There is a pedal that shares a 40-year history with me, almost to the year.
The MKS Sylvan series.
Whether for city riding, touring, or track bikes, these pedals "effortlessly" match any steel bike.
That is the MKS / Mikashima Pedal Sylvan series.
Road
Track
Touring
Stream
Available in these four types, you can choose based on your intended use or the size of the platform. They account for a significant percentage of the pedals we sell here at Circles.
Building on that 40-year history, those pedals have evolved and been given the name "NEXT."
Beyond their special finish, which features a mirror-polished main body and chrome-plated plates, they have attained overwhelming rotational performance by utilizing MKS’s proud new technology: the "Triple Sealed Bearing."
"The bearing mechanism, which houses two sealed bearings at the base and one at the tip for a total of three, is characterized by extremely smooth, high-rotation performance.
The bearing at the base is designed to be thin, keeping the pedal's stack height low.
Having three bearings helps distribute the load to each, which plays a role in maintaining durability.
While utilizing the technology and know-how from our sealed bearing pedals used by professional Keirin racers, we have kept costs down so that fun-ride users can also experience this level of performance.
*The bearings are maintenance-free. Please do not disassemble them.
The cap also serves to adjust the bearings, so opening it may cause wobbling.
Please be aware of this."
The above is an excerpt from the MKS website.
But, seeing is believing.
I took a video, so please take a look.
The left side is the NEXT Sylvan Road, and the right side is the normal Sylvan Road.
The difference is overwhelming, isn't it?
You might think it’s just a small thing, but for every rotation of the crank, the pedal also rotates. In other words, if your cadence is 70 RPM, that’s a difference of 70 rotations per minute.
700 rotations in 10 minutes.
4,200 rotations in an hour.
In a day...
As the saying goes, "dust accumulates to form a mountain"—by the end of a day of riding, it makes a huge difference, doesn't it?
Surely that difference will manifest in how you feel—the level of fatigue after your ride or the soreness in your muscles the next day.
It doesn't show in the appearance, but that is exactly why it is so effective.
This evolution starts with the Road, Track, and Touring models.
Word on the street is that the remaining Stream model might get an upgrade too.
First, please come to the shop and experience that rotation for yourself.
MKS / Mikashima offers a wide variety of other pedals to suit your needs!
