A question to those who are clipping in...

[huskie69]

Hi all

I took up road cycling a few years ago as a way to drop a load of weight. Made full use of the cycle to work scheme and got myself a boardman hybrid jobby. Lovely bike for the job and I racked up some mileage (and dropped 10st in the process).

Last year I decided to go all the way and get a road bike. Again, cycle to work scheme so nothing too pricey (1.2k - Cannondale Synapse). This came with 'foot cages' (like all my previous bikes have). They seem to serve a purpose if only to keep your feet from slipping off the pedals but recently I've been thinking of getting some SPDs, cleats and clipping in.

I've read that it's the most efficient way to go as you're using your energy to pull up on the pedals too.

I don't want to spend a fortune so I'm looking for advice on what to buy. I've seen specially adapted shoes for SPDs that look like trainers with cleats - these typically sell £150> which is a bit steep IMHO. Can I buy cleats and fit them to standard cycling shoes?

What's the overall cost of a functional 'clip in' system (cleats, pedals etc) and would you ever return to cycling without them?
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'10 Skyjet SJ125-23 - Crashed > '09 YBR 125 > '53 Suzuki SV650 - Died > 2010 Suzuki VanVan 125 > '87 Yamaha FZ750 Sold > VTR 1000 FireStorm - Sold > Honda CB1000R

[yaigi]

*Waits for the "I fell off my bike in front of traffic, how embarrassing" thread because you couldn't get your foot out of the clips *
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[huskie69]

[Ste]

[Aff]

Make sure you have the amount of float you need. I road with too little float for about 1000miles and ended up doing serious damage to my knee/ACL, now had to sell my road bike as I can no longer clip in and hated riding without cleats.

Which I suppose answers your last question, no I wouldn't go back to riding a road bike without clipless pedals, feels ridiculously inefficient and disconnected with the bike.

You could pick up a good setup second hand for under £100, but do research first as to what clipless method you want to go for.
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Current Bikes:Honda 929RR Fireblade, Honda CD200 Benly (Project), Stomp Z2 140
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[huskie69]

What's 'float' Aff, is that the adjustability/travel the cleat has in relation to the pedal?
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'10 Skyjet SJ125-23 - Crashed > '09 YBR 125 > '53 Suzuki SV650 - Died > 2010 Suzuki VanVan 125 > '87 Yamaha FZ750 Sold > VTR 1000 FireStorm - Sold > Honda CB1000R

[D O G]

Get some Shimano SPD's , but try and get some 2nd hand shoes, as they can be expensive as you point out.

I bought my shoes 2nd hand 8 years and probably 15-20,000 miles ago now, and they are still fine. They take very little wear.

I did used to have Look SPD's, but the cleats wore out much faster when walking, and plus they were going obsolete (non Keo SPD's for those in the know).

Shimano made the most sense to me, even if I'm not one for the Shimano brand overall.

[D O G]

Float is how much the angle of the foot relative to the pedal can change during a stroke.

Zero float would be totally fixed, which would be baaaad.

Mostly you shouldn't have a problem with the setting out of the box, but it can be adjusted - best off to start with more float, then tighten it up if it feels too sloppy.

[Aff]

[Drew]

Remember there is a difference between SPD and SPD-SL.

[huskie69]

Thanks for all the info but in a bit of a quandary now...

Most, if not all the SPD pedals on wiggle (and CRC etc) have the 6 degrees float. The SPD-SLs don't list the float as far as I can tell so I'm assuming these too are 6 degrees. I'm concerned that these might not be for me as I've been experiencing anterior knee pain the last few months after intense rides and hillclimbs.

Think I'm just going to bite the bullet and get myself a pair and see how I get on with them for a bit. One more question though - if I buy shimano SPD specific shoes, do they come with cleats or are cleats an additional purchase?
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'10 Skyjet SJ125-23 - Crashed > '09 YBR 125 > '53 Suzuki SV650 - Died > 2010 Suzuki VanVan 125 > '87 Yamaha FZ750 Sold > VTR 1000 FireStorm - Sold > Honda CB1000R

[Ste]

Cleats come with the pedals.

