Pedal & Shoe Advice

Steve_b77

I'm going to be picking up my new road bike in a week or so, the only quandry I have is what to do on the pedal front.

I'm not going to be using the pedals & toe straps that come with the bike as I ride clipless on my MTB's and commuter bike.

Is there any point in getting proper road type pedals and shoes, or should I just get some more MTB style SPD pedals?

Are there any advantages of SPD-SL's over SPD's, more support under foot or anything?

Will having SPD-SL's pose any knee based problems or do they offer the same kind of float levels as SPD's?

Shoes are simple as I've got Specialized BG Sport MTB ones, so I'd either get the road version of these or if I'm feeling flush the model with the rachet buckle.

58585

SPD style work fine, no problem at all. You will get a lot of people telling you that road pedals have "a better power transfer due to a larger contact area"; take it with a pinch of salt.
If you are planning to buy new shoes then go for road pedals, if not, spd are fine.
The biggest difference with road pedals is the size of the cleat, which makes walking more than very short distances impractical.
If you want a recommendation on road pedals, try and find a close out deal on look keo's, they have brought out a new version so you might be able to get a good price for the old type, which are bullet proof.

akcc05

I have a pair of XT pedals on my roadie, I have also used look keos before and I don't feel any differences, even on 60, 70 mile rides. Most MTB shoes are not as stiff as road shoes but a pair of XC race carbon shoes would solve that (I ride with a pair of Mavic Fury XC), besides you get to watch your buddies walk funny in cake stops. To be absolutely honest, the only difference in performance is that you get less cornering clearance with MTB pedals, which is only a big deal if you race crits or ride up alpine hairpins. Hope this helps.

Monty Dog

I've ridden the Tour of Flanders - all 270km of it in a pair of SPDs - it was muddy that year- and I use SPDs for commutes, cross and quite a few winter rides, but the small cleat area never feels as positive as a road cleat - I can feel my foot rocking and I have a foot pull-out before too. Nothing quite gives the feel of being 'connected' as a decent road pedal and shoe - a pair of carbon-soled Northwaves and Time pedals are my weapon of choice.

pianoman

Nothing quite gives the feel of being 'connected' as a decent road pedal and shoe

Which proves it's each to one's own. Personally I have no problem with a small pedal (Wellgo RC-715) and I've not noticed any speed drop-off since switching from Diadora road shoes with Look Keos to my current setup which includes a pair of SIDI Dominators.

Also, the Wellgos are even lighter than most of the Keo range!

othello

Get some Shimano A520 SPD pedals and use your existing MTB shoes.

The A520 have a large foot support area, making them less prone to foot 'hot spots' on long rides. I use my MTB shoes with them and they work fine. They are one-sided which takes some getting used to when you expect to be able to click in from any side!

fungus_the_muffin_man

SPEEDPLAY

All the benifits of both double sided mtb type clipping in and the largfe surface area of a roadie system.
Plus its much cooler 8)

zedders

Fungus The Muffin Man wrote:

SPEEDPLAY

All the benifits of both double sided mtb type clipping in and the largfe surface area of a roadie system.
Plus its much cooler 8)

+1.
I have had look keos, and moved over to speedplay about 6 months ago. They work great (after messing about setting them up), and aren't too expensive IMO. £80 for pedals and cleats!

pianoman

Well I wouldn't know about Speedplays but both them and the Wellgo RC-715's surely prove that it's possible to have road pedals that don't require a large contact area. After all, Fabian Cancellara uses Speedplays and he doesn't exactly struggle does he?

akcc05

PianoMan wrote:

Well I wouldn't know about Speedplays but both them and the Wellgo RC-715's surely prove that it's possible to have road pedals that don't require a large contact area. After all, Fabian Cancellara uses Speedplays and he doesn't exactly struggle does he?

I have never seen Wellgo RC-715 but as for Speedplays, they don't have small contact area, look at the size of the cleats. Some bike guru once said "you either have a large cleat area or a large pedal". I think he meant for road use. Speedplay clearly is the former. Also the locking mechanism of speedplay pedals are in the cleats, not the pedal itself, which is why they are expensive to replace once worn from walking.

pianoman

http://www.wellgo.com.tw/product.asp?ca ... &offset=10

Go to the bottom of that page and you'll see them.

akcc05

They do look pretty neat, thanks PianoMan. Since I'm quite a committed SPD man and a big fan of Shimano products, I'm quite tempted by a prototype Ultegra level spd road pedals that I saw here in an Interbike or Eurobike or whateverbike report. See link:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/photos/on-show-interbike-2009-part-5/89215
Thought it might interest fellow spd users.

pianoman

Actually I chose these because I'm nothing if not a stickler for detail, and because my bike has Campag groