Pedal Question-Newbie

juansheet

Hi All

Started cycling in the last few months & now I want to upgrade to the proper footwear. Cleats they are called?. I have a Giant bike and I am wondering if you have to buy specific bike shoes for specific bikes?. The pedals that are currently on the bike seem to have some sort of groove in them for bike shoes?. How do I find this out or do I have to buy new pedals aswell for the shoes I get?

Thanks in advance for your help

Juansheet

Lashed

Different pedals take different cleats. When you buy clipless pedals the cleats come with them, These cleats in turn bolt on to the cycling shoes which are bought separetly. Most shoes will accept all cleat types.

If you can figure out what pedals you have you will just need to buy cleats here: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Categories.aspx?CategoryID=208

You will then need to buy the shoes.

easygoing39

Most pedals come with the cleats included in the box.

bmacg

Any standard road bike will accept any standard clipless pedal on the market today. You have to ensure that you have the correct shoe-cleat-pedal match however.
The three commonest systems are Look, Keo and Shimano, and they are not interchangeable.
Shoes are usually the easiest to match, as most will accept more than one system. Always check though, as not all are compatible with every system.
You must then purchase the correct cleat for your chosen pedal, and fit it to your shoe.
I started off with the shimano sdp-sl system, and found it a great introduction to clipless. The cleat is nice and wide, offering a firm connection but without the 'hot-spots' under the foot that some of the narrower cleats can cause. Its also realtively easy to clip in and out of (once you get the knack), and as its a common system I have no problem purchasing replacement shoes or cleats. The Look system is very similar in appearance and feel, but is not interchangeable.
Good luck with it.

C3PO

bmacg wrote: »

The three commonest systems are Look, Keo and Shimano, and they are not interchangeable.

Are Look and Keo not the same?

Lumen

RPL1 wrote: »

Are Look and Keo not the same?

The simple view of the world is:

MTB shoes & cleats: 2 bolts.
Road shoes & cleats: 3 bolts.

Complications for road systems...

Prior to 2002 Time's Equipe system used a four-bolt pattern, but current Time pedals use a three bolt pattern, like Look.

Speedplay use a four-bolt pattern but have adapter plates for three bolt shoes. Lake apparently still sell some 4-bolt shoes, which are now called Speedplay-compatible, even though the design originated with Time.

Shimano do road shoes with both five holes for both road and MTB systems, which are possibly ideal for the terminally indecisive, e.g. here and here.



One important thing to remember is that SPD-SL is a completely different system to SPD.

I've used SPD, Look, Time and Crank Bros Eggbeater systems. Both sets of Time pedals snapped; the Eggbeaters are a bit odd, SPD and Look both did the job fine.

I've just ordered Speedplays Zeros.

C3PO

Lumen wrote: »

SPD and Look both did the job fine.

Yep I use SPDs on the mountainbike and Look Keos on the road. Both work well - the SPDs are much easier to get into but the Keos feel more stable!

dave.obrien

RPL1 wrote: »

Are Look and Keo not the same?

Keo are Looks current road models, Quartz are also Look but are their mtb equivalent (two bolt, as per Lumens answer). Important to remember the difference in the shoes too; mtb shoes give a recessed cleat which is walkable, road shoes the cleat extends, and so contact the ground when walking. I use mtb shoes on my commuting bike, which I also train on, and my mtb, and road shoes on my race bike.

doozerie

Lumen wrote:

I've just ordered Speedplays Zeros.

A bit off-topic this, but I'd be curious to know whether you are over-awed by them once you've used them for a while. There still seem to be lots of people tripping over themselves to sing the praises of these pedals online. While I do like my Zeros, my own experiences suggest that some of the praise heaped on them is unjustified (some of it is downright barmy!), but maybe longer term they'll impress me more than my previous Look's (right now they are roughly on a par, for me).

Back on topic, well kinda anyway, something else to factor into your choice of pedals and shoes is where you want to position your cleat. The traditional positioning of the cleat is to ensure that the ball of your foot is directly over the pedal axle if possible. I've followed that method myself, and still do. However, there is quite a bit of support these days for positioning the arch of your foot over the pedal axle and this is tricky to do with some shoes and many pedals (easiest to achieve with 2-bolt cleats such as SPD or EggBeater, apparently, for reasons that are obvious enough when you start to think about it). It's not a decision to dwell on too much unless either you have joint issues right now that might benefit from this alternative cleat position, or you want to try to squeeze out as much performance as you want from your legs (assuming this cleat position actually works for you), but above all it may be an interesting diversion to read up on as the discussions tend to throw up some useful info on pedaling style, bike fit, etc. - some info on it here followed by a lengthy discussion in the comments after it. Apparently, Speedplay make an adaptor plate that allows their cleats to be positioned further back relatively painlessly, but Speedplay pedals are not a cheap option so you'd be paying a lot for that option.

Lumen

doozerie wrote: »

A bit off-topic this, but I'd be curious to know whether you are over-awed by them once you've used them for a while. There still seem to be lots of people tripping over themselves to sing the praises of these pedals online. While I do like my Zeros, my own experiences suggest that some of the praise heaped on them is unjustified (some of it is downright barmy!), but maybe longer term they'll impress me more than my previous Look's (right now they are roughly on a par, for me).

My personal justification for Speedplays is that (a) they offer adjustable float, which allows me to experiment with various float configurations without buying multiple pedals and/or cleats, and (b) they offer double-sided entry without the small platform and instability of MTB pedals.

The disadvantage of all road systems is the lack of walkability, but that's only a problem off the bike, and all of my current problems are on the bike.

doozerie

Lumen wrote: »

My personal justification for Speedplays is that (a) they offer adjustable float, which allows me to experiment with various float configurations without buying multiple pedals and/or cleats, and (b) they offer double-sided entry without the small platform and instability of MTB pedals.

The disadvantage of all road systems is the lack of walkability, but that's only a problem off the bike, and all of my current problems are on the bike.

On the plus side for Speedplay Zero's, I find them very "solid" once clipped in. They feel far better than any SPD's I have used, and at least as solid as my old Look's which is some achievement considering the difference in platform sizes. The adjustable float is also quite different to my Look's - much more tunable and therefore better. As it happens, I don't think I need such flexibility in float adjustment but I wasn't sure of that until I tried the Speedplays and I do prefer to have it as an option should I ever need it.

I've had a few issues with getting the cleat adjustments right on my shoes (i.e. not too tight, which would lead to difficulty in clicking in and out, and not too loose, which would lead to cleats moving about), but this is likely due to my shoes rather than anything else. I think the curve in the sole of my shoes is a bit more significant than the cleats can easily cater for (possibly not helped by the fact that I have small shoes) - so my theory goes anyway as this would help explain why I had to slightly grind down one edge of the head of one of the mounting bolts in the mid-plate.

Despite the issues I've had though, I do like them as pedals. Just don't try to ride them with non-cycling shoes (small platform + lubricated surface + smooth surface + non-cycling shoes = comedy gold!).