jerzmike64

Thinking about upgrading the pedals on my Giant Escape 2. Any suggestions would be helpful.

SkyDog75

To help you find something that better fits your needs, can you say what you find less than ideal about your current pedals?

What kind of riding will you be doing in what kind of shoes? Are you looking for something to casually ride around town or on paths in regular shoes? Or do you plan to ride more aggressively for exercise? Do you want pedals you can clip into? Do you ever ride in wet weather?

avidone1

I look forward to hearing the responses to this thread. I am considering upgrading my pedals as well.
I'm not comfortable with the idea of being attached to the pedal via a cleat. I understand that falling over is a part of learning curve.
strapless pedal clips seem like an ideal solution, only I wonder if they are really effective.
Hmmmmmmmmm.....awaiting replies from those with experience.

ShortLegCyclist

Need to know your intended use for riding, your ballpark price range and most importantly what you don't like about the stock pedals and hope to gain by changing pedals.

ShortLegCyclist

Strapless pedal clips, cleats and PowerStraps are all workable and all helpful for maximizing pedaling efficiency, but all are something of an annoyance in stop and go traffic. They are all really nice out in the country where you might go 2 hours without having to actually take your feet off the pedals.

But all do fixate your feet to the pedals and all take some getting used to. For me, all involve having to look down to secure your feet and in the case of clips and powerstraps you often have to flip the pedal over, sometimes several times if you miss, to engage the pedal correctly. This can actually be dangerous in busy intersections with very short green lights as your eyes are off your surroundings while doing this. You get good at it and you can get into cleats without looking, but that's a lot more difficult for powerstrap and toe clip users IMO.

A good studded platform pedal can be a lot easier in stop and go traffic but won't give you the same advantage as any shoe/pedal fixation system.

Good platform pedals can be as basic as $15 Black Ops, Gates Fyxation or Stolen pedals or as shiny and expensive as Shimano Saint pedals ($70).

Go for metal bearings if you can as they will be smoother for longer.

For me, all three rider/bike interface points are not areas to scrimp... pedals, grips and saddle, and neither is the bike/surface interface (tires).

1nterceptor

Was using Shimano SPD 520 for a few years on my roadbike. Walkable shoes,
dual sided, very reliable:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFyX...6zPoymgKaIoDLA

When my MTB shoes wore out I tried road shoes and Loook KEO that a fellow club member gave me.
Couldn't get used to the flipping required every time I took off from a stop. Switched to Speedplay X/2;
dual sided so I'm happy again. Needs more maintenance than Shimano SPD; lubing the cleat and
injecting grease to the pedal body.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-rQ...6zPoymgKaIoDLA

I'm also using lightweight titanium Xpedo SPD compatible pedals on my folding bike:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh5V...6zPoymgKaIoDLA

TenSpeedV2

M520 user here as well and I love them. Easy to use, cheap, and seem to last forever.

Clem von Jones

As an alternative to clip-in pedals a platform like this works well MKS GR-9 Platform Pedals, Silver | Amazon.com: Outdoor Recreation It has two screw holes in the front of the pedal where you can install plastic strapless toe clips like this: Amazon.com : Delta Bicycle Strapless Toe Clips : Bike Pedals : Sports & Outdoors

If you have large feet a big platform BMX-style pedal with pins like this works well: Rockbros Bike Bicycle Pedals 9/16" MTB BMX DH Platform Pedals Cycling Pedals (Black) | Amazon.com: Outdoor Recreation The pins prevent your shoes from siding around but they can be removed with a wrench. Some of these pedals have older-style pins with sharp threads that will cut your skin but the ones I linked to have the newer more friendly style pins.

A basic pedal like this isn't bad: XLC Alloy MTB Pedal | Amazon.com: Outdoor Recreation

Clip-in pedals are worth using if you have any inclination to try them. You disengage them by pivoting your ankle outwards. Initially they might seem frightening but are actually pretty intuitive and easy to use. These basic Shimano pedals are good: Amazon.com : Shimano PD-M520L MTB Sport Pedals with Cleats : Bike Pedals : Sports & Outdoors Hard-soled basic MTB shoes with three velcro straps by any manufacturer will work with them. Attach the cleats about halfway in their adjustment track so the ball of your foot sits adjacent to or slightly in front of the pedal spindle axis.

I use BMX platforms on the bike I use to ride with my dogs so if they encounter trouble I can drop the bike and run to their assistance. It's nice to have at least one bike with platform pedals you can ride with whatever shoes you've got on. Clip-in pedals and dedicated shoes are better for efficiency and comfort on longer rides.

edit: Just noticed these pedals which appear to be rebranded Wellgo MG-1 with new-style pins. If these really are MG-1s this is a very good deal: Amazon.com : MEETLOCKS® Bike Pedal, Injection Aluminum Magnesium Alloy Body, Cr-Mo CNC Machined 9/16"Screw Thread Spindle, Ultra Du/sealed Bearing. : Sports & Outdoors They also have holes so they can be used with toe clips or cages. If I needed platforms I'd buy these.

nitewing117

If you're looking to try out clipless pedals, but would want the convenience of flat pedals when not wearing your clipless shoes, check out the Shimano SPD dual platform pedal. It has SPD attachments on one side and flat pedals on the other.

fietsbob

To use the shoes I will wear all day I use platform pedals . have some SpuD type pedals & shoes..

I rarely put them on the bike any More.

Hybrid Bike , as mentioned above there are A Spud on one side And platform on the other pedal

Welgo makes a Lower cost one than Shimano.

Leebo

Might be helpful to know what kind of pedals you have now and what kind of riding you do.

jerzmike64

The stock pedals are a little small and made of polymer I guess but I'm riding for exercise as well as casual. I'm thinking about platforms type pedals maybe. Just wanted to hear from some more experienced riders

jerzmike64

Riding for mostly exercise with some casual riding. I'm planning to ride in the streets and on the tobacco trail the stock pedals are a little small and cheesy polymer and I'm a big guy who's trying to drop some weight. I don't imagine the stock pedals are gonna hold up for too long.

SkyDog75

There are lots of good platform pedals out there at various price points. Clem's got some good suggestions above. I've found that MKS makes high quality pedals for the price and he mentioned one of their models. Their RMX pedal might be my first suggestion for you. If you want to spend as little as possible for a pedal that's better than the plastic ones your bike came with, you could go with alloy BMX-style pedals like these Diamondback Bigfoot pedals -- just be sure to get the ones with a 9/16" axle.