Pedals / shoes

CantGetNoSleep

I've just gotten into cycling so i'm looking for pedals and shoes to match to replace my plastic clipped ones that came with the bike.

Any recommendations and where to buy (ideally online)? I mainly go on casual Saturday morning spins - but I do need to stop at least 10 times at lights to get out of the city

selwyn froggitt

Everyone on here will have an opinion one way or the other - I use various types of Look pedals on my road bikes, but use Shimano SPD'S on my Cross and Touring bikes - it's a personal choice and a lot will depend on your budget.

You can pay an absolute fortune for some pedals and shoes (speedplay and sidi spring to mind).

I shop online for many components and tend to use Ribble and Merlin quite a bit, but there are plenty more out there. Sometimes you can get a shoe/pedal bundle deal.

But I would suggest going to your local bike shop with your bike and they can show you the different options and more importantly do an initial set-up for you.

nordicb

Plenty of information on the web, but generally, depends on whether you do any walking while out cycling. If walking, then perhaps SPD style mostly found on mountain bikes as shoes have recessed cleats, which do not interfere with walking, or, otherwise, SPD SL style found on road bikes, but walking becomes rather limited, which also ruins these cleats.

Flat pedals are also an option allowing you to wear any shoes pretty much.

All have their advantages and not.

CantGetNoSleep

Thanks for the replies, any disadvantages of the SPD mountain bike ones over the SPD SL's? In general I'd do relatively little walking except for to get a coffee etc.

I'll go to my bike shop at the weekend to buy but wanted to have some idea of what my options were.

nordicb

Have seen few using SPDs on road bikes, very often just because people don't fancy having 2 pairs of cycling shoes and rather have one "do it all" pair. SPD shoes may be heavier and the way cleats are designed, they have rather small pressure point in the shoe sole, which can lead to a "hot spot" on foot during long cycles. They are also less firmly attached - basically allow the heel to go right and left freely that some people do not like and prefer more secure attachment, in fact, almost solid attachment.

SPD SL shoes often have CF sole for weight, stiffness and pressure distribution, also cleat to pedal pressure area is a lot larger. Attachment is very solid, say red shimano cleats feel almost solid compared to yellow ones. Walking to a shop on them is not a problem at all. Walking longer does, however, wear the cleat rather quickly. Any dirt, soil on them may prevent them from locking onto the pedal, therefore nobody uses them on MTB bikes...

There, perhaps, are more differences...

CantGetNoSleep

nordicb wrote: »

Have seen few using SPDs on road bikes, very often just because people don't fancy having 2 pairs of cycling shoes and rather have one "do it all" pair. SPD shoes may be heavier and the way cleats are designed, they have rather small pressure point in the shoe sole, which can lead to a "hot spot" on foot during long cycles. They are also less firmly attached - basically allow the heel to go right and left freely that some people do not like and prefer more secure attachment, in fact, almost solid attachment.

SPD SL shoes often have CF sole for weight, stiffness and pressure distribution, also cleat to pedal pressure area is a lot larger. Attachment is very solid, say red shimano cleats feel almost solid compared to yellow ones. Walking to a shop on them is not a problem at all. Walking longer does, however, wear the cleat rather quickly. Any dirt, soil on them may prevent them from locking onto the pedal, therefore nobody uses them on MTB bikes...

There, perhaps, are more differences...

The SL's should do the job for me then - do i just need to look for a pair of SPD compatible road shoes once i have​ thé pedals and cleats?

nordicb

Yeah, compatible shoes have "SPD SL" in their name.

Cleats allow some position adjustment on installation, worth having a brief read how to do it, also bolts can be easily overtightened, just need some care there.

Best regards

CantGetNoSleep

Thanks for your advice, appreciate it