Product review

HT Components Pedals AE05

By Ardrider

Are the HT Components pedals AE05 the perfect pedals? We tested it for you!

In the hand

The HT AE05 evo are true flatterers. The CNC milled pedal bodies are very cleanly processed and the material mix of steel axle and aluminium pedal body weighs only 356g.
The pedal body is concave shaped, they are 15mm thick at the front and rear, while in the middle section they are only 9mm thick. All of the 10.4mm long pins are designed as through-holes, so that broken pins can be replaced without any problems. The CroMo axle is fitted with a wide seal on the crank side to keep water and dirt out. It can be easily disassembled without special tools to reapply a proper grease pack to the pedals if necessary.

Speaking of bearings and axles: HT uses double iglidur® plain bearings and one ball bearing per pedal.
As an industrial mechanic I have to point out again how well thought out and lovingly the 105x96mm pedal body is processed. HT really put a lot of work into weight optimization and left out material wherever possible without sacrificing durability. On every edge you will discover beautiful bevels or radii.

On the trail

In bike tests, testers often write about an "in-bike" feeling, with these pedals the feet have an "in-pedal" feeling. Due to the strongly concave shape, you always stand exactly right and can therefore concentrate fully on the trail. Components such as pedals are always good when you don't waste a thought on them, but can concentrate fully on the trail. This is fully true for the AE05. With 5/10 shoes we could not notice any unpleasant pressing or similar. Pedals with a very high grip, like the AE05, often have the problem that it is difficult to correct the foot position during the descent. The pedals successfully compensate for this problem by their convex shape, which usually prevents the foot from being placed unfavorably on the pedal.

Durability

During our test period we could not detect any significant wear of the bearing arrangement. The pedals run silently and cleanly as on the first day. The quite filigree pedal body had to take a few blows through stones and roots despite its low height, but put this away with the same ease as Rocky Balboa put away Ivan Drago's blows.

Conclusion

There are many good pedals on the market today. There are particularly light, particularly stable, particularly large, particularly thin, etc., but HT forms a total package that makes every biker happy. One has managed to find the perfect balance of the above mentioned points and all this at a reasonable price. If a bike buddy would ask me which pedals he should buy, I would recommend the AE05 without hesitation.