Pedels/Shoes/Cleats

Dr.Millah

Going to start using clipless pedals but i know little about them. I am looking on wiggle.co.uk and i am slightly confused.
Do i need to buy the cleats as well as the shoes. Or do shoes come with cleats? Also how can i be sure that the cleats fit right with the pedals.

Any recommendation on a good set for road bike would be a good help. Thanks

Lumen

Cleats come with pedals.

Cleats are 2-hole (MTB style) or 3-hole (road style). 3-hole road shoe can take 2-hole cleat, but not vice-versa.

All pedals have the same diameter axle.

You can use MTB pedals on a road bike for extra walkability, but they don't feel quite as nice in operation as road pedals.

Road pedal choices: Shimano SPD-SL, Speedplay, Look, Time etc. Speedplays fit both shoe types since they use 2-hole cleats.

Pedals vary in stack height, float, release tension, q-factor, etc. Few people have tried them all.

More expensive pedals tend to be lighter and sometimes slightly more adjustable but otherwise very similar.

Read some reviews, take your pick.

I have Time. They're OK.

No-one ever got fired for buying Looks.

Open to correction.

lukester

Pedals will come with cleats.

Do you want to be able to walk in the shoes off the bike? If so, you want SPD pedals and compatible shoes (2 bolt pattern). MTB style shoes have the cleat recessed so it's easy to walk on.

If you don't have the walking requirement, go for Look/Time/SPD-SL (3 bolt pattern) and a standard road shoe.

Personally, unless you definitely want to walk around lots off the bike, I'd favour the latter option. I started out with SPDs and migrated to a road-specific set-up pretty quickly (Time RXS pedals, they do cheaper versions). I much prefer it, but that's just me, others are quite happy with SPDs.

Hard to recommend anything without knowing your budget, but you could get an entry level system for about 120-150 euro, bargain basement DHB R1 shoes and entry level Look/Time pedals. If you possess a snob gene, you will probably want to get fancier shoes and something above entry-level pedals.

alfalad

Look Keo are the ones i have and can't complain at all. As said they will fit road shoes and the pedals come with the cleats.

Dr.Millah

Thanks for the reply.

So, http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/dhb_R1_Road_Shoe/5360042950/ would have no problem with http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Shimano_105_5610_SPD-SL_Pedals/5360031902/#more as they both use 3hole?

Sorry for my ignorance in the subject.

lukester

Dr.Millah wrote: »

Thanks for the reply.

So, http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/dhb_R1_Road_Shoe/5360042950/ would have no problem with http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Shimano_105_5610_SPD-SL_Pedals/5360031902/#more as they both use 3hole?

Yes, they would have no problem with each other.

Dr.Millah

Thats good. The cleats are SPD-SL will there be some walkability in these?

lukester

Dr.Millah wrote: »

Thats good. The cleats are SPD-SL will there be some walkability in these?

There will be some, about the same as any road system. Fine for walking from the bike to a cafe or shop, but not for a stroll.

Edit: It's confusing, but SPD and SPD-SL are totally different. SPD, walkable, SPD-SL, not really.

Dr.Millah

One last question.
Float or no float?

niceonetom

Float.

Dr.Millah

Nice one! Tom :P

Eoin D

For what it's worth I got SPDs for my first cleats on the road bike to ease myself into it and immediately regretted it. The fact is I never needed/wanted to walk when out for a spin.

On a sidenote I had my first cleat related fall today, so embarrassing, forgot I was wearing them as I was out for a slow spin with a mate, eased to a stop and keeled over

peterako

www.roadbikereview.com and
www.mtbr.com

Are both great for user reviews.

Some retailers such as www.chainreactioncycles.com have user reviews with their product listings too.

I started with SPD's (Mount Bike Shimano pedals) which I found very easy to use...except for an initial hicup (see below).

They are great with MTB shoes which typically have the SPD cleat recessed into the sole of the shoe allowing for easier walking (and less/no? floor damage and cleat wear).

For ages I used SPD's on my mountain and road bikes but now use road pedals on my road bike. Horses for courses....

