# Light weight SPD's?



## LynskeyMatt (Feb 11, 2012)

Looking for a lighter pedal, ive used eggbeaters when i started spd's however cleats made out of brass wore quick. Im now using shimano xt (not the new race ones) 

Basically im building a minimal weight lynskey and i picked up the xt's today and thought jees these are lumpy.


looking for experience/info on lighter pedals.


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## B.Trimble (Oct 26, 2011)

Exustar Brand make spd type pedals that are lighter. I've not had any problems with mine in over a 2 years


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## xc71 (Dec 24, 2008)

I believe these will be the lightest SPD's you'll find.
Exustar PM28Ti. These have Ti axles, Ti springs, Ti cages, Mag. bodies. You have to run Ti or Brass cleats with these.
Steel vs Ti cleat weights shown.


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## Lelandjt (Feb 22, 2008)

I did this search a while ago and the Exustars are the lightest but I wasn't convinced of the durability enough to get them. I went for the newest XTRs which are a reasonable weight, $145, and will last forever. I've owned many Shimano SPDs and every pair still works fine, including the originals that I got in 1995.


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## coldryder (Aug 24, 2011)

Here's an old MTBR thread on the Exustars' durability: http://forums.mtbr.com/weight-weenies/exustar-pm28ti-582209.html


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## xc71 (Dec 24, 2008)

I just got the pair on the scale for my XC race bike, but I have a season on another pair that I used on my Trail bike. These do need maintenance a couple times a season to re grease the bushing, but they are holding up well.
XTR are great pedals - but they aren't considered a " Light weight SPD pedal"
I just spent a week in Arizona smashing these pedals off of rocks & they held up great.


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## scalpel226 (Jul 11, 2006)

Xpedo Ti would be another option......, similar shape as Exustar......210g


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## ryguy135 (Sep 24, 2010)

I'm using Ritchey Pro Paradigms. Love them. Clip in and out much easier than the XT's I was using before. Very smooth, and never release when I don't want them to and always release when I do. Mine weighed right at the 255 claimed. For $100 bucks off eBay for a red pair that matches my bike, can't beat them.


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## Axe (Jan 12, 2004)

Pedals are one safety critical item where I refuse to compromise for weight. XTRs (still on previous generation, as they are bulletproof).


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## siberian1967 (Dec 29, 2010)

++ on the Exustars. I've got about 600 miles on mine without any issues.


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## willymcd (May 16, 2007)

I have been using Xpedo ti pedals for a while and they are in my opinion probably just as durable as my xtr m970 pedals. I have beat the crap out of them on rocks and they still go strong. I wouldn't use a mag bodied pedal like that exustar though, I had a pair of the old xpedo mag bodies and the metal was too soft and broke under impact, but then again it probably depends on the exact alloy blend as there is only a little mag in them. The old xpedo mags may have had a bad blend for durability.
 It look like the new lightweight exustar weighs 225 grams per pair, uses an alluminum body, bushings, and ti axle . I'm guesing they don't have the mag bodies anymore because of durability.

 

I recently upgraded to the newer bearing version of the xpedo and they are smooth, and won't have the bushing wear problems the old ones had. I also like how easy they are to take apart and service, replacing the bearings probably will take a few minutes at most. I did have have a problem with one pedal, I think the body was milled out a little crooked and resulted in a rough bearing. But the service at xpedo was great and very fast, and they replaced my pedal right away.

Things to remember though is that no these aren't XTR pedals and probably won't last if you don't take them apart now and then to re-grease them, or they may even require replacing the cartridge bearings after a few seasons of use as the bearings are rather small. But that is the price you pay for shaving off 90 grams (~0.2lbs) of rotational weight.
If you're not a racer though I would definitely go with XTR pedals as they are easier to engage and are just bomb proof and will probably outlive you. The xpedo are easy to disengage, but I can sometime have trouble finding the sweet spot to click in with them.

Personally I wouldn't even think twice about buying these pedals if you are a racer and want to stick with SPD. They really do rock, they are affordable, come with great service, and their drawbacks are really minimal.

here is a thread on this pedal. https://forums.mtbr.com/weight-weenies/xpedo-xmf08tt-549256-6.html


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## siberian1967 (Dec 29, 2010)

_"It look like the new lightweight exustar weighs 225 grams per pair, uses an alluminum body, bushings, and ti axle . I'm guesing they don't have the mag bodies anymore because of durability. "_

These are the ones that I have as I read back over. Great so far and I am using regular cleats on them (they come with special cleats that I am not using).


