Road Cycling - Update on Egg Beater pedals

I have now been using the Egg Beater pedals daily for a few weeks, switching them over to whatever bike I planned to ride, heavy commuter, 9-speed road bike, fixed gear road bike. I LOVE them. I was using Looks and really liked them, still do. But for simplicity and easy of entry/release, I don't think you can beat the Egg Beaters. I REALLY like the fact that you don't have to flip the pedal at all since you can clip into any of the 4 sides. For the same reason, you can click in from either direction, forward or backward. I also like the clean look and simple construction. In fact, I like them so much, I stopped by the LBS yesterday and bought two more pair so I don't have to keep swapping them around. My LBS gave me a nice discount. I am looking forward to the release of the road cleats which have rubber "pontoons" for easier walking. Right now I am using mtb shoes so the cleats are recessed. I plan to try to rig up my own road cleats in the meantime.

Interesting point. The cleats have no front or back so you can mount them either way. However, they are left and right. The right one is designed for slightly easier entry and release presumably because most people probably clip in left foot first then right foot on the move. I didn't even notice this until yesterday (Instructions? We don't need no steenking instructions!). I don't think it would matter too much even if you put them on the wrong shoe.
Regards,
Raymond

Since I first heard about the Eggbeaters, I have wanted to get a pair. If only I had the dinero. :cry: I am glad to hear they are working out. I did have my doubts, since they almost seem too simple.

By the way, I clip in my left foot last. My right foot stays clipped in the entire ride. Even though I am right handed, I wonder if left handed people usually clip in with the left foot last. Hmmm...

Thanks for the update Rainman. They sound great.
What's an approximate price if I decide to buy a pair?


Steele,
I'm left-handed, yet use my right hand for eating, using hand tools, etc. But my right foot stays clipped in all the time. :confused: ;)

Originally posted by RonH
Thanks for the update Rainman. They sound great.
What's an approximate price if I decide to buy a pair?


Steele,
I'm left-handed, yet use my right hand for eating, using hand tools, etc. But my right foot stays clipped in all the time. :confused: ;)

Oddly I'm right-handed, but I eat left-handed, I'm ambidextrous with a bat (cricket, rounders, softball, baseball (arguably just as hopeless either way round)), yet right-handed with hand tools, etc. - When it comes to cycling , I put my left foot in the clip, and push off with that one, it also feels the stronger leg when pedalling....

Richard

Egg Beaters list for $120, not any more that most quality pedals though you can certainly get good quality pedals for less. My LBS gives me a nice discount. There are plenty offered on eBay. I think they wind up going for around $100.

One thing I forgot to mention. They don't look it, but strangely enough the Egg Beaters are fairly comfortable to pedal on without even clicking in. Sometimes when I miss the click I just pedal on and take my time trying again. I think they would be perfectly fine to jump on with running shoes to run a quick errand, riding them like platforms. I can't say the same about Looks, because of their curvature they feel squirrely to pedal without clicking in.

Interesting review! I had wondered what, if any, drawbacks there might be due to the apparent lack of a "platform" of some sort. I thought they'd spin around too much to pedal unclipped but Rainman says not really. I like my time ATACs but may consider Eggbeaters in the future when it comes time to replace. Are there any former ATAC users that can comment on their Eggbeaters?

Getting unclipped is no problem at all. You just twist your heel out away from the bike as with other pedals. Well, Looks anyway. I assume most work the same way.

I even came up with a low tech cheap and easy way to build a couple of long lugs on a pair of road shoes so I can walk with the cleats. Shoe Goo! I don't know why I hadn't thought of it before. I used to use it all the time to build up the heels on my running shoes as they wore. I am trying it on a pair of older shoes now. It will take a couple of applications over a few days to build up sufficient height. Shoe Goo is TOUGH stuff but you can cut away excess and even peel the whole thing off if you need to. This time I just kind of squeezed it on, figuring I will need to cut away a little in some place. If it works out, next time I will build a little mold with tape. I will report on how the Shoe Goo works out. If it works with these cleats it should work for those who use Time and SPD cleats on their road bikes and shoes.

I mentioned something earlier about being able to pedal without clicking in. Yesterday on the way home on a couple of occasions i didn't worry about the click as I took off from red lights. Then when I got ready to go ahead and click in, I already was!
Regards,
Raymond

I even came up with a low tech...
Low Tech, I like that!
Shoe goo also does wonders for repairing cuts
in tires...

Marty

What is the amount of rotation your foot can go before clipping out of the Eggbeaters?

(I know there is some technical term for that but I can't seem to remember it at the moment. - play maybe?)

FLOAT!


i.e...degrees of FLOAT!

I forget the exact amount of float, but I think there is enough to satisfy any taste yet not too much. Let me put it this way. I was using, with great satisfaction, the black Look cleats which have almost no float. The Egg Beaters obviously have more float than the black cleats but not as much as the red and not so much that I find it objectionable. They just feel "natural" as though float is irrelevant, if that makes any sense.

For those concerned about the lack of platform let me relate the following. The reason I originally went with Look pedals was specifically because they looked like a nice big platform. All the other pedals just looked so tiny I couldn't imagine they would be comfortable. I have experience NO hot spots or other sensations that one might think a tiny pedal could present. I have used the pedals with both mtb and road shoes over the last few weeks with equal comfort.

Clicking in is so easy, not only do I not have to think about it, I don't even have to think about thinking about it! The only question that remains in my mind is just how they stand up over time. Not that I am concerned about it. It's just that they are a new design without a track record. Only time will tell. With so few parts and supposedly easily replacable bearings I would think they will be fine in the long run.
Regards,
Raymond

It appears not to be an issue, but the ones I handled seem to have no adjustment capability. True? And how are they built, I ask? I picture in my mind's eye some humongous wire-wrap machine ... :o

Cheers...Gary

Gary,
They are not adjustable. The writeup on Crank Brothers' website addresses this. According to them the release tension is designed to be in the moderate range. I can attest that they are very easy to get out of. On the other hand they seem to suggest that accidental pull out by a powerful rider is almost impossible. That is intentional release by the usual outward rotation of the heel is easy, pulling straight out just shouldn't happen.

I will try to describe the construction of the pedals. The "body" of the pedal is about 3 inches long and seems to slip over the spindle, which is about 4 inches long, and is, I believe, secured by a "C" clip. Two square "loops" integral to the body, extend opposite each other. A second set of loops fit inside the first set at 90 degrees to the first set. A thick, VERY sturdy looking spring holds the second set of loops in position and provides the tension to clip the pedal to the cleat. Think of the beater from a hand mixer or an old fashioned egg beater. That's what it looks like. So there aren't many parts - spindle, body, inside "loops", spring, probably a couple of little sealed cartridge bearings and a "C" clip to hold it all together.

This explanation is probably more confusing than clarifying.
Regards,
Raymond

For a guy who is picky about language, I sure am being ambiguous lately. :(

By "how are they built" I meant the process, not the collection of parts. They look to me to be a very complex set of bent, thick, spring-steel wires, hence the image of a wire-wrap machine.

They surely felt solid!

Cheers...Gary

Gary,
They aren't really complex when you look more closely. 3 or 4 simple forged pieces and a heavy spring. Not much to them. Though you are right; at first glance they look complex.
Regards,
Raymond

Hey Steele - bike, I'm with you on this one.

My right foot stays clipped in the entire ride, unless of course, I get off the bike completely to go to the loo or something....

When I come to a stop light, stop sign, I unclip my left foot.

I too am right- handed.

I wonder if any research has been done about the preferred clip-in and clip-out side of bicyclists?