said that. Maybe a mindset thing? I can drive slightly better in my 510s because the added weight and rigidity help me operate my clutch slightly better.
I've been using kona wa wa composite pedals for a few years now very good pedal has held up well
Would titanium pins make a bit of difference? I see lots of titanium products, but I haven't seen pins in titanium.
Probably too expensive
The only difference they'd make is how much you spend to replace them after you've dragged them all over rocks, titanium can break on hits too just look at 5devs cranks lol
Swapped to Deftraps a year or two ago simply because they had a particular shade of pink that matched the accents on my bike. I actually love them a lot - it's nice that they're so affordable too.
Been hearing good things about the Etnies entry into mountain bike shoes, but I've got two perfectly good pairs of pre-Adidas 510s that I can't justify grabbing a pair.
I keep hearing nothing but the best about deftraps but i gotta ask Ive heard from some that the nylon pins just break off right away which sounds lame, but even if thats true im wondering if they feel the best even with them missing?
@@LastAphelion mine are all still in tact. I like to ride a lot of tech on my hardtail and they're still going strong. Only 2 out of the 10 pins on each side are nylon and they're the ones closest to the spindle on the inside foot. I imagine they're nylon because that area of the pedal gets the least wear. Probably depends on the shoe used and rider stance too.
Mr. Weed I just came across your channel in my search for the yeti sb140 and mate, you have me in stitches. I’ll need pedals of course, so this popped up. Glad your alive and still charging!
Good stuff! I have been on flats for a long time now and it is extremely rare for me to drop a foot. I can easily keep pace climbing with the guys too. It takes practice.
Yeah me too. If I hear someone talk about slipping pedals these days I’m like- either you have the wrong pedal and shoe setup, or bad technique. The grip on modern flats with proper shoes is incredible. I can actually pull on the upstroke just like in clipless.
I have some Azonics that have lasted for years , but my Shimano Saints are real nice and my current favorites
I like flats over clipless for sure. To me, spiky flats work just as well as clipless in terms of speed. I don't like the feeling of not being able to bail at low speeds or being stuck of my bike with clipless petals. I wear high top vans because the soles are so gummy that once you put your foot down, it's not coming off
I use to wear vans. Then I tried out some purpose built mountain biking shoes and I was amazed at the difference. If you haven't tried a great pair of mountain biking shoes I highly recommend it. They made a much larger difference than I was expecting.
2:16 On Freerider EPS(winter version ) you have to tighten the laces enough or they take in water, as the tongue only has overlapping material at the bottom.
But as these shoes don't have a gaiter they let in water from the top.
But I am not a fan of Freerider, as they have too thin outer sole, mid sole is not robust enough, I feel the ground too much.
But the summer version was super breathable I felt the breeze trough them.
I've ordered RideConcepts Tallac BOA, I will see how they do, I've read and been told they are breathable.
I have tried TNT already, which has a great mid sole, outer sole, as grippy as FiveTen, but does not leave black marks on the floor, it's more compostable to walk in, much stiffer sole, great toe protection.
You need to try the deity blackouts they are my favorite deity pedal I find they have the best grip
Blackkats sorry
Was on Shimano XT, good pedals, but sometimes too much grip. Switched to Crankbrothers Stamp 7, less grip, but like them more.
Went from almost 5 years clipped in Mallets. Tried Chesters and went back. Tried again with PNW Loam and actually found them instantly comfortable. Love the in depth review, might have gone a different route if I saw this sooner but I'm loving my current set up. 🤘
Pnw loams aren’t very good so many others are even better
@@FrankLempka Mine work great! Have 3 pair of them.
@@FrankLempka correction realized I have "range" pedals, the composite version. These seem to be less bulged in the middle. I never noticed the convex wearing my 5/10s and definitely can't slip my feet if I try. Might just be a better pairing than some other shoes.
