Test: The somewhat older readers may remember: the clipless pedal as we know it today is an invention of the French manufacturer LOOK, who brought their first system pedal onto the market in 1984. More than 30 years later, the company still exists and is still very popular in the road bike sector. Off-road, the LOOK pedals have always been a bit of an outsider – our test of the LOOK S-Track MTB pedals shows that there is no real reason for this.
The LOOK S-Track are the successors of the very popular LOOK quartz pedals, which rightly still have a sworn fan base. The S-Track is offered in three different versions – S-Track, S-Track Race and S-Track Carbon Ti.
[easy table],S-Track,S-Track Race,S-Track Carbon Ti
Material,plastic,aluminium/carbon,carbon
axis,CrMo,CrMo+,Titanium
Storage,Ball bearings/plain bearings,ball bearings/needle bearings,ball bearings/needle bearings
Weight,284g,290g,244g
RRP,69.95€,139.95€,259.95€
[/easy table]As you can easily see from the technical data, the S-Track Race model is a particularly durable pedal for racing with an aluminum deflector plate that is supposed to ensure even better power transmission. The carbon model with a titanium axle is fully optimized for low weight, while the inexpensive S-Track model is said to be a good all-rounder. In the test, we took a close look at the latter.
The big unique selling point of the LOOK S-Track is its large contact surface, which is unrivaled in this area. Up to 460mm² should be possible - in order to achieve this extremely high value, special cleats, or rather a special way of fastening them, are used. According to LOOK, two points are decisive here: On the one hand, the cleats come with two large elastomer pads, which rest on the pedal body when clicked in, which already leads to a contact area of 200m². In addition, the height of the cleats can be individually adjusted depending on the shoe model with the enclosed "underlay pads" - so that in the best case the cleats of the shoes also rest on the pedal body. This gives more grip and increases the contact area.
The assembly of the cleats is therefore a bit more complicated than it already is. You not only have to find the optimal position relative to your foot anatomy, but also the height depending on the sole of the shoe. This is a bit more time-consuming, but since the spacers are well thought out and easy to insert and remove, we found the optimal height for our cleats after a few minutes. This means that the outer cleats of our shoes (in the test, the S-Tracks are used in combination with the Specialized Rime shoe) lie on the pedal body while pedaling - this provides additional support and simply feels good.
The release hardness cannot be adjusted on the S-Track and is rather in the high range, comparable to the "hard" setting of Crankbrothers pedals or the full spring tension of Shimano's SPD system. The pedals, which are completely made in France, are aimed more at experienced bikers - beginners are likely to land on their noses unintentionally because of the high release force and a release angle of 15°. LOOK has now also reacted and offers special cleats called "Look S-Track DCS Easy Cleats" for beginners or drivers who prefer a lower release hardness.
But the high spring tension is very pleasant, especially in the marathon or cyclocross area, the feedback when clicking in is clearly noticeable and after a few kilometers our clicking instincts have also adapted to the LOOK system. Our model uses two ball bearings and one sleeve bearing - there are no replacement bearings, but at least the ball bearings are fairly easy to re-lubricate and should last for a few seasons if you give them a little grease regularly. In any case, our pedals ran noticeably rough after several hundred kilometers in partly wet and muddy conditions, but with some new grease we were able to restore the new condition. However, if you neglect the storage, you may not have much fun with the LOOK pedals. Speaking of durability: the elastomer pads on the cleats also wear out – very quickly, in fact. Luckily, LOOK includes two pairs of new elastics, which is enough for at least one season.
The driving experience of the S-Track can best be described as sporty and taut. The pedal sits firmly on the shoe and even on really rough passages we didn't click out once unintentionally. As expected, the power transmission is very good - this is particularly noticeable on steep ramps and longer climbs. The new cleat design is also really well done: Even in deep mud, clicking in and out doesn't suffer at all - we had a lot more problems with the competition.
At a glance - the LOOK S-Track MTB pedals
- lightness
- Very good power transmission
- Tight click in and out
- Manufacturer site
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