Mountain bike pedals with "pins"

[Gattonero]

Thanks all for the information - now I am enlightened.
At first I was thinking that these would be good pedals for touring - but the hazard of gashed shins has put me off that idea.
Another problem could be going back to using SPD's after using these for a couple of weeks how does Elizabethsdad cope ?
No nonsense about pulling up on the rising pedal though.

You don't need the agressive pins for normal touring, just choose a pedal with suitable grippy surface and off you go.

[ANTONISH]

You don't need the agressive pins for normal touring, just choose a pedal with suitable grippy surface and off you go.

[/quote]

Well I've been using some sort of foot retention (first toe clips and straps and the spd's ) since 1955.
I wouldn't be keen on that - on the rare occasion that I've used plain pedals I find that I lift my foot from the rising pedal - it just doesn't feel right.
There is also the problem of returning to spd's when riding in a group - when trying to accelerate uphill I pull up on the rising pedal somewhat and I don't want to have to think about unclipping in any case.

[Gattonero]

You don't need the agressive pins for normal touring, just choose a pedal with suitable grippy surface and off you go.

Well I've been using some sort of foot retention (first toe clips and straps and the spd's ) since 1955.
I wouldn't be keen on that - on the rare occasion that I've used plain pedals I find that I lift my foot from the rising pedal - it just doesn't feel right.
There is also the problem of returning to spd's when riding in a group - when trying to accelerate uphill I pull up on the rising pedal somewhat and I don't want to have to think about unclipping in any case.[/quote]

SPD's are actually far safer than a toe&strap that is kept tight enough. There are cleats that would unclip by lifting up, but the standard cleat would release only when moving sideways.

[Threevok]

Thanks all for the information - now I am enlightened.
At first I was thinking that these would be good pedals for touring - but the hazard of gashed shins has put me off that idea.

Funnily enough - I have a 2 inch gash above my knee that was caused by a SPD pedal

Another problem could be going back to using SPD's after using these for a couple of weeks.

I don't find swapping back to SPDs from flats a problem at all.

However, switching from SPDs to flats - I do find (as a habit) that I tend to twist my feet to unclip, for the first day or so.

[mjr]

Can anyone explain the purpose of the pins? - I assume they prevent the shoe moving on the pedal but do they engage with the shoe in some way ?

They just bite into the sole. When doing serious MTBing, the volume of mud can make it worth having metal pushing through. For ordinary cycling, they're a more-expensive-but-less-practical substitute for decent rubber grips on the pedals and their popularity is mystifying.