What Flat Pedals Should I Get ?

Happy with my RaceFace Chesters. Plenty grippy enough with most flat pedal shoes, and best of all they come in pink.

Deity Deftraps. Huge and cheap. I filed mine to a 2mm concave and they are better than T-Macs now.

Burgtech penthouse v5. Either the plastic version or the alloys. Both are equally good - light, low profile, grippy and strong. One is just more bling than the other afaics.

I’ve had two different sets of DMRs: V12s which I found really fragile when rock strikes occur and Vaults, which  are stronger, but have fragile bearings.  Both were grippy though.

Despite past issues with seals and bearing, I always seem to end up back at DMR Vaults. Still seem to be the benchmark in terms of grip and they're certainly tough.

I just switch to an Igus bushing and shaft seal at the first service now, which seems to help.

I've got Burgtec and DMR V11, both in plastic. I'm a convert. Genuinely prefer them to metal ones and it's nothing to do with the price.

For me, DMR Vaults, or Nukeproof Horizon (I have the Sam Hill ones I got off the Classifieds but I think they just have slightly blingier axles).

Vaults > V12 for grip IMO.

Honourable mention to Superstar Nano (v2 I think) which I also liked a lot.

I’ve got Vaults that I’m quite happy with.

I’d probably look at Race Face Atlas as they’re a bit thinner to prevent pedal strikes?

I can’t believe I’m going to recommend them based on past reputation, but the Stamp 7 (large) I think is the best pedal I have used.

With the long pins they are as grippy as pretty much anything I have used, yet they are super thin, seemingly very reliable & very easy to work on.

I would say the Horizon Sam Hill DH is still a decent alternative too, and despite the grip, the Vaults just spend 90% of their life rattling.

Both are also really thick in comparison.

By no means a flat pedal aficionado, I've always ridden flats but I don't appear to be particularly fussy, but I'm happy with my plastic nukeproof pedals.

Grippy, light (enough) cheap enough that if they die I won't care. They are running fine after about 4 years of riding through winter without any need to service them at all and still spin nicely. Only thing I've done is tighten up a couple of lose pins.

My favourite flats were the older superstar nano tech pedals that they don't make anymore. I am on shimano's now which have been fine, maybe not as grippy as the nanos but do the job. Wasn't a fan of the DMR Vaults myself (can't remember what ones I had).

HT PA03. If you want to spend more then you could always buy 3 pairs.

I've got some Saints for sale if you fancy those?

DMR V11's are my flat pedal of choice and I prefer them to my Vaults.

I just went through this and ended up with the alloy burgtecs. I also have a set of the Sam hill Nukeproof which I like a lot.

Others to consider are Chromag dagga (I have dagga pins in my Nukeproofs now which was a real grip upgrade), wolftooth waveform.

Check out this big group test.

I have 2 pairs of Vaults. I find them depressing. The only thing that stops dirt getting into the bushing is a rubber band round the axle pushed against the end of the bushing. As a result rubbish goes in straight away. I can’t believe they are test winners

Since Nukeproof discontinued the fantastic Horizon Comp (because it was too good, and you had to be an absolute idiot to buy the super expensive versions when the £35 one was better), I was looking around for something similiar- it's another HT model so I'd hoped it'd crop back up or someone'd release a minor variation. Never happened, but I did find these:

https://vi.aliexpress.com/item/1005003156561516.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2vnm

I've been using them for almost a year now, and they are bloody good. Not "bloody good for the price", just really bloody good, if it said Renthal or Hope on the side people'd queue up to pay £150. Disclaimer: I am light, there are probably riders on here that can stress a pedal more riding to the shops than I can on an uplift day.

I'm a fan of Superstar Nano Evo 2.0 - they get discounted to half price every now and then. Have a large platform and fairly slim profile.

Have also more recently got a couple of pairs of NP Horizon Sam Hills - slightly thicker and a slightly smaller area, but super grippy with five tens

Nano's

Nuke's

I’m back on Vaults now.  Ran them for years before putting a set of Burgtec Composite on a new bike a few years ago.  Burgtecs were pretty good but I found that if you ride anywhere rocky and get pedal strikes the pins bend easily. Replaced with a set of Nukeproof Horizons but found my feet getting bounced much more than I liked so back on the Vaults and much happier.

I had a couple of pairs of HTs. Loved the feel but longevity was an issue.

Nukeproof Sam Hills are my go to now. Pick them up when there's a deal and they're half the price of the competition and as good as any I've tried.

My favourite flats were the older superstar nano tech pedals that they don’t make anymore

There used to be a few other firms knocking out the same Taiwanese pedals.

Just checked and the Exotic ones are a hefty £63 now: CarbonCycles.CC :: Components :: eXotic Shop :: Flats - Alloy :: Alloy Flat Pedals, 10 Colours :: CC-PED07F

I would highly recommend DMR V11 plastic pedals, which can be had cheap-ish if you sniff around at the mo: DMR V11 Pedal Blue (sortedracegear.com)

Can't really say they're functionally inferior to the excellent Nukeproof Horizon Sam Hill Enduro pedals on my other bike.

