tashi

I hate goddam Eggbeaters. There's almost nothing to not like about Shimano's, just pick your features and pricepoint and you'll get a good, long lasting pedal.

I'd get A520's for a commuter.

redpear

So far there are a lot of people who don't like eggbeaters, can you give me your reasons? I am just curious. Some of the things I've heard are durability issues, hotspots, and various things about the float. I don't have any complains in any of these areas.

caloso

I don't have any experience with Eggbeaters, but I have nothing but good things to say about 520s.

tashi

Tiny platform, would be super ****ty with anything but the stiffest of race shoes. Pretty lousy with those too.
Float: either lots of float and low release tension or less float with low tension. This is backwards and I don't like float on mountain bike pedals anyway.
Release tension was always far too low. Popped out all the time.
Sloppy bearings/bushings. Wore out waay too fast.
Weak. Broke wings all the time. Always replaced free of charge, but I've NEVER had a Shimano pedal fail and I've been running at least two sets at a time (on different bikes) constantly for the last 14 years so I see no reason to put up with them breaking.
My wife doesn't know **** about bike parts but she knows what she doesn't like. She doesn't like Eggbeaters either.

Shimano's work well, have consistant (and high if you want) release tension, no float, multi-release if you want it, and last and are completely rebuildable. I have a set of the first generation ones on the go right now, and a pair of m747's on my mountain bike. They've been ridden hard since 1996. They're still awesome. There is a Shimano pedal for any use, and often at a variety of price points.

I like SPD's.

UCF Eric

I used eggbeaters for a while when I first got into clipless, it just feels insecure, I pulled out of them once or twice. The bearings in mine were shot when I got them, the guy I bought them from used them for a season of MTB Racing, they never really turned easily.

I've now switched to SPD-SL and it feels so much better.

redpear

My cleats are attached to SIDI Genius, I do not have hotspot issues for whatever reason.

I'm not sure if we're talking about the same pedals. Eggbeaters don't have adjustable float or release tension--only release angle. This is a common complaint I hear, and it is reasonable. The other thing about release tension is that it shares the same sort of function as Time ATACs and Look Quartz. Provided the cleat is sitting squarely on the pedal, the release tension does not relate to upward motion on the pedal. It seems that the only possible ways to clip out accidentally are if your feet twist in a funny way while sprinting or something, if you are duck footed (in which case, rotate the cleat on the shoe), or if you literally tear out a cleat or snap it or something. I have clipped out accidentally by twisting my foot, but never with the others. I could just be a wimp. In any case, if I had that problem like you did I would probably turn away from them too.

Your last argument is a pretty sensible one and very common as well. In the past, Crank Bros have had issues with durability, wings breaking, and constant rebuilds necessary. For the new 2011 models they claimed to address these issues. I know of other people who have 2011 models and like them better than their older Eggbeaters. I decided to take the risk and so far, I have not had any issues, though I suppose it remains to be seen.

Chicagoan

I run SPD's and love em. I've had several friend break numerous pairs of eggbeaters, one of which was a ***** to remove from the crank. I've heard good things about Times, and want to try a pair.

carleton

+1 to what has been said about how bad eggbeaters are. You guys saved me from writing paragraphs.

tessartype

Black with silver accent? Then here's classy:



And affordable classy:

Steev

SPD shoes have a two hole bolt pattern.
If the OP wants to use his SPD shoes he just needs cleats with that hole pattern.
Generally that will mean a MTB style pedal. He definitely won't be able to use the various SPD-SL (road style) pedals suggested.
For me, unless I cared about clipping in with muddy shoes, I'd suggest Shimano MTB of some sort as others have suggested.

tessartype

There's something about "candy" shaped pedals - from SPD and Eggbeaters to road-pedals like the Speedplay - that looks decidedly un-classy in my opinion. Of course, once you're on the bike, nobody's going to see them, but why would the OP then ask for a classy pedal? That Dura Ace pedal looks sexy enough to have me reaching for my credit-card, even though I'd rather buy a Speedplay when the time to replace my current (bottom-end SPD-SL) comes.

I've seen a set of SPDs that looked reasonably good - double-sided with something akin to a guard around it. I believe M530 fits the description. But it's still not near the beauty of a good "blade" pedal. Even those funky Mavic or iClic look better.

vw addict

I don't think they are that awful. Over my last 18 years of using clipless I have tried and still own numerous Shimano, Time, Speedplay, Wellgo and Crank Brothers road and mtn pedals. Right now I have Time's on two bikes, and Crank Brothers on 3 others. I don't have a problem with them.

yummygooey

Eggbeaters are alright. I think they're good for beginners. What's weird is that my right side pedal is really high tension and my left side pedal is really low tension. Did I install the cleats wrong? I never actually looked...

I would like to try out Shimano M520s or similar in the future, if not SPD-SL

fuah

My eggbeater2's were the same when I first got them. Tried adjusting various things, but nothing seemed to help. They have either broken in or I got used to it...

They're okay, but I would never buy another pair. Waiting for them to wear out so I can try a pair of ATACs...

misskaz

Just throwing this out there, knowing it might be totally not what you're looking for:



Shimano A530. Clipless on one side, platform on the other, but not too bulky. I've had them on my commuter for two years now, through thousands of miles, and like them a lot. I think they look a little nicer than clipless that don't have any platform to them. That said, you have to get used to the right motion to flip the pedal to the correct side to clip in. It becomes habit soon enough, not unlike getting into toe clips.

JesusBananas

Are these fake Shimano M520s?



I got my M520s used on ebay for < $25. Couldn't be happier.

yummygooey

Yea, pretty much this. It would be really great if all MTB pedals were interchangeable with all cleats.

hairnet

I've seen many broken or failing Eggbeaters, I've hardly seen any broken SPDs. I have two pairs of SPDs from the early 90s (pretty much first generation) that still work flawlessly but look beat to ****