I ended up getting a DW3000. Dual chain for under $100 bucks.

Yamaha has a $50 kick pedal that I have been abusing for almost 10 years, came with my first kit. I like that it doesn't have a rigid base, so it doesn't want to bend your hoops when you move your kick drum, it just hangs.

I'd steer clear of used stuff. Just my opinion. Go with a new Pearl Eliminator - the one with the chain, not the strap. Up until very recently, I had one for like six years and it was still kickin' ass and takin' names.Here:http://www.pearldrum.com/products/hardw ... -2000.aspx

That looks pretty similar to the Trick stuff:http://www.trickdrums.com/pedals.htmlThen again, I've never used anything that fancy.

Many years ago I had a series of DW pedals. I always liked them, but they were always shaking loose. While I was using the DW pedal I found a budget Tama kick pedal for $30 used. I grabbed it so I'd have a backup pedal at shows. One day, in the late 90s, the DW broke to the point where I needed to get a replacement part. I pulled out the Tama pedal. I still have and use this pedal. I think I gave the DW parts to Chris from Replicator back when he was using DW pedals.If you're worried about speed and feel, D.J., try messing with the spring tension, batter length, and the adjustable weight on the beater shaft. There are a lot of options and trade offs. Of course, you may have been doing this all along.

Yeah, the thing I like about Iron Cobras is that pretty much everything on it can be adjusted. I previously had a DW 5000 double pedal and really the only thing you could do to alter the feel was adjust the spring on the side (and that would come loose or change on it's own fairly often). DWs feel pretty great but they don't justify the excessive cost, particularly on reliability/toughness concerns. ICs really do earn their reputation for being bombproof

Ba-bump.So for the last six-odd months i've been working at the local independent medium-sized-box music store in their call center. Just recently i finally started gleefully abusing my employee discount. I bought a new Ludwig Epic Pro Beat drum set for a song, and got some modest cases for them just so they don't get scuffed in the van. Now, i'm pondering experimenting with kick pedals.I've used an Iron Cobra for years and i've overall loved it. However, i've felt lately like my kick chops aren't what they were w/r/t speed and accuracy. Obviously i'm sure i should be practicing more (can't wait until we have a studio space come later this summer), but after a couple recent gear-sharing shows i've noticed differences in the kick pedals that made me question just how good my Iron Cobra is. I've never had luck with DW pedals; their playability is ok but i can never get the clamps to stay on my drum's ring and the drum ends up sliding away from me. The last DW pedal i tried i threw in a dumpster behind the club immediately after the set, i was so pissed.Has anyone here used a Pearl Eliminator, or the crazy expensive top-of-the-price-heap Demon Eliminator? I'm tempted to take advantage of my discount and splurge on one once the drum purchase is paid off the credit card. I mean, it's kinda pretty:I haven't tested it out yet in the store. I should get on that. I pushed on one with my hands and it was smooooooth. Thoughts?

Yeah, we sell a lot of Axis stuff. It's all made-to-order by like two people in a room.That's just the input i was looking for, thanks!

I've played Speed Kings, Pearl, Camco, that Iron Cobra thing and I think there's a lot to be said for the ubiquitous DW 5000. It's mechanically simple and the mass of the moving parts is pretty low. You can adjust spring tension, beater at-rest position, pedal at-rest angle and beater shaft length. It's also quiet and fast (the old single chain style was a little faster, IMO). The 2 nicest things about those 5000s though are: 1) the velcro beater plate and built in spikes work great to anchor bass drums that might otherwise creep forward. 2) It's super easy to get replacement parts for them. I think that's a massive plus for a piece of hardware that gets as much abuse as this. That said, kick pedals are a very personal item and there's no one-size-fits-all.