Help, my pedals are trying to kill me!!!

Stuey01
Stuey01 Posts: 1,273
edited June 2009 in Commuting chat
Got some new roadie disco slippers and Look Keo Sprint pedals recently. Thought I'd give them a go on the commute before going on a long ride at the weekend... NEVER AGAIN.

Trying to get clipped in away from lights and roundabouts was frightening. At one set going up hill I had to give up and pull to the side, getting going once the road was completely clear.
Back to MTB double sided SPDs for commuting from tomorrow.
Not climber, not sprinter, not rouleur

Comments

  • Rich158
    Rich158 Posts: 2,348
    Amen to that brother, I use SPD SL's and have had exactly the same experience, the first time I used them in London I scared myself witless :shock:
    pain is temporary, the glory of beating your mates to the top of the hill lasts forever.....................

    Revised FCN - 2
  • lost_in_thought
    lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
    :lol:

    I know the feeling. You'll get used to them, but I still prefer my SPDs for the commute.
    FCN 7/1
    Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
  • il_principe
    il_principe Posts: 9,155
    MTFU.

    That is all.
  • Rich158
    Rich158 Posts: 2,348
    lost_in_thought wrote:
    :lol:

    I know the feeling. You'll get used to them, but I still prefer my SPDs for the commute.

    No you won't :wink:

    I've been trying on and off for most of this year and they still scare me shitless on a regular basis :shock: Either that or as Il Principe says I need to MTFU :oops:
    pain is temporary, the glory of beating your mates to the top of the hill lasts forever.....................

    Revised FCN - 2
  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,714
    I love my SPD-SLs, but I will never wear them for the commute. They're awful in traffic.
  • Gazzaputt
    Gazzaputt Posts: 3,227
    For commuting you need double sided pedals such as Speedplays or Crank Brothers.
  • biondino
    biondino Posts: 5,990
    Crank Bros Eggbeaters are 4-sided so all you ever have to do is put your foot down and *click* you're in. They're a godsend on the commute, and excellent for 70-mile rides (and probably longer, but I haven't done any longer ones yet - this will change in the next fortnight!).
    My Focus / My Bob Jackson
    Blog (incl. bikes)
  • Roastie
    Roastie Posts: 1,968
    Eggbeaters über alles for the commute.

    Personally I think single sided road pedals are a liability on the commute, unless you are *extremely* well practiced at clipping in swiftly.
    David
    Engineered Bicycles
  • girv73
    girv73 Posts: 842
    I'm just getting used to SPDs on my commute. No "clipless moments" on the road yet, but I did nearly have one at a sportive on Sunday past - just at the start line, nearly very embarrassing.

    I've double sided M424 ones with flat cages as well as SPD clips, set to the loosest tension. They're pretty easy to clip in and out of I've found. I wouldn't fancy single sided ones!
    Today is a good day to ride
  • Ridg
    Ridg Posts: 98
    +1 for SPDs

    I used road pedals for one trip before switching them over to my old 520s, it's not the clipping in and out that I found hard, but the fact you can't walk on road shoes, fair enough if you're racing or won't have to walk with your bike, but i had visions of falling up or down the train station steps, recessed cleats 4TW

    the other problem i found with road pedals was, if you end up with the shoe on the wrong side, your foot just slides off, at least on double sided pedals you can still pedal without being clipped in
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    girv73 wrote:
    I've double sided M424 ones with flat cages as well as SPD clips, set to the loosest tension. They're pretty easy to clip in and out of I've found. I wouldn't fancy single sided ones!

    Ooh. I wanted them originally but was not able to find them cheap enough! How are they when you've just got normal trainers on? Is there a funny lump in the middle?
    4537512329_a78cc710e6_o.gif4537512331_ec1ef42fea_o.gif
  • girv73
    girv73 Posts: 842
    I'll let you know. They were fine in my MT51 boots before I fitted the cleats, but I've yet to try them in regular shoes.
    Today is a good day to ride
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Cheers :)

    I can pedal into town on the SPD pedals in normal trainers, but it's not very comfy. Thankfully my SPD shoes are comfy (and kinda geek-chic..) so it's not a biggie.
    4537512329_a78cc710e6_o.gif4537512331_ec1ef42fea_o.gif
  • Stuey01
    Stuey01 Posts: 1,273
    Sarajoy, I've got the metal caged shimano spd ones on my MTB. They do have a lump under your foot when using with normal shoes, and they are nowhere near as grippy as a proper flat pedal, but they are a definite improvement over pedaling on normal little spd's in flat shoes.

    m520's going back on the bianchi tonight, I'll save the Look Keo's for the weekends when I'm out in the country or zipping round Richmond Park.
    Not climber, not sprinter, not rouleur
  • prawny
    prawny Posts: 5,440
    I've got M424's on my MTB you can use them ok with normal trainers, I did the other week when I came to work on the train. It was raining too and I didn't shin myself or anything.

    You can definately feel the lump though, if you were going to use them alot without proper shoes I'd probably buy some cheap flatties and a good pedal spanner.

