Flat Pedals! Leaning towards Canfield

Discussion in 'Component Product Reviews' started by Erik H, Jan 13, 2018.


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  1. Erik H

    Erik H Member

    Location:
    Altadena
    Name:
    Erik Hillard
    Hey all! I'm looking to start with flat pedals on my upcoming hard tail build. A lot of its life will be as a BOB trailer hauler and it definitely is easier to handle on flats when pedaling in hiking boots for trail work.

    I was leaning towards the Canfield stuff as I loved their EPO frame and figure there stuff is very well built. A shop I visited yesterday told me they have had a fair amount of broken flat pedals and bad bearings and they recommended I get some recommendations.

    Thoughts from you flat pedal fans? I've been on SPDs most of my life and love how the bearings are super easy to press in new grease and maintain. I'm a big fan of long living parts and being able to maintain stuff myself.

    Canfield-Brothers-Crampon-Mountain-Set.jpg
     
  2. rossage

    rossage iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    East Sacramento
    Name:
    Ross Lawson
    Current Bike:
    Highball
    I almost always use my XT SPD pedals but for most bikepacking and trailwork, I use

    https://www.vitalmtb.com/product/gu...d/Boomslang,15705#product-reviews/2040/expand

    These things are super grippy-they even get a hold of my Chaco sandals when I commute
    The biggest drawback is the $180 price tag! I got a screaming deal on some lime-green ones that Specialized were blowing out last year sometime.
    Best flats I have ever ridden on, but, I do almost all of my riding on SPD so YMMV.
    I'm sure plenty of others will chime in with their choices....
     
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  3. riiz

    riiz Member

    Location:
    Redlands, CA
    Name:
    Eric
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Heckler/Killmaleon
    DMR Vaults or the V12 Mag 2.0 are my goto. I have some of of the older V12 pedals that still roll smooth and havent been serviced in almost 7 years. My other pick would be the Shimano Saints, heavy but reliable as well.
     
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  4. kioti

    kioti iMTB Rockstah

    Name:
    Jim Jennings
    Current Bike:
    ibis ripley
    I got some RF Chesters for the same reason and am totally happy with them. Light, cheap, lots of color choices and supposedly serviceable. Not subjecting them to heavy use, just riding to trail work sites, so I don't need them to be bulletproof.

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EONZSAA/?tag=imtbtrails-20
     
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  5. Andy

    Andy Well-Known Member

    Location:
    The OC, Calif
    Name:
    Andy
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Chameleon
    I DON'T recommend Spike Spanks. Had 2 sets. After a year it seems they require a lot of maintenance to keep them noise free and turning smoothly. Although to be fair, the box comes with a nice exploded diagram allowing you to work on them and see where everything goes. Also had some Kona Wah-wah pedals. One required a rebuild after 6 months. Rebuild kit is kinda expensive (in proportion to the cost of the pedals themselves), can be ordered direct from the Kona website if you wanna go that route. Currently using Crank Bros Stamp (large) pedals. They're pretty big, and I love 'em! Got mine from ebay for just under $80, free shipping, so was happy with the price - but also happy with their performance. I like them so much I'll be putting them on my next bike as well...
     
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  6. Obsidian

    Obsidian iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    Costa Mesa
    Name:
    Obsidian
    Current Bike:
    27.5 Intense Tracer
    I have Race Face Chesters also and I pound on them. $60 bucks and they are among the lightest of all flat pedals.
     
  7. mike

    mike iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Western US
    Name:
    Mike O
    Current Bike:
    HT, FS
    If I was buying trail bike flats today it would be Gamut Podium or Crampons. Gamut sells rebuild kits for the Podium, including the older Point1 Podium. The outboard side of the Podium has three small bearings in it – incredible durability compared to other very thin pedals, which may even have bushings in lieu of bearings. They retained that bearing config in the updated Podium.

    DMR does make some indestructible pedals; for less than super thin design I love the Mag v12. I've run the v1 and 2 v12 on bikepacking missions and go to this pedal when reliability is paramount. For technical downhill they are hard to differentiate from my favorite thin pedals.
     
  8. riiz

    riiz Member

    Location:
    Redlands, CA
    Name:
    Eric
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Heckler/Killmaleon
    Have you seen the second gen V12, it has been thinned down quite a bit, pretty much on par with any pedal around the $70 price range.
     
  9. mike

    mike iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Western US
    Name:
    Mike O
    Current Bike:
    HT, FS
    Yep, as I wrote I own a pair and have used them extensively. Incredible value, bomb proof. Works very well for all technical uses, but less than fantastic on technical uphill (as any flat that's not ultra-thin would be).
     
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  10. Lots of people like HT for how thin they are. But every bike I have ever seen with used HT’s on tend to be super loose worn out bushings with tons of play.

    I have not used the Canfield's but they look sick.

    I am using Diety T-mac and love them and would pay near double. They fit my size 13 shoes great
     
  11. Erik H

    Erik H Member

    Location:
    Altadena
    Name:
    Erik Hillard
    Thicker flat pedals on technical uphill suck because they have a higher chance of pedal strike?
     
