I can assure you that the horrenduous QC issues continue in 2024. After both my Speedplay Zero had to be sent in (Axle play), I decided to try PWRLINK Zero. 4- FOUR in store Dual sided units had one battery DOA (so one pedal would flash green but not charge). A 5th charged, got it home, and it has been steady. Steady, as in steadily under reporting the Left side (unsure, by how much 10-30% for the Left side) Unsurprising it also has a faster drain. All this in 3 weeks so might return them as it is too much risk at 1,300$. Also, the firmware is still 1.0.4, 2022, as Wahoo holds back 1.0.6 as it bricked too many units with poor batteries. So all and all Wahoo is headed for a monumental financial loss when users like me, Joe, Bob Kevin Gru all report 3-4 consecutive bad units. It means that the production run has a 90% failure rate - compounding how you can get 4 in a row is a factor of multiplying the odds. If it was 1 in 10, almost no one would ever get 3 alone 4 faulty units. The reason why DCRainmaker and a few other well known youtubers had few to no issues is they got straight from Wahoo units that were known to work with good enough batteries. Even then, one known influencer withheld his review for 1 year as he had the axle coming off issue and waited for a Wahoo replacement. All and all, I went through 800$ Speedplay Zero pedals in 2 years, and 5,200$ worth of PWRLINK Zero pedals in 3 weeks summer 2024.
Yikes. Iām super glad I caught my single sided version for $325 last year. Theyāve been rock solid since getting them.
Sounds like they are using the same company in Vietnam that made the Kickr Bikes I had. āHorridā isnāt close. Some issues were from shipping, but the thing should have been able to survive shipping, right? I hear they are better, more durable/usable. The worst part was that some bikes were perfect, and some were just a hot mess, PLUS the replacements were often older refurbed horrors. (I got a support person to tell me that the replacement I was having issues with was replaced new for almost the same issue)
WOW, just saw a Honda commercial āThis is the last time you wonāt remember my nameā. Powerful message: Just keep going and youāll make it. (Donāt quit) Wowā¦
They do not deserve our financial endorsement. I can see why many users may be deceived into thinking they have power meters. But the one I have is not constant and needs calibration or numbers on one pedal fluctuate. It all starts with batteries really, and I have to compliment Quarq SRAM for consistently getting PMs right. Just on the installation fiasco, on Shimano cranks, adding the spacer creates 3.1 mm clearance between pod and crank arm while removing 15% of threading inside the crank. Wahoo specifies min 1 mm clearance. Wahoo chief pedal CS expert says always use washers. Other tech support agents say No need if you already have 2 mm clearance. Varying YouTube reviewers with Shimano cranks were told not to use washers. Anyhow eclectic support even for installationā¦
And just this morning I got the news that the Kickr Run is shipping. The videos and reviews from DC and others show it to be THE treadmill, the ONLY treadmill, yet with my experience with their expensive goodies, Iām so hesitant to fall for that again.
Letās hear from the early crash test dummies that buy them first. See if they last for themā¦
I do have a brand new in box set of Speedplays and havenāt installed them specifically because of the cleat rust issue. Probably shouldnāt have bought the things.
Wow, I am sorry for all of the users in this thread that are experiencing these issues!
I was a Speedplay user, I decided to change over to ālook or SPDā style pedals when I wanted to go power pedals for my fleet of bikes and the Powerlinks were not available at that time. I went with the Favero pedals (both road and now the MTB ones) and it looks like I made a great choice.
I am sorry for all you guys, I hope it gets better!
I have not experienced any rust (besides a tiny rare brown tint) on any Speedplay since 2012. 70k riding? I even used to service/wash clean the cleats. But if you use an excellent NATO type CLP teflon gun oil, the cleats will not rust. We use CLP on weaponsā tanks that sit wet for decadesā¦ So cleat springs are high grade steel, the inside screws are protected by the covers. even if you go wet like DC rainmaker you should not have any issues provide you rince the cleat and spray the inside with a PTFE type oil etc. Buying springs of amazon is easy. Anyhow fun fact, I still have 2014 mounted and retired cleat parts as spares. I also always use a 0.3mm cleat metal shoe protector.
returning my pedals soon. Not worth the hassle. Unfortunately, I cannot go for Favero I am not a fan of the cleat pedal etc. But I recognize that they seem quite good; nonetheless, Quarq SRAM PM is likely the best tool out there bar none. May decide to get the next groupset just for that.
Speaking of Assioma, they also had an axle recall issue, pedals coming off. At 100 RPM, torque, no matter who you are if the pedal comes off the axle comes back and hits your calf. So they have their own issues too, not just Wahoo. But their PM are usually appreciated by owners. Garmin too.
Sorry to hear about all the issues in the forum. Iāve had my dual sided pedals since late 2022 and only experienced one issue. On a single occasion they were out of battery when I went to ride (I expected 60% battery)
Compared to my other power meters thatās not all that bad. Otherwise no issues.
That is good. DC Rainmaker and Arthur in the UK got the same year production. We got the same production year in 2024, by which time the batteries were almost dead or dying. In your case I presume they worked well, were recently produced (2021 would have been recent to you); got lucky and the batteries never lost their state of health and charge. My August 2024 pedals- all 5 pairs tried- were likely manufactured the same time as your 2022. And letās not forget, they had the axle thing and here is a hypothetical- what if when they recalled the PWRLINK Zeros for known axle issues, they also swapped pods on all unsold units from failing axles to revised axle sealed system? because if that happened, there are a multiplicity of things that can wreck a pod if reused.
Garmin may have produced a decent power pedal now but it took them 4 attempts to get there and the best that can be said about them during the Vector 1, 2 and 3 days is that their customer service were excellent at shipping warranty replacements!
ETA: I think many companies have found that making power meter pedals which are accurate, durable and still function well as a pedal is much harder than they thought. Itās an exposed part of the bike that gets a lot of wear and tear, and thereās not a lot of space to work with. I think Favero are unique in pretty much nailing it first time out, every other company I can think of thatās tried has either taken multiple attempts to get it right or just quietly given up.
Indeed, I recall having this discussion with DC Rainmaker. I had two Stages PMs and both were inaccurate and bad for Cadence, PM. I sent him my data with and without. I live on flats. I can zen myself into a flat line. Stages were garbage and I am glad they went down. Assioma may have the advantage of a very big sensor pod by design. This is not possible on Speedplay as the pedal area and bearings grease dictate the pod limits. Wahoo elongated the axle. Anyhow, yes all cleat based PMs are a compromise in accuracy and a variety of other imprecise measurements. watts should be measured in far more hertz and frequencies. And, frankly, it should be rear hub based or if well done,in the crank. But here is the problem- all cranks fatigue. Pedals spindles fatigue. Every single one of them. So the accuracy (even with calibration) should start declining after 10,000 kms. So really the best way to do it is tuck the PM in the rear hub. Or, alternatively, find a way to integrate it in the rigid carbon base plate of a shoe. Letās take one example- torque wrench. The best type in the world, e.g. Hazet, they are rated for Ā±1 to 25 accuracy over 5,000 clicks. We do 6000 revolutions per hour at 100 RPM. At 30 km per hour the load is one thing. At 35 another, at 40 another. SO the long term longevity of wattage accuracy is, IMO hubris that makers hide with algorithms.
Arenāt crank-based power meters also a solved problem? Quarq hasnāt changed their design for years (with the exception of the mounting interface and/or color scheme), and why should they? The only time my Quarq āfailedā is when it ran out of battery. Iām really happy.
So with that logic, maybe it isnt so bad after all that SRAM has their PM be a āreplaceableā by being integrated into the chainrings 