Commuting - crank brothers pedals

i'm getting ready to purchase a new commuting bike- i think i'm going with the trek 7.5fx and will need to get pedals. i saw an advertisement in bicycling magazine for crank brothers pedals and wanted to get some opinions. i'm looking for pedals that are easy to get in and out of in traffic. i've ridden with shimano m520's but recently ran into some it band problems. my doc said i needed something with more float. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. my commute is 20 miles each way

I really like my crank bro pedals. I have smartys on my commuter and Candies on my road bike, or maybe that is the other way around? Not sure the 2 models are nearly identical.

I find that most times I do not even have to look at the pedal to get clicked in. And I can still pedal through an intersection without having to click in, so they work great for me.

sounds like it might work- i asked my lbs and they told me that if i've traditionally ridden with shimanos than it would be tough to switch to candies as they are almost too easy to come out of
he told me that he tried them and couldn't make it down the block because his feet kept popping out of the pedals.

I've used several types of pedals on different bikes but I really like my Crankbrother egg beaters. I have installed them on all my bikes now. Maybe I'm just used to them now but i can't remember ever having them slip off, my old spd pedals used to slip all the time, which is why i have a scar on the back of my right leg where the chain ring took out chunks of muscle.

I have egg-beaters. Yeah, they are very easy to come out of, but I've never come out of them without meaning to, i have never just accidentally popped out. I like them alright, they were inexpensive and they do what they are supposed to do without any hassle. I never have problems clipping in or getting out, they are basically no nonsense.

I havent had any problem with my egg beaters til now, and i bought them five years ago. My cleat bolts are stripped and my cleats are wearing down so that i dont even 'click' out like i used to, i kind of slide out. Its taken me 5 years to get there, im sure if i got new shoes and cleats they would be as good as new - i say go for it, they are awesome pedals.

sounds like it might work- i asked my lbs and they told me that if i've traditionally ridden with shimanos than it would be tough to switch to candies as they are almost too easy to come out of
he told me that he tried them and couldn't make it down the block because his feet kept popping out of the pedals.

Find a new bike shop... or at least a new tech. This guy sounds incompetent.

I vote for eggbeaters.

I see no positives to running any of their other models, and only negatives. You've got half the clip-in options with no benefit. The only exception might be if you have some really flimsy bike shoes. My commuter shoes are 14 years old (yes really) and I don't get hot spots from the eggbeaters.

CB pedals and a walkable mountain shoe is a great combination. I have a pair of CB pedals on all 5 bikes. The cleats are softer than the pedals, so they wear out instead of the pedal. They're not perfect, but they work really well, and the customer service is top-notch.

yeah, they are very easy to come out of, but i've never come out of them without meaning to, i have never just accidentally popped out.

+1

He's looking for more float than Shimano's offer. I don't know how much float the CB's have, but I know some Speedplays have up to like 30° of float. I've also only ever heard good things about SP as a company. You'd probably be set with either.
-Gene-

based on the feedback i think i'll try them out- i also had been using shimano m324's on my mountain bike which were awful. i decided to take them off after crashing my bike from not being able to get my right foot out of the pedal. is there any specific shoe you could recommend that might go well with the pedal/cleat

He's looking for more float than Shimano's offer. I don't know how much float the CB's have, but I know some Speedplays have up to like 30° of float. I've also only ever heard good things about SP as a company. You'd probably be set with either.
-Gene-


the website says the release angle is 15˚ or 20˚- not sure if this is an indication of float

Find a new bike shop... or at least a new tech. This guy sounds incompetent.


Yea, I have never had a problem coming out of my Crank Bros accidently. I love them and highly recommend them for commuting. Plenty of float and a very connected feel. I'd recommend the style with some type of platform, not the egg beater ones. I think mine are Candy SLs.

I have Speedplay Frogs too and they have great float, but they lack any side to side resistance so are prone to accidental release and I feel disconnected from the bike.

I've tried them. I prefer Shimano, but if I did want a pedal like the Candy or Smarty, I think I would prefer Time pedals (these are the originals that engage the same way). There are 2 things I dislike: pedals without possibility of tension adjustment, and pedals that don't have wrench flats in case I need to use my heavy pedal wrench on them some day.

