E*thirteen LG1+ Pedals

One would suspect upon first glance of the LG1+ pedals from e*thirteen that they were developed in Texas by either a former NBA player, or Sasquatch himself, as they are enormous. Measuring roughly 13cm by 10cm (or 5” by 4” in Queen’s English), and weighing in at a claimed 468g, one could use them as a replacement dinner plate for a Sunday brunch buffet quite comfortably.

A Texas-sized platform with more pins than a porcupine

While the LG1+ pedals are listed under the “4X/DH” segment of the hive website, I’ve been using them for everything from park laps to quick and dirty loops up Fromme with nary an issue to list. They are made out of a combination of aluminum and polycarbonate, and run on a heat-treated cro-mo axle. It spins on self-lubricating IGUS bushings, and comes pre-installed with 4mm-long pins. The pedals also feature a nifty little dial that allows you to fine-tune how easily the pedal spins on the axle.

In marketing speak, the dial is known as a “SpinControl Axle Adjustment system.” Simply dial the resistance in to ensure your pedals don’t go flying away.

E*thirteen offers three different sizes of tractions for the pedal. The mid-size 4mm pins are installed out of the box, while 1mm and 7mm pins are available to help fine-tune the traction. I’ve been running the stock length pins in combination with Sombrio’s Shazam shoe, and at no time have I felt that I needed more traction. That being said, those who sport a grippier shoe may want to look at swapping in some 1mm pins to help fine-tune the stick. In the event of a big impact, the pins will shear away without doing any damage to the pedal body. They also thread in from the back of the pedal, which helps ease their removal and replacement.

The polycarbonate plates extend a tad outside the aluminum skeleton to add even more platform space, while the traction pins will shear away during a traumatic impact. Despite the damage seen here, they are still gripping nicely.

The polycarbonate wear plates are another interesting feature. Thus far, they’ve done an excellent job of soaking up the punishment meted out by errant rocks and poor line choices. I have a bad habit of smashing pedals, so it’ll be interesting to see how they hold up in the long term, and whether the replacing the plates themselves will be a relatively simple task.

A profile view shows the nice concave contour of the body, as well as the protective wrapping of the polycarbonate plates.

I’ve spent some time playing around with the spin adjust dial at both extremes, just to see what the effect is. The pedals go from “feeling like they need a service” stiff to “perpetual motion machine.” My advice is to find a spot on the dial that allows for the pedal to spin easily, but with enough resistance to ensure that it doesn’t go freewheeling away should you need to get your foot off if needed. Once you’ve found that sweet spot, just leave it be.

Overall I’ve been impressed with the build quality of the pedals– in the roughly month and a half that I’ve had them, there have been zero issues with the polycarb plates, or play in the bushings. Mind you, we’re just now entering into the wet season, and it’ll be interesting to see how everything holds up once it is exposed to the muck and wetness of a Shore winter season. All in all, if having a large, supportive platform is at the top of your must-have list, then the LG1+ pedals are worth a look.

With winter coming up and wet rides in the forecast, will anyone else be making the swap to flats?