I'm running sylvans; soma clips; toshi double straps. I went from really cheap pedals with plastic clips and nylon straps to the same pedals with steel clips and a single suede strap (EAI, i think) and then got this new setup with the new bike.

DOUBLE STRAPS ARE TOTALLY WORTH IT. $100 is a lot to pay for toshis, but my lord, I will never ever use anything else. And I'm a cheap bastard.

The soma clips are nice and wide, but they make it hard to tighten the straps down all the way (on my feet, anyway).

Those are my $.02.

Will the Soma straps and Soma clips work with GR-9's? Seems like it would be hard to cram that double strap in there.

my cheap setup:
Wellgo Track pedals
Plastic MTB XL double gate clips
nylon straps

That setup works, the pedals and straps are functional and the MTB style clips work better with various styles of shoes than road style metal clips.

what I plan to get:
MKS Sylvan Track pedals
Soma double gate clips
Soma Double straps.

My reasoning for upgrading is. Pedals I don't have any problem with the wellgos, but MKS Sylvans are highly regarded, and will probably be an improvement. Soma clips are similar in shape the the plastic MTB clips I already use and like, but should be considerably stiffer. Double straps apparently hold their shape better, ad give better grip than any single strap. I'm hoping this setup will not only be easier to enter than my current setup, but will give me better grip as well.

Christophe unlaminated leather straps stretch to the point of breaking pretty quickly.

That is my single non-recommendation.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

this came up in another post once. double straps do work with GR-9's. thats my setup. only problem is that there is only 1 set of holes on the pedal to thread 1 strap through (the rear strap, closest to your ankle). i run the front strap slightly tighter, which hugs my shoe, but it just sits over the toeclip and under the pedal. it works ok. i wanna try some sylvans for the doubles anyway and put the gr-9's on my other bike.

And there you have it. The dude who started the last thread didn't ask the right question. He did not ask "What are good clips, straps and pedals?" which is concise and would prompt a conversation about said topic. He said "I've been riding clipless for a short time and its the worst and uncomfortable so I'm switching to clips. What are good clips, straps and pedals?" Which emphasizes his problems with clipless and due to those problems he is switching to clips and straps. Why reccomend something he doesn't need when he's likely using what he has wrong? We try to help, and if people can't be helped, they tend to be mocked or the conversation drifts.

Which is why I hardly ever create threads. When I do I make them concise, directed, unconfused and (hopefully) useful (or at least hopefully funny).

never give messageboard people enough information that they could start to blast you for being wrong about something (!).

I'm confused. Aren't double straps like the Soma's just one strap with two pieces of leather joined rather than two seperate straps?

It sounds like you want to run two single straps threaded through each of the two holes on pedals like Sylvans but not like how the GR-9's are set up with one set of holes.

the ywo setups I have and love are ...
mks sylvan track pedals with mks steel clips and mks straps
cheap wellgo narrow mtb pedals with ale steel clips and kkt laminated straps

the best I can say is get the mks sylvan track pedals or the mks gr-9 pedals
with the steel toe clips and a laminated strap

laminated straps are stronger because they have a layer of hard plastic sandwitched between two layers of leather or suede I prefer suede because it is stronger and doesn't fray

i have toshi double straps. double straps are like a siamese-twin pair of straps, with a thick piece of leather joining them and laminated goodness sandwiched on the inside. but for each "double-strap," there are 2 separate straps, each with their own buckle. so what i meant was that the front buckle/strap has nothing to thread through on GR-9's, but is still basically held in place by the other strap (and the siamese-twin-like piece of leather), which threads through the one set of holes. sorry if i'm not being clear. . .

Great thread with valuable info. All the info is correct about the track pedals with high ridges (cleat and hard sole friendly). They are not very compatible with sneakers with fat waffle soles - I did a 20 mile ride today from Oakland to Walnut Creek and having the waffle soles made it a pain in the ass to flip the pedal and get past the first ridge cause the waffle locked onto it and I couldn't slide in!!!! Second a flexible cork sole was farthest from ergonomically comfortable as the front and rear high ridges bit into the sole and cause two hot-spots when mashing out of saddle up hills! Vans, Nike SB, and the majority of skate type shoes with a stiffer sole and their smooth wavy soles are all good for these pedals though.

k3nho,

The GR-9's work with double straps. The issue I found with GR-9's versus the Sylvan's is the strap holes aren't tight so you have to put a twist in the strap to keep things reasonably tight (to prevent movement). The front strap on doubles fit nicely running under the pedal and over top of the toe clip bolts and do a decent job of holding the strap in place. The Sylvan's have nice, tight strap holes so no twist is needed (in my experience). Both are nice pedals. I wish the GR-9's had screw on end caps because I don't care for press in caps.

I really like my pedal setup. I always feel like I want to change stuff on my bike, but my pedals never cross my mind.

-specialized pedals (someone said they were rebranded superbe pro tracks, but I think they're RX-1s. haven't seen them come up for sale in a long time though)
-mks single L steel clips
-mks fit alpha doubles (people say toshis have better riveting, these feel fine though and were used when i got them, still feel solid)

i wear vans slipons when i ride with these pedals coz hipster. they slide in perfectly though and really feel secure. it's no clipless, but it's not scary to ride brakeless.

also some people say the rx-1 is a narrow pedal and is uncomfortable, but my foot is pretty narrow so it's okay. i'm like 9.5 though, so even if you're a narrow 13, you might be better with custom nuevos.

It doesn't seem like most pedals are designed for Double toe straps, where do you put the second strap?

put longer bolts for the clips and slip the strap between the pedal and the bolts.

From my personal preference;

MKS RX - 1's (a longer tab allows the pedal to flip easier than sylvans) & Toshi doubles & All city double cages L; all of this ordered from ben's

that makes sense, then thread the second strap under the pedals and over the longer bolts?

Oh my god zombie thread.
Great information on clips and pedals combos though.

This is the method I've seen track racers use, feeding the first strap through the second slot, and the second strap through the back.

i run doubles through my gr-9s in a similar fashion to the one above, except mine cross underneath the pedal. this is the most secure i've ever felt in a pedal though! sorry for the crappy cell pics.

That looks really really secure, but is it hard it get in and out?

not at all! one flip of the pedal and i'm in; one twist of the ankle and i'm out. no more pulling out of the clips flying down a hill at 30 mph with this setup.

Interesting, I've been contemplating on double straps, but I feel like they are really expensive...

As far as zombie threads go, this is a good one.

Because of the neuropathy in my lower left leg have been moving toward using clipless pedals to provide solid foot placement although I am keeping some clips and straps on a few vintage bikes, if only for aesthetics and display purposes.

Aside from TA pedals, which are the finest ever made, there is almost nothing better than Suntour Superbe and XC Pro pedals which have been my favourites for longer than many people here have been riding.

The define smooth and are superior to MKS pedals and the equal of the classic Record pedals on which they were modeled.

Wabi double straps are the kings of cheap laminated doubles:

https://www.wabicycles.com/pedal_options.html

Plus, Wabi's got great customer service: One of my straps started to delam, but these guys got a replacement to me immediately!