Really funny you put this out there. I have been riding clipless pedals since the mid 90's as well and this year ditched them for good. Todays features and trails are way more suited to flats. Good buy for good clipless. (shoes are cheaper too)
Pedals are one of the more weird bike parts because most bikes don't come with pedals. So buying pedals are something most people need to do. I get why they don't ship with pedals because of clipless vs flat but my point is more about this one of the most common purchase when buying a new bike. Shoes most new bikers don't buy right away but really should be your second purchase after pedals.
I personally like the OneUps. I run their composite on my fatbike and plan to get the aluminum again for my Turbo Levo (left on my last bike when I sold it by mistake).
Being from that part of the east coast, I appreciated your Wawa reference. They are loved around here and would make for a sick pedal.
Such a cool video! Would love to see the same thing with another set of contenders: OneUp, RaceFaces, and so on.
I really appreciate data driven reviews.
After ignorantly riding clipped in for so many years, riding flats the last 3 years has revealed my embarrassingly bad techniques and opened a new world of confidence on anything requiring me to leave the ground. I keep coming back to FiveTens FR Pro which beyond grip have held up and protected my feet better than anything else I've tried. I'd submit that OneUp composites should have been on your list. Sold me on their "just the right amount" of flex and best pin layout.
Would you mind sharing what was the bad habits clips gave you?
It must be a very personal thing, 4 years on flats and the PNW composite pedals work absolutely great, for me.
And they sell cubic yit loads of them, at a nice price.
I dont know how many mt bikers ride like you do, and bend spindles and break pelvis's etc.
Those are things I wont be doing.
Good video! I always see testers saying "almost nearly as a good as 5/10" when it comes to shoes.
I cut to the chase and have a couple pair of 5/10's The winter 5/10 you showed looks good.
My combo that works perfectly for me is Hope F20 Pedals and Specialized 2fo roost dh shoes. LIke glued to pedals
2nd the Hope F20! Probably the best pin design IMO. I have them on them on my HT, FS, and DJ and use 510s, and had to remove 5 pins/side to reduce grip enough to reposition.
Awesome video, I am making the transition from clipless to flats. So I appreciate your product reviews!
Raceface Atlas pedals are the grippiest I have ridden, currently riding the oneup alloy pedals and they are just okay I guess, gonna try the Kona Wah-wah composites soon though!
I’m torn between the RF Atlas pedals and the Large kona Wah Wah’s love em both! I kinda want to try the aluminum wah wah’s/
Theres a huge price difference between them, at least where I am, the composite wah-wahs are around $80 here but the atlas are closer to $250!
@@samc821 large Wah Wah II’s it is!!!! You can’t go wrong!!! I will note that if you ride rocky techy terrain you will eventually crack the composite wah wah’s/ but they still kick major ass/ if you absolutely don’t want them cracking grab some aluminum one’s🏄♂️
From my personal experience what I look out for when buying pedals and shoes is the pedals must have a cromoli shaft that is really a must, I used a few pedals back in the day once I used nylon pedals it felt diferent, as they feel diferent it seems they tend to absorb impacts like when you go over a rock garden instead of shaking your shoe out of the pedal, shoes I mostly buy skateboard shoes as the sole bends easily to grip whatever surface it's standing on, so my pedal choice as of right now are race face chester, I had them for maybe a year so far so good.
I've been on flats for over 10 years, so far my favorites are Tectonic out of Durango, CO. Carbon fiber reinforced plastic, concave, very grippy, light.
just looked and it appears they don't make them any more....bummer they sounds like something I'd love
Interesting: I found TMACS to be the most grippy and have tried about a dozen different pedals - though a bit chunky and made pedal strikes more likely to blow your foot off (no slanted leading edge). I preferred riding TMACS with Shimano shoes, not fancy Five10s - that was too much traction and made it feel like my foot had to be raised a foot off the pedal before I could reposition when needed. I tried Chromag Contacts and they're my least favorite. Marin's new OSO pedals were good composites, OneUps were good in both alloy and composite, Giant has some really good pedals (the grip at least) but developed some bearing play a bit too soon. Crank Brothers fit nicely into good traction, slim profile, and longevity - for me it would likely be Crank Brothers, Marin or OneUp as my favorites
I chuckled at "can I get a vowel" on the shimano pedal name. Upvote for that
This question might be weird but why do you have Two last names?
