Crankbrothers Mallet DH Race Pedal

Product Information

There is a vast choice of mountain bike clipless pedals available to buy, some are good for all-round trail riding, some are more suited to cross-country riding whilst others are aimed squarely at gravity, enduro or downhill riding. Between us at off.road.cc we've tested quite a variety and have listed the best in test here. I’ve been riding the Mallet DH pedals for a couple years now. Before the Mallet E pedals were introduced, I rode the Mallet DH pedals on all of my bikes. Now that I have had the chance to ride these Mallet E pedals, I think they will be staying on my trail bike full time and don’t see why they wouldn’t make their way to the downhill bike as well. Inner bearing: igus LL-glide bearing has been exclusively formulated for crankbrothers. It performs in even the most adverse conditions out on the trails Interchangeable traction pad to optimize cleat engagement and improve shoe and pedal body interface

The Mallet 3 is easy to clip into. The platform makes it easy for your foot to find the spring and the Crankbrothers spring action is smooth. Unlike the platformless Crankbrothers Eggbeater 2, which requires precision to accurately clip in, the platform on the Mallet 3 allows your foot a place to rest and push if you don't get clipped in immediately, and it also guides your foot to the spring, allowing for faster entry. Ease of Exit Mud (aka ‘wet loam’) is an inevitability of UK mountain biking. For many clip-in pedals that test just peachy in lab conditions and on dusty trails though, mud can be kryptonite. When mud starts clinging to your pedals and lathering the underside of your shoes, it can jam up the clip mechanism, reducing your fancy pedals to a scarily unstable metal ornament.topics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 101, 5228-5235). Getting your own texts into MALLET New for 2017 are the Mallet E Long Spindle pedals. The long spindle model features a 57mm q-factor, 5mm longer than the regular Mallet E, and is mounted to the same Mallet E body tested here. After riding the Mallet E pedal, I think I would enjoy that additional clearance and can’t wait to get my hands on the long spindle model. Jesse221 the pins are the real reason I’d consider switching. With the right shoes, like the 5 10s you don’t miss the pins when clipped, but you’d be more secure unclipped with the CBs with the pins. Switching to my 5-10s have reduced my desire to get the CBs because they grip the Time platforms so much better when clipped in, I feel like I get all the grip I need. My old Giros/ Sidis/ Pearl Izumis/ SixOnes, not so much. But you’d have to set the pins real low to not get hung up clipping out with certain grippy shoes, so I’m not sure how much they’d help in the end. Some testers have pulled their hair out adjusting their cleat shims, pin height and pedal sleeves to work just right with their particular shoe, and there’s no doubt that if you’re coming from the ‘bolt and go’ world of xc clipless pedals, you’ll need to give setup more time than you’re used to.

The Mallet Trails are a decent pedal, but I think that they're always going to suffer in comparison to their bigger and burlier siblings. The problem is that they don't offer support through the platform, and are more reliant on the traction pads. This means that if you're riding anything that includes a lot of rider input, you're going to want to have the 2 mm traction pads. However, the trade-off is a more vague sensation of getting clipped in and out of the pedal, without completely delivering on the feel you were hoping for in the first place. Bike setup is subjective in general, but when we come to the setup and feel of our clipless pedals it feels like that subjectivity is turbocharged. Typically, I prefer the Crankbrothers system, and if I had to rely on systems with less float, as well as less platform and support while engaged in the mechanism, I wouldn't be riding clipless pedals at all. On our scale the Mallet DH weighed in 5 grams heavier per pair than Crankbrothers' claimed weight of 479 grams. The biggest problem with release from the Mallet 3 is the shoes you are likely to wear with these pedals, which can be so wide in the forefoot that they hit the crank arm at certain angles, preventing a full release. Once your cleats and the edges of the shoe break-in this will become less of a problem. Beware that with a new pair of Mallet 3s, new cleats, and a fresh pair of Five Ten Hellcats, you might find yourself falling over in front of your buddies.

Crank Brothers Mallet Trail price

They offer the effortless entry and release that Crank Brothers is well known for, and incredible mud-shedding capabilities that few clip-in pedals can match. There’s excellent adjustability for customising their fit, and while outright grip isn’t as good as their bigger siblings, the platform is still usefully broad.