Singletracks Mountain Bike News, Reviews, MTB Trails and Community › Protected: Forums › Mountain Bike Forum › Pedals and shoes
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March 3, 2011 at 00:12 #96236
I am getting ready to purchase a gary fisher mamba 29er in the next couple of weeks. I have pretty much decided I want to get the clipless pedals and shoes. Having never used these pedals and shoes I was wondering which would be a good direction to go. I have heard shimano and crankbrothers are the way to go with the pedals. I am not wanting to drop too much on this set up but want a quality product. And the shoes I know I want a racing style shoes and preferably one that has a clicking strap at top. Not wanting to spend over 100 on the shoes. Any suggestions?
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March 3, 2011 at 09:57 #96237
For shoes, I got a pair of Bontrager Race Mountain for $90. I’m hard to fit and I can’t say enough good about these. They broke in quickly, they have a nice neoprene liner that conforms to the shape of your foot, and they support e-Soles custom footbed inserts if you need those. (I’m using the stock e-Soles they came with) They also have treads conducive to hike-a-bike, and I have even comfortably worn them without socks when I forgot them.
For pedals, I used to use SPD’s but got tired of them for various reasons. I have switched to Crank Bros Eggbeaters and I LOVE them.
Personally, I think the eggbeaters clip in and out easily enough for a beginner, however, you may also want out start out with something like the Shimano PD-M324. The platform side can be very comforting for sketchy sections where you don’t want to try it clipped in yet.
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April 7, 2011 at 13:28 #96238
I recommend the entry level Crank Bros Candy pedal for beginners, light, easy to use and you can stand on it more easily than the Eggbeater.
As for shoes, I’m trying out the 2011 661 Flight Shoe this season. They are very light and comfortable, I got them for just under $80 last month. We’ll see how they hold up.
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April 7, 2011 at 13:33 #96239"8valvegrowl" wrote
I recommend the entry level Crank Bros Candy pedal for beginners, light, easy to use and you can stand on it more easily than the Eggbeater.
I’ve hopped on my friend’s bike with the candies and I honestly can’t feel any difference from my eggbeaters.
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April 7, 2011 at 15:33 #96240
I started out on CB smartys which came stock on my new bike and are bottom of the barrel pedals but have held up well. Then I got some CB candys which are built a bit better then the smartys but are just as good. For shoes I use the Lake mx165 or mx190 with a vibram sole for the hike a bike stuff but they are heavy. Today I just took some 5’10’s with some mallets off of my buddies hands. He is going back to platforms didn’t like the clipless. Almost new mallets with 5’10’s for $120..not bad..
What I really have like about the Crank bro’s is the easyness of clipping in and out. I have had some wrecks were if I had not unclipped the bike would have landed on top but since I did unclip I was ok…. -
April 7, 2011 at 23:16 #96241
Like most of these fellas I ride Crank Bro. I’ve got the Smarty’s which just as previously stated are bottom of the barrel, cheapest Crank Bro pedals you can get but great pedals! For shoes I have some Specialized shoes which are great. Both pedals and shoes I have gotten on Ebay. There are several sellers on ebay that sell Smarty’s (as well as Candy’s and so on) that are great to buy from, and I’ve had no problem with them, or the pedals. Also check for some shoes on there, I got mine for pretty cheap, around 25 or 30 bucks, and they’ve held up great…you just gotta know how to find the right stuff.
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April 8, 2011 at 05:32 #96242
I only started mountain biking clipped in halfway through last season, and I wanted to make sure I had the best pedals. I didn’t want to muddy the waters by using mixed quality models so I bought the second highest end pedal from Shimano, Time and Crank Brothers.
Time was ok, nothing wrong with them. They were very nice and well-built, they just didn’t engage quite as consistently as the others. I liked that you had a little lateral flexibility as well as rotational float.
Shimano was fantastic, they performed just as well as the Crank Brothers. I was really impressed with how consistently they clipped in, despite only having two engagement points to Crank Brothers’ four. I really think the bad rap that SPD has with some users is that there are a lot of their lower-end models in circulation, whereas users who buy Eggbeaters seem to buy the higher end stuff.
Crank Brothers was also fantastic. I did break a spring on one but I think that was partially due to user negligence. It was replaced under warranty, no issue. The reason I settled on them is that I had also bought Ti Candys for my road bike and I wanted both of my pairs of shoes to have the same cleats so that I could dress for the weather on both bikes.My recommendation is to go with Crank Brothers’ Eggbeaters for looks and ultimate lightweight and Shimano SPD for durabilty, if you’re a big rider or want to ride really aggressively.
