fbhb Posted June 25, 2020 Share Posted June 25, 2020 With the rising popularity of EUC pedal footplates fitted with pins/studs, I decided to convert my Z10 pedals in order to test out what the improvement would bring over the standard griptape. Fortunately for me, I had two pairs of flat Giant bike pedals with 4mm screw-in pins that were no longer going to be used. The pedals had 10 pins per side giving me a total of 80 pins from the two sets of spare pedals, so this proved to be enough to use 40 pins for each of my Z10's pedals. The first thing that needed to be worked out was the actual positioning of each pin, due to way the Z10 pedals have ribs throughout their construction. With careful placement each pin was positioned central to the gaps between the ribs, which allowed maximum clearance for the excess screw threads to protrude through the footplates and also optimal load distribution. The footplates are only 1.5mm thick Aluminium, which is just about thick enough to take a 4mm tapped/threaded hole. Once all the hole positions were marked out, drilled and tapped each of the pedal pins had Loctite 243 Blue threadlocker applied, to keep everything securely locked in place. The pedal magnets were then re-glued back in place, as they had to be removed to carry out the marking out and the drilling/thread tapping. The Z10 pedal magnets are still strong enough to hold the pedals up, even though they are now not sitting as close to the shell with all 40 pins fitted. I've only had a chance to do two short rides since fitting the pins, as it is winter here in New Zealand, but I have to say the improvement in grip is Amazing. Your feet feel locked to the pedals, especially over the kind of bumps and undulations that would normally have your feet slipping forwards/backwards on griptape. Both rides were around 30kms long and the pins also felt comfortable underfoot over that distance and you could still move your feet around if needed by lifting them slightly. These pins are quite wide with a flat top so cause a depression into the soles of your shoes, rather than actually penetrating like a spike would, so there is no concern over damaging your shoes by using these pinned pedals. My riding shoes have No marks or any sign whatsoever from riding with the Modded pedals and I'm really looking forward to the next break in the weather to get a longer ride in, it genuinely is so confidence inspiring! I now wish I'd done this Mod a lot sooner!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meulebeest Posted June 25, 2020 Share Posted June 25, 2020 (edited) @fbhb Nicely done, Sir. Personally, I just removed the plastic thingies and put vicious griptape on top, works like a charm ... PS: But not for snow :-) Edited June 25, 2020 by Meulebeest 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fbhb Posted June 25, 2020 Author Share Posted June 25, 2020 (edited) 34 minutes ago, Meulebeest said: @fbhb Nicely done, Sir. Personally, I just removed the plastic thingies and put vicious griptape on top, works like a charm ... PS: But not for snow :-) I don't ride in snow or mud, but IMHO I think these pins would work well for both conditions. A lot of guys that have started using pins on their EUC's were using vicious griptape before, but say that there is just "No Comparison" to the genuinely locked in feel you get using pins especially off road! Edited June 25, 2020 by fbhb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z3n Posted June 25, 2020 Share Posted June 25, 2020 5 hours ago, fbhb said: With the rising popularity of EUC pedal footplates fitted with pins/studs, I decided to convert my Z10 pedals in order to test out what the improvement would bring over the standard griptape. Fortunately for me, I had two pairs of flat Giant bike pedals with 4mm screw-in pins that were no longer going to be used. The pedals had 10 pins per side giving me a total of 80 pins from the two sets of spare pedals, so this proved to be enough to use 40 pins for each of my Z10's pedals. The first thing that needed to be worked out was the actual positioning of each pin, due to way the Z10 pedals have ribs throughout their construction. With careful placement each pin was positioned central to the gaps between the ribs, which allowed maximum clearance for the excess screw threads to protrude through the footplates and also optimal load distribution. The footplates are only 1.5mm thick Aluminium, which is just about thick enough to take a 4mm tapped/threaded hole. Once all the hole positions were marked out, drilled and tapped each of the pedal pins had Loctite 243 Blue threadlocker applied, to keep everything securely locked in place. The pedal magnets were then re-glued back in place, as they had to be removed to carry out the marking out and the drilling/thread tapping. The Z10 pedal magnets are still strong enough to hold the pedals up, even though they are now not sitting as close to the shell with all 40 pins fitted. I've only had a chance to do two short rides since fitting the pins, as it is winter here in New Zealand, but I have to say the improvement in grip is Amazing. Your feet feel locked to the pedals, especially over the kind of bumps and undulations that would normally have your feet slipping forwards/backwards on griptape. Both rides were around 30kms long and the pins also felt comfortable underfoot over that distance and you could still move your feet around if needed by lifting them slightly. These pins are quite wide with a flat top so cause a depression into the soles of your shoes, rather than actually penetrating like a spike would, so there is no concern over damaging your shoes by using these pinned pedals. My riding shoes have No marks or any sign whatsoever from riding with the Modded pedals and I'm really looking forward to the next break in the weather to get a longer ride in, it genuinely is so confidence inspiring! I now wish I'd done this Mod a lot sooner!!! Great work man! But how did you solve the pins scraping the side covers whenever you close the pedals? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meulebeest Posted June 25, 2020 Share Posted June 25, 2020 28 minutes ago, z3n said: Great work man! But how did you solve the pins scraping the side covers whenever you close the pedals? I use this: 3M SJ387B Dual Lock Flexible Press Lock 25 mm x 2.5 m Black One sided / stick it on the edges where it closes (not the whole surface) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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