You may not think that your pedals are critical to the way your bike performs but they are more important than you think. If you are a casual Sunday afternoon rider then maybe not so much but if you are a downhill daredevil then your pedals will definitely make a difference in how you ride and how much control you have over your bike. So it's important to choose the right type of pedal for your riding style to get the most out of your riding experience |
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e*thirteen is (acquired by The Hive) produces bike components such as cranks, wheels, hubs and of course pedals. They have a model called the LG1+ which is a downhill mountain bike pedal that offers great performance at a reasonable price. Coming it at around $130 a set it's a pretty good price for well performing very sticky pedals. The second generation of these pedals is out and they are ready for action and have smaller\lighter pins and improved seals that offer less seal drag that the first edition.
The LG1+ pedals offer Impact Flexure Designed (IFD) pedal WearPlates that can be replaced after you wear them out or beat them to death on rocks. They are made from a high strength polycarbonate so they can take the abuse while the skeleton is made from a lightweight aluminum. One really cool feature of the LG1+ is the Spin Control function which lets you control how fast the pedal spins freely allowing for a fast free spinning pedal or one with more resistance that won't spin around when you don't want them to. The steel pins that grip your shoe are available in 3 lengths (1, 4, and 7mm) so you can get the size that works best for your grip level. At 468 grams they are fairly light as well.
We tested these pedals out on some downhill trails and bike parks and they performed very well. The grip is outstanding and the larger size gives you more surface area to position your feet on without having to worry about trying to find your pedal when things get rough. Just be sure not to spin you cranks into your shin or calf because they will rip the flesh off your legs in no time. The build quality is good and the materials appear to be strong and they took some rock hits without any issues. The larger size really helps out when things get rough because you are not as focused on trying to keep your feet in the right place since there is more surface area to work with. It's hard to say how well they will hold up with the plastic plates compared to a full metal pedal but if you can keep them off the rocks you should be ok.
e*thirteen also has a race version of the pedals called the LG1r that has improvements over the LG1s such as a titanium axle and heat treated aluminum pins. They are also lighter as well at 380 grams. So if you are a weight junkie and have $300 you don't need then these may be the pedals for you.