In either case, don’t skimp. If you do, you will regret it. I’d recommend the XT pedal from Shimano (PD-M770) or the Eggbeater 3 (11 if you can afford it). The Candy’s are nice, but I wouldn’t recomend them for most mountain bikers.
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April 8, 2011 at 06:18 #96243"maddslacker" wrote
[quote="8valvegrowl":2sk9f0d3]I recommend the entry level Crank Bros Candy pedal for beginners, light, easy to use and you can stand on it more easily than the Eggbeater.
I’ve hopped on my friend’s bike with the candies and I honestly can’t feel any difference from my eggbeaters.[/quote:2sk9f0d3]
I dunno, pedaling unclipped through rough stuff isn’t much fun on an Eggbeater. The Candy at least gives you a little bigger surface area to stand on.
@Itud: Why do you not recommend the Candy for MTB? Pretty much everyone I ride with runs either the Candy or the Mallet on their bikes, only my weight weenie XC friends use the Eggbeater. Plus, if you smack a rock on the Candy you are less likely to get unclipped and/or damage the actual retention bars.
SPD’s aren’t a bad option either, I ran them for years, but in mud and muck, the Crank Bros are superior, no getting around it.
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April 8, 2011 at 07:09 #96244"ltud" wrote
In either case, don’t skimp. If you do, you will regret it. I’d recommend the XT pedal from Shimano (PD-M770)
Agree with both points here. I bought the M770 last season and love them. Super durable and almost indestructible. I rode the crap out of them last year and they still work like the day I bought them.
For shoes, I went a little over your price point and grabbed a pair of Sidi Dominators. Again, a little $$ but worth every penny. I spent 2 hours trying on a variety of shoes and couldnt find anything that really worked until I tried these.
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April 8, 2011 at 10:09 #96245
I got double E wide size feet,anyone know what the best brand cycling shoe to buy for wide size feet???
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April 8, 2011 at 10:15 #96246"8valvegrowl" wrote
I dunno, pedaling unclipped through rough stuff isn’t much fun on an Eggbeater.
Why would you do that?
Also, re: the broken eggbeaters, I have broken the ‘C’ model, which Crank Bros fixed under warranty, but my SL’s have been perfect.
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April 8, 2011 at 10:20 #96247"8valvegrowl" wrote
[quote="maddslacker":kqo6xdwt][quote="8valvegrowl":kqo6xdwt]I recommend the entry level Crank Bros Candy pedal for beginners, light, easy to use and you can stand on it more easily than the Eggbeater.
I’ve hopped on my friend’s bike with the candies and I honestly can’t feel any difference from my eggbeaters.[/quote:kqo6xdwt]
I dunno, pedaling unclipped through rough stuff isn’t much fun on an Eggbeater. The Candy at least gives you a little bigger surface area to stand on.
@Itud: Why do you not recommend the Candy for MTB? Pretty much everyone I ride with runs either the Candy or the Mallet on their bikes, only my weight weenie XC friends use the Eggbeater. Plus, if you smack a rock on the Candy you are less likely to get unclipped and/or damage the actual retention bars.
SPD’s aren’t a bad option either, I ran them for years, but in mud and muck, the Crank Bros are superior, no getting around it.[/quote:kqo6xdwt]
I find it slightly easier to clip in on an Eggbeater than a Candy and you don’t get stuff stuck between the wing and the platform. I know what you mean about coming unclipped when hitting a rock, but I don’t find that to be a major issue. I can usually clip back in right away. Our local trails are extremely rocky/rooty and I only pop out from a pedal strike once or twice per ride.Maybe it’s a personal prefence thing, but despite our technical trails, I’d say Eggbeaters outnumber Candys at least five to one locally.In reference to your first comment, I stay clipped in all the time. If it’s too rough to stay clipped in, it’s usually too rough for me to ride it 😀 I agree with maddslacker on that.
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April 8, 2011 at 10:43 #96248
I don’t purposefully clip out in rough stuff, but I have found myself in that situation plenty of times (I ride very techy stuff, and pretty aggressively.) so sometimes you gotta just push on through unclipped, Vermont is all rocks and roots, too, so you gotta keep the momentum.
I ran Mallets all last season, they seem to be favored by most of the AM/FR crowd around here, but after 4 season of (ab)use, it was time for new pedals, and I was very pleased with the Candy’s on my brothers Commencal Meta 6, so I went for ’em.
