Andrey

I have a cyclocross bike and long distance road bike that I use CB pedals I am getting frustrated with the quality of the pedals.

Just a couple of weeks ago a relatively new pedal(2 years old) came off during a ride, bearing disintegrated. Had to finish the ride on a borrowed pedal from a bike shop that was on the route.

I used to use Shimano pedals in the past, but on long rides there was not enough float and I had knee issues, CB have more float and my knees are OK. I contacted CB but had no response.
I have a box of broken CB pedals over the years. My other bikes still have original Look Keo pedals that probably 15-20 years old that never gave me any problems.
I think I may switch to a different walk-able pedal, but I do not know what brand.
Time Atac seems to have good reviews and have enough float. Anything else?

I d like to know if other people have a similar experience and what they did, kept buying rebuilt kits every year, new pedals or switched to a different brand. Thanks

Marcus_Ti

Yup. CB's have a reputation for this. They're great at mud shedding and a good CX race-day pedal....but long-term, well your bin of shot pedals is only anomalous for how long you've stuck it out with CB before leaving...that shot pedal bin is an easy $500-$600 minimum in pedals right there, at internet retail nvm all the rebuild kits.

If SPD doesn't float enough for you---Time ATACs are indeed the thing to try. Between SPD and ATAC, those are the go-to pedals my LBS recommends for 2-bolt pattern use.

Another higher-float MTB pedal to consider....is Speedplay Syzr. Bought the pedals are expensive and so are the cleats, and reviews are mixed depending on usage.

DrIsotope

I always just assume that people who claim "15-20 years" out of a pair of pedals ride perhaps 1,000 miles a year-- unless we're talking SPD-SL type, with the big plastic triangle. The cleats wear out, the pedals not so much. Because I seem to get about 10k miles out of a pair of "metal on metal" pedals before the squidging and squeaking sets in, and I buy another pair.

Pedals are absolutely wear items IMO. Got 9k miles out of my last pair of SPDs, then came the squeaking. Tried three different sets of SPD cleats (Look, Wellgo, and Shimano,) none corrected it. So they went in the spares bin and new pedals went on.

I have a pair of Look S-Tracks on one bike closing in on that 9k mark, figure it's only a matter of time before they go in the parts bin as well.

Andrey

I ride about 5000-6000 miles a year shearing the rides between 4 bikes. Look Keo pedals on two bikes are still original and still spin smoothly. I probably went with 4-5 sets of CB pedals in less time. You are right, I do replace plastic road cleats probably one a year or every other year but I also replace metal cleats as often on the CB pedals.
I do not remember when Look Keo pedals came out and when Look replaced Delta pedal, but they were purchased within a few years of introduction of the Keo pedal. Still it is not the point, the point is that CB pedals do not last.

Marcus_Ti

Yikes. What are you riding through--diamond dust?

IME, squeaking on SPD means it is probably close to new cleat time....which is a $10 fix for SPD versus $100 for a new set of pedals. Cup/cones on say SPD pedals need an adjustment and a shot of grease every now and again.

Just tossing out pedals that can be serviced inexpensively is, as you've found wasteful and expensive.

DrIsotope

SPD pedals use a steel cleat and a steel retainer on the pedal itself. Thinking that the cleat is going to wear out and the pedal is just going to "last forever" is foolhardy-- again, unless it's SPD-SL. With virtually every SPD-style, pedal and the cleat are wearing at similar rates. CB it a little different with brass cleats, but those brass cleats can show significant wear after just a few hundred miles. On an SPD, replace the cleat, and you'll get a bit more miles, but the pedal is half worn out. They're also not especially expensive, relatively speaking-- I spend double the amount annually on chains, and double that again on tires. I don't buy $100 pedals, because they're going to wear out. The set of SPDs I just retired went their whole life on one set of cleats, and were perfect right up until they weren't.

I ride 10,000 miles a year, split between two bikes which (as of now) wear the same type of pedals. Stuff wears out.

fietsbob

Have some barely used Time Atac aluminum pedals ,
I just was not performance enough focused to have them matter

did see QBP as a source of all the small parts ...


For those used to tossing out unsupported computers , maybe throwing away pedals seems normal ..

Marcus_Ti

You're assuming Shimano was fool enough to make the cleat and pedal out of identical steel, and that the pedal wears in the same manner as the cleat. Didn't you wonder why the SPD cleats are coated in black and the pedals clips aren't?

My XTRs bought last year have 9k miles on them....3rd pair of cleats. Only signs of wear are gouges from a few bifs on concrete....probably do need to do a bearing adjustment though.

Rick

I use the Speedplay frogs. They can be greased without disassembly.

