SuperDelite pedals too close to ground :-/

[RMSDivine]

Hello everyone!
I am now on my first 800Km with this fantastic ebike

A quite annoying aspect that I have discovered is that the Superdelite's pedals are quite low and too close too the ground surface.
I have already bumped one pedal 3 times on irregular surfaces.

Does this happens to you?

 

[TimJohn]

So when you are riding and have the bike leaned over for a corner and its a bumpy ride, the pedal is down... is this the scenario when the pedal hits the pavement?

 

[Alaskan]

The pedals on R&M bikes are low. Peal strikes can be very dangerous causing severe crashes. Two tips to avoid pedal strikes.

1 - Keep a minimum of 30 psi in the tires
2 - Do not pedal through corners that cause the bike to lean. Keep the outside pedal down at 6 o'clock and the inside pedal up at 12. Resume pedaling when the bike come back upright after riding through the curve. This is an easy habit to get in to.

If the bike can accommodate larger diameter tires, this will raise the pedals as well.

One final thing that can be done is to put shorter crank arms on the bike. This will have an impact on drive train gearing through all gears, making the bike a marginally easier climber but requiring faster cadence to maintain speed.

 

[RMSDivine]

Mostly when the bike is in vertical position (not leaned over), but there's a slight bump close to the pedal, it will hit.
In the image below, the lower pedal positions seems to be in a safe position, while the SD seems to be suffering....

 

[TimJohn]

Good explanation Alaskan....please take a measurement for us. I ordered a Mulitcharger Mixte and wondering if this will be the case as well.

 

[Alaskan]

Good explanation Alaskan....please take a measurement for us. I ordered a Mulitcharger Mixte and wondering if this will be the case as well.

On my 2018 Delite Mountain the bottom outside edge of the pedal is 15cm off the ground. This bike has the Fox suspension upgrade with a 120 mm travel. The touring bikes usually have a 100mm travel, That difference will give you greater clearance. My wife's 2018 Homage Rohloff with Fox suspension and a 100mm travel, has a 13cm clearance.

 

[Alaskan]

I can't emphasize enough how easy it is to develop the habit of keeping the inside pedal high through the corners. It is the simplest and safest solution that does not compromise any other functionality and guarantees you will clear even the hardest corner without a pedal strike.

 

[pennybags]

How often do the pedals scrape? For gentle leaning or aggressive riding ?
When you say irregular surface, what do you mean ?

 

[TimJohn]

Ok then I am to understand the Homage has a rear suspension and when you hit rough ground the suspension compression will then decrease the pedal distance to the ground. This makes sense. Not the issue with other hit tailed models then like the multicharger.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

How often do the pedals scrape? For gentle leaning or aggressive riding ?
When you say irregular surface, what do you mean ?

That's pretty irregular, I think:

Basket Mountain Road, Blue Mountains, OR

In general I follow @Alaskan 's advice and try to avoid any pedal strikes. At walking speeds in complicated terrain (usually very sharp corners) I sometimes still manage to do so, but at slow speeds they aren't as likely to result in injury to your bike or your body as at higher speeds. A high-speed pedal strike is likely to result in a trip to the ER.

 

[RMSDivine]

The pedals on R&M bikes are low. Peal strikes can be very dangerous causing severe crashes. Two tips to avoid pedal strikes.

Ah, ok so it's "by design".
Yes, I will definitely avoid pedalling when bending in a turn and keeping the internal pedal lifted, and... try to spot bumps when on offroad!

Thanks

How often do the pedals scrape? For gentle leaning or aggressive riding ?
When you say irregular surface, what do you mean ?

Something like this

 

[Alaskan]

One more thing that can be done is to have sufficient air in both the front and rear suspension. There should not be more than 20% sag (the difference between where the shock piston rests without you on the bike and where it compresses down to when you are sitting on it) Riese & Muller bikes come with shock pumps.

You can add more air for a firmer ride and al little more ground clearance, or least a little air out for a softer ride with less clearance.

Periodically move the o-ring on the piston down all the way and then check it out after the ride. If you have hit some good bumps along the way and it is still only about 50% along the shaft then you can let a little air out if you want a softer ride. It the o-ring has move all the way to the end or off the end then you need to add some air so you are not bottoming out the shock regularly.

 

[RMSDivine]

To be honest, mine are very soft

 

[marcparnes]

I have smashed the pedals multiple times as well. I've been working hard to train myself not to have the pedal down when turning or changing grades. I am getting better at it but my pedals look like they've been through a war

 

[marcparnes]

One final thing that can be done is to put shorter crank arms on the bike. This will have an impact on drive train gearing through all gears, making the bike a marginally easier climber but requiring faster cadence to maintain speed.

Seems like you might have that reversed Richard. When the crank arms are longer it gives you more leverage and easier climbing than when the arms are shorter. Also, the cadence which refers to RPM doesn't change. What does change is the distance the pedal travels in order to complete one revolution so one's legs are in fact moving slower with a shorter crank arm length. Or do I have that wrong?

Marc

 

[Alaskan]

L

Seems like you might have that reversed Richard. When the crank arms are longer it gives you more leverage and easier climbing than when the arms are shorter. Also, the cadence which refers to RPM doesn't change. What does change is the distance the pedal travels in order to complete one revolution so one's legs are in fact moving slower with a shorter crank arm length. Or do I have that wrong?

Marc

Oops, my bad. I routinely get left & right mixed up, port & starboard too.

 

[Over50]

As others mentioned I keep the pedals high in the turns - and I stop pedaling if it is a sharp turn. I also use thin pedals.

 

[RMSDivine]

While keeping the inward pedal high is quite natural in a high speed curve, it's harder to concentrate pedalling avoiding bumps in off-road conditions, of course it requires a bit concentration, something that at 55yrs seems to be lowering

 

[Alaskan]

Correct me if I am wrong. I don't do much rough trail riding. It seems that having a full suspension adjusted for a soft cushy ride is something you can get away with on easier trails and pavement. When it gets rougher, it is time to get out the suspension pump and firm up the ride, both to avoid bottoming out on landings as well as making sure the bike is not sagging so low as to encourage pedal strikes.

 

[JRA]

OP have you ever properly set up your suspension for sag? Just randomly adding psi is kind of a shot in the dark. This is very important as it takes your body weight into the equation and by adjusting the shocks accordingly at least you know you are at the proper level for your needs. Any FS bike, and even just a front shock can benefit from doing this and sticking to it as it will result in the least amount of bb drop during compression to start out with. Plenty of info online about the procedure.

All the other tricks mentioned above like shorter cranks and more air in your tires can help for sure but there is nothing better for avoiding pedal strikes than reading the terrain you are riding and avoiding strikes via timing your cranks to avoid any obstacles that might result in a strike. This can mean anything from just stopping pedaling altogether with the cranks in a horizontal position to actually ratcheting or slowing down your cranks that will keep your forward momentum going while avoiding what you think they might hit.

Dependent on the sensitivity of your PAS this can be somewhat awkward however as when you stop constant rotation it may shut down and have to restart when pressure is reapplied. I have found though, with a torque assist PAS at least, that if you slightly drag the front brake you can keep enough pressure on the pedals to keep the PAS active while slowing down your crank rotation to avoid strikes, at least of visible objects. As soon as the danger is past you let go of the brake and as you have kept the PAS active off you go.