DancingSea

Aloha,

Has anyone tried these? Supposed to be a more grippy version of the MKS Lambada/ Grip King. Only the Rivendell Bike website sells them, can’t post a link because this is my first post in the forums. Just wondering how they compare to the Lambada/ Grip King.

tomtomtom123

Well, you'll probably find some information if you searched for MKS Gamma.
https://global.bluelug.com/mks-gamma-black.html
https://global.rakuten.com/en/store/...m/ac-gf004621/

DancingSea

Thanks for the name information, very helpful, I never would’ve figured that out!

DancingSea

Having been doing lots of research, so many pedals to choose from. I have it down to between the VP-001 and the MKS Lambda/ Gamma (Monarch). I have size 12 feet, am a little concerned about the width of the Lambda. Will a 21 mm Sunlite pedal space help with that?

My priority is ergonomic foot & knee comfort.

I appreciate any first hand experience or knowledge of these pedals. I live In Hawaii where there’s no place to see, or try them out locally.

Thanks

Velocivixen

I bought the Lambda/Grip Kings and found that my shoes would slip off easily in the rain. I wear rigid soled walking/biking shoes. I now have the VP 001 on several of my recumbent bikes and my feet have never slipped.

seat_boy

My Lambda/Grip Kings have great traction... once I added pins to them. Now they're some of my favorite pedals.

Pahana

I just finished a 2 and a half hour ride with the Lamada pedals and they are great for out of the saddle riding. The bike is a 2 speed Ti Brompton so out of the saddle riding is necessary sometimes. On my 6 speed Brompton I ride the Allways pedals and both are very good. The truth being the shoes are more important than the pedals. If you ride with Fivetens on your feet they make any pedal good. Al from PortaPedal turned me on to them. They are worth the money and remind me of riding clipless pedals. They don't slip and you can pull through the whole motion on any pedal.

DancingSea

That’s the thing, the Gamma/ Monarchs have the pins added. Rivendell sells them, and eBay has a dealer from Japan that has them for a bit less. My concern is how narrow they are. I have size 12 shoes. I could add a spacer.

Im also not clear how the figure 8 design helps things. The Rivendell blessed VP-001 aka Thin Grip King has the wide width, good traction, but is one inch less long, yet costs half the price of the Gamma

On paper, the VP-001 makes more sense, unless there’s some ergonomic advantage to the longer figure 8 design of the Gamma. Which I’m unable to figure out by reading.

linberl

I had grip kings and since I have a smaller foot, ymmv with my opinion. I liked them but I could sometimes feel the hub of the pedal when riding a long time. They are longer than they are wider, so not sure a wide foot would be too happy. I switched to Rivendell sneaker pedals and I absolutely love those. Wider rather than longer, much more even foot support side to side, I never feel the center hub, and they grip incredibly well. I found I was often adjusting my foot position on the grip kings but rarely do on the RMX/sneaker pedals; my foot is just that comfortable.
Can you order online someplace with a good return policy? If you use PayPal and sign up for their free return program, they will cover the return shipping for you.

sweeks

I had this problem with the MKS AR-2 EZ pedals until I added "strapless" toeclips. These stabilize my shoes, which have relatively smooth soles, and they make it easy to get onto the right side of the pedals. No more slipping in the wet.

DancingSea

Thanks for the input. I have the Sneaker Pedals (MKS RMX) on my short list. The VP-001’s are a little longer, not as long as the Grip Kings, but longer than the Sneakers, so I thought they’d be the best of both worlds??? My New World Tourist comes at the end of March, need pedals for day one. The Gamma’s ship from Japan, I wonder if PayPal covers international return shipping?

linberl

Email and ask them with all your specifics before you order: claims_paypalreturns@telusinternational.com

DancingSea

Thanks for the tips. Good point about the shoes making a difference. I'm angling to get away from biking specific shoes. I ended up ordering the VP-001's simply because they have better color choices than the MKS Sneaker (RMX) pedals. Hopefully the VP-001's will be comfortable with a variety of shoes.

Velocivixen

I have the sneaker pedals on a different recumbent. The VP 001 have more spikes? Over the pedal. The sSneaker Pedals have more open design with modest spikes.

tomtomtom123

Do people frequently return mounted pedals? I assume that sellers don't like to take them back since there are moving parts and risk of crossed threads. I can understand returning saddles, but those don't have moving parts, and if you tape the rails to prevent scratching, everything is usually like new.

DancingSea

Valuable feedback! Do you find the spikes on the VP-001’s damage your shoes?

DancingSea

Yes, I imagine that returning greased pedals would be a challenge unless they were defective.

linberl

If I want to test out pedals, I wrap the threads with plumbers tape and install. No grease. Easy to return.

Velocivixen

No, the spikes don’t damage my shoes. They just grip really well.

DancingSea

That’s great to know. I live on the windward side of Maui where brief passing trade wind showers are common. I think I made the right choice with the VP-001’s. Thanks to everyone for all the valuable help 🙏🌈

linberl

Just watch out for spike scrapes on your legs.