Crankbrothers Quattro vs. SPD - So confused!

[VeloVT]

I have Ultegra pedals (SPD-SL) on my road bike and eggbeaters on my cyclocross bike. Frankly, while the eggbeaters are easier to clip out of, I find the Ultegras easier to clip into, in spite of the fact the the Ultegra pedal is one-sided and the eggbeaters are four-sided. And the Ultegras are not actually hard to clip out of, once you develop a feel for it.

I'm happy with the eggbeaters on my cx bike, as they do a great job of shedding slop -- right now I'm using it as a winter commuting bike, and I know I'd be having major issues with road pedals/cleats getting clogged with mud and ice in this weather. They're also exceptionally easy to clip out of -- it's like you just think about clipping out and poof! you are. But overall, for riding, I have to say I prefer my Ultegra pedals. Clipping in or out is very consistant and is accompanied by a satisfying clunk, so there's never any question of whether you're fully clipped in. And this may be my imagination, but I **feel** like the broader platform gives me more power transfer. This really doesn't make sense from a physics perspective, but at any rate I feel very solidly connected to the bike -- they make me feel more secure.

I understand how... awkward... or time-consuming... it can feel to flip over both toe-clips on a bike with clips & straps in order to get started, especially in traffic. But the one-sided spd-sls are not like this at all -- the pedal is weighted such that it always hangs at the same angle, and doesn't need to be "flipped over" -- you really just need to step on it.

I've never used any of the Crank Bros styles with a platform, and it sounds from everything I've read on this forum that people like them. Based on my experience with the eggbeaters though, I would caution you that the Crank Bros system is not necessarily as easy to clip into -- I've found that I've stopped aiming for a precise, immediate clip in when I start in traffic (the kind I can get easily with my road pedals), instead i just put my foot somewhere on the pedal and sometime in the first 5 revolutions I"ll "feel" the "sweet spot" and "get" clipped in. I would imagine this may be more of an issue with the platform design, since you have the four-sided clip rotating inside the platform, giving you less than full access to it, and at any given time it may have to be rotated a 1/4 turn before you can engage it. For me, the Ultegras are faster to get into.

This is my (longwinded) two cents. I think pedals can be a lot like saddles -- meaning a whole lot will depend on the quirks of individual preference.

Good luck!!!