Affordable performance from Race Face’s hardcore nylon pedals

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The Race Face Chester is the brand’s more hardcore nylon composite flat pedal designed for trail riding.

It runs on a chromoly steel axle with a bearing and DU bushing combination that’s user-serviceable.

There are eight replaceable pins per side that screw in from the back of the platform.

The Chester’s 99(W)x103mm(L) platform (at its widest point) features chamfering on its front and rear edges and sides to help ward off rock or ground strikes.

While the 8mm-deep ribs that connect the 15mm-deep trailing and leading edges create what could be a concave platform, the central axle housing bulges to 18mm, giving an overall convex shape.

The pins protrude from the platform’s surface by 5mm, making them slightly higher than the central bulge, however.

My pair of test pedals weighed 369g.

On paper, the Chester’s platform appears large, but it feels much smaller than its numbers suggest because the sweet spot for foot placement is small, necessitating accurate positioning.

Outside this area, stability is reduced, and I had to work hard to keep my feet on the pedals. It was possible to feel the central axle bulge through my feet, rather than just the front and rear pins digging in.

This reduced grip and meant my feet could rotate on the pedals compared to more concave designs, but also allowed me to reposition them on the pedals without too much bother.

However, the pins are sharp and grippy, and penetrated the soles of my shoes well, recuperating some lost performance.

Their chunky depth meant they contacted the ground regularly, but the nylon body brushed off ground strikes well thanks to their chamfered edges, remaining undamaged for the duration of the test period.

We’ve tested 13 flat pedals for mountain bikes in some of the harshest conditions on a host of terrain types – from bumpy on-the-gas sections through to flat-out rough and worn downhill tracks – to see how much grip they offer and help you find the perfect companion.

You can also find our top-rated reviews in BikeRadar’s guide to the best mountain bike pedals.

The Chester’s sharp, long pins do a good job of increasing grip lost to its slightly convex platform profile created by the large axle bulge. They are reasonably light and have proven to be robust during the test period.

For performance and price, they’re very close to the OneUp Composite pedals, and it would be virtually impossible to pick a clear winner.

Alex Evans is BikeRadar's mountain bike technical editor. He started racing downhill at the tender age of 11 before going on to compete across Europe. Alex moved to Morzine in the French Alps at 19 to pursue a career as a bike bum and clocked up an enormous amount of riding. Riding those famous tracks day in, day out for eight years, he broke more bikes than he can remember. Alex then moved back to the UK and put his vast knowledge of mountain biking to good use by landing a job working for MBUK magazine as features editor. Since working for MBUK, Alex's focus has moved to bike tech. He's one of BikeRadar's lead testers, knows how to push bikes and products to the limit, and wants to search out the equipment that represents the best value for money. Alex is also a regular on the BikeRadar Youtube channel and BikeRadar podcast.

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