Speedplay FrogsA Long-term Abuser Report |
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Back in 1995, before the advent of the Time ATAC pedal, there were few alternatives to the Shimano-style SPD pedal: Toe-clips, Powergrips, Bebop, and Speedplay Frog. Toe-clips were fiddly, Powergrips a compromise and the Bebops unavailable in Malaysia.
The Frogs were the lightweight wonders: a titanium-spindled pair weighed just 205 grams, and held the promise of better mud-performance, and unparalleled knee-friendly float. I bought my first pair in December 1995, in Singapore at Treknology.
Construction
The pedals have a resin-like body and a steel mushroom-shaped head screwed onto the each half of the pedal body. The two halves of the body in turn are screwed onto one another, sandwiching the spindle. The spindle runs on two bearings: an inboard needle bearing, and a cartridge bearing on the outer end of the spindle. On the pedal body near the end of spindle is a grease port, through which you can lubricate the bearings without pedal disassembly.Unlike other clipless pedal designs, the spring in the system resides not in the pedal body, but in the unusual-looking cleat. The cleats are quite large, raising compatibility issues with your footwear. Installing the cleats on some shoes may require you to trim the lugs on the sole. The spring itself is a wafer of rubbery material, sandwiched between a cantilevered metal piece and the sole of your shoe.
The Frog Ti weighs just 205 grams for a pair (rider weight limit: 185lbs), while the stainless steel spindled version is 250 grams. The cleats are 45 grams. Release angle is 20 degrees.
My initial impressions of the Frogs were that it was a well-executed example of a good design. Did they stand up to long-term abuse?
Performance
The initial feeling of using the Frogs is best described by Speedplay themselves: it's like pedalling on two small cubes of ice. The immense free-float needed a bit of getting used to, but the advantages were instantaneous. Prior to installing the Frogs, I used a pair of Wellgo Shimano knock-offs, and experienced slight knee pain after 70km. No such problems with the Frogs: the huge free-float allowed free rotational movement of the knee joint in each pedal revolution, and each foot was free to rotate in its most efficient position at any point in the pedal stroke. They were so good that I bought a pair for my road bike, allowing me to use the same shoes on both bikes.Pedal release was achieved by twisting the heel outwards. Because you don't have to overcome any spring tension (the rubber springs only come into play during pedal entry), release was effortless. Inboard release (heels-in) was not possible because of a raised ridge on the pedal body, although the pedal body later wore to such an extent that this too became possible after 2-3 years' abuse. Some users are known to intentionally grind off these ridges; but you may end up with your heels striking the chainstay in a pedal stroke. The lack of inward release has also led to my being trapped under the bike in some crashes.
Because of the free-float feature, it can be difficult to "kick" the rear-end of the bike sideways in jumps and turns when using the Frogs. Particularly so if the inboard stops have worn away. But because the target user of the Frogs is the gram-counting cross-country rider, this may not be such a big issue, depending on your riding style.
Mud performance is a much-touted feature of the Frogs. My experience? It depends on the type of mud. Watery, goopy mud posed no problems. I observed with satisfaction that I could easily clip in when other riders using the first generation clipless systems such as Shimano's 737 had to stop to poke their cleats with various assortments of trail-side twigs. All I had to do was to stomp on the pedals and grind my foot side-to-side - in the manner that one would if crunching a cockcroach underfoot - and Bob's your uncle, you're in. On the other hand, thick clay soils and, to a lesser extent, damp loamy topsoil defeated the Frogs (as well as all other pedal systems, until the Time ATAC came along).
One day in 1996, as I was careening downhill in Kg Kemensah, I clipped a large rock with the edge of the left pedal. The force of the hit was so large that the whole bike jumped sideways. Fortunately the hit did not affect my balance (as the point of impact was close to the bike's centre of gravity) and I continued downhill free of gravel rashes. Back at the car, however, I discovered that the Frog pedals had not escaped so lightly: one half of the left pedal body had cracked, leaving a gaping hole.
I contacted Speedplay, and they sent me a replacement pedal body half, free. I could see that, at exactly the point where my pedal body had broken, there was now a reinforcing strut on the inside of the new pedal body. I was impressed. They also sent me some rubber sealant for waterproofing the seam between the two pedal halves. Disassembly and re-assembly was very easy.
Durability and maintenance
Maintenance of the pedal is exceptionally easy: just unscrew the tiny hex bolt and pump in grease through the greaseports. A 2-minute job. Just don't lose or round out the hex bolt, both of which I managed with alarming ease.The Frogs get poor marks for durability. The cleats wear quickly. This is not so critical an issue with pedal systems using retaining springs, because the springs can compensate to some extent for wear on the cleats. On the Frogs, a worn cleat results in a loose interface between pedal and cleat. At first, you'll notice a clicking sound, particularly if you have an efficient pedal stroke and pull up, as well as push down, on the pedals. As you start to pull up on the pedals, the cleats move upwards on the pedal body, causing the click. The problem is exacerbated on the road, because of the higher cadence. As the cleat wears further, it may even result in accidental release. Not a good thing, as this usually happens on steep uphill sections when you are cranking hard and have your weight pushed far over the front of the bike. Admittedly, you should have replaced the cleats well before then. Replacement cleats are expensive, and can be hard to source given the relative rarity of the Frogs. I ordered mine through Bike-Pro Centre, who gets them from Singapore.
As time goes on, however, even replacing the cleats will not solve the problem. The pedal body itself, as well as its steel inserts, will wear to such an extent that even brand-new cleats will not remove the looseness. At this point, you'll have to order new pedal halves (USD40 not including shipping) and steel inserts. Faced with this decision, I switched over to Time ATACs, which I got free from Sha.
Summary and Conclusion
Pros:Warts:
Ideal users: gram-counting weight-weenies, riders with knee problems
Similar products
- Bebop: similarly lightweight alternative (175g for the Deluxe, Aermet steel spindled versions!). Claims to have good mud performance too.
- Time ATAC: Far superior mud performance and better durability (in my own experience). But much heavier (400g), and the lightweight Ti and carbon versions are very expensive but still heavier than every other pedal listed here.
- Crank Brothers Eggbeaters: Promises similar mud performance as the Time ATACs at a much lighter weight: 283 grams per pair. KSH sold me a pair for RM310, which I installed in May 2002; look out for another Long-term Abuser Report soon.
- Shimano 959: Lighter than its predecessor (858), with improved mud performance. 345g per pair.
Bottom line: I will not buy these pedals today, on the philosophy that I only upgrade if the new part is lighter or performs better, AND is more durable or requires lower maintenance. Anybody wants two pairs of Frogs, slightly used?
Links
- mtbr.com User reviews of the Speedplay Frogs
- Speedplay website