[JonB]

Regarding SPD and SPD-SL

SPD's are generally cheaper and are designed for touring cycles as you can get shoes with recessed cleat areas so you can walk about with cleats.

SPD-SL are for road shoes, with a wider surface area for enhanced performance as more power is transferred through the cranks. You can get two types of cleats, fixed or ones with float. I have float because I have bad knees. If you get fixed cleats then ensure you book a bike fit at the same time.

I have used both and prefer SPD-SL.

In either case as a starter expect to pay about £20 for pedals and anything upwards of £30 for shoes.
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[The Tot]

On the subject,

I'm looking for single sided clipless pedals for my MTB. I've already got an eye out for the Shimano A530 single sided touring pedals, but I'm trying to find something more aggressive for my MTB. I might not want to ride with cleats, or might want to clip out during downhill bits?

I was looking at M424 pedals so that I don't have to worry about ascents as much?

Saying that, it's only a Trek series 4 with standard wellgo platforms
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[Aff]

The A530 is pretty useless offroad, gets clogged up almost instantly and the flat side is too slick.

I use the M324, doesn't seem too bothered by the mud and there is plenty of grip on the flat, they take a lot of skin with them if you decide to shin them during a crash though.
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Current Bikes:Honda 929RR Fireblade, Honda CD200 Benly (Project), Stomp Z2 140
Electric Bike Project

[The Tot]

M324 seems perfect! It's got the nice bite on the cage. Perfect for my gripping into my tactile Nike 6.0's or Vans skaters.

A530 for the road bike perhaps?
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The Tot 2007 Yamaha R1 4C8 2002 Yamaha FZS1000 Fazer &
www.youtube.com/Titot182 for your bike gear reviews and pop punk covers
Earl Of Easycore Pop Punk Will Never Die!

[Aff]

[AlanC]

Shimano M520's should be easy to get on with, especially if you use multi-release cleats and wind the tension down to minimum while you get used to them.

You'll need some MTB style shoes that have the relevant mount (two slots in the sole) to go with them. These have the advantage of the cleats being recessed so you can walk easily.

I used an older version of this setup when I switched to clipless and never fell over once (famous last words... )

[400bandit]

I went down the SPD 520 route myself, a big improvement over standard cages.

That said, I'm about to upgrade to SPD-SL's.

DHB shoes from wiggle are decent value for money.

Joe
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Current Bikes 650 Honda Bros, VTR1000 Firestorm // Past Bikes: Sachs Madass 50/110cc - Bandit 400 - FZR750
(+ a XS650 in lots of pieces in my garage and other places...)

[huskie69]

Right. I'm going for it and getting the following:

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-pd-r540-spd-sl-sport-pedals/

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-r088-spd-sl-road-shoes/

Thanks for all the info
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'10 Skyjet SJ125-23 - Crashed > '09 YBR 125 > '53 Suzuki SV650 - Died > 2010 Suzuki VanVan 125 > '87 Yamaha FZ750 Sold > VTR 1000 FireStorm - Sold > Honda CB1000R

[400bandit]

Shoes a touch cheaper here:

https://www.bikeinn.com/bike/shimano-sh-r088-white/59077/p?utm_source=google_products&utm_medium=merchant&id_producte=279453&country=uk
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Current Bikes 650 Honda Bros, VTR1000 Firestorm // Past Bikes: Sachs Madass 50/110cc - Bandit 400 - FZR750
(+ a XS650 in lots of pieces in my garage and other places...)

[400bandit]

Scratch that, nearly £6 delivery, not really worth it!
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Current Bikes 650 Honda Bros, VTR1000 Firestorm // Past Bikes: Sachs Madass 50/110cc - Bandit 400 - FZR750
(+ a XS650 in lots of pieces in my garage and other places...)

[tz250bloke]

I've got shimano m064 shoes, and can't remember which pedals, they are, but I got the lot brand new for under £100. I've got the mtb shoes purely because they are easier to walk in. They have definitely helped me on my road bike, it makes riding a lot more effecient
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[carlosthejack...]

SPD-SLs and Sidi road shoes...
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[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

SPD - SLs and Shimano shoes. Probably running them with too much float at the moment as they feel sloppy from time to time, but it could well be down to my pedalling action. Prefer flats on the MTB.
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