BSLeVan

Ordered a pair today. I've been wearing a cross-training shoe while riding the stationary trainer. This allows me to then use the treadmill and weights without changing shoes. Only problem has been the wide heel of the shoes hitting the chain stays every so often. I'm hoping the pedal extenders help eliminate this. I'm also curious about the impact they may have on my hips, which always seem to give me problems on any ride over two hours in length. Anyone here have experience with the extenders? I'd be interested in knowing what you think of them.

big john

I toe-out quite a bit and have size 13 feet, so I use them. I had some custom made before they were on the market. I can't use clipless pedals without them, and I have put at least 60,000 miles on Kneesavers.
I even use them on the mountain bike.

skiph

This thread is worthless without pictures....

(Man, I've been waiting a long time to be the 1st person to post that in a thread.....)

big john

flatlander_48

Originally I used a pedal extender from High Sierra Cycling on the right side. It was a 20mm one and worked well with the cheapy SPD clone pedals that I had. Later on when I got a set of Crank Bros Quattro's, I felt that I needed extenders for both sides. I bough a pair of 25mm extenders from the KneeSaver folks.

However, there is just one small problem. The Quattro's have no wrench flats and mount and dismount by using an hex wrench on the inboard end of the pedal. The extenders by both High Sierra and KneeSaver are not hollow. You cannot insert a hex wrench into the pedal. The KneeSaver people were not responsive to the idea of selling extenders with a hole as they felt that it weakened the part. So, after buying the standard extender, a friend who owns a machine shop drilled them out for me. So far, no problems...

Tom Bombadil

I've seen them, but never felt any need to use them. Maybe because I wear size 8.5 shoes.

They look overpriced, seeing as how you can buy pedals for less than the extenders, but the cost is still low and would be worth it if they help your knees.

flatlander_48

Doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the size of your feet. My shoe size is 9 1/2 - 10, but due to arthritic ankles (the right one is noticably worse than the left), my feet point outwards a fair amount. You can get by with flat pedals, but there will be problems with clipless pedals. For whatever reason, I cannot unclip in the usual way of rotating your heels outward. I have to rotate them inwards. The extenders also help in this regard.

The guy at High Sierra told me that they wait to accumulate a group of orders and then submit the batch to a machine shop. I took a guess at what it might cost to have a pair made at my friend's machine shop and you couldn't have a one-off made as cheaply as High Sierra or KneeSaver can do. It's a reasonable price...

big john

It does limit your pedal choice as more companies are eliminating the wrench flats, which is stupid.
I wouldn't drill them as I was skeptical about using them in the first place after all of the crap I have broken over the years.
The extenders I had custom made were bigger than the Kneesavers and required drilling out the crankarms and using right hand threads on both arms. I used Loctite and the left one never came loose.

BSLeVan

Appreciate the responses. I did make sure that my pedals would work with them (they can still have the flat spot for a wrench.) I'll be eager to try them. I know my hips are wider than many and suspect that my legs will operate in a straighter vertical alignment with them, but only using them will tell for sure. And it could be with even a straighter leg alignment the hips will still give me problems.

flatlander_48

No, not necessarily. I believe it would make the pedal lighter. Given that a pedal is part of the rotating assembly, that is not a bad thing.

I assume they used all right hand threads because they didn't have a left hand tap?

Funny thing about the left hand/right hand deal. When I was in Taiwan over the last 3 years, I would break down the Ritchey every 2 months or so in order to pack it for traveling. I would finger tighten the extenders when I assembled the bike. By the next time I took it apart, I would have to use a wrench to get them off; even with a light coat of grease at assembly. Whoever said you had to tighten pedals?

So far I have had no problem with the drilled out extender over about a 2 year period. While I am not a super powerful pedaler, I can put out quite a bit of torque for a short time.

BillK

I've used a pair for the past ~2 years. I noticed not long after I started cycling (again) that the heel of my right foot drifted in, causing me to develop a hot spot on my foot after ~40 miles. I added the pedal extenders and the problem vanished.

But as flatlander_48 pointed out, you need to pair them with a set of pedals that use a standard pedal wrench for installation/removal vice a hex key. Either that, or know someone who owns a machine shop.

big john

Hey Flatlander! I didn't mean you shouldn't drill them, I just don't think it's a good idea for me. I have snapped pedals in the past, among other things. This is why the machinist made the first set bigger, and you're right about the tap.
I don't think the material needed to make wrench flats could be more than a few grams, and I think a stuck pedal would be easier to get off with a pedal wrench, instead of an allen.
BTW, I had a Look pedal unscrew from the shaft while climbing a local canyon, right pedal, right-hand threads on the pedal body.

Neil_B

My bike shop, Bikesport of Trappe, PA, has a parts supplier that got me extenders for a quarter of the cost of Kneesavers. I use them on my Trek 7.5, and when the manufacturer has them available again, they are going on my Navigator as well. And any spin bike I use at the gym.

Dchiefransom

I used a small pipe wrench to install my pedals on some older cranks that didn't have a hole through them.

flatlander_48

No. the problem is that the bottom of the hole for the pedal threads is very close to where the extender changes outside diameter. That diameter change is where the stress concentration is. Without some very good measurements, it is hard to predict what the limits for the extenders are. By the way, you know some pedals have rider weight limits?

