6061 vs 7075 Aluminum for Bicycle Pedals
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When shopping for new high-performance bicycle pedals, two of the most commonly considered aluminum alloys are 6061 and 7075. Both of these aluminum alloys make for great bicycle pedals in terms of strength, durability, and corrosion resistance.
Here in this article, we will explore 6061 aluminum vs 7075 aluminum for bicycle pedals. At Moongate Cycles, we select and use only the best materials in our products. As you will learn in this article, the clear choice for the high-performance cycling enthusiast is aluminum 7075. This is why Moongate Cycles uses aluminum 7075 for all of our pedals!
Table of Aluminum 6061 vs. Aluminum 7075 - Comparing Properties and Related Data
To kick things off on the technical side, let's take a look at a table comparing various properties and related data between the to metals.
| Property | Aluminum 6061-T6 | Aluminum 7075 T-6 |
| Density (g/cm3) | 2.7 | 3.0 |
| Ultimate Tensile Strength (MPa) | 310 | 560 |
| Yield Tensile Strength | 270 | 480 |
| Fatigue Strength (MPa) | 96 | 160 |
| Shear Strength (MPa) | 210 | 330 |
| Strength to Weight Ratio (kN-m/kg) | 115 | 196 |
| Brinell Hardness | 93 | 150 |
| % Zinc | 0 | 5.6 |
| % Magnesium | 1 | 2.5 |
| Corrosion Resistance | +++ | ++ |
| Price of 5" x 5" Plate | $ | $$ |
| CNC Machinability | +++ | ++ |
Aluminum 6061 vs. Aluminum 7075 - Strength Comparison
As we can see from the table above, aluminum 7075 is nearly twice as strong as aluminum 6061! Comparing the ultimate tensile strength, we can see that aluminum 7075 is nearly 81% stronger!
We come to similar conclusions when we look at the various other measures of strength - these all range from 57% stronger (shear strength) through 78% stronger (yield tensile strength).
If you're ripping through trails on your mountain bike and clip a rock or a stump going 30+ mph, I know I would want to trust my safety to the stronger material found in aluminum 7075 for a bicycle pedal!
Aluminum 6061 vs. Aluminum 7075 - Hardness Comparison
So, we've determined that aluminum 7075 is ~80% stronger than aluminum 6061 for bicycle pedals. What about the hardness of the two materials? If we are grinding on some rails in a skate park with our BMX bike, we want a pedal that is going to withstand this type of abuse. We want our pedals to resist pitting, scratching, and other surface wear.
We can see when comparing the Brinell Hardness, the aluminum 7075 bicycle pedal is 61% harder than the aluminum 6061 bicycle pedal. This means that the aluminum 7075 bicycle pedal is the clear winner in terms of hardness.
One fun fact, the Brinell Hardness of mild steel is ~120, so aluminum 7075 bicycle pedals will actually be harder than mild steal coming in a 150 on the Brinell Hardness scale!
Aluminum 6061 vs. Aluminum 7075 - Trade Offs
In terms of strength and hardness, you can see that aluminum 7075 feels like the clear choice for a high-performance bicycle pedal. So, why are there so many aluminum 6061 bicycle pedals on the market? Well, there are a couple of trade offs when it comes to aluminum 7075 pedals - the main ones we've identified are:
Weight
- You can see from the property table above than aluminum 7075 weighs about 11% more than aluminum 6061. So, this might cause the "weight weenies" to get a little concerned that we would be adding weight to their bicycle. In fact, this is quote the opposite!
- Because aluminum 7075 is 80% stronger and only 11% heavier than aluminum 6061, we can engineer a pedal out of aluminum 7075 that is still much stronger than aluminum 6061 and actually remove weight!
- Consider the example where we take a base pedal of aluminum 6061 and then modify it for a 7075 design. We can remove 25% of the mass of a pedal and still achieve a 35% increase in strength with a 17% reduction in weight! This means through using aluminum 7075 you get the best of both worlds, a stronger pedal with a lighter weight at the same time!
Corrosion Resistance
- One trade off to using aluminum 7075 vs aluminum 6061 is that the corrosion resistance is not quite as good.
- Because aluminum 7075 has a percent of zinc in its makeup, it can tend to corrode at an accelerated rate. We negate aluminum 7075 corrosion in our pedal designs through surface coating.
- Because aluminum can corrode when exposed to the air (especially salt water), we coat our pedals with Cerakote coating. This provides protection of the base aluminum 7075 metal, and comes in hundreds of cool colors!
Cost
- As you can see in the table above, another trade off for using aluminum 7075 in bicycle pedals is the cost. The raw cost of aluminum 7075 is nearly twice as much as aluminum 6061. This is why many budget bicycle pedal manufacturers forgo using aluminum 7075 and go with the cheaper option.
- At Moongate Cycles, we are committed to only providing you the best. This means we always select premium components and materials to ensure you get the best possible product. Yes, the pedals will cost a bit more, but the improved quality, durability, and performance that you get with every Moongate Cycles product will leave you smiling!
CNC Machinability
- We have talked about the hardness of aluminum 7075 vs. aluminum 6061. This 61% increase in hardness of aluminum 7075 means that it is harder to machine than aluminum 6061.
- This increased hardness means that cutting tools will wear out faster, and parts will generally take a bit longer to machine. This is another reason why many pedal manufacturers just opt to go with aluminum 6061 and pump out sub-par product.
- At Moongate Cycles, we know that good things often take time. To us, putting out a high-performance pedal that we can be proud of (and that you'll love) is worth the extra time it takes to machine!
Final Thoughts - Bicycle Pedal Aluminum 6061 vs Aluminum 7075
Here we've reviewed two popular aluminum alloys, 6061 and 7075, for high-performance bicycle pedals. Upon digging into the detailed properties of both metals, it is apparent that aluminum 7075 has superior strength, durability, and hardness. This comes with a slight trade off in weight, corrosion resistance, cost, and machinability.
At Moongate Cycles, we prioritize quality and performance. This is why we select and use aluminum 7075 in most all of our products to deliver superior products for your bicycle!
Are you interested in snagging some of our premium pedals? Check them out below:
