PRODUCT: MAGLOCK BIKE PEDAL
FITTING NICELY BETWEEN PLATFORM AND CLIPLESS PEDALS?
What started off as an idea while riding turned into a full-on Kick Starter product to solve a riding problem experienced by a certain segment of riders. Maglock Bike Pedal Inventor Dave Williams didn't believe in trading experience on mechanical clipless pedals with bruises and falls. And the idea for Maglock Bike Pedals was borned! Maglock Bike Pedal aims to bridge the gap between platform and clipless pedals. While it may not appeal to regular clipless pedal riders, these magnetic pedals seem to be an "add-on bonus" for platform pedal users with almost no disadvantage switching from platform to magnetic pedals.
WHAT IS MAGLOCK?
The Maglock Bike Pedal utilizes strong neodymium magnets to "clip" the rider's shoe to the pedal. Unlike current mechanically-clipping pedals, a rider's natural twisting of his feet when he is losing balance from his bike will cause his feet to automatically release. It is also easy to use because the attractive forces between the pedal and shoe causes the foot to automatically clip in. The inventor of Maglock believes that this new product would be appreciated by all riders – beginner and intermediate riders.
FIRST LOOK
On first look, the pedals look solidly built, in fact, maybe a bit "too solid". They feel heavier than all our usual mountain bike pedals. This is due to the 10 magnets inside each pedal.
The Maglock Bike Pedal binding system is a patent-pending technology which was filed for a utility patent in 2012. The 10 magnets inside each pedal allows for adjustment of the magnetic strength ( which equates to clip-on strength of the pedal) by varying the number of magnets inside each pedal. It would take some trial-and-error to get to the preferred magnetic strength.
There are only 6 metal studs on each side of the pedal. Gripping strength on the pedal would be a mix of magnetic force for pulling and metal studs for front and back shearing/shifting traction.
We would be giving the Maglock some trail time and play with its different magnetic strengths before we come back with a full review.
WORDS FROM THE DESIGNER
I first envisioned the Maglock adjustable bike pedal binding system back in the summer of 2009 while riding in Aliso Woods Park near Laguna Nigel, California. Previously I had grown up mountain biking in Utah, all the time avoiding clip in pedals that (in my young mind) were likely to lead to perilous death. However I had decided that summer of 2009 that it was time to get clipless pedals after one too many times of getting unexpected air off of a roller and landing painfully on my cross bar. My posterity and I cried all the way home. Soon enough I had a new pair of shiny clipless pedals.
I had expected that clipping into my pedals for the first time would be a breeze for me, since I had already been biking for many years. I was wrong! Granted I enjoyed the added power they gave me for climbing. But my experience was not completely pleasant. My maiden voyage with the clipless pedals at Peters Canyon in Orange, California proved this when I stopped to unclip on the asphalt path. I was pulling gravel out of my wounds after untangling my body from my bike. But the desire to design a better pedal occurred at Aliso Woods Park a couple weeks later while riding with my friend. He couldn't stop laughing after I toppled over again on my bike, this time while trying to climb up a rock garden. Thankfully there was no asphalt to fall on. Instead I slid head first down a sand hill next to the trail right into a cactus patch. But I've got to give it to the clipless pedals for doing their job well – my bike stayed attached to my feet all the way to the bottom of the hill.
How could I reap the benefits of having my feet attached to my pedals without enduring the pains that clipless pedals can cause? The Maglock bike pedal was born! From applying my skills as a mechanical engineer for medical devices, I decided to put my new idea to work. After testing the concept with multiple prototypes I machined out of aluminum or laser cut out of plastic, I knew I had something good. Therefore countless hours of engineering research and design bring you the Maglock bike pedal.
Dave Williams, Inventor
For more information on Maglock Bike Pedals, visit their website at www.maglockbikepedal.com
Or contact local sales representative at maglockpedal@gmail.com
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