I spent sometime on the Deity Deftraps and really enjoyed them. I did find the plastic that made up the body was too soft and caused bad gouging when stricken by rocks. This also caused stripping of the nuts places where the pins are at, when trying to remove snapped off pins makes me loose a pin placement on the pedal.
Been rocking the Stamp 7s with 5/10 shoes for a few seasons and am happy with that setup.
No Raceface Atlas or One up pedals? There are a couple others id include as well. However you did include a lot of popular pedals and your content is always on par. Great video.
So helpful I'm in the market for new shoes. I just bought the kona pedals and love them. Your one of my fav mtb dudes on the tube!
Great video and very informative. I would have loved to see the Spank Spike thrown in the mix and also Oneup,
OG 5 ten's were the best shoe ever made. Been riding the same pair of freeriders for over ten years with no end in sight.
Jeff, love the content, keep it up!
I switch back and forth between clips and flats, and have ridden both in most all conditions.
One big thing I’ve noticed riding fatbikes the snow is that a shorter spindle pedal with that little “gap” towards the outside (like the Kona or Shimano you mention) work better than the longer spindle (Dagga or Scarab) that carries out to the width of the pedal.
What I find is that ice builds up on the longer spindle pedals, where the gap of the shorter allows that snow to fall through and ice does not build up.
I also notice a difference in ice build up elsewhere on the pedal between composite and metal, where composite seems to ice faster (maybe because of the pours in the material).
Since I started using Pedaling Innovations pedals I’ve found the big platform supports my ankles better and offer an amazing pedalling platform. Shoes were then my next issue, I’ve had 510s and tried others but went back to my old 510s. I thought I should buy myself some new ones, same model, size and guess what? They sucked, nowhere near as comfortable. Almost by accident I realised my daily cheap old Vans work amazing on the P.I. pedals. The amount of grip means I might as well be clipped in. I’ll never throw money at overly expensive “flat pedal mtb shoes” ever again. It’s great having one pair of shoes that can cover all my needs.
I'd be curious to see how the RaceFace Chester would stand up in your line up. I also liked the shoe review part, shoes are tough bc you have to basically wear a pair out to know how good/bad they are. I had some Ride Concepts with the gum hex sole pattern that were really grippy, my first dedicated MTB shoes, and I thought the grip was insane. A year into riding with them, and a few hundred miles on the trail, I got a hole on both left and right soles from the pedal pins wearing through. I grabbed some 5/10 Freeriders and realized the grip was even better than the RCs! However, only 6 months into riding, about the same mileage, the 5/10s are already getting holes in the soles :( and both were pedaling the Chesters. I still love the grip of the 5/10s but not the longevity.
Im chewing through soles on RC Vices and Five Ten freeriders with Chesters too. Maybe we’re just shredding too hard, and shoe wear is something that comes with the territory.
@@ManualVorlaufer I have certainly considered that, and I found the FRs for $50-60 before Christmas, so I grabbed 2pr. That's basically the same cost/wear ratio haha
Not sure why everyone raves about the Deity TMacs when the Deity Bladerunner is FAR superior. Better grip than the TMacs and much thinner, resulting in fewer rock strikes.
I've used 5\10s and Shimano XTs for a while now, on all my bikes. Great combo.
Bent one of the spindles on an aluminum Wah Wah pedal last week. Rebuilt it, got them back on the bike and bent the other pedal spindle today with a hard strike. They went to live in the trash can.
