Forever smashing your pedals on rocks, or on a tight budget? These are highly recommended

Product Overview

Overall rating:

Score 9

Exotic Thermoplastic pedals

Product:

Exotic Thermoplastic pedal review

Manufacturer:

Price as reviewed:

£23.44

The Exotic Thermoplastic pedal is ludicrously cheap at just £23.44 including postage! They’re available in four bright colours, as well as black or white.

>>> Best mountain bike flat pedals for 2018

Considering that Exotic components are sold exclusively online via the Carboncycles.cc website, it’s somewhat perturbing that its web store has all the visual sophistication of Windows 95. There are distractions everywhere, you never quite know where you are, and technical information is scarce. There’s no arguing with the prices, however, which in many cases also look like they’ve been frozen in time. The platform measures 94 x 97mm, which isn’t especially generous compared to some of our favourite money-no-object pedals (such as the Nukeproof Horizon and DMR Vault) and can’t match the size of One Up Composite flat pedals either.

Exotic sticks to the popular concave approach for its side profile. At its slimmest point, the Exotic measures just under 16mm, while the leading and trailing edges are 17mm thick. When you take into account the pins, the result is a more concave shape than it sounds.

Penetrating the thermoplastic platform (Exotic isn’t specific about exactly what material it’s made from) are ten M3 hex bolts per side. To prevent them ripping through the pedal, a corresponding nut sits in a moulded recess. The bad news is these set screws are just not long enough at 10mm. The good news is you can buy longer versions for just a few quid and they make a dramatic difference to the overall grip. You can also tune the grip and feel by varying the lengths or removing pins altogether.

Verdict

As soon as we fitted the longer pins to the Exotic pedals, the shoe was on the other foot, so to speak, and the Exotic kept us more secure, whether we were unweighting or fully loaded up on the pedal. As it has a slightly smaller overall dimension, we can only put this down to the subtle concave profile of the Exotic working better with the position of our foot – specifically with the ball of our foot cupped by the dish of the pedal. Which means that, even figuring in the cost of the essential longer pins, the Exotic pedals are a winner and an absolute bargain to boot. If you’re forever smashing your pedals on rocks, or on a tight budget, these are highly recommended.

Details

Weight:360g
Size:94 x 97 x 15.5mm
Contact:carboncycles.cc