flat pedals spindle

nevikte

Hey, I'm looking to buy a new set of flat pedals and I was trying to understand what to look for in terms of what makes a "bullet proof pedal" and specifically I was trying to understand spindles. (I'll probably use them also on my road bike, mainly rolling or climbing routes)

what's the difference between a tiny spindle like the one in the crank brothers stamp pedal and a big one in shimano saint? Is a tiny spindle a sign that the pedal may break easily when pushed hard on it?

cooldad

And tiny bearings/bushings.
But as all CB stuff is made of low grade cheese, it probably isn't bullet proof.

nevikte

crank brothers aside, what about other pedals with heights that are under 2cm?
e.g. race face atlas, spank oozy all of these pedals seems to run tiny spindles/bearings/bushings.
are all of those something to stay away from, or is there something to look at for durability?
is there a particular terrain where tiny spindles should be avoided? e.g. jumps and climbs where you push more on the pedals?

The Rookie

Its rare that the spindle causes issues, but the smaller platforms and narrower spindles go with smaller bearings which are inherently less reliable (like for like) than bigger ones.

Your above photo is confused though as you show the CB spindle but then the Saint Bearing package, the spindle is smaller than that and what you can see is around the outside of the bearings, the brass coloured part comes off the spindle with the bearings.
http://si.shimano.com/php/download.php? ... -3390A.pdf