Renthal Revo-F flat pedals

Renthal’s Revo-F is the brand's first pedal and this all-new venture represents an enormous amount of work.

A carte blanche approach gave the UK manufacturer the freedom to prioritise the most important elements, in a bid to boost performance.

Headlining the tech list is a patent-pending axle design that circumvents the need for specialist disassembly tools.

Weighing a chunky 491g a pair, and costing a hefty £154.95 / $159.95 / €179.95, the Revo-F flat pedals look like a belt-and-braces product consistent with Renthal’s reputation.

On the trail – as long as their pin height is reduced – the Revo-Fs are grippy and stable-feeling flat pedals.

Despite the relatively small body – at least compared to the market leaders – they don’t feel too small and foot clawing is limited.

Proving robust and easy to disassemble, their design and finish are worthy of the lofty price tag and weight.

Renthal Revo-F flat pedals specifications and details

The patent pending axle system uses a circlip outboard of the axle’s IGUS bushing to keep the bush seated on the axle when the pedal body is removed. This approach prevents it getting ‘stuck’ within the body.

This, Renthal claims, speeds up disassembly and negates the need for specialist bushing-extractor tools.

Joining the bushing are three sealed cartridge bearings – two smaller, one larger – located at the solid chromoly axle’s outboard end.

By mounting the bearings outboard, Renthal says they’re exposed to less leverage, thus increasing their lifespan.

A lip seal sits between the axle and body, while the 6mm Allen key fitment end cap uses an O-ring to reduce water and mud ingress.

The beautifully made and impeccably finished forged, CNC-machined 6061 aluminium body is concave both front-to-rear and side-to-side, and measures 99(L)x104(W)mm.

The central axle support is 14mm deep, while the leading and trailing edges are 17mm. The inner and outer edges are 14mm at their thinnest, which tapers up to 18.5mm at their thickest.

Chamfered front and rear faces – without cut-outs – are designed to glance off rocks, while a slight tapering of the sides should work in a similar way.

There are 10 rear-loading pins per side, which use a chunky 3mm Allen head. These are height adjustable in 1mm increments from 2.5mm to 5.5mm using the supplied washers and extra pins. The 5.5mm pins are installed from the factory.

Thanks to a 10mm extension on the axle, its body has been moved away from the cranks. 

This increases the effective platform area and keeps your feet further away from the crank.

My pair of Renthal Revo-F flat pedals weighed 491g.

Renthal Revo-F flat pedals performance

Using the stock 5.5mm-long pins, the Revo-F pedals leave your feet perched on top.

The pins elevate your shoe’s sole above the pedal’s body, reducing its contact patch.

While grip is really good – your weight is concentrated through a small surface area, causing the pedal’s pins to bite convincingly into your shoe’s soles – contact stability, and therefore control, is limited.

Except for a small amount of foot twist, it’s not possible to reposition your foot on the platform without deliberately lifting it from the pedal and placing it back down.

This may sound like music to flat-pedal users' ears, but fully removing your foot from the pedal to put it in the correct place while tackling rocky and gnarly trails isn’t great for maintaining control.

I certainly struggled with the Revo-Fs and their factory-set pin height. There’s a solution, however.

Unlocking the performance I was hoping for

To tap into the performance I was expecting from the Revo-Fs, I removed each of the 40 factory-installed rear-loading pins and placed one of the supplied 1mm washers behind its head to reduce their height to 4.5mm. I then reinstalled each pin. The whole process took around 35 minutes.

While not a complicated change, doing so transformed the pedal’s feel for the better.

Lowering your shoe’s sole towards the pedal’s body improves stability. More of your foot is in contact with it, reducing the perched sensation caused by longer pins.

Although this reduces overall traction and bite, it means your feet can be repositioned without lifting them from the pedal’s surface.

However, traction isn’t seriously compromised; there’s no slip or slide across its surface on rough terrain, and neither are your feet clawing or tensing to eke out more grip.

Initially worried about the platform’s relatively small size (Deity’s test-winning T-MAC measures a whopping 110(L)x105(W)mm), I was impressed by how big they felt, helped by the axle-to-crank spacing.

These aren’t the only pedals with this design, however. The T-MAC has 12mm of additional crank-to-pedal clearance, effectively increasing the platform’s size compared to models without the gap (such as Crankbrothers’ Stamp 7).

Despite their size, they don’t have an overly pressurised foot-bending feel, helping stave off sole cramp on longer descents.

The chamfered leading edge brushes off rock strikes well. The pins proved to be robust, not bending or snapping, even when contacting immovable objects on the trail.

Testament to their quality sealing and design, the bearings still spin like they’re brand new. Despite an aggressive jet-wash cleaning regimen, their finish has stood up well.

Should they require a rebuild, doing so is as easy as Renthal claims, requiring just a few common tools (8mm and 6mm Allen keys, 8mm socket, flat head screwdriver, torque wrench) and 10 minutes of your time.

Renthal Revo-F flat pedals bottom line

While the stock pin configuration’s grip and perched feel didn’t work for my tastes, once I’d reduced their height, untapped performance was unlocked. Having the option to adjust their height is a bonus, and I bet many owners will do the same as me.

Their platform – while not massive – isn’t small enough to cause discomfort or clawing, but people with feet larger than EU42 will probably prefer bigger-platform designs.

They’ve proven to be robust and disassembly is easy, plus they’re manufactured beautifully with a great finish, befitting their lofty price tag and Renthal’s reputation.