Bicycle Mechanics - Advice on buying cheap light pedals.

The title of the thread says it all. I want to buy some cheap (<$40) light (<300g) pedals that don't require special shoes or clips.

The ones I'm currently leaning towards are the HT AR-08 (http://www.crowcycleco.com/featured-products/aluminum-bmx-dh-pedals-sealed-bearings-1.html) pedal. They weigh around 250g and cost in the $25-$40 range, depending on the seller.

I'm also considering the Wellgo Wr-1 (http://www.wellgo.com.tw/p-image/WR-1.jpg): 224g for $30.

Any other suggestions?

EDIT: Weights that I listed are for a pair of pedals.

I'm partial to these (http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_info.php?products_id=413571) by MKS. They are a pretty solid Japanese company and the design is classic.

Those ^^^ are called 'quill' pedals. Copies of the classic Campagnolo designs. They are very popular, due to their comfort, with those who want to ride in casual footwear - like me. They also work very well with toe-clips if desired.

Only caveat: Overhaul them before riding on them. They always arrive bone-dry and out of adjustment. Many people say these pedals are horrible. These are the people who didn't know to overhaul 'em!

Velo-orange pedals
http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-84224226242177_2062_9966541

228g. Not bad

The MKS pedals linked to are single sided pedals intended for toe clips. I have never been able to see the point of using single sided pedals if the rider has no intention of using toe clips as more inconvenient than a decent dual sided pedal.

Also the quill on the end can be a pain in the foot if you have wide feet or shoes with soft soles. If using toe clips then a track pedal is a better choice IMO. Otherwise go with a dual sided pedal. I like some of the VO designs.

The best MKS pedals for general purpose riding are probably Sylvian Touring (http://www.velo-orange.com/mkstope.html). They are built the same as Sylvian Road but are double sided with no sticky-up bit (quill) at the edge.

The best MKS pedals for general purpose riding are probably Sylvian Touring (http://www.velo-orange.com/mkstope.html). They are built the same as Sylvian Road but are double sided with no sticky-up bit (quill) at the edge.

Use this or something similar if you will not be using toe clips. :thumb:
And remember, neither these nor the Sylvan Road are platform pedals.

Just to make sure that I understand, there are clipless pedals, platform pedals, and then everything else. Or am I missing some important categories/subcategories?

You could also say caged pedals or even quill pedals. Platforms sometimes imply BMX style pedals, large platforms, not meant to have toe clips. Quill pedals are another particular design typically used for racing and touring where toe clips are desired. Cages sometimes covers the non-clipless pedals but then you can get into the argument about rubber platform shoes.

I'm using these:
http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_info.php?products_id=413573

Not *particularly* light, but they are extremely comfy.

This style of platform pedal existed before there were BMX bikes.

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z284/JanMM/platform2.jpg
http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z284/JanMM/platform3.jpg

Designed for use with toe clips.

Pre clipless there were a number of common pedal designs. Well covered in Frank Berto's book "Upgrading your Bike".

For use with toe clips:

Road pedals with a cage that wrapped around the outside of the spindle and had a quill for side shoe retention normally.

Track pedals with two piece straight cages. Narrower than road pedals.

Platform pedals such as the Lyotards shown above.

Not toe clip compatible pedals:

Dual side platform not designed for toe clips.

Rat trap, a cheap dual sided version of a track pedal basically.

Rubber Block as used to be standard on most Schwinn cruisers and many other inexpensive bikes IIRC.

With enough looking almost all of these categories are still available along with many different clipless designs. Both MKS and Wellgo do a wide variety of pedals of different designs that fit most of the above categories.

I got some GREAT cheap platform pedals on eBay a while back that were very nice cartridge bearings and light weight too!
I bought a second pair for my son's bike.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360144950981&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

http://i17.ebayimg.com/02/i/001/3f/e8/ad55_1.JPG

Only caveat: Overhaul them before riding on them. They always arrive bone-dry and out of adjustment.

Thanks for the tip. I took mine apart and they had some grease, but a little more can never hurt, plus now they are smooth. I should have known massed produced pedals would need grease and adjustment.