    I used to ride in regular trainers on tioga clipmans - that was scary in the wet :shock:
    Saracen Tenet 3 - 2015 - Dead - Replaced with a Hack Frame
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    Vitus Sentier VRS - 2017
  • cjcp
    cjcp Posts: 13,345
    SPD-SLs for everything. :)
    FCN 2-4.

    "What happens when the hammer goes down, kids?"
    "It stays down, Daddy."
    "Exactly."
  • salsarider79
    salsarider79 Posts: 828
    cjcp wrote:
    SPD-SLs for everything. :)

    I learnt how to trackstand which helps. I treat my commute as any other bike ride. I also ride single speed round Bath..... :wink:

    p.s. :roll: MTFU
    jedster wrote:
    Just off to contemplate my own mortality and inevitable descent into decrepedness.
    FCN 3 or 4 on road depending on clothing
    FCN 8 off road because I'm too old to go racing around.
  • girv73
    girv73 Posts: 842
    @sarajoy I'll back up what prawny and Stuey01 said about the M424s - they're OK in normal shoes, but you can definitely feel the clip lump.
    Today is a good day to ride
  • PBo
    PBo Posts: 2,493
    shimano M324 - spd clip one side, and platform the other.

    I would say that the clip presents itself correctly 95% of the time, and I soon learned to feel that the wrong side was up, and flip it the other 5%. At least with mountain bike shoes, it doesn't matter if the pedal is the wrong way round for a few seconds, because a cage also surrounds the spd mechanism, so you have grip like on a normal pedal. (also, not a disaster if in normal trainers and get clip side instead of platform side)

    PBo
  • Stuey01
    Stuey01 Posts: 1,273
    Right. m520's back on this morning and normal service resumed.

    On closer inspection I think there may be something up with the left Look pedal that is making this situation much worse than it could be.

    Basically - if I turn the right hand pedal to face upwards, it stays there, the bearings are smooth enough for it to spin nicely when pedalling but not so free that the heavier back end of the pedal dangles down.
    The Left pedal spins super freely and will not sit level, it hangs down with the heavier rear of the pedal toward the floor, to the point that it is even flipped over past vertical. So I bascially have to flip the pedal over and then get my cleat in before it hangs back down again.

    This presents me with a problem because I always unclip the left pedal when stopping in traffic.

    Any idea how to resolve this?
    Not climber, not sprinter, not rouleur
  • Deadeye Duck
    Deadeye Duck Posts: 419
    I've found the same thing happening to my m520s. When I first got them, they were smooth to move, but not slack enough to move of their own accord. Had them less than a week and they're already getting noticibly slacker. especially my right, as thats the foot I unclip at junctions. I tihnk they're just stiff because they haven't been used under load, and then slacken off a bit because they have been used under load. Kind of like breaking them in. They still dont move of their own accord, but they're definitely a bit slacker than when I got them last week.

    I always thought that with SPD-SLs, clipping in would be easier, because theres a big hook at the front of your cleat and a gaping hole in the pedal. simply put hook through hole and push forward and down, done.

    However, I'm guessing it doesn't actually work like that though?
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  • secretsam
    secretsam Posts: 5,120
    girv73 wrote:
    I'm just getting used to SPDs on my commute. No "clipless moments" on the road yet

    Blimey, that's pretty good going. I've had 2 comedy falling sideways moments, both actually far from funny:
    1. Towing trailer with 3 y.o. daughter on board, stopped 'cos she was upset and couldn't unclip...and over I go. Scared her sh!tless, needless to say...

    2. Yesterday, coming up a hill out of Stoke Mandeville station, junction at crest of hill, didn't get out in time...and over we go.

    Both times I fell over I was lucky there was no traffic behind/beside, etc. Both hurt. I've got a dicky back so sudden impact like that is far from funny if it sets the old war wound off...

    Am sorely tempted to go back to clips and straps. :evil:
    It's just a hill. Get over it.
  • prawny
    prawny Posts: 5,440
    I assumed the back was supposed to dangle down, so you hook the front of the cleat in first then press down.

    Slight caveat - I have never used roadie pedals :oops:
    Saracen Tenet 3 - 2015 - Dead - Replaced with a Hack Frame
    Voodoo Bizango - 2014 - Dead - Hit by a car
    Vitus Sentier VRS - 2017
  • secretsam
    secretsam Posts: 5,120
    girv73 wrote:
    I'll let you know. They were fine in my MT51 boots before I fitted the cleats, but I've yet to try them in regular shoes.

    I've got these

    They're fine like that, but the clippy gubbins sticks out so feels a bit funny
    It's just a hill. Get over it.
  • Deadeye Duck
    Deadeye Duck Posts: 419
    prawny wrote:
    I assumed the back was supposed to dangle down, so you hook the front of the cleat in first then press down.

    Slight caveat - I have never used roadie pedals :oops:
    I just said the same thing. Glad I'm not alone :lol:
    I think it's one of those need to try it to understand things.
    Schwinn Fastback Comp : FCN 5
    The Flying Scot : FCN 515q6cuv.png
    My Life, My Bike & My Xbox
  • ris
    ris Posts: 392
    rode with spuds for the first time in ages today and i'll be very happy to go back to -sl's for my commute tomorrow.

    i now find spd-sl' easier to get into, out of and much more stable.

    i still can't get them on going uphill though! :D

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