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  12. mike

    mike iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Western US
    Name:
    Mike O
    Current Bike:
    HT, FS
    Erik, I don't doubt that could be a factor. For whatever uphill technique I have, I can roll a pedal when things get really rough. Just a couple mms makes a big diff talking about the platform distance from the spindle center, and the likelihood of rolling over a pedal when the uphill riding gets bouncy, ratchet pedaling, etc. I think most flats riders recognize this, and thus put up with tiny bearings or bushings that wear out faster than a beefy bearing on the outside like the Mag V12 has. :geek:
     
  13. Sidewalk

    Sidewalk iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    The road is where I call home
    Name:
    Josh
    Current Bike:
    N+1
    I destroyed a set of Chester's...I bought another set.
     
  14. LLPoolJ

    LLPoolJ iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    Moreno Valley
    Name:
    James Johnson
    Current Bike:
    Specy Epic, Stumpu and Enduro
    It wasn't the pedals fault. Fo Shizzle
     
  15. Ricekrispyota

    Ricekrispyota Member

    Name:
    Dana Weinberg
    I’m in the same boat. I’ve never used flat pedals (other than when I was a kid).

    A bike I bought a couple years ago had the Loaded AMX pedals on it. I just threw em in a drawer. I’m gonna pull em out and give it a try tomorrow.
     
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  16. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    I had Loaded pedals. One bearing seized and the other got sloppy within the first five rides. Pieces of crap IMO. One of many reasons I am not a fan of Ellsworth.

    I hope yours are better.
     
  17. bvader

    bvader iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    HB
    Name:
    Mr. Brown
    I got some Cromag Contacts. Expensive but seem to be excellent quality... little thick think I might go with something thinner next time. But not sure when next time will be as I suspect these are going to last a long time.
     
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  18. Ricekrispyota

    Ricekrispyota Member

    Name:
    Dana Weinberg

    Yuck. Me too. Thanks for the positive vibes.
     
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  19. Sidewalk

    Sidewalk iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    The road is where I call home
    Name:
    Josh
    Current Bike:
    N+1
    Nope
     
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  20. sir crashalot

    sir crashalot iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    laguna beach
    Name:
    gary fishman
    Current Bike:
    2018 banshee rune
    Agree on the spank spikes great grip and feel but bearings crap out early. I have a pair of nine year old Forte convert flats still tight and smooth. I’m intrigued by oneups new composite pedals. I only ride flats.
     
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  21. blixet

    blixet Well-Known Member

    Location:
    San Gabriel Valley
    Name:
    Tom
    Current Bike:
    Transition Scout, TJ Ti
    Spank Oozys are pretty good, but there is a little baby bird chirping in the bushes as I pedal uphill. Plastic outboard bushing is the culprit. Other than that, no problem. Easton Fatboy on my other bike. Beat the shite of them and they are still good to go. Clunky, but fit my 12 4e flippers.
     
  22. Ricekrispyota

    Ricekrispyota Member

    Name:
    Dana Weinberg
    A buddy of mine has the OneUp aluminum pedals. He’s had them since September. A couple days ago, he felt a clunking in the pedal. Pulled them apart today and found this:CD6D581C-FEF3-4477-BB2E-7EEB297A7989.jpeg
    Those are bearings embedded in the pedal shaft.
    3A9DC68D-6E9C-44A0-AB4A-E10998E4AEAD.jpeg
    57134C64-EBC1-41CC-9286-189E105CD549.jpeg
    This is what the bearing should look like:
    D8E7FE24-A6E2-4B5B-A7EC-65B2739FD50B.jpeg
     
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  23. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Not exactly a ringing endorsement...
     
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  24. How the actual F@ck?
     
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  25. Ricekrispyota

    Ricekrispyota Member

    Name:
    Dana Weinberg
    No idea how it happened. He does not ride hard, mostly Xc stuff with a few trips to Santa’s village thrown in. Now we get to see how good the customer service is.
     
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  26. sir crashalot

    sir crashalot iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    laguna beach
    Name:
    gary fishman
    Current Bike:
    2018 banshee rune
    Yup, same chirp with the spikes. 13 4e!!
     
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  27. sir crashalot

    sir crashalot iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    laguna beach
    Name:
    gary fishman
    Current Bike:
    2018 banshee rune
    Ruh-roh!! dang tahts crazy.
    ' The plastic pedals are thicker, hopefully have burlier bearings? not likely
     
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  28. evdog

    evdog iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    San diego
    Name:
    Evan S
    I had the original and version 2 crampons. Both developed bearing play disappointingly soon. In fact most pedals I've tried have suffered the same fate...spank oozy, HT, can't recall the others. I ordered kits for the crampons but have never gotten around to installing them. Currently running Loaded pedals I got as a trail day prize. So far so good, but they always seemed to have QC issues so I'm not holding out hope. Might have to check out the Gamuts Mike recommended.
     
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  29. riiz

    riiz Member

    Location:
    Redlands, CA
    Name:
    Eric
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Heckler/Killmaleon
    Those Gamuts look awful similar to the Specialized Boomslang and are priced almost identical...
     
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  30. mike

    mike iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Western US
    Name:
    Mike O
    Current Bike:
    HT, FS
    Uh, no. :)

    gamut-podium-pedals_GUP001BK.jpg
    Screen Shot 2018-01-15 at   1.59 PM.png
     
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As a former Amazon Associate I continue to get screwed trying to stay qualified as an Amazon Affiliate. So I quit!


Want to donate to imtbtrails?