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## liv2_mountain_bike (Nov 7, 2011)

Any rider weight limitations on the exustar pedals? I know the Xpedos say 175 lbs max recommended rider weight. I am over 210 with gear and use Wellgo W01s with Ti spindles. About 250g and $80 total. No issues in 3 years. They have been on all my biks at one time from my DH rigs to my XC rides.


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## siberian1967 (Dec 29, 2010)

_Any rider weight limitations on the exustar pedals?_

I'm 195 or so and haven't had any issues. Yet..


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## liv2_mountain_bike (Nov 7, 2011)

sweet. I'll look into these. thanks


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## litany (Nov 25, 2009)

I really wish XTRs were lighter, but at the same time I really respect how invincible they are. My friend bashed his candy pedals into a rock yesterday and while there was no real damage done the ano got pretty badly hurt. XTR pedals are like: "What rock? I crush rock into dust and make it cry for its mommy!"

Those Exustar ones really do interest me though. How is the action, is it as good as the XTR? Is the tension the same and adjustable in the same range (I run my pedals loose so really all I care about is that they get as loose)?



willymcd said:


> But that is the price you pay for shaving off 90 grams (~0.2lbs) of rotational weight.


The rate of rotation is so low, and the mass is so close to the axle that the amount of energy you put into rotating the pedal is crazy low--you'll never measure the difference it makes in a race or any real world situation. So I wouldn't really consider it to be "rotational weight" the way people love to talk about it in things such as wheels. Additionally pedals are not unsprung weight.

Lets take the XTR pedals for example. Lets say new ones weigh 300g. Lets say 75% of the mass is in the pedal body, the other 25% is in the spindle. That means 225g of rotational weight. To estimate it's rotational inertia lets say the pedal body is a bar rotating around it's center. RE=1/2*I*w^2 & I=(mL^2)/12 where L is the length of the bar and m is the mass of the pedal body. The length of my XTR pedal body is 7cm. If we then assume cadence is 90 (1.5Hz) we can plug in and figure out how many extra joules are in that pedal because it's rotating. The answer? 0.00408J.

Keep in mind a joule is one watt second so lets say you are a fit but quite small XC racer (like a 5' 4" woman) that outputs 250W TDP. That is only 0.0016% of the first second of pedaling effort. Even if you stop pedaling every second and start again and recapture none of that energy you're still talking about only 0.0016% of the effort over the race. For a one hour race you're talking about a potential energy loss of 14.4J. If you happen to fart half way through the race your fart will benefit you more than that energy would have. Like I said, immeasurable.


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## Axe (Jan 12, 2004)

litany said:


> Lets take the XTR pedals for example. Lets say new ones weigh 300g. Lets say 75% of the mass is in the pedal body, the other 25% is in the spindle. That means 225g of rotational weight.


Rotation is in relation to the crankset axle, rotation around the pedal spindle is an order of magnitude smaller effect.

But, yes, compared to tires/rim effect is minimal. And it is indeed not unsprung (unless you ride URT).

Curiously, many people I have seen with tiny, fragile weenie pedals do ride some chunky shoes. Probably easier to find light shoes that fit.


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## litany (Nov 25, 2009)

Axe said:


> Rotation is in relation to the crankset axle, rotation around the pedal spindle is an order of magnitude smaller effect.
> 
> But, yes, compared to tires/rim effect is minimal. And it is indeed not unsprung (unless you ride URT).
> 
> Curiously, many people I have seen with tiny, fragile weenie pedals do ride some chunky shoes. Probably easier to find light shoes that fit.


I was going to do that next and I didn't want my post to be super long. I also have to check a moment of inertia formula because it wasn't super clear what situation it was talking about. Anyway, here it is: 100x the rotation about itself for a 175mm crank arm.

Same thing as before but done again for the whole pedal around the crank (I am interested in them by themselves because I want to have some idea of how much the smaller rotation does) anyway, you're looking at 0.4J, this is still nothing. If you want to talk about the delta with the ligher pedal you're looking at 0.2J. It's not F1 it's MTBR  Hmm, it would be really cool to work on an F1 team where you might have a chance at seeing the return the performance your niggly little part gains the car.


