[Closed] Removing pins from pedals

It’s usual to remove inner pins to emphasise the concave shape if improving grip is the aim. Removing outer pins is likely to make grip worse to the point of pins becoming irrelevant.

I want to reduce grip.

If it's to allow you to reposition your foot without having to lift it; remove all but the 4 corner pins and one outer middle pin per side. if you don't find that enough. fit shorter pins.
I assume you're not using sticky soled mtb specific shoes? if so try a decent skate shoe (not new waffle vans, Vans ruined the support in their soles a few years ago with regards to working well on mtb pedals), Find something with a sturdy upper, good support in the sole (I'm not talking about sole stiffness BTW) and a flat basic tread patern.

I have just got Five Tens, this was the first ride.  I'd previously used skate shoes (Etnies), and found them far too flexy.

The Five Tens are much better for pedalling, but I struggled to move my foot forward to use my instep to grip the pedal on jumps.  Might just be a case of getting used to putting my foot in the right place before descents.

Which Etnies?

They're not all the same. infact there are very few Etnies left that are and good for riding in anymore. for me Swivel and Kingpins offer pretty much exactly the amount mix of grip, felxibility and stiffness. And even then Kingpins were produced with 2 soles. and one is nowhere near as stiff or durable. Faders and new Calicut at first glance look like they might offer a decent mix but don't. See? "try skate shoes from TK maxx". it's not actually that easy is it?

You may think a flexible sole is no good for pedalling and too flexible a sole can be. But so long as the sole is not so thin/flexible it causes pain or won't support your foot (New Vans are this). it's not actually anywhere near as inefficient as you may think. it's just different.
I cant' stand too stiff soles on a flat pedal (Mk1 F2Os) or too grippy (5:10s). A stiff sole reduces feel. Which to me is very important and one of the reasons I like flat pedals more in the first place. An overly grippy sole reduces freedom to move your foot around to reposition while you ride. (think BMX/Dirt jump rider).
It's a personal thing though and there is no correct answer to what feels or works best for any other rider.

Dunno what model.  Going to sell them on I think, only had a few rides.

They are very thin, noticeably so even when walking.  I didn't like them cos they didn't support my foot, was pretty wearing after a while.  But they were better for riding.  The sole is fine ripples like plimsolls.

Shorter pins would be nice for my V12s I think - they are the stock ones.

Yeah. Wrong Etnies. Some Kingpins have that sole. Narrow wavy gum ripples, eh?

“The Five Tens are much better for pedalling, but I struggled to move my foot forward to use my instep to grip the pedal on jumps.”

1. You shouldn’t be moving your foot for jumps, keep it in the right place all the time.

2. You shouldn’t be gripping the pedal on jumps, that sounds like a hangover from being used to being clipped in.

3. Your instep is on top of your foot, in front of the ankle.

I have no idea where those bullet pointed rules come from but many riders (myself included) alter their foot position while the bike is in the air. I also feel confident enough to change my leading foot when jumping by spinning the cranks 180° while the bike is in the air. (My footing on a bike is fairly ambidextrous)

Personally. I prefer to manual a bike with the ball of my foot over the pedal axle but prefer to jump with my foot centred (further forward).

I definitely do grip my pedal with my shoe (both in the air and on the ground)... That more flexible sole I prefer wraps around the pedal slightly. How do you think a bunny hop works? That scooping technique is your foot gripping the pedal.

While jumping I also like my foot to be able to twist on my pedal (scrubbing or whipping) and slide onto the crank arm (tabling and hip jumps). I'm pretty sure you knew what he meant when he described the middle of his foot as the instep. I don't know what the actual term for the middle of the sole of your foot is either. midfoot perhaps? But I knew what he meant.

I grew up riding BMX and have plenty 'hangovers' from 20" bikes. I find a lot of mtbers I meet far more rule bound when it comes to riding techniques and equipment than anyone I ever rode BMX with. There's often more than one way to get your bike to behave how you want it to. Does that make one way absolutely correct and the other wrong? I don't think so. There probably are advantages an disadvantages between differing techniques. But so what? For example clip in pedals mean you can control the bike differently to flat pedals. But don't forget a stiff super grippy sole on an aggressively pinned pedal can also be used slightly differently to control the bike than a more flexible less grippy shoe on a less grippy pedal. It's just a choice. Try not to get too hung up on those rules (I've no idea where you even get them from). Be open minded and try stuff for yourself.

The guy's asking for advice on reducing pedal grip because it's what he likes. Who are we to criticise his preferences?

Who are we to criticise his preferences?

You new here? 😉

Less pins = more grip

Shorter pins = less grip.

And my feet do move with Five Tens (they ease up a bit after 10 proper rides or so) which is why I usually scour holes in the sole long before the uppers show much wear and DMR V12's are my preferred pedal since they revised it a few years back. Mid foot placement.

Funnily enough I was thinking of removing the inside pair of pins because my feet are so rarely on them (can tell by paint wear on the platform) but figured that sometimes my foot placement isn't accurate so might as well leave them.

Yeah. Wrong Etnies. Some Kingpins have that sole. Narrow wavy gum ripples, eh?

Yeah I think so. Wanna buy some? 🙂

Good info in here thanks folks. I see some shorter (6mm) pins on sale, will try those.

I like to pedal with the ball of my foot, cos I am an XCer really and ammused to SPDs. But to try and pick up the bike or scoop as it was described above I found it very useful to move my feet forwards and use my arch/instep/whatever it's called. This was pretty difficult yesterday. And I'm pedally bits I found myself wanting to shift frequently between bits where I had to pedal and bits where I wanted to pop off stuff.

If you're new to flats then just persevere. It takes a while but you just get used to getting your foot right first time IME. It's no different to learning to clip in without having to look down and line up the shoe/pedal.

I've just swapped to flats on my fatbike. That is weird to get used to! I keep standing on the chainstays and cranks, although it is immensely fun in the rooty mud of tunnelhill  being able to slide the back end round corners

Not new as such - I had it pretty dialled in with the Etnies - on the way down at least.

Yeah. Just stick with it.

Nothing wrong with wanting to move your feet around. This bloke did quite well for himself after nailing that particular skill.

The pins are just 4mm hex grub screws so if you have a local fastener supplier you can pick them up in various lengths for a quid or so

Out of interest which Etnies and what size are they? (the model name and size are printed on a label insde the tongue)

Oh. Also. If you're really used to SPDs and do fit the shorter pins you might want to try dropping your saddle ever so slightly. A slightly lower sadle will allow you to weight the pedals slightly more when pedalling sat down and this can help to stop your feet bouncing/slipping off when the bulk of your weight is held by the saddle.

The lowered saddle is top tippage for a long term clip rider.

I use both and swap and change as I see fit and I have to drop the saddle half an inch or so when I put the flats on a bike.

I thought I liked flexy sole and love my freeriders but I've just got some Addidas terrex which are super stiff. Initially I hated them while commuting and xc but I rode properly in them again at the weekend and actually they were quite nice. Not totally convinced as pedal feel is vague but I'll persevere some more. Definitely less tiring on my feet. Which is odd as I never noticed it before even with clips.