I am riding fixed for winter with SPDs.

Never ridden on Eggies.

I've heard that Egg Beaters are better in snow/mud (ie don't "clog").

Which, in your humble opinion is "best" for the demands of fixed: SPD (Shimano Pedaling Dynamics) or Crank Brothers Egg Beaters?

Go!

Background: I rode SPD clones (Wellgo/Nashbar) for a while before switching to EggBeaters. I stopped using EggBeaters last year or so, and have been riding a lot of plain old flat pedals, and have Time ATACs on a few bikes. I like the ATAC pedals best so far.

Shimano SPD
Pros:
- The bearings tend to require zero maintenance and rarely outright fail
- they're VERY common; prices are reasonable and pedals/cleats are easy to find new or used
- lots of other people will be able to ride your bike(s). see above.
Cons:
- snow/ice makes it really hard to get clipped in
- single-sided versions can get annoying; they always seem to be upside down
- you can only clip in by rolling forwards
- it's possible to pull straight out, and is easier to do so when the tension is adjusted down low
- steel cleats and steel pedals means the cleats and pedals both wear from contact
- they're so damn cliche. Nothing screams "TCBC group ride" quite like well-worn SPDs. Except orange safety flags & vests, that is.

Crank Bros Egg Beaters
Pros:
- most snow and ice on the pedal/cleat can be pushed out of the way by the normal clip-in motion
- 4-sided entry; it's never sideways or upside-down
- you can clip-in by rolling the cleat forwards or backwards onto the pedal (very uncommon)
- brass cleats are softer than the steel pedal, so new cleats should always feel snappy and fresh
- it's more or less impossible to simply pull out of the pedal without rotating your foot

Cons:
- it's a pretty darn small platform to stand on
- that itty bitty widdle cartridge bearing tends to self-destruct after enough time, with unpleasant results
- they need to be greased with some regularity to keep the bushing properly lubricated
- if you miss a clip-in, it's pretty easy for your foot to "roll" on the pedal and shoot off unexpectedly
- there is no release tension adjustment (but it's a pretty agreeable tension for most folks)

Time ATAC
Pros:
- similar snow/ice clip-in performance to EggBeaters
- really solid bearings and seals, as good or better than SPD.
- brass cleats for favorable wear of cleat vs. pedal
- some models have adjustable release tension
- feels very solid once clipped in
- the float has "soft edges"

Cons:
- price
- can only clip in by rolling forwards
- seems a little trickier to line up the cleat and pedal than Eggbeater and SPD
- takes a pretty good push to clip in
- takes a pretty good twist to clip out (with very satisfying SNAP sound, IMHO)


Overall, SPD works fine, but is hard to clip into when you've got snow/ice on your pedal or cleat. EggBeater pretty much solves that problem, and has the benefit of a brass cleat for less pedal wear. Unfortunately, the outer bearing on EggBeaters tends to blow up at random if you ride them enough. ATACs are similar to the EggBeaters in many ways, and do not seem to have any of the durability concerns in the long term. You pay a premium for it, however.

In summary, I would avoid SPDs for winter fixed riding, favoring instead EggBeaters or ATACs, depending on which system's pros and cons sound better to you.

While I've only used Crank Bros clipless pedals I'd like to add that Candys have nearly all the advantages of Eggbeaters but with a little bit of a platform that's nice when you don't quite get clipped in on the first pedal rotation or when unclipping in anticipation of stopping. I have both and prefer the Candys. Though the bearings do tend to wear out there is a rebuild kit available for less than $20 that includes: seals, bearing cartridges, bushings, nylock nuts, and dustcaps.

Dunno about what's best for fixed, but I use Eggbeaters on my commuter, 'cross, and mountain bikes.

That they "never clog" is not quite accurate, but they are harder to clog than SPDs. The last year they held the Powderhorn CX, I managed to clog them heavily enough that I had issues clipping back in during a remount.

That said, though, I love 'em. The four-sided clip-in functionality is a god-send.

I switched to Eggbeaters after pulling out of SPD's a couple of times. I've managed to pull out of Eggbeaters a couple of times but only after the cleat was very worn. This summer I got a long overdue-bike fit from Chris Balser who noted that I tended to roll my feet over a little too much on the no-platform eggbeaters in a way that was disrupting my pedal stroke. Since then I have been experimenting with Look-style pedals and I really like how they feel when I am riding. What I hate about them is everything else! I really like walking around and being able to ride unclipped when I am going slow or on gravel. I have Candy's and they don't seem to exhibit the same problem as the straight-up eggbeaters but they squeak a little. The winter bike has Mallets which are just fantastic -- I may keep these no matter what.

I think in the spring I will re-evaluate the pedal situation. Is there the perfect pedal and cleat system? I want a secure, stable platform. I want shoes I can walk in for an hour. I want to be able to stand on the pedals when I am unclipped. If I absolutely have to, I want to be able to ride 2 miles on the bike with Converse sneakers

time atac's!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I herd Cinelli M71 is best pedal. For winter. Fixed.

Clips and straps sounds like exactly what you're looking for.

(I changed back to clips and straps on all my non-mountain bikes and it's worked out really well)

Hey big thanks everybody, super helpful.

I want to stay clipless because I have a pair of Shimano winter shoes I really like. They just don't fit in clips.


Eggbeaters it is.

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Thanks for the very informative thread, y'all! Very helpful, indeed.

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Speedplays - hands down best pedals. Problem with them is you are now a roadie and duckwalk, and your daughter will not be seen with you in public. Rode them while my knee was recovering (15 degree float - really nice on bad knees), but I save them for special occasions now (when my daughter is visiting her grandmother etc).

I like Times and SPD's - they never seem to fail. I rode almost all SPD's (even in the winter - and I have single sided A530's on my daily - almost a platform on the flat side - nice on ice)

I blew through he only set of eggbeaters I ever had in short order - outer bearing went out on the far side of Lake Minnetonka - I knew it was going out, but it had a catastrophic failure (pedal froze up) and made for an interesting ride home.

Campy/Cinelli/Look pedals will also brand you as a roadie, nice pedals, but you duckwalk. But if you don't want to come out unless it's intentional, this is the way to go.

I switched to time atacs from SPDs this summer after popping out three separate times with two different sets of pedals. I fell in love with them and have them on three bikes now. I've had no problems clipping in even when clogged with snow, ice, mud, etc. I can't offer any insight into eggbeaters, but in my experience atac>spd

I love my speedplays for my racing bike but the one time I tried them in the winter they fouled the first time I put my foot down. The snow packed in the pedal receiver in the shoe and wouldn't let the spring open to clip in the pedal (no matter how many times I smacked them against the ground or pedal and cursed them). I've no experience with mud or other debris but that would intuitively make sense to jam the circular spring. And the float is wonderful...

lsboogy, ever use them in winter or mud with better results?