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## willymcd (May 16, 2007)

But what about the energy of lifting 100g 350mm averaging 60rpm for an hour?

.1*9.8*(.350*3600)=1.2 KJ 

is that right, been a long time since I have taken physics?


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## litany (Nov 25, 2009)

willymcd said:


> But what about the energy of lifting 100g 350mm averaging 60rpm for an hour?
> 
> .1*9.8*(.350*3600)=1.2 KJ
> 
> is that right, been a long time since I have taken physics?


Are you talking about lifting them in the stroke of pedaling? It really shouldn't matter as the pedals balance themselves out. Whenever you are lifting one pedal up the other is pulling it down.

Try this: take your chain off and move your crank and pedals around. You should be able to let go of them at any point and they will sit still. This is because they are quite balanced.

Clearly though the additional weight of the pedals does have an impact overall. My point wasn't that weight in the pedals isn't important, but rather that its rotation doesn't really matter.

People like to make a big deal of the rotating mass in wheels and how effective it is to get rid of mass in wheel. This is because removing this mass is a sort of triple whammy that you won't find many other places on a vehicle.

Reduce overall weight and overall inertia of the vehicle
Reduce rotational inertia, further reducing overall intertia
reduce unsprung weight--helps the suspention aid traction

All this means that when you remove weight (lets say 1lb) from the wheels rather than just the frame, you get additional benefits. You reduce inertia (via reduction in rotational inertia which quickens acceleration) and you reduce unsprung weight. The reduction of unsprung weight means that your suspension will react faster which means you can maintain contact with the road/trail/whatever better and longer and thus have more grip.

You can think of inertia as the enemy of acceleration. Imagine pushing your car along a flat road--it will be quite hard to get started and may even take quite a bit of effort to stop as well. Now do the same thing with a soccer ball. It's effortless by comparison. This is because of the greater inertia of the car. You have to put far more energy into it to get it to move as energy of movement, or kinetic energy = 1/2 mass * velocity^2

Yes there are other places on a bike where you can reduce two or three of those things, and at for instance the cassette or disc you reduce all three, but as those are closer to the axis of rotation and much ligher than a wheel their effect isn't as pronounced. Most people can't remove 1lb from their friction disc but can from their wheels.


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## sergio_pt (Jan 29, 2007)

cool! so let's chunk up our bikes because there is no difference...:thumbsup:


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## litany (Nov 25, 2009)

sergio_pt said:


> cool! so let's chunk up our bikes because there is no difference...:thumbsup:


That's not what I said at all. Reducing weight does make a difference but it's important to understand where that difference comes into play and what effect these things actually have. That way we can make educated decisions about where the best place is to spend the money to lighten our bikes. If you're advising a noobie weight weenie on what parts to get, and it turns out he can choose new pedals at $1/g or new wheels at $1/g or a new frame that is a better pedaling platform at $1/g, it's very relevant to understand that the rotational and sprung effects of the wheels make them a better value than the pedals and that the higher pedaling efficiency of the frame also will make a bigger impact than the rotation of the pedals.

That's not saying I'm against lightweight pedals. I was one of the first people to get my hands on the prerunner Ti platforms...that weight loss makes my bike so much better at northstar and was totally worth the $250 the one week a year I get to use them


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## sfer1 (Feb 22, 2009)

The Xpedo XMF08TT pedals (ti spindle, ti body and 3 cartridge bearings) are most likely the best SPD's. They're 90g lighter and more ajustable than the XTR and more durable than the Exustar pedals.


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## Axe (Jan 12, 2004)

sfer1 said:


> The Xpedo XMF08TT pedals (ti spindle, ti body and 3 cartridge bearings) are most likely the best SPD's. They're 90g lighter and more ajustable than the XTR and more durable than the Exustar pedals.


And they do come with a 185lb weight limit that renders them completely useless to a whole lot of people.


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## willymcd (May 16, 2007)

sfer1 said:


> The Xpedo XMF08TT pedals (ti spindle, ti body and 3 cartridge bearings) are most likely the best SPD's. They're 90g lighter and more ajustable than the XTR and more durable than the Exustar pedals.