My CB pedals have wrench flats and hex fittings. For shoes, I recommend a mountain shoe that will allow the shoe tread to keep you from walking directly on your cleats. I have some lower end class of Pearl Izumi that have been excellent. Note that I did have to shave down the treads in a couple of areas when I installed the CB cleats, to keep them from interfering with the Mallets' and Candies' platforms. After that, they were golden for 2+ years of near-daily riding.

These are the only pedals I use. Very happy with them. On my main bike I use the Quatro model with the standard cleat. Very easy to get in and out of. I like the platform. Very happy with their customer support also. I took the bike cross racing and lost the cover and one of the bearings. Emailed their support and had a complete rebuild kit a few days later. No cost. Great company.

My CB pedals have wrench flats and hex fittings.

Varies by model. Only the C (the one everyone buys from Performance "on sale") has the wrench flat. I have three different models.

I had typed that I preferred not to have the wrench fitting because I just ended up scratching the pedals up using it. It then hit me that my C's typically have rust on the wings, and my shoes have rubbed the blue off the spindle, so there's no point in worrying about a few more scratches.

My favorite is probably the SL. I inherited a set of 4Ti off an ebay bike, but given my weight I might be tempting fate to try to use them.

Another vote for CB pedals. I have them on my commuter and on my mountain bikes. I wear MTB shoes year round - Lake winter riding boots this time of year and Specialized Tahoe's when it's warmer. Both are very comfortable to walk in with the cleat on the bottom.

Egg beaters, Mountain bike shoes. I have had very good luck with them. Never an unintentional out on them. My brother in law has used them forever. He occasionally wears a pair out, but thats over several seasons.

I cannot say enough good things about the Time ATAC pedals. Easy to clip in. Easy and quick to clip out of, and in over a year of daily commuting, I have not had a single unintentional unclip! They also have a very nice "float" that is gentle on your knees while still tending to keep your foot in an ideal position.

You can get the most basic ATAC pedal for about $50 (Alium), or go all out and get the ultimate MTB/commuting pedal ever for about $110 (ATAC XS).

You unclip from CB pedals by rotating your foot 15° one direction or 20° the other (you decide which is heel towards the bike and which is heel away from the bike by which cleat you put on which shoe). I believe you would add these 2 together to get your "float" so I think CB pedals have 35° of float.

I've been using candies for about a year now and I just got eggbeaters for my new bike. The eggbeaters are a little easier to get into, but the candies are also very easy to clip into. I haven't ridden the eggbeaters enough to say if they are any less comfortable than the candies (due to lack of any platform).

Crank Bros are great in that they offer some float at a fairly low price point. I run them on my bike.

I've ridden Speedplays on my dad's bike and the difference in float is amazing. Speedplays offer much more. I like CBs better in traffic (possibly because I've used them more) since I have an easier time getting out of them. For a commute as long as yours the difference in price would seem minimal. The only downside I could see is that Speedplay cleats are a little delicate. You won't want to walk in them very long at all.

If the doc says float, I'd get the Speedplays.

i thought about getting speedplays but it's a long walk from where i enter my building to my office- i'd had to walk on the cleat quite abit- this is what brought me to think about candies. this right knee of mine is a pain-

...i'm looking for pedals that are easy to get in and out of in traffic. i've ridden with shimano m520's but recently ran into some it band problems. my doc said i needed something with more float. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated....

Sorry - what?

Sorry - what?

Iliotibial band...it runs from your hip to your knee. I've had issues with it before from running and it sucks. Never have had troubles with it from cycling though.

+1 to the egg beating crowd. I use Eggbeater SLs, which I get from an eBay shop for what I think is a really great price (~$65 USD IIRC)

I run them on my road bike and on my fixed gear, and barring me breaking a spring in my drive-side pedal on my fixed gear, they've been flawless. That pedal lasted around 5400 miles, the left-side one is still on there and I've a MXR eggbeater on my driveside now (donated by a fellow eggbeating friend who had a spring breakage).

I have accidentally unclipped a couple of times, mainly when I'm wearing shoes with *really* worn cleats (I have this problem a LOT more with worn SPD cleats than the CB stuff, but it has happened)

I use mountain shoes that are just fine for office/general walking around when running errands, etc.

Like JeffS said, I've also never had hotspots with them despite the lack of platform, and have done all kinds of multi-distance riding, up to a maximum of 110 miles.