I will second Crank Bros. excellent customer service.
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April 8, 2011 at 10:46 #96249
Yeah, mallets are pretty popular with the freeride crowd out here too.
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April 9, 2011 at 13:11 #96250
I got Shimano shoes (SH-MT32) and pedals (PD-M520 and PD-M320) and are satisfied with them. Easy clip-in/out
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August 19, 2011 at 08:20 #96251
I’ve been riding for a few months now, and I’m looking to get into clipless pedals. I’ve pretty much decided that I want Crank Bro’s Candy’s, but I noticed a lot of reviews said that the brass cleats get worn down quickly. Have any of you who have Candy’s had this problem?
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August 19, 2011 at 08:29 #96252
I usually get two years on a set of Crank Bros. cleats, they look worn, but they still work fine the second year. I ride 1-3x per week from April through November.
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August 19, 2011 at 10:21 #96253"8valvegrowl" wrote
I usually get two years on a set of Crank Bros. cleats, they look worn, but they still work fine the second year. I ride 1-3x per week from April through November.
I use mine on my main mountain bike for a season, and then move them to my commuter bike for the second season.
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August 19, 2011 at 10:36 #96254
I’d suggest Time pedals. I’ve heard more complaints about Egg Beaters than any other pedal. Yes they are the lightest but also the easiest to damage.
Been using Times for about 10 years now. Had them rebuilt after 6 years, were returned within 1 week, good as new. -
August 19, 2011 at 10:44 #96255"abegold" wrote
I’d suggest Time pedals. I’ve heard more complaints about Egg Beaters than any other pedal. Yes they are the lightest but also the easiest to damage.
Been using Times for about 10 years now. Had them rebuilt after 6 years, were returned within 1 week, good as new.I’ve only seen issues with the low end eggbeater models. The stainless ones are awsome.
The bushings on the older models are easily serviced.
The newly redesigned model line has real bearings. -
August 19, 2011 at 12:49 #96256"abegold" wrote
I’d suggest Time pedals. I’ve heard more complaints about Egg Beaters than any other pedal. Yes they are the lightest but also the easiest to damage.
Been using Times for about 10 years now. Had them rebuilt after 6 years, were returned within 1 week, good as new.I second that emotion.I’ve been "on Times" for,well,since they came out.Here where we occasionally get to deal w/mud,they were the only choice.
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August 19, 2011 at 13:56 #96257
check out Time pedals! they have a solid base. Personally i need a pedal to ride on if/when i un-clip but still need to keep cranking! they have carbon options too. not sure if it was a defect or not but my friend got the eggbeaters and broke them within the year he got them after hitting many rocks. he also races and used the time pedals.
xs
xs carbon
xs titan carbon
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August 20, 2011 at 06:28 #96258
Originally I was looking at getting Candy 1’s or Eggbeater 1’s. Would I be better off going for the higher quality models?
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August 20, 2011 at 06:35 #96259
The 2’s and 3’s are better quality and will last longer.
I have a pair of ‘C’ and a pair of ‘SL’ which translate to 1 and 3 now. I run the cheap ones on my commuter bike and the good ones on my mountain bike.
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August 20, 2011 at 19:36 #96260
So would the SC model be the equivalent of the 2’s? I found some Eggbeater SC’s on Ebay that I’m considering buying.
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August 20, 2011 at 19:55 #96261
Those look decent. I think they are stainless on the binding, with a cromoly spindle.
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August 21, 2011 at 07:18 #96262
Just checking out this post…
Funny thing about Time …. I have a review coming up on the new X Roc S from time…Good pedal and a bigger platform..
http://www.time-sport.com/product-sheet … p.194.html
The link is above and the review will follow soon…
Times are a great pedal..
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August 21, 2011 at 11:55 #96263
Yes, Time does make great pedals, but those are a little above my price point….
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August 24, 2011 at 19:02 #96264"mttandrsn" wrote
Yes, Time does make great pedals, but those are a little above my price point….
better quality = less spending down the road
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September 4, 2011 at 13:34 #96265
I ended up getting some CB Candy SL’s from the classifieds on mtbr and I love them!
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September 19, 2011 at 11:50 #96266
I have Shimano XTR Pd-M985 pedals and Specialized Pro shoes. The combo is great. Clipping in or out is simple and XTR’s are bomb proof. I like the shoes because they are stiff and transfer power very well. You feel very connected to the bike.
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