Straps
 

I've been rocking All-City leather doubles for the past 6 months and let me tell you, biggest waste of $40 I've ever spent. After a week they began stretching and going to ****. Its to the point where I don't even bother tightening them up (I like straps super tight) because they come lose almost immediately. Its super annoying and at times I don't even know why I have them on at all. I use them to skid but they are always so lose its just my toe doing all the pull, foot half slipped out, all sketchy. Only a matter of time before I take a serious slam. Okay, think I've made my point..

Now, I have some disposable income at the time being and am SO close to just saying "screw it" and dropping $100 on some Toshi doubles. But I'd also feel very guilty spending that amount of money on straps. I spend way too much money on my bike.

I've heard mixed reviews on the Wabi doubles but I know they have to be better than my All-City garbage. A $70 price difference is pretty extreme which leads me to believe they can't even come close to comparing with Toshis. All I want are straps that stay tight. That's it. Are they $100 just for the NJS factor?

Also, I live in Portland. It rains just about everyday half of the year. I need something that won't get completely ruined in these conditions. And that also brings even more concern for good foot retention when my pedals/shoes are wet.

Anyone have experience? If the Wabis are only going to be good for a couple of months and the Toshis last for years, I may as well fork out the extra cash and do it right the first time, yeah?

No clipless arguments please. I won't ride clipless on a fixed gear bike. My biggest fear other than being doored is clipping out while skidding.

i use cheap nylon straps, and when they stretch i just pull them tighter. doubling up on them was more comfortable, but not really much better. if i forget to tighten them, they suck. spending a benjamin on toshi doubles just isn't going to happen. i have a friend that wears toshis even though he's vegan, so i don't doubt they're great. but come on. when i tried them they didn't seem any better than my nylons.

i also use clipless at times. every system can be used poorly and every system wears out. i think shoe choice and cage size has more to do with it than which strap you're using if you know how to tighten them. just like clipless springs can be set too loose and cleats can be selected to have too much or too little float. i've clipped out skidding before, brakeless. it's not that bad, same can happen on straps.

I don't really have any experience with toshi double straps so I can't say if the price is just NJS or not, but how do you feel about the wider velcro models of foot retention? I swear by holdfasts on both of my bikes personally. However, in Chicago, we don't have the constant rain that you will encounter so I don't really know how velcro models will hold up vs. Toshis or other leather doubles in that climate. At $60ish(with shipping) a pair for holdfasts I thought it was a bit much for straps but I don't regret it at all.

With winter approaching, I'm actually really curious to what different retention setups will last longer, hold tighter, and just function better through the elements too.

cc700, I wonder if you might be right about my cage sizing but these straps suck, for sure.. As for keeping them tight, I do! I tighten em down so I can barely get my feet out and for the first 5 minutes of my ride I have tons of pull. I naturally accelerate much quicker and have more control but then they come loose. It's so frustrating. I've gone completely mad before while riding out of my frustration with the foot retention. As for the clipping out with straps, its exactly what I'm afraid of. I've heard that Toshis will not slip a single MM. That's exactly what I've been wanting. Just wondering if the Wabi's will be able to achieve this as well.

People drop benjamins on seat posts (I've never experienced a difference with different seat posts) but foot retention seems more important to me. I dunno, ahh.

And to Pjb, thanks for the advice but if I were going to drop $60-70 for hold fasts, I'd rather just spend an extra 30-40 for toshis.

Thanks for the input dudes.

pss. i have a pretty ridiculous bike.. panasonic njs, mavic open pros, sugino zen ring, da track hubs, nitto rb 021s, ea cog, da headset, phil bottom bracket blah blah.. maybe adding toshis shouldn't be a big deal? i never had problems dropping money on **** before but for some reason this is hard for me this time around..

and for the record, i built my bike for $800. got pretty lucky

I know you didn't want to go there with clipless, but if you're going to provide a reason for not doing so, it needs to make sense. Clipping out while skidding isn't an issue with the right setup, particularly if you use atacs or eggbeaters that actually tighten as you pull up. Yes, worn cleats are still an issue, but as cc700 points out, failure due to wear is an issue with any setup. If you really want the best retention, clipless is the way to go. On the other hand, based on the above post, your bike seems to revolve around a particular style, and you may consider clipless to be out of place. That's at least a consistent reason.

As for straps, I haven't tried the holdfasts, but I did use power grips for a while. Everyone else seems to love them, but I could never get solid enough retention to feel comfy even for skipping. They performed worse than clips and single straps for me.

If you're concerned with problems due to being constantly wet, I'd suggest you avoid leather.

yeah, i hate straps. never solid, never easy to get into

I've tried powergrips, they definitely didn't feel as good as my Wig Straps. Same thing as the ones scrodz been selling for 20 bucks. If you dont wanna jump on the toshi bandwagon try them out first.

I enjoy a set-and-forget method (depending on the shoes I happen to be wearing while riding) so I swear by the expensive double leather strap thing. I haven't tried Toshis but I know my MKS Fit-Alphas aren't going to die any time soon. I used to own All-Citys, Well-Gos, and of course cheapo nylon straps, and the thick, double leather straps just feel much sturdier. I used to ride with really, really old, well-worn Christophe leather straps (I put two on each pedal, but no double-izer or whatever) that were at least 4 or 5 years old, ridden by someone who always rode brakeless, and they only broke just before I bought my Fit-Alphas. And they weren't even double laminated. YMMV.

To the OP, I know this may sound weird and it may not be the case, but do you have them buckled right? I've known a lot of people to complain about their straps "slipping" or "stretching", and all it was was that they weren't on correctly. They mad the mistake of putting the strap over the roller piece, not under like it should.

I have the same straps, and they are holding up just fine. No slipping on stretching at all.

For example:
http://urbanvelo.org/wordpress/wp-co.../dblstraps.jpg

Hey man, I have a pair of red toshi singles, barely used because of a switch to clipless, that I'm trying to get rid of. If you want to paypal me $40 I can ship them to you in a couple of days. PM me if interested.

Ditto Steev. Unless you constantly care for your straps, leather (even $100 leather) won't stand up to wet weather.

I have those straps (the All Cities), they're doing great, but i tend to avoid wet conditions.

I bought my Toshi doubles. $110 and worth every single penny. A friend of mine here in pdx has had the same pair of toshi doubles for 3 years. and they're still holding up perfect.

With that said, I don't think the rain messes em up. They won't look pretty but who cares.
I recommend these to everyone

I just don't get the expense. For $110 + clips + pedals, I can easily purchase decent clipless pedals and shoes for a much better ride. No matter how good the straps, clips are still clips -- and I use clips and (single) straps on my day-to-day ride. I just can't imagine dropping that kind of cash for anything short of a clipless setup.

Bro, you will totally like get doored with clipless man.

I know, right? It's totally impossible to get out of the damned things, unlike my schweet double-strap setup.

That's why I use double straps and clipless to make sure my skidz are perfect and doesn't pop out.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2085/...62594bac9f.jpg
SPD-R and double straps ftw.