So I’ve had a set of these for about a month or so now. Is it just me or are they not really that good? I’ve used wellgo v8 copies for years but thought I’d try something new as the wellgos got really rattly and I fancied some new bling. They’re just not grippy enough. What am I doing wrong? I’ve taken the pin spacers out which helped a bit but theyre still a bit too slippy if its a bit damp, as it usually is in the uk.. so far the only advantages over the v8s are that the bearings dont rattle and they look a bit nicer! Oh and the slightly bigger platform feels nice. Any suggestions before I go back to a new set of wellgos?! I’m not wasting my money on mtb specific shoes with “special” rubber on the soles either!

Why blame the pedals if you’ve got crap shoes? Mine have been the best flat pedals I’ve owned.

You’re dong something wrong.

But seriously, I love mine. I switch between Saints and Vaults on a regular basis and I find myself very well catered for in the grip department.

Hard to fault them in my opinion.

Been happy with my Saints but I do seem to use those shoes with the special rubber with them.

OP’s riding shoes

Shoes are so much more important than pedals.

i was thinking about getting a pair of those pedals.

OP, what shoes are u using?

Love my saint pedals, can’t recommend them highly enough
But that is combined with 5.10 freeriders with the awesome stealth soles

I switched from Straitline pedals to Saints as the Saints more outboard platform suits me better.
Great pedals though my 1st set only lasted 3 months before the bearings died. Sorted under warranty though…

You’ll not get a proper level of grip if you’re using unsuitable shoes, no matter how much you kick and scream

It’s defiantly you tom mine are fantastic.

Try removing a few of the pins, or get some of those superstar pedals

Superstar nanos and etnies for me. Work great, very hard getting mtb specific shoes in my size.

Yeh, I used to use etnies/dc’s/loteks as I found the 5 tens a bit pap for anything other than downhilling. Bit to heavy and bulky and grippy really.

I agree my new saints are sh*te. My Nukeproof somethings are my other bike piss all other them!

This is with 5 10 freeriders as well!

Get some nuke proofs

i went from v12s to saints, and the bigger platform on the saints were much better

using shimano AM41’s and have an abundance of grip

LOL @ nukeproofs

OP, what shoes are u using?

At the minute it’s a pair of Loteks that were on sale at Source BMX, before that some Orchid Cobras. I never noticed such issues with my old pedals.

Oh yeah, the £40 Saint pedals are actually noticably heavier to hold than the years old £15 wellgos, surprised me! tbh this isn’t really helping my opinion of shimano stuff, I also had niggly issues with the brakes and crankset!

glasgowdan – Member

You’ll not get a proper level of grip if you’re using unsuitable shoes, no matter how much you kick and scream

Unsuitable, sure, but good pedals work with most vaguely suitable shoes. The only shoes I own that I’m not very happy riding on my assorted HTs with are my steelies.

had to write off a pair of v12 mags, bush’s were worn, cost of tool to remove bush’s, and to replace bearings too, would of cost £41

no special tool needed for saints, ball bearings cost £4 for both pedals, better sealed too

and saints are about 80 grams heavier? then V12 mags (saints £45, v12 mags £60)

Put a few longer pins in them

Pretty happy with my saints, nice big platform and lowish profile, they have taken a few good smacks too. Previous pedals were nanos which seemed comparable for grip.

Not had any problems with my saints , have lasted far longer than the v12 mag or the black spire ones

Put a few longer pins in them

The weird thing is, with the spacers out the pins are the same length as the v8s, just dont grip as well for some reason! Shame as they do look nice but I dont really feel that confident on em unless its dry. Do v12s feel the same as v8s?

Have saints on the XC/All Mountain/Enduro/26inch/Trail/Nipping down to the shops bike and use 5ten Freeriders, loads of grip. Use DMR vaults on the DH bike, definately work better with the 5Tens, maybe it’s the bigger platform.
Either way, if you’re using Winklepickers or a nice set of Brogues, you won’t get the full benefit.

try removing a few of the pins……………..

Surely that’ll make them less grippy?

DT strikes yet again….

Well not quite! I sometimes found removing a select number of pins made pedals more grippy. Try removing the two in the middle of the pedal, and the pin in the middle of the 3 at the top.

How do you have niggles with a set of cranks?
They either work or they dont surely?

Removing pins is complicate. Taking out the middle pins of my MG1s made them more concave, not totally sure if the grip is better but they feel more solid.

Even with a flat pedal, more pins doesn’t mean more grip, necessarily- it’s like brake pads/discs, the more pins you have, the less weight you have on each pin. So it’s not just quite that simple. With spiky pins that doesn’t seem to make much difference but some pins struggle to “penetrate”, especially flat/solid ones.

^yeah they work but the bolts that came with the chainset seemed to be made of cheese. One of the granny ring bolts rounded off completely (yes I used the right size torx head) so I had to hacksaw off the bolt head and file it down so it doesn’t rub. Not ideal for a new set of cranks! Couldn’t be arsed sending them back though and I don’t use the granny ring anyway, but still annoying.