I don't know if they are more durable then Exustar. From the exustar users in this thread it sounds like they are just as durable. The xpedo ti body is probably stronger though and I prefer them for the bearings too.


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## sfer1 (Feb 22, 2009)

Axe said:


> And they do come with a 185lb weight limit that renders them completely useless to a whole lot of people.


All pedals with titanium spindles have a similar weight limit.

People over 185lbs should accept the fact that many WW parts aren't for them.

...


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## Axe (Jan 12, 2004)

sfer1 said:


> People over 185lbs should accept the fact that most WW parts aren't for them.


Yes, indeed. I have accepted that fact. But that is all a bit concerning anyway, as an aggressive 160lb dude can be harder on parts than a smooth clyde.

Pedals/crankarms and handlebar/stem is one place where I want all my strength margin to spare.


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## litany (Nov 25, 2009)

Has anyone tried the titanium spindles from Ward Industries on ebay in XTR pedals? I know he had a thread on here a while ago but that was before the SPD spindles were out. Do the XTR PD-m970 or PD-m980 work? They aren't listed....


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## sfer1 (Feb 22, 2009)

The one time I had titanium spindles (made by Action Tec) in my Shimano pedals, the right one broke without a crash. I think Shimano spindles aren't designed to be made of titanium. They're too thin and weak here:


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## Silentfoe (May 9, 2008)

I've been riding the Xpedo Ti pedals on a couple of bikes for several years now. My weight fluctuates from about 180 to 200lbs depending on the season. I have had zero issues with them. Well Ok, I take that back. I did break one on a hard rock hit in St.George but Xpedo had a new set on my doorstep within the week.


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## andrepsz (Jan 28, 2013)

Tuned Xpedo R-force 1st gen with new grease, light bearings....light KCNC chainring Nut to the spindle and Proti FFR tension adjuster bolt


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## TiGeo (Jul 31, 2008)

Seems that pedals are a really $hitty place to go WW. XTRs are just over 300g and bulletproof. You can go Ti spindles but why bother unless you are a very light weight rider.


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## andrepsz (Jan 28, 2013)

TiGeo said:


> Seems that pedals are a really $hitty place to go WW. XTRs are just over 300g and bulletproof. You can go Ti spindles but why bother unless you are a very light weight rider.


It's like the question of another recent thread: 'how do you justify a 5k bike'

Simply don't need to justify buying a 5k bike or having the lightest SPD pedals. People do whatever they want with their money. Now about pedals...I think this thread is great and informative so people know what is out there to answers their questions on the lightest SPD pedals and discuss quality issues, leading to what is the best and lightest.

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## sfer1 (Feb 22, 2009)

TiGeo said:


> XTRs are just over 300g and bulletproof.


Not really. There's been more than a few reports of broken spindles.

XTR Trail pedal failure- Mtbr.com
http://forums.mtbr.com/drivetrain-s...trail-pedal-failure-751821-2.html#post9813664

I personally know a guy who had this issue even though he weighs less than 150lbs.


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## RS VR6 (Mar 29, 2007)

andrepsz said:


> Tuned Xpedo R-force 1st gen with new grease, light bearings....light KCNC chainring Nut to the spindle and Proti FFR tension adjuster bolt


That does look pretty darn cool.

How fast can you clip in once you clip out? Clipping in on a sketchy steep section can be a challenge with a one sided pedal?


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## andrepsz (Jan 28, 2013)

RS VR6 said:


> That does look pretty darn cool.
> 
> How fast can you clip in once you clip out? Clipping in on a sketchy steep section can be a challenge with a one sided pedal?


There is a small learning curve..but after a couple of rides I'm cool with it. The 'clipping on steep section from zero' scenario is the very only disadvantage I see from one sided pedals but once you get the momentum and know when to land the foot over it, things become successful.
If your foot comes down vertically on a normal hanging position(stationary position), it will land to the other side, but if you start pedaling on the steep hill about 90 degrees with you other foot, the other pedal position will be placed correctly for engagement....if that makes sense...hard to explain.

Check this out: if I combine these pedals with Titanium exustar SPD cleats (22g/pair) + Ti bols (6g), that means a total of 179.6g! probably the lightest combo ever!