DrIsotope

The newest SH51 cleats are coated. You can still find loads of them that aren't, and I have personally only ever had a single pair of coated SPD cleats. I don't understand what's happening here, exactly-- your personal experience does not invalidate mine. My SPD pedals (and this includes pedals of multiple manufacturers of the same SPD design-- including Shimano, Look, iSSi, and Wellgo) get squeaky, and no cleat change will stop it. I also said squidgy above-- the wear on the pedal adds in unpredictable float that I don't want. Perhaps there's a significant difference between the top-end SPD Shimano and all the others. I'll never know, because I'm back on Look S-Tracks until the supply of discontinued pedals dries up.

frankenmike 

Still using ATACs since 1998ish or so. New cleats occasionally, and new spring/wires when they wear through. Honestly though, it’s the feel off the flawless click in and out that keeps me uisng them. Tried some CB candys once, broke fairly quickly.

pressed001

Looks like you ride a whole lot more than I do. I have ridden about 4k KM per year for the past 4 years and use CB Eggbeater 3's. Never once had a problem and am still using the original cleats from the very start.

deacon mark

I used eggbeaters at first but they never last about a year and gone. I had the same thing happen the whole spindle came apart on a ride. So now I have Shimano spd sl's and going on 4 years never have done a thing except the cleats wear about every 2 years. I don't clip in quite as nice since the eggbeaters 4 sided entry but can apply much more power on the bigger area of road shoes and cleats. Eggbeaters are terrible...…...at least for a road bike. I ride about 4000 miles a year.

dabac

I stupidly stuck to CB pedals when I added commuting to my recreational riding. If I-now could send a message to me-then it’d be: ”choose Time”.
And yeah, bearings do wear out. Particularly the small outboard ball bearing. Which, if it fails, is what allows the pedal to separate from the spindle mid-ride. In a highly annoying way.
Now, I’m kinda invested in CB pedals. Have several pair of shoes with their cleats and several bikes with their pedals. I buy the ball bearings from an industrial supplier and can double or triple the time between full rebuilds by replacing the ball bearings every 6-8 months. When I replace the BBs, I also give the spindle a polish and a fresh coat of grease.

BobFishell

I have a pair of first generation XT SPDs on one of my bikes. I have seen Shimano pedals fail, but it's never happened to me.

greatscott

Have you tried, or considered the Shimano XTR M9000 peds? Better yet, even though they are a tad heavier but they cost $90 less, is the XT M780. I know some cross guys that swear by those pedals.

Andrey

Same here. I am thinking of investing in another pair of shoes and Time Atacs at this point. Since CB never even contacted my after I send then en e-mail I will not even buy a bearing kit to rebuilt it.

Andrey

I did use Shimano in the past and the cleats do not have enough float for my knees, although the quality was good.

pdlamb

And rebuilt for $15 (you buy the bearings) to $40 (get the kit from Speedplay) after 5,000 miles or so. I bought an extra set of pedals, so the old pair is sitting there waiting on me to rebuild it right now...

pressed001

I wonder if there is a common denominator here. I have CB EB3's on all my bikes and never had a problem.

Are you guys clydesdale's?

Do you guys mash instead of spin?

Do you live in coastal areas?

Do you rid a lot in the winter?

dabac

Me, no.
Me, no.

Me, no.

Me, yes.

greatscott

I like the idea of the Speedplay Frogs, they have a high degree of float, and are really easy to work on, but the weak spot is the cleats but they're cheap to replace.

rosefarts

I’ve always implicitly trusted SPD pedals. I’ve never broke them or needed to service them. Now i’m not a mountain biker but i’d use them commuting, gravel, and on the pedicab. Tons of miles.

I rode the White Rim last week and got the most god awful sound out of the pedal. It wasn’t the shoe. So my first ever SPD problem and they still spun, still attached, and in no way left me stranded. These have 3 years of full time pedicab service plus all the bikes they’ve been on. I can’t complain.

I have had the bearings completely seize on two different Look Deltas. Never again on keo so they probably addressed the issue.

greatscott

I've never had a pedal fail yet either, cleats wear out and get replaced but not the pedals. Same is true with my hubs and headsets. I guess I'm not rough enough

oldschoolbike

I like CB Eggbeaters for their elegant simplicity and float. On my single speed commuter, the pedals take a lot stress and I replace the outer bearings as a matter of course each year. I get them at the local bearing shop, because the CB rebuild kit is overkill. My road bikes get much less abuse, and an annual re-greasing seems to do the trick.

Yes, it seems the outer bearing is too small and bearing failure quickly escalates, but I have figured out how to avoid it. I am not normally tough on equipment, so this is real to me. I wouldn't use Eggbeaters off-road, they are too fragile. That's ironic, given that they were meant to be MTB pedals.