for many years and thousands of recreational and touring, i used spds. i found them to be almost indestructable and inexpensive to buy. in fact, i usually bought used ones, and never experienced any problems.
at some point, about 10 years ago, for some reason i tried CB eggbeaters, probably because i occasionally found myself fumbling with getting into the spds and i was attracted to the four vs two entry points. i immediately converted all my bikes (about five at the time) to eggbeaters and have never thought about returning to spds.
they occasionally get some criticism from MTBers from a durability POV, but as a road rider, in admittedly good weather conditions, i've only rebuilt one set, of the five or six sets i've got, in over 40,000 miles of riding. and that set of pedals were used when i bought them.
BTW, i prefer the stainless steel Eggbeater 2's. the even cheaper model is essentially the same except for the chrome moly spindles and the stamped wings and an insignificant weight penalty.
Last edited by hueyhoolihan; 04-27-15 at 05:12 PM.