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## scant (Jan 5, 2004)

sfer1 said:


> Not really. There's been more than a few reports of broken spindles.
> 
> XTR Trail pedal failure- Mtbr.com
> http://forums.mtbr.com/drivetrain-s...trail-pedal-failure-751821-2.html#post9813664
> ...


I'm 140lbs & I've had 2 M980 XTR pedals break at the end of the axle. I've since moved to M9000 XTR, where they're apparently sorted the problem & so far havent had a problem since.
I had some xpedo mag ti pedals & the bearings wore out really fast, although I do log a lot of offroad miles


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## Pegleg81 (Aug 6, 2014)

I got the expedos and how do you know if the bearings went bad?


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## sfer1 (Feb 22, 2009)

He's referring to an older model that has been discontinued. The Xpedo M-Force 8 have 3 sealed bearings per pedal. Mine are 3 years old and I haven't had to service them once.


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## spsoon (Jul 28, 2008)

I've got a couple months racing/bashing on my M-Force 8 Ti's now and I'm pretty happy with them. One thing I like about them is they use all bearings and no bushings. A lot of other lightweight pedals seem to skimp on the bearings. I don't have any evidence to back this up, but I suspect the difference in friction is significant.


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## andrepsz (Jan 28, 2013)

I think that bushing based pedals aren't a problem if we feel comfortable doing the maintenance ourselves. Having the proper tools and grease at home it's a pretty easy&quick task to open/clean/re-grease/close again and ride for many other months....grab a beer...and enjoy the task 

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## spsoon (Jul 28, 2008)

Yes, I just feel that even a properly maintained bushing is likely to have more power loss. This page suggests that you may be losing 1 watt in your pedals:
Cycling Power Lab


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## andrepsz (Jan 28, 2013)

Terrible

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## spsoon (Jul 28, 2008)

Haha, sounds stupid right? But we're in the weight weenie forum, so to put it in WW terms, 1 watt will move 100g vertically at 1 meter per second


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## scant (Jan 5, 2004)

Pegleg81 said:


> I got the expedos and how do you know if the bearings went bad?


either theres a lot of lateral movement in the body against the axle, or they feel extremely stiff/rough to rotate. For the record I had the 3 bearings newer pedals & they didnt last a winter.. but like I said I do log a lot of miles, so consider my experience as accelerated wear


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## andrepsz (Jan 28, 2013)

scant said:


> either theres a lot of lateral movement in the body against the axle, or they feel extremely stiff/rough to rotate. For the record I had the 3 bearings newer pedals & they didnt last a winter.. but like I said I do log a lot of miles, so consider my experience as accelerated wear


In some level, your feedback makes me think that is actually a good thing that mine is the older model with only one bearing per pedal (the R-force 151g above)...less parts to go wrong....'IF'...only 'IF' I perform regular re-lubrication to keep the bushings healthy. On top of that I've upgraded the single bearing with a full ceramic version (cheap from china)...of course is loosing its purpose for speed rotation since is embedded on the grease inside..but now I'm wondering if would last longer since is full ceramic...so no wear and tear like the metal version.

I GOT IT!!! now I need to find a ceramic....bushing! even more weight loss and perhaps longer life span?


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## UncleRico 4 (Aug 7, 2015)

andrepsz said:


> In some level, your feedback makes me think that is actually a good thing that mine is the older model with only one bearing per pedal (the R-force 151g above)...less parts to go wrong....'IF'...only 'IF' I perform regular re-lubrication to keep the bushings healthy. On top of that I've upgraded the single bearing with a full ceramic version (cheap from china)...of course is loosing its purpose for speed rotation since is embedded on the grease inside..but now I'm wondering if would last longer since is full ceramic...so no wear and tear like the metal version.
> 
> I GOT IT!!! now I need to find a ceramic....bushing! even more weight loss and perhaps longer life span?


If you are open to another option.....I just picked up some Ritchey Paradigm WCS pedals on amazon for $126 and these are 242 grams. I did a lot of research on pedals before pulling the trigger. I had the SPD 520 which work great but wanted to get something lighter than the XTR pedals. After looking for a long time and considering the egg beater 11's, the Ritchey pedal seemed to make the most sense for me. I'm only 1 ride in, but they felt great, easy in and out and easily adjustable tension. I'm curious as to why they don't get much pub as their line of products are good quality from my experience.


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