One clarification. The extenders I have do have an external flat. It is larger than a pedal wrench, however. When I travel, I always take a small crescent wrench so I can easily remove the pedal and extender from the bike. The problem is separating the pedal from the extender. I've always been reluctant to use a small pipe wrench, as mentioned above, because of the design of the Quattro's. There is a large barrel that, I assume, contains bearings. You would need to be VERY careful to avoid too much load to make sure the bearings weren't distorted.

big john

I know some stuff does have weight limits, I try to err on the side of caution. I use 36 hole wheels, a steel frame, an alloy steer tube, alloy bars, etc.
I was using the old Time pedals, the black ones, and when the first one broke, I crashed at low speed. We figured it was a fluke, so Time gave me a new set. When the second one broke, I didn't crash, but the Time rep upgraded me to the white expensive ones no charge. When one of those broke, I crashed again and the Time rep bought me a pair of Looks.
I have also broken 3 steel frames, several seatposts, seats, a stem, and too many wheels and spokes to remember. The mountain bike has seen a broken fork, 2 blown shocks, and several wheels.

BluesDawg

Wow!
Just how big a feller are you?

flatlander_48

Gee, I'm impressed, but I would hate to have to keep you in bike parts...

stapfam

Yet another reply to your hard riding- I have a similar problem on the Tandem. Full offroad Tandem with an all up weight of 400lbs. It is ridden aggressively and in the early days- it was a problem to try and keep the thing intact on a ride. Luckily the frame is solid but we were bending Bars just by showing it a fast stretch of track. Wheels going out of true on every ride and suspension forks were a pain just to stop bottoming out at the slightest bump. Luckily with MTB's there are Heavy duty parts made for those that leave their brain at home before they ride (Downhillers in the main). Problem is that there are heavy duty and there are heavy- do not be confused between the two. Bars went to Full downhill for both the pilot and stoker and it was not untill the pilot got 1/4 thick walled bars that he stopped bending them. Front forks went to full downhill with extra heavyweight springs and the wheels- Well only the strongest Mavic downhill rim and the toughest Hope BigUn hubs managed to stop the wheels from whimpering. Brakes had to go to Hope Mono M4 with 200 mm discs. This thing is heavy but the fun element of 50mph downhill offroad is tremendous. The joy of pedalling a 55 lb bike up hills is not so great but still gives one a sense of achievement.

So Look at the Freeride bikes and Parts for the MTB- but how you are going to keep a road bike together- Hope you have a big wallet.



And on the OP- I have not experienced the problem of feet hitting the frame- but this is because I have always ridden with toein on the feet. Keeps the heels away from the stays and this is assisted by setting the clipless pedals up to keep the heels out.

flatlander_48

Dangerous. If ones normal stance is the opposite of what you say, all you would do is hurt yourself.

big john

Now that I'm a little (ahem) older, I'm not breaking stuff much. I used to ride at 220 pounds and about 1000 miles per month, but I think the destruction has to do with the way I ride, too. I rode off-road motorcycles for 10 years and learned to stand back and let the rear wheel absorb everything. I broke a bunch of expensive motorcycle parts, too.
I also thrash the bike around a lot when I stand on a climb, and I think this is hard on wheels.
Stapfam, there is no paint on the stays of my old Cannondale where my heels rub, that's with extenders.
Oh, yeah, on my last credit card tour, my bike weighed about 55 pounds.

mrasbury

I know this thread is old but I thought it was worth a look for you guys. I ran across this site because I was looking for them myself. I have eggbeater 3 pedals and none of the current extenders work. They only have an 8mm allen wrench area on the end of the spindle and thats it. I think these have always been like this but I'm not sure about that.

If you search for hollow pedal extenders or pedalx cycling pedal extenders on a google search you should be able to find them. I think they have them in 25mm and 31mm. The nice thing is they are hollow titanium and by the looks of them they seem very durable. I have been searching for years now to find ones that fit my pedals and I think I have found them. can you guys check this out for me and let me know what you think?

I went through their whole site and I will tell you I am extremely interested.

Thanks in advance.

Matt

JohnJ80

I got a set to screw around with when I was having Q factor issues. One 30 mile ride and they screwed up my hip for the whole year. They are way, way, way too big for any effective Q factor adjustment. Also, depending on how large you are, and the quality of the cranks, there could be an issue there too (i.e. damage to the cranks). That's a lot of extra leverage.

J.

flatlander_48

I've used extenders for several years on Campagnolo Centaur (aluminum) and Chorus (carbon) cranks without issue. Can't the length; it's either 25mm or 30mm. Both of my feet point outwards; one more than the other, due to arthritic deformation. I didn't use them when I first started with clipless pedals. The twist that you put on your knees and hips was not good. Using the extenders allowed my feet to be in their neutral position with no twist and not hitting the chain stays.

Regarding the titanium extenders, I assume that they are designed appropriately. Titanium is aboiut half the stiffness of steel, so you would need to account for that in the design. It is an interesting solution, however. I originally used the extenders on Crank Brothers Quattro road pedals. They are now discontinued, but basically they were Eggbeaters with a surrounding platform structure. I had someone I know who runs a machine shop drill out the stainless steel extenders that I had. A couple of vendors that I talked to did not want to sell their extenders drilled out for fear of broken parts and law suits. This had limited usefulness as you could get to the hex in the pedal axle, but you were forced to turn on the short end of the Allen key and that limited how much torque you could apply. T-handles would have helped a bit, but it still wasn't a complete solution.

Old Dutchman

I'm glad you brought this thread back up. I've been having a knee problem ever since switching from clips to clipless. Moving the seat down helped a little, but just looking down at my knees, I felt like my feet were too close together. So I just ordered a set from Amazon to try it out. I suspect this will be exactly what I needed.