carleton

I'm looking for a good, strong setup. I wear a size 12 shoe and don't always wear super-narrow shoes.

I ride clipless now, but going to run clip/straps on my next bike.


PS

No clips vs clipless battles, please.

Also, please speak from experience, not from what looks good on some website.

Shiznaz

You are?

isotopesope

a failure?

wearegetgetgo

i use mks pedals with the clips and straps. you can get them as a set for like 50 bucks or so. . pretty standard.

isotopesope

my clips and straps setup is suntour superbe pedals, christophé size large clips ( i wear 12's too) and christophé leather straps. i like this setup, but this is on my fendered cruisin' around town conversion... i prefer clipless otherwise.

queerpunk

what's your price range? i have no problems with my mks sylvans as long as i don't mind repacking the bearings of the pedal that i lost the dustcap for, every couple of months or so. i don't, which is nice. and they were affordable. a friend of mine enjoys the higher-end mks pedals--i don't remember which.

i have christophe clips. they do what they're supposed to, which is, hold the straps so that i can put my foot in them.

i have silva straps which i wrote about a bunch in the other thread. they tighten and loosen very easily, and when tight, are comfortable and supersnug. this, i love. however, they split like nobody's business, and i have had to crazy glue them back together cause i can't afford new satisfactory straps right now.

when i can (soon!), i'll buy errebi doubles. laminated and more affordable than MKS or Toshi doubles. I was tempted by the Soma doubles, which got mixed reviews in a recent thread. i'm guessing the mixed-ness came from people using straps differently. some people like to tighten them way down when they put their foot in, and loosen before removal (me!), other people just set them to a get-in get-out point and leave them. seems to me those two styles of using straps are bound to give people very different impressions of straps.

carleton

I'm not on a strict budget and I've got time to save while I'm gathering parts for the new ride.

I'll spend a couple of hundred for the complete setup if it's worth it.



Also, I find it's cheaper to buy the right thing once, than to buy the wrong thing then buy right thing.

Shiznaz

Holy moley, a couple hundred? Just get the blingest stuff you can and you'll still come in under that.

carleton

Yeah. I'm riding Time ATACs with Sidi Dominators now to the tune of almost $300 total.

I have no idea what clips/strap setups cost new these days. I rode them years ago. They were shimano 600s that I found in a bike shop "crap" box that I rebuilt from 4 different pedals into 2 that worked.

trons

i have
kkt pro ace pedals/mks large (size 10)/binda & random cheap leather unlaminated ghetto double straps
campy track pedal/christophe clips/binda unlaminated straps
mks unique custom (sylvans, basically)/mks l/random laminated strap
other than the ease of being able to tighten as i go (unlaminated binda singles are the easiest) they are all about the same

carleton

So, what do you recommend?

Shiznaz

Well if you add the cost of fancy-pants shoes into your 'couple hundred' for clips and straps you'll only end up with 50 bucks to spend!

Conventional knowlege would say:
MKS Royal Nuevo pedals $107.50/pair
MKS "Fit-a" double straps $79.50/pair
MKS steel toe clips $12.50/pair

That brings you in at $199.50USD

However, you'd probably be just as happy with what I have:
MKS Sylvan Track pedals $24.50/pair
ALE laminated toe straps $13.00/pair
SOMA double gate toe straps $12.50/pair

Caveat: its easy to lose dustcaps on the sylvans, the soma clips are really deep, and it was hard to thread the ALE straps through the sylvans. This could be a problem with any pedal system though.

Total $40.00USD. Then you can buy drugs or play polo or whatever it is that goes on in Bermuda. I guess golf? I know! Spend the extra $160.00USD on some fancy shoes!

nightfly

How are the MKS steel clips and Christophe leather traps in comparison to the Soma clips and ALE laminated straps?

sashae

I personally think Royal Nuevo's/Custom Nuevos/RX-1's suck if you're riding them in shoes without cleats, as the platform is so small. Earlier Suntour pedals and MKS Sylvans and Sylvan Lites both have larger platforms that are significantly more comfortable.

