Renthal Revo-F Flat Pedal Review

The Renthal Revo-F is the Bredbury brand’s first ever pedal. The fact that it has come out with a flat pedal is simultaneously surprising and unsurprising.

• Brand: Renthal
• Product: Revo-F Flat Pedal
• Price: £154.95
• From: Renthal
• Tested by: Ross for 6 weeks

Pros

• Ticks a whole lot of boxes
• Good grip and feel
• Shrugs off hits very well

Cons

• Not the lightest
• Expensive
• We can’t vouch for any durability claims just yet

As a product, it makes complete sense for Renthal to make a flat pedal; it’s a modest-size made-from-metal component that’s also a point of contact. Why wouldn’t it make one? The surprising thing is mainly that it has taken this long to come out with one.

Compared to a few years ago, the premium flat pedal market is not exactly short on choice. Pretty much every flat pedal rider will have their favourite flattie by now. Nukeproof Horizon, DMR Vault, Deity T-Mac, HT PA03A, Hope F22 and so on. It’s going to take something special for these riders to switch to a newbie design.

One special thing that Renthal does have is a good reputation and strong brand following. People like Renthal stuff. There will be a lot of people who are delighted that Renthal have made a flat pedal at last and will be ordering a pair as we speak. What exactly will they be getting?

First and foremost they’ll be getting a flat pedal designed with two things predominantly in mind: performance and longevity. What they won’t be getting is super low weight. Or price. The twin figures of 488g and £155 will turn a few people away instantly. Whilst it’s not rare to see similar price tags on other high-end flatties, those rival pedals often come in under the 400g mark. The Revo-F flats are going to have either perform above and beyond on the trail, and/or offer a level of durability that’s a cut above the rest.

Our initial testing does indicate an impressive level of on-trail performance (more about this below) but we cannot vouch for the long term durability of the Renthal Revo-F flat pedals. We’ll report back much later in the year with an updated review.

By way of explaining/excusing the 488g weight, Renthal state a few things:

• “We added material to develop a genuine, deep concave body … Fully concave platform in two axis. Not just using pin height to achieve this, the body is fully concave in both axis.”
• “Having a fully usable pedal platform was achieved by increasing the axle length of the Revo-F, to offset the pedal from the crank.”
• “Rock strike durability of the bearings was improved with our full-length axle, which is essential for flat pedals.”
• “To improve rock strike performance, keeping the front face of the pedal smooth [ie. not machined out], to slide over rocks, rather than grabbing at them is an important feature, not to be forgotten.”
• “Long-term durability of the internals is essential and the inclusion of an extra-long Igus bush and three cartridge bearings, coupled with a fully sealed design has achieved this.”

All of which sound eminently sensible nay admirable. Personally I’m more swayed by design intentions of improved durability and on-trail performance than by a new pedal that just claims to be light.

These pedals are not so much a case of Bontrager’s famous “strong, light, cheap: pick two” maxim. They’re more a case of “Strong, light, cheap: pick (the first) one.”

And if you’re a long term flat pedal user who’s become all too sadly adept at replacing bushings and axles on their current favourite flattie, chances are you’re quite prepared to accept the weight (and wallet) penalty of a set of Renthal Revo-Fs should they prove to be significantly longer lasting than existing alternatives.

As and when the Revo-F pedals eventually do need an overhaul, Renthal have a patent-pending unique axle system and servicing design that requires commonly owned tools (6mm Allen, 8mm Allen, standard 8mm socket and a mallet).

Early verdict

Over to Ross…

“Getting straight to the point, the new Renthal Revo-F flats work really well. Previous to trying them out I had been using the Hope F22 flats and a set of Deity TMAC flats. The Renthal Revo-F flat are equal to, if not better, than either of those. I’ve mainly been wearing Shimano GF800 shoes while testing and the pedals offer an amazing amount of grip with a truly (cliche alert!) locked-in feel. The pedal platform size is well chose; the pedal doesn’t feel too big or too small. It offers plenty of support for rough trails and remains comfortable for extended periods of pedalling. There have been no slipped pedals, or instances of my feet bouncing off, no matter how rough things have got. They’re actually so grippy that I ended up backing off the pins on the outside edge as I wanted to be able to shuffle my feet about a bit a little easier. I do confess to experiencing a couple of pedal strikes during the six weeks or so of the test period but the chamfered leading edges have done a good job of shrugging things off and keeping me on-the-bike and riding on regardless. While six weeks isn’t long enough to comment on overall long-term reliability, so far things are still spinning freely. Zero notchiness or stiffness. No telltale rust stains seeping out of the seals. Great first flatties from Renthal.”

Oh go on then, have a gratuitous Akrigg launch edit…

Review Info

Brand:	Renthal
Product:	Revo-F Flat Pedal
From:	Renthal
Price:	£154.95
Tested:	by Ross for 6 weeks

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