Been running the Deathtraps for a bit over 2 years now on my Sight. Plenty of rock hits, but never had any issues. Plenty of grip, and can attest to the durability. I also find that composite pedals have better grip due to the thinner pins.
I run Deftraps on one of my bikes too and love them, but my buddy just busted one and now I’m a little sketched out. Probably fine though.
Love watching you ride Jeff and loved watching the video! Great comparison between pedals, hell of a breakdown.
My Five Ten Freerider soles delaminated, they had very little use when it started to happen. It was CLEARLY a manufacturing defect, and they were only a few months old. The center of the tread developed a huge bubble on both shoes. Five Ten literally sounded like they could care less, they told me to take them to an Adidas store, because they didn't deal with warranty anymore. Adidas told me they don't deal with Five Ten warranty claims, and told me to take them to a Five Ten dealer. The Five Ten dealer told me to contact Five Ten, because they don't deal with warranty. Don't plan on any help AT ALL if anything goes wrong with Five Ten shoes!
lmao wow
Your video about flat pedals and shoes was very informative. I adore the wah wah plastic pedal and am riding 3 pairs of them on 3 different bikes. Sturdy, robust not one changed spindle or bearing.
As I work in a bike shop and I will just hint you that I adore the Kona Process in your video, I love the front wheel! Nice touch! If you would be interested I would suggest you do a video about xpedo spry pedals since they offer I think 3 or 4 variations of pins they offer and that are changeable. And the pedals are magnesium they are really lightweight. But the pins they offer are interesting, different shapes and you had such a detailed video that I would personally love a video just about the grip on one pedals with different shape pins. Cheers!
Had to size up with the Enduras, and for my wide shovel feet they are a good fit. Strangely the sizing up was more for the length. I also found the ankle pad rubbed, but it stopped after my second ride as it broke in and is now not a problem. I ride a lot of rocky trains and these shoes give loads of protection. I couldn't be happier. In fact if I ever return to clipless they some ina clipless version, so hopefully a future iterarion is similar. I love the cooler, and wish more shoes would escape the blacks and dull greys.
TEST FOR THE BEST MTB TYRE SEALANT !
An actual independent test of the best tyre sealant would be interesting i think silca might be the winner
I personally use oneup pedals and think there really good !
Hands down my fav pedals are the OneUp aluminum pedals.
I also recently tried the new Leatt shoes instead of my five ten freerider pro’s and I’m loving them!
and where is the most popular pedals on the market One Up Composite ?
I own a set of Shimano Saint PD M-828's, they allowed me to recreate the concave platform I was accustomed to with the now ancient, but still venerable, Shimano DX pedals from my freestyle BMX days in the 80's. By using the long pins on the outer perimeter, & shorter pins in the center around the spindle I was able to create the concavity I was looking for.
Though I currently ride a set of OneUp Aluminum pedals, which with my 5.10 Trailcross GTX's have all of the grip you could possibly ever need, or want, IMO.
Ive gone back to the Catalyst pedal on both Mt bikes, my feet and ankles have issues and the big platform is a really good thing for me.
My trick is to run every other pin, but run the longer pins, and drill all the other holes out for that really bitchin look.
10 pins is plenty and makes great traction. But not too much.
In general, they sell a ton of flat pedals on ebay, and elsewhere, people are definitely running flats these days.
Canfield crampons are the one of the best flat pedals to me. Convex pedals feel very good to me vs concave, convex matches the natural shape of your foot and thus grips better in my opinion.
Having used pedals with no concavity, felt wildly sketchy, and then concavity in both directions, amazing upgrade, on bmx bikes, I have a hard time understanding how going past the wildly sketchy shape to convex could feel better.
Our foot is not naturally curved around a circle, it can actually cause a lot of damage to have your foot curved too much in a downward fashion like that.
