Feedback on Cheap Ti spindles for Crank Brothers Eggbeater

[SportingGoods]

I had a lot of thoughts into the road bike shoes/pedals. Swapping pedals between road bike/MTB was not the main problem. The main problem was the cleats position on the shoes. I don't want them the same: under the toe ball for road and pushed to the rear for MTB. You can't change that everytime, it's a real pain, you risk that it's not positioned properly.

So, what I really needed was 2 pair of shoes, and it didn't make any sense to me to buy a MTB pair for a road-only usage. If road pedals exist, there must be a reason why they are more suited then MTB pedals. Anyway, I'll discover the reason by Christmas. I'll stick those pedals under the tree

[carbonazza]

Road pedals seems to be much lighter.
Cleats are made of plastic and lighter too.

May be just weight?
I though may be they are more rigid,  but road ATAC have even some float too.

For my upcoming road build I thought I would share the same shoes/pedals with my MTB.
And you just did put me in doubt now, thanks!

[SportingGoods]

My pleasure 
Now you know you are 65.5 USD away to get the top of the range of road pedals 

I guess that as long as you don't want to change the position of the cleats you can still easily swap road/MTB. After testing the cleats pushed to the rear on MTB (advice from friends and a video from Fabien Barrel) I have adopted it and feel a lot better in the DH. But that's not comfortable to pedal on road bike. What I do for now is use the road setup both for MTB and road. And honestly, so far, with this setup my MTB shoes/pedals are just fine on road. Just a bit too much float, which can be annoying when pushing hard.

I'll let you know my feeling on road pedals/shoes. On top of what you mention, I've seen that the road setup enables to get the foot closer to the axle of the pedal, but I struggle to understand why this is an advantage... 

[seahog32]

And again 4.5$ cheaper. Yes, 65.5 USD for a pair of Titanium/Carbon road pedals that cost about 220€ in France. That was so low that I've just ordered them!
https://fr.aliexpress.com/item/discount-sale-costelo-Xpresso-12-Titan-Carbon-Pedals-Road-Bike-Pedals-Road-Bicycle-Parts-Pedal-lock/32666399964.html?detailNewVersion=&categoryId=122204

Hi SportingGoods,
Please let us know if you experience any problems with those pedals. That is, if you have a chance to use them over the winter. I will need a new pair for the next season and they look great, on the paper at least.

Thnx

[SportingGoods]

Pedals have arrived, on time (pun intended) before Xmas! Some unboxing first:

Came in a nasty box (there was a black plastic wrap)


Good, this is the right product, comes with cleats and bolts! I was not 100% sure the cleats would come with the pedals.


Hollow axle, good, confirmed Ti (doesn't attract magnet), good


Funny, those are obviously made in China 


I can't test those for now, I don't have road bike shoes! Still, I can tell that these are clearly copy of Time, not from the same factory. They are almost exactly the same, but a few tiny details tell me this is a different mold (looking at Time pictures on the web). Weight is on the high side, 163g the pair (claim 160g +/- 4g), which is still crazy light. Cleats are on the high weight too (62g, presented as 54g).
Trying to rotate manually the axle, it is very tight, no play, this is good. What is not as good is the sound, you can tell there is not enough grease inside. I'll need to open the pedals and add good quality grease before I use those.
Overall, I'm pretty satisfied so far. Considering the cost (USD 65.50, shipping included), I can't ask for more, but they are not the real "made in France" Time pedals.

UPDATE:
After dismounting the pedals, I know for sure they are not originals (but they never claim it is). First, you open the 2 pedals turning the same way when the original for sure open in opposite direction. Then, there is only one bearing inside. The end of the axle is supported by a plastic ring. I don't like that. I've ordered needle bearings to replace those (good quality, SKF, 10€ for 2).
Then I've found the reason of the rubbing. It was not a grease problem (even though the grease I'll use to replace it is of better quality). It is a stupid design problem. They use a plastic washer in-between the red "cap" and the bearing, causing the red cap to push on the inner part of the bearing (the mobile one) instead of the outer part. It's simple as removing the washer for the bearing to rotate freely. Note that it takes hammering to extract the bearing from the axle. I'm glad I've done all this, they should function nicely now, and longer!

[carbonazza]

Here is a picture of a dismantled Costelo XC pedal.


I thought I would find a pair of bearings per pedal to replace.
But instead I get a bearing + a bushing. A disappointment.
From my Crank Brothers' experience, the bushing erode the Ti significantly over time.
Unfortunately there is no Needle Roller Bearings that match a 14x12mm diameter.

But it looks the original Time Atac are exactly the same to the Costelo in that regard.
I saw a video of someone maintaining a Time, and both the bushing and bearings look exactly the same.

And finally, the red sleeve next to the thread is of very good quality in fact.
So the more I see these pedals, the more I'm confident they will last.
Update in a few months!

[JohnnyNT]

Hey carbonazza,

Any update on those pedals ? I'm thinking about getting a pair or two for myself.

Thanks!

[carbonazza]

They are my backup pedals, and have been used for a couple of 1000 km.
You get the same weight as the Ti Time ones, but the quality is lower( bearings, springs, attaches )

The contact between the cleat and the pedal is less firm than my Mavic Time pedals.
But after a few km, I don't notice it much.

However they unclipped a couple of times when pedalling very hard.
There is an eccentric tension screw, but it is plastic and wears quickly.

So if you do not sprint madly they can be fine for the price.

[JohnnyNT]

How would you compare them to standard Shimano system (520/540) ? I'm looking for something easier on my knees, something else then EggBeaters which I managed to smash on rocks twice.

[carbonazza]

Time pedals have more float than Shimano, but less than EggBeaters.

After 3 pairs of exploded EggBeaters, every 9 months or so, @SportingGoods advised me to try the Time's.
They last longer(almost a year now), and feel stronger.
The mud clearance is as good.
And with a slightly larger platform, I noticed some more comfort on very long rides.

The metal binds on the pedal have some wear, but they still hold the cleat firmly.
Eggbeater may last longer on that front, as they have 4 positions to attach, Time have 2.

[johnnydamage]

i put chinese ti axels in my egg beater 3. 180lbs xc 2 years now working great.

[carbonazza]

i put chinese ti axels in my egg beater 3. 180lbs xc 2 years now working great.

We should talk in miles/km, not in years/months when we talk about gear longevity.
The bike could stay two years in the garage, the pedals would look as new

[johnnydamage]

lets say at least 80hrs of riding.

[tripleDot]

lets say at least 80hrs of riding.

Still not a very good way to measure a part's durability. Please don't take this the wrong way, I'm just laying this down so you can appreciate why we're measuring in distance rather than time. 

80hrs, if we assume you do 5hrs of riding each day, that is like 16 days out of 730 days (2 years). For your reference, I usually ride on weekends with a few short rides on weekdays. Averaging 80km a week (some folks here averages over 200km a week). There's 52 weeks a year, so 80km multiplied by 52 weeks is around 4,160km a year. And that is just an estimate (I do 200-300kms on long Holidays). Assuming that I do 5hrs ride each time, that would be 4,160km divided by 5hrs, giving me 832 hrs worth of riding in a year. You've done 80hrs in 2 years... not exactly reliable data to base the durability of these Chinese Ti Spindles.

Again, please don't take this the wrong way. I'm not mocking or demeaning your rides or opinions.

[johnnydamage]

cool cool. i get it. at least i hope i do. so just to be clear you like distance better? thanks.