what part of florida...my mom lives in stuart and when ever i go visit all i can think about is how i want to ride a fixed gear all over the place

im set on getting new pedals, cages and straps as one of the first mods to my FG (function over fashion), but i have a few questions, statements and concerns i would like to address.

doublestraps:
first of all, there is no ****ing way im going to spend 100 on double straps. no offense, im sure theyre worth it, but i just dont have the money. i found a few less expensive options online, i am wondering if anyone knows anything about these dimension doublestraps, as there are no product reviews on the site. i know there are white synthetic leather at ben's and black (might be synthetic, doesnt say) ones i saw on another site which were "laminated" which im guessing helps them hold up over time? not stretch etc?

cages:
from what i can tell just about everyone rocks some sort of metal cages. can anyone tell me the advantages over plastic? im sure metal doesnt need to be replaced often, but the plastic ones ive found (built for doublestraps) are stupid cheap, so replacement is whatever. the main reason i ask is because sometimes im doing (read: attempting to do) tricks and am a bit nervous about getting my feet out quick enough to catch myself from eating ****. so, im thinking i can ride on the non strap side of the pedal when i want to and not care if the plastic cages are scraping, or at least not as much as i would if they were metal....

pedals:
i have really wide feet, not like some sort of yeti (lolz), but as a point of reference, when i was younger i would have to wear the widest hockey skates they made, and even those were cramping. my feet are wayyy to wide for the pedals i got with the bike. they hang over the edge like crazy. i have seen the MKS whatevers, theres lots of em, but they all have these crazy teeth that are going to destroy my sneakers. so any rec's on a wide pedal without the teeth?

i realize this post was of biblical proportions, but i would really hate to waste money on bad parts. please help.

ft lauderdale, its about an hour from stuart. blue skies, and sunny beaches, just like stuart, but what we have that stuart doesnt is population. haha. hot ass girls everywhere. needless to say, they arent usually wearing much either. :D

^^^^^

if you're riding brakeless, you'll want nice straps. get some sort of double strap... cheap ones if you can't afford laminated toshi or mks (or other)

for cages, i like plastic ones... they're really just there to hold my straps up/open... my straps are set tight enough so they don't allow the plastic cages to flex enough to snap... they're cheap and durable (i believe they're )

i like mks gr-9 pedals... platform and don't have any sort of grippy screws or nubs... u might want to try bmx pedals too.

not sure if synthetic leather counts in the vegan bible, but ben's has a pair of white dimension doublestraps (synthetic) on the cheap.

yea i mean im going to go with the cheap ones, i was just wondering if anybody heard anything about them...

sorry, missed this at first. gr-9 dont have teeth, awesome. but theyre just nowhere near wide enough. i think i will look into bmx pedals, that seems like a good idea. thx!

From what I have read about the cheap doublestraps is that it is generally a waste of money. The dimension and Soma's wear out extremely fast. I have no personal experience with them but I think you'd be better off with a nice set of singles before the ****ty set of doubles.

Read a little more about them before you make that purchase. I have no advice for the crazy wide feet problem, bmx pedals seem like a good solution though.

they suck.
yeah, you might like them for 2 months
until they stretch out and the buckles dont stay tight.

my consumer philosophy is spending a higher amount
on quality and durability once.
you'll eventually replace enough of those craptastic QBP straps
to match the cost of toshi double straps.

if you plan on riding your bike for years to come, think of it as a one-time investment.
and think of dimension straps as a reoccurring expense.

save up
or sell something you own.
toshis are worth it.

I bought Errebi Double Sprints, and they started separating as I was installing them. I've put about 75 miles on them, and the left pedal strap (the one i pull with) is totally done. I thought I would be saving money, wish I had just bought Toshi's from the get go since I'll be buying them anyways now :(

Anyone else use Errebi's? They don't seem to get talked up too much around here.

Seriously though, unless you commonly ride around with the straps tightened, and/or brakeless, there is no reason spend money on double straps, unless you just have the money to blow. Ride around on single straps for a while, and if/when you find that they are severely lacking, then go out and buy some doubles. Upgrade-itis is a serious thing folks.

no
there is a difference between singles and doubles.
once you go double, you dont go back.

but, in all honesty, if you're going to spend 100 on toshis, 25 on gr9s, and 15 on clips
you might as well pick up some 45 dollar atacs and a pair of 90 dollar shoes
and get a real bang for your buck.

def. unless you want the 'look'.

Seconded. I went with pricey clips and straps because I wasn't sure clipless was for me but still wanted to be secure and not have to worry about snapping straps.

What a mistake that was!!! I love clipless!

Is there anything in between crappy dimensions and $100 Toshi/MKS?

for all of you out there that have toshi doubles, what toe clips are you guys using? single gates or double gates? just curious since i'm looking at upgrading these stock nylon ones.

Singles.

i cant even tell my two apart.

geordi, i totally agree with you about spending more up front rather than on the back end. that been said, 1 soul for sale...any takers?

no brakes.

geordi, your probably right. REM i appreciate your cynical nature but there is no "look" im going for, just not interested in carrying around two pairs of shoes. i ride my FG to go places. going to stick with the cages.

does that mean you are selling your clips and straps then?

can anyone speak to this?

I was using Eggbeaters and Sidi Dom5 and moved to clips/doubles due to a short term clipless pedal shortage in my bike stable. It's horrible - the bike feels flat and I almost killed myself in traffic.

Probably because clipless is better

The Exustar Double Sprinter Straps are almost as good as Toshis or the MKS doubles and cost like, what, less than half the price of those. They're the same type of thick double laminated suede with good quality buckles too.

http://i22.ebayimg.com/07/i/001/29/1f/0ca1_1.JPG

i also ride clipless love it except when bombing hills.

i went from metal to plastic. they're durable... i think (based on the packaging)they're actually made for mountain bikes... they've lasted longer than my mks STEEL cages that i ended up snapping while hopping upa curb with my foot on the non-caged side of one of the pedals...

i dig plastic. if the ones i have now break,i'd for sure go back to another plastic pair

we have a winner!

go with steel clips.
aluminum bend and break easily.

wow, nice! do you use them yourself or know anyone who does?

i went to my friends shop yesterday to check out the catalogues and see what he gets the MKS double straps for...COST to his shop is about $80!!

i was ready to grab them anyway, but these look like they could work out. thx

have you actually used these?
are you sure they're not just another incarnation of QBP straps?