You all have been great so far and this forum has been a good source of ideas.

My next is Pedals. One of mine broke a while ago, had to pick up a set that were plastic/nylon temporarily as I didn't like what was available locally. I don't think these will last long.

In cruiser fashion no clip-ins, platform is best, I usually ride anywhere from 20-100 miles and often in sandals so comfort is important. Haven't yet but bare footed possibly some day/ride.

I'm just over 200 lbs and like to climb hills at times that are 1-2 miles long and 6-8% grades, bottom line: a lot of weight standing on those poor pedals so they need to be durable hence why I don't think my new plastic ones will last long and time to look into what's out there. Not liking just ordering on-line without some insight from others.

Any thoughts or experiences?

Thanks in advance.

Does your bike have a OPC or a 3 piece?

MKS makes good pedals and they're reasonably priced.

Sorry surreal, Holidays, no time! They are one piece and I believe they are different size than 3 piece cranks, right?

Yes. You'll need 1/2" spindles; MKS does make excellent pedals, but most all of them are the 9/16" spindle size for 3 piece cranks. I've down well with VP beartrap-style pedals, but really, you need to decide the look you're going for, find an all=metal version in the style you want, and buy it. If possible, pedals with bearings are better than those with bushings, but really, job 1 is: avoid plastic pedals.

I run a bunch of these:
VP-747 3rd gen bear trap XC-II BMX alloy pedals - 1/2" - BLACK
But you can find very similar pedlas made by Wellgo and XLC. I enjoy NOS or lightly-used Wald pedals, got some VP rat-trap style pedals, and I even run some fake "rubber" block XLC pedals (the rubber is actually plastic); these have held up, and i trusted them mostly b/c the plastic is just a facade over a metal frame. Still, i know they'll crack someday soon....

Never ride a bike bare foot!! Never ever!!

Why??

You expose your toes to very serious injury should your foot scrape the ground or encounter a solid obsticle while pedaling. Closed toe shoes or don't ride.

Riding barefoot is just plain..........stupid!

Sunlite Cruz Sport pedals are excellent and inexpensive. One piece aluminum body, servicable/adjustable bearings, good grip, available in half inch.

If you find 9/16th pedals that you love, you can buy reducers.

That will do it... Once you Screw in the 1/2" to 9/16" adapters, the whole world of better pedals opens up for You.

Haha, thanks Nightshade, I understand. Haven't ridden barefoot yet but it's a cruiser and if I'm along the beach cruising slow, I might. Almost 10k miles and not once that I recall but might not want to close that door.

surreal: those are aggressive! I've seen those and not the look I'm going for. You're right, it's very personal in a silly way. I'll look at some of the other classic ones you mentioned, they sound interesting.

Squid: adapters, did not know, thanks for the idea. Do they seem to hold up, seems like it's another point to fail perhaps. And yea, there seems to be way more variety in the 9/16ths sizes. The BMX'ers seem to have the most variety in the 1/2 inch but some of them are pretty loud (brightly colored).

At the mileage I ride I should step up and adapt to a higher quality 3pc crank. Some day.

Speaking of mileage and age, I know there are classic bikes out there that are really old, but is there any point when the welds/frame can give up? Like I said earlier almost 10k miles and I got it used. I love the bike's look and geometry/comfort so I don't have a problem changing parts as they wear out just wondered if at some point I should look at another frame. Any thoughts?

Have Easton flatboy pedals on my felt happy hour......great pedals..👍👍

I vote for dual purpose SPD/platforms and cycling sandals. You will ultimately prefer being clipped in on those hills.

beach cruiser , there are bare-foot pedals , if that is your style..

I ride 10-15 miles a day at work on my Electra Cruiser 1. Shortly after buying the bike, I switched from the plastic pedals that came with it to XLC's version of the old Union pedals I had on my '86 Huffy Bay Pointe. These are claimed to be rubber but they're plastic too ... at any rate, I've done 600+ miles on them and had no trouble so far, and I'm "a few" pounds over 200 myself.

XLC Rubber Pedals - 1 Pair, 1/2", Black

Can't beat the price on 'em either.

More good ideas, those XLC's are classic looking, not sure I like to be clipped in, so far I seem to prefer not but I'll have to look into some cycling sandals, those sound interesting. My sandals have a shallow "tread" and those small bumps on those Easton's might not work so well. I think I have a different version on another bike and I have trouble gripping them. I like the large platform though.