The Hicup.

On my first ride with my SPDs I decided it would be good to bring my then 4 year old daughter on the child seat on teh back of my bike. This BEFORE I'd experimented with getting in and out of the pedals.....getting in was easy. Getting out....well...suffice it to say that I didn't manage to get my feet out on our first stop....crash....bang...wallop :eek:

After that...well...I got much better and they really are intuitive and easy once you've tried them a few times for practice.

And my knees have benifitted from clips ins

Best of luck,
Peter

Flankerb

My vote is for these
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=5369
little bit cheaper than the 105's. Have them on both my bikes with no issues.
They make some difference to the knees and going up hill and near the end of spin.

You will need these aswell
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=28895

and shoes sidi,shimano or specialized or whatever you can afford or like.
Love SIDI but using specialized at the moment.

rebel.ranter

Flankerb wrote: »

You will need these aswell
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=28895

and shoes sidi,shimano or specialized or whatever you can afford or like.
Love SIDI but using specialized at the moment.

If I got 105 pedals would they come with the cleats? Or do the cleats come with the shoes? Or are they separate?
Lumen gave a different answer.

Flankerb

Some include a cleat with the pedals you would need to check with the shop.
I bought my first set as a pack that included the cleats.
But the second set just had the pedals.

Cleat is what connects shoe to pedal but is pedal specific.

Most road shoes can accept road cleats from different manufactures ie Look,Time,Shimano etc...
Hope that makes sense

rebel.ranter

Flankerb wrote: »

Hope that makes sense

Thanks for the clarification on some have/some don't. I knew their function but was unclear if they were part of a pedal package as standard.
I'm a Chain Reaction addict these past few weeks since buying my new bike so I wanted to know before I order. I was going the take a chance & get the pedals, floating cleats & shoes on line.
Shoes are probably the biggest risk as an on-line purchase, I was going to buy a 47 shoe (take a 46 normally). Value on line seems to beat any shop.

Caroline_ie

rebel.ranter wrote: »

If I got 105 pedals would they come with the cleats? Or do the cleats come with the shoes? Or are they separate?
Lumen gave a different answer.

When you buy pedals, you always get a pair of cleats included.
You can buy cleats separately when you need to replace the cleats from your shoes, you will need to at some stage but you will get from a few months to a season out of them.

Flankerb

I would trust Caroline's advice on buying pedals online as I have only bought from LBS. They were not to bad first set 55euro with cleats fitted, second set 40euro fitted no cleats.

**Timbuk2**

Some people start with SPD cleats and mountain bike shoes when starting as generally they are the easiest to clip in/ clip out of and you can walk in them. However, there is no real reason why you can't progress straight to road cleats, which are quite difficult to walk in (they protrude outwards while the SPDs are recessed into the shoe).

It is said that everyone falls the first time they use clipless pedals as they forget to clip out and suffer a 0km/h fall. I never fell when I switched to clipless, but people often do but rarely hurt themselves (apart from hurting their pride a bit if it's at traffic lights!) as the bike is generally not moving when it happens.

Most pedals will have adjustable release tension. When you are starting out, keep the release tension at it's lowest - this will make it easier to clip in and out of. You can increase it as you get used to them. Some people never increase it - technically speaking if you're cleats are properly adjusted to suit your foot, accidental disengagement from the pedal during hard efforts are rare.
Also, try your first short spin with them in a low-traffic place like around your house or in a carpark - so you don't keel over in front of a bus!

happy_73

Got shimano 105 pedals and SH-R086 shoe, first day out in them yesterday - first fall done and dusted (and yes I was at a stop)!

blorg

The pedals always come from the manufacturer with cleats so if you didn't get them it was a mistake (or you were given a special deal for taking them without cleats.) Happened to me with a pair I bought once, cleats not in the box, I got back on to the shop and they sent me out the cleats free of charge.

To be honest I don't think there is any particular need or advantage to a road system unless you are racing. If you are racing a road system is less likely to disengage in an all-out sprint as they don't disengage with foot tilt. If not racing I would go SPD.