Time ATAC Carbon - An ATAC Pedal Overview: I'm a buyer!
Written: Aug 09 '01 (Updated Oct 11 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easy on the knees, adjustment free, good for mud
Cons: Can be difficult to release when unanticipated, requires break-in period, not light
The Bottom Line: The ease of use, the float for the knees, and mud-shedding ability easily offset the weight penalty and the slower disengagement of the ATACs.
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| NYCattitude's Full Review: Time ATAC Carbon World Champion |
If you are trying to decide on a clipless pedal system for your bike, and you need a lot of float for your knees or you bike on a lot on muddy trails, the Time ATAC pedal is for you.
The ATACs come in four different models with the same clip mechanism. The Alium is the least expensive with the aluminum body and with standard bearing races. The composite model costs slightly more, features a hard thermoplastic body and sealed cartridge bearings. The plastic bodied pedals are lighter than the aluminum ones and have bearings that will probably outlast the Alium's bearings. The Carbon aka Carbon World Champion pedals are basically the same as the plastic pedals except that there is a miniscule weight savings with a carbon-plastic body. The top-end pedal, the Titan Carbon, is the same as the carbon bodied pedal except for a titanium axle. All other pedals besides the Titan Carbon have a steel, chromoly axle. There is a major weight savings with the Titan model over the Carbon model but there is also a huge premium (almost double the price) for titanium axles. Also, titanium is not as strong as steel and may not withstand the abuse from heavy riders or hardcore riders. Weight-wise, the Titan Carbon is the only model that can compete with high-end off-road SPD pedals such as Shimano, Bontrager and Ritchey. Is weight, however, the determining factor when comfort and usability are an issue?
The A.T.A.C. (Auto Tension Adjustment Concept) is a completely different clipless pedal system than SPD. It uses Time's ATAC cleats, not SPD or Shimano-compatible cleats. Spring tension is not adjustable. The clip-in and release are based on the shape of the cleat. This means, at all times, there is low spring tension and foot retention, based on cleat shape, is completely independent. This means, no surprises, and higher confidence using a clipless pedal system.
Time only manufactures one cleat shape that allows 15 degrees or 20 degrees of release angle, depending on the way the cleat is installed on your shoe. There is one cleat marked with a star. If the star cleat is installed on your right shoe, then you will clip-out faster (15 degrees) with less foot rotation. Installing the star-cleat on the left shoe is for pros who prefer to stay clipped in, allowing 20 degrees of rotation until the springs release. There is an aftermarket cleat modified by Speedgoat.com. They shave the back of the cleats so that you can clip-out even faster and you get more knee float. Here's a review of the Custom Shaved ATAC Cleats by Speedgoat:
http://www.epinions.com/content_37691231876
What is knee float? Well, it is unnatural to have your feet locked into a position when you pedal. If you are a good technical rider, your knee will more or less stay in the same place while spinning the pedals. But tell me, when was the last time you were in the saddle spinning smoothly on a rocky uphill climb over rocks, roots, gravel and dry hardpack? If you're like me, you're in and out of the saddle, throwing your weight side to side and trying to find the balance between good traction and good steering. Meanwhile your whole body is moving around and it is only natural for your legs, knees and feet to rotate and move laterally. A pedal must allow your feet to float in order to accommodate these body shifts. ATAC pedals allow a minimum of 15 degrees of rotation before they disengage your foot and allow your foot to pronate laterally by 3mm (approx. 1/8") in either direction. This float can take a lot of the twisting pressure off your knees. The result is a more natural, confidence inspired pedaling experience.
Let's also talk about the mud-clearing abilities of the ATACs. Most SPDs provide a platform to step into. To oversimplify my comparison, I'd say most SPDs are like putting a short peg into a shallow hole. That hole will fill with contaminants, such as mud, if you ride in wet areas and may cause difficulty when trying to clip-in. The ATACs are basically a flat platform with retaining springs protruding from the surface of the pedal. There is nowhere for mud to get caught. In fact, when the cleat comes in contact with the pedal surface, the mud will clear away. These are great mud pedals. The retainer edges of the springs are like cleaning rods for your shoes too. Get these pedals if you live in wetter climates.
I have the old yellow generic-looking Carbon pedals, pre-World Champion, that I got off Ebay, used, for about $60, about half of retail. These are my first pair of clipless pedals and I am very comfortable with them. They are pretty scuffed up from the cleats and you can't read any of the labels on the top of the pedals. I ride an old steel hardtail mountain bike around the streets of NYC and seldom do I hit the trails up the Hudson and around my area. I used to be urban assault, back in the thumbshifter, U-brake, and Central Park Rambles days, but now I am older, softer and a lot less daring. I have put over 1000 road miles on these pedals, since I bought them and they have required no maintenance. The springs, the only moving parts of the clip-mechanism, need to be greased now and then so that they don't creak. The bearings are sealed and still spinning freely. I use 2001 Specialized MTB Comp shoes and I had to trim down one of the lugs by 2 or 3mm on each sole so I could move freely over the thick inboard axle body. I have read that you must do this with other brands of shoes too. The axles do not install with a normal pedal / cone / spanner wrench. They install with a large standard sized hex wrench from the crank hole. This was not a confidence inspiring installation for me but I have not had any loose-pedal problems thus far. A little grease for the threads and a little torque was all that was needed.
I find the pedals to be very easy to engage and disengage when anticipated. This is no different than toe clips and straps (TCS), my old familiar pedal system. My familiarity with TCS has kept those traffic light falls to a bare minimum.
It is a different story on the trail. Sometimes I lose momentum on a loose, rocky uphill. It's not a slight loss of momentum when you're going slowly to begin with and you hit a rock or root badly which stops you in your tracks. I still find it to be a tad difficult to get my feet out before I keel over. I should definitely try to perfect my climbing technique to keep momentum but I do wish that the ATACs would disengage quicker, with less rotation. I will take the float over easier disengagement any day. There's also a fix to this problem. I plan to pick up those modified cleats by Speedgoat.com. They are not cheap though, at $25. A standard cleat at discount costs about $15. Speedgoat is a premium online retailer and the only one that modifies these cleats. You can also try to file-down the cleats yourself? nah. Generally speaking, if you can get through the break-in period and wear down the sharp edges on a new pair of cleats, the pedal system should perform consistently. Allowing new cleats to break-in is more cost effective than buying Speedgoat cleats. You should check out the review (see link above).
The ease of use, the float, and mud-shedding ability easily offset the weight penalty and the slower disengagement of the ATACs. There's a clear reason why these pedals are called World Champions ? they are the best and the pros swear by them.
If you would like to try these pedals, and you are not sure about the system, you should find a used pair, like I did, or you can buy the ATAC Aliums, for less than $80. The cleats will put small indentations on your new shoes to help the cleats seat firmly so you really should decide on the pedal system you plan to use before committing to the shoes. You should be able to coerce the local bike shop (LBS) to do a pedal-swap on a new bike purchase.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
NYCattitude
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Member: Jackson Ning II
Location: New York, NY
Reviews written: 24
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