As for straps, Toshi Suedes are phenomenal -- I run singles but have heard nothing but good things about the doubles.

carleton

Hahaha!

Thanks for the info.

recneps

I think mks sylvans + alloy toeclips(I like the MKS and ALE) + long nylon straps are the best things for everyday riding in shoes.

Shiznaz

The MKS clips vs. the SOMA clips:

MKS are cheaper, come in multiple size, are NJS
Soma have double gate for easy entry, more expensive, one LARGE size

ALE vs. christophe straps:

ALE are laminated, stronger, stiffer, have superior hardware and buckle guards, come in a variety of colours, cool
Christophe are a single strip of thick leather, cheaper, more supple, and black

I have a feeling though (from personal expereince) that a good pair of non-laminated toe straps will last better through commuting, crud and abuse, although the performance of laminated toe straps is noticably better. The problem with laminated straps and commuting (taking your foot in and out of the pedals all the time) is that if your shoes aren't old school cycling shoes, the rubber soles are likely to catch on the inside piece of leather on laminated straps and progressively delaminate them until they are useless.

nightfly

Nice synopsis.

Who sells those ALE straps online? Anyone who sells the SOMA's and the ALE's?

Shiznaz

yeah, the only online bike shop I saw them at was Rivendell though, and they charge ******** extra costs for people who aren't members (like 5 dollars per item). I just ponied up the dough though as I was in a rabid fit of colour coordination and OCPness about my track bike.

Rivendell:
ALE straps $18
Soma clips $23

Harris Cyclery has ALE straps but they have a different design and I don't think they are laminated (They don't have the buckle pad either):
ALE Straps $13.95
Soma clips $21.95

Velo orange, toeclip and yello-jersey seem to have one or the other, but not both.

I'd say the ALE straps from rivendell are worth the extra 5 bucks on the total order in this case though... They come in red and yellow

k3nho

i was always on the fence about double toestraps because of the cost. but recently i picked up a pair of lightly used suede toshi doubles for $10. . . OMG i am sold on them for life! they feel like pockets for my feet. to me, they kinda bridge the gap between traditional clips & single straps and clipless pedals. i would highly recommend them.

shishi

sylvans, steal MKS L toe clips, don't get anything other than steel, way too much flex. Have good success with EAI and Cinelli straps, but I adjust them once and leave them be.

sivat

I like the MKS GR9 pedals. With most pedals, I get a hot spot from the ridge where the pedal would normally engage with the cleat. With the GR9s, no ridge, no hot spot. The grip isn't quite as good as sylvans, but I'm thinking some double straps would fix that.

RobbieIG

I have been riding the MKS GR9s with MKS LL size clips and nylon straps. I wear size 13 (USA) DCs and my toe overlap sucks with a firm lip seal. I pull the straps tight, and flip them open when I need to put a foot down. The flip tab is so big on the GR9s that they can snap off, as my right one did. Sometimes you have to step on the underside of the pedal. Doesn't really matter though, it's still easier for me to flip into the right than the left, I would attribute this entirely to dexterity, but I have a suspicion I'm not using the tabs at all.

As for the small toebox shoes, yeah, they seem to fit better into these clips. Sambas make my feet hurt cause my toes are all squished together. I haven't found a wider shoe with a small toebox. With the DCs (skate shoes) I'm using now, I can feel pressure from the clip on top of my foot, but it sorta makes me think I have better power transfer.

bikeage

double straps are pretty damn amazing and this is coming from a person that LOVES clipless. Also, Jones recently got Soma Double Straps and **** like that. So, drop by and check it out!

LoveParkRIP

Thanks for starting this thread, carleton. Looks like were are both in the same boat.

I'd like to hear more about the MKS custom nuevo's. Sashae said that the platform on these is smaller than the sylvans. Has anyone else tried both pedals? Is there a noticable difference?