Review: Funn Soljam Viper Pedal

/in /by


This monstrous pedal has a nifty “friction grip” area in the middle of its platform. Cool, but how does it work?

Specs

Body material: Extruded and machined 6061-T6 aluminum

Body shape: a big, concave parallelogram

Axles: Chromoly

Pins: 22 replaceable. 4 mm.

Central grip action: 3M grippy stuff

Size: Big! Just a tad bigger than Easton Cullys.

Weight: 702 grams (24.2 ounces; about 6 ounces heavier than Specialized Lo Pro Mags, Easton Cullys and Shimano DXes)

A-version: Sealed bearings and Teflon rollers. About $80.

B-version: Ball bearings and rubber seals. About $50.

Action

Testing environment: back yard pump track, Specialized P.1, Five.Ten sticky rubber shoes

Grip: Awesome. Much more than Shimano DXes.

Size/shape: Comfortable. At first I felt lost on such a big pedal, but then it felt great.

Clearance: Seems low, but in the pump track it’s not an issue.

Disengagement: At first the pedal kept flipping up, which is not cool. It took a while to figure out what’s happening: Since the pedal is so concave, when you lift your foot unevenly the front or back pins cling to your shoe and rotate the pedal. This was really disconcerting at first, but I automatically adjusted.

Bottom line: These pedals work. When you lift a foot, try to do so evenly. When you’re standing on them, it’s game on.