Okay, although I have been able to catch on to much of the terminology through my readings, this is still something that I am quite fuzzy on. What is the difference between clipless or regular/(whatever the other breed is called) pedals? Could someone explain exactly what each is? Thanks.

Platform pedal-regular flat pedal.

Toe clips- platform pedal with a toe clip (cage-like object) and a strap that supports your foot to the pedal at the toe portion of your foot.

Clipless pedal- small pedal that engages to a cleat that is attatched the the undeside of your cycling shoes near the ball of your foot. Disengages easily when you turn your heel outward. Not as dangerous as some make them out to be. More efficient on the pedal technique.

Platform pedal - from the 70's. They make you taller on your bike.

Toe clips - similar to clothes pins. You put them on your toes and they hurt so you pedal faster.

Clipless pedal - No clips. They snap on instead. When you try to ride your bike, the pedals fall off. Teaches you to run with your bike.

I like Siu Blue Wind's answer!

I'll add another difference. With toe clips you can ride in what ever shoes you can find. With clipless.. where is my damn shoes?

Mr. Beanz is more or less right but I think that the use of the word "platform" seems to generally cause the confusion. Here is my understanding of the nomenclature:

Plain pedals: plain old flat, double-sided pedals. Like when you were a kid.

Platform pedals: pedals that are intended to be used exclusively with toe clips or straps. They are designed as one sided pedals.

Clipless pedals: Mr. Beanz post seems dead on.

Platforms are not limited soley to clips/straps & when they are utilized , you can flip over pedals & use pedals open style
I don't think any one mentioned the "toe clips" with no straps,it's just a little plastic clip that goes over the top of the foot.
I think you are thinking of "cage" type pedals

Speaking as someone who actually used toe clips, I'd like to chime in.

What most people refer to as toe clips are actually a toe cage and strap. You can put them on either platform or cage pedals. The clip is the third piece of the puzzle, and bolts to the bottom of the shoe. It's sort of a wide, flat clothes pin which engages the cage part of the pedal. Once engaged, the strap is pulled tight, preventing the clip from disengaging. You can use cage and strap without the clip; in fact I haven't seen a clip in at least 15 years. For some reason, common usage still refers to the setup as "toe clips," regardless of whether or not a clip is used.

A platform pedal was not reversible. At the front it had holes for mounting a cage, and at the rear it had what could be described as part of a cage. The purpose, of course, was lower weight compared to a full cage pedal. They had just enough hardware to secure a cage and strap. Then clipless came along and made them obsolete.

Clipless, of course, is so named because the 'clip' isn't used anymore. But you still "clip in" to engage. Go figure!

I love it!

Hopefully not too off topic....
My feet are beaten to death. Ive had Ortho inserts,
splints and all that stuff. Those big aluminum BMX platforms
are the most comfortable and easist on my poor goat feet.
Is anyone aware of a BMX platform that can be modded for
a toe clip cage and strap ??
LBS is out of the question because the few LBS's in VT are
currently LSS's !!

I don't see a size on the crank brothers "mallet" but they seem to offer a compromise - big platform and clipless still.

Don't track riders use them still?

With toe clips, the third part of the system, the part that fits onto your shoe soles is called a cleat. This is a slotted bit of metal or platic which engages with the lip of the pedal to ensure a rock solid attatchement. It was only ever used by racing cyclists or really athletic tourists, never by everyday commuters. It prevents rapid disengagent of the foot , hence racing cyclists saw the immediate advantage of clipless systems.

Clipless systems also use cleats on the shoe sole but this is a quite different thing that engages the quick-release mechanism on the pedal.

Track riders use all kinds of hybrid systems including clipless pedals with additional straps for security.

One of the few manufacturers who still make a wide variety of quality traditional pedals are MKS.

I am using VP566 pedals with slightly modified Giant plastic toe clips. I needed to widen the slots for the bolts on the clips, and then added a flat washer between the bolt head and plastic clip.

Word of Warning, some shoes will be hard to pull out in an emergency, like hiking boot tread. I used fairly smooth soled walking shoes.

I have size 13-1/2 shoes. I'm still looking for platform pedals made from garbage can lids. Til then, I swipe 'em from Goodwill. They can be found out back by the dumpsters. You gotta bring your own tools, though.

Seriously,
Pedals found on old 3-speeds and vintage cruisers are sometimes called block pedals or platform.

The alloy or black resin pedals on early 5 and 10 speeds, MB's (and others), have been called platform but I think they are cages intended for the toe-clip/strap/stirrup things. I used them in the early 70's with the ubiquitous Adidas 'Country' running shoe. I still swear by the resin MB type, without stirrups, with a stiff all-terrain shoe. They are inexpensive and indestructable.

Clipless? That's a contradiction in terms. I see 'em clippin' in and clppin' out. Some of them just miss and fall over. Seem's like a hassle to me. Besides, it would interfere with a good Ride-By-Kicking!

how's this for modernasation....

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...27314?v=glance