I moved from DMR Vaults to the V11's because they were cheaper than to overhaul the Vaults. Both offer the grip I like.

I learnt my lesson on the Vaults, don't let the brass bushes go too far before changing or you'll end up having to replace the axle at the same time.

On the V11's as soon as I but a new pair (only happens when I break a peddle), I swap the brass bushes out for Igus ones. They last forever (nearly).

Kona WahWah composite. (Or even the AliExpress copies https://www.aliexpress.com/i/1005001436154620.html).
Amazing pedals and I’ve tried the exotic brands. Even Chromag Daggers

wah wah has Large platform. Great grip. Bearings seem to last.

On the V11’s as soon as I but a new pair (only happens when I break a peddle), I swap the brass bushes out for Igus ones. They last forever (nearly).

I've got about two years on my V11s and they still seem good as new, which surprised me having heard about bushing wear on the Vaults.

Do you know if they are standard 10x10 bushings anyway?

I'm currently using nukeproof Neutron EVO (plastic) pedals.

TBH since 5.10's sprang into existence it's not a big deal anymore. Bearing life, preferred platform size and color choice probably matter more.

Back in the days of V8's then you needed 5.10's to avoid bleeding shins (or splash out for penthouse flats). Now we have 5.10's (which are too grippy, other shoes like Shimano last 4x as long with obviously harder soles and don't noticeably slip) and ridiculously spiky pedals (which are too grippy, the pins on the nukeproofs bite in so hard they tend to kick over rather than slip).

I had a set of MG-1's (remember those?) on my 'nice' bike last year because I had them and couldn't be bothered to replace them. They still work just fine. The nukeporoofs I'll end up filing off at least a couple of mm from the pins.

HT PA03

Same here, more reliable than DMR vaults or the cheap plastic Nukeproof jobs the kids have used.

TBH since 5.10’s sprang into existence it’s not a big deal anymore.

Whilst better shoes have made a big difference there is still a notable difference between pedals in terms of grip and feel.  Maybe if your riding is of the sort that there is less to bump your feet off it’s harder to differentiate, but pedal grip is still a big thing for me on rougher tracks.

mudfishFull Member
Kona WahWah composite. (Or even the AliExpress copies https://www.aliexpress.com/i/1005001436154620.html).
Amazing pedals and I’ve tried the exotic brands. Even Chromag Daggers

wah wah has Large platform. Great grip. Bearings seem to last.

My experience as well....  got them on two bikes and they've been great.

Another RaceFace Chester fan here.

Maybe if your riding is of the sort that there is less to bump your feet off it’s harder to differentiate, but pedal grip is still a big thing for me on rougher tracks.

I ride a HT on flats, trust me, everything is trying to kill me!

I've got some older AE03's (branded as something else) that I've filed the pins down to the bare minimum, they're marginal in some really rough situations, but I still can't remember the last time I blew a foot foully off the pedal.

Other times it's great not going into a longer/faster corner (or a jump) with my foot twisted or too far back/forward because you can just unweight it and slide. The Nukeproofs with their still full-fat pins on the other hand need you to wait for a tame bit to completely take a foot off. The pins are long enough (and threaded) so that when you lift soft soled shoes up off them the rear pins tend to grip into the shoe and the pedal just spins over.

DMR V12. Bullet proof. 5500 verified miles in past two years and even more before that still as good as new.

thisisnotaspoon
Free Member

I’m currently using nukeproof Neutron EVO (plastic) pedals.

TBH since 5.10’s sprang into existence it’s not a big deal anymore.

I have 5 10s and I still think the neutrons are gash tbf. That centre axle bulge just ruins them, they're on my turbo trainer now. Clearly a matter of taste but defiitely proof of how much of a big deal it really <can> be, just not necessarily <will> be.

chakaping
Free Member

There used to be a few other firms knocking out the same Taiwanese pedals.

You can still buy them branded as HT, usually run around £40. But it's a really old model now, their PA03A is better imo unless you really hate plastic pedals. HT make an awful lot of other company's more expensive pedals while quietly sellign their own for a fraction as much.

I’ve not tried a lot of flat pedals, but I’d recommend the shimano xt. I recently replaced the bent a ground Down pins. I was able to get them out with a pair of pliers. None had seized in place.

Kona WahWah composite. (Or even the AliExpress copies

interesting that the copies are almost the same price as the genuine ones.

I've been reading the thread with interest. All of my flats are around twenty years old. Shimano DX and some nameless big black concave spikey things. They're bashed and smashed with ripped out pins but the bearings are still fine. On the basis of the above posts I'm tempted by Nuke Proof Sam Hills. Has anything bettered the original DX? None of the pedals I've tried on mates' bikes have the concave and small diameter pins that make the DX so grippy.

Size 43 5:10s, light rider.

You can still buy them branded as HT, usually run around £40. But it’s a really old model now, their PA03A is better imo unless you really hate plastic pedals.

Good shout.

I'm planning to try those plastic HTs when I eventually need more pedals (probably about 2030 after stocking up in the sales).

HT PA03A's - shite name, great pedal - especially if you have bigger feet.