Great vid as usual Jeff. You should check out Ride Concepts Vice mtb shoes. They have essentially the waffle sole of Vans on a stiffer last. I absolutely love the waffle sole because the pins actually sit in the holes of the sole. The soles, while super grippy, don’t just rely on the grippiness of the rubber for the grip, but actually lock the pins into place by having the pins sit in the holes of the sole. Also, they seem to be having a lot less wear than 510s because the pins aren’t tearing up the soles, they just sit in a hole made for them. I can pull up on the upstroke and actually have to lift my foot off the pedal ever so slightly to move my foot. Absolutely love the the shoe. They were a bit narrow in the toe box for me, but unlacing and then lacing looser seems to have worked.
Re pedals, I think the other things that are important are the number of pins and placement location of the pins on the pedal. Probably every rider will feel differently about location depending on how they place their weight on their foot and where they like to have their foot on the pedal when they ride. For me, Tmacs for my smasher bike because of their durability and DefTraps for everything else paired with the Ride Concept Vice shoes is a match made in heaven.
I couldn't find Kona Wah Wah 2 composite anywhere in Australia so I went with Deity Deftraps and I'm not disappointed! My shoe is a size 48 Specialized 2FO Roost.
The secret to riding well with flat pedals is learning to use them when you’re a kid riding BMX. Otherwise not happening, at least IME I rode clipped in my whole 25 years riding mtb & never learned to get air or climb steep pitches on flats; also never got hurt due to clip ins not releasing when necessary
JensonUSA has saved my ass so many times, holy cow they ship FAST!
A year ago, I found some pedals that I found pretty much indestructible.. the DMR VALT11 which are expensive but looks good and easily serviceable. And the Yoshimura bike pedals. Which in my opinion are the best on the market...
And I tried the Yoshimura on a bike that wasn't even mine. It's that good.
Nukeproof horizon pro DH are my go to, love em to bits
I've been using the composite Wah Wahs (aka the Wee Wee!) for years and they are my favorite so far. The huge platform and great grip haven't been beat by anything else I've tried.
I started with composite Crank Brothers Stamp, but I kept sliding around and losing my footing on those. They've been relegated to the commuter bike.
I like my crank brothers pedals. Ive been riding flats for over 20 years never tried clipped in
At 260lbs, I've bent the spindles in many different flat pedals. It wasn't uncommon for me to bend the spindles on the first or second ride. I now ride crank brothers mallet (clipless) pedals and I have yet to bend one spindle. Maybe this is should be considered when deciding between flats and clipless pedals?
Surprised you didn't do any crank brothers shoes/pedals considering their status.. Esp having the BOA flat shoe.
Oneup Components pedals paired with shimano GR903 are my go to. Absolutely love the grip and the look of both
Jeff, a really fantastic review Sir. Your time and efforts are greatly appreciated. By the way, and for what it's worth, that's a really good looking shirt that you are wearing.
The Crank Brothers Stamp 1 composite do an excellent job paired with my 5/10 Freerider shoes for my kind of riding.
I like the yoshimura pedals with Merrell hiking shoes
I thought those shoes were good too…until I tried bike shoes. No contest
Yoshis are so overpriced. I don’t get it. Unnecessarily thick. Rock strikes like crazy. Unusable anywhere it’s rocky.
I think Etnies line of MTB shoes deserve a shout they have the Michelin soles you been missing from the Shimano durable as all hell too and oneup for the pedals those are quality as well
I have used the t macs. Didn’t like them. I really liked the specialized boom slangs! Nice platform really comfortable. Good talk pins needed servicing a lot. Now I am hooked on the pnw loam pedal! It just feels fine in my bike feet! I wear 5 10s all the time! Have been wearing since 2010 I think. And lastly I have never tried clipping in. Always rode flat shoes from my bmx and trying freestyle days! So I am ok with not being attached to the bike. You can still go fast plenty fast with flats!
My favorite flats at the moment are the Anvl Tilts, I have a set on all my bikes now replacing TMac's
Crank bros stamp 7 Large for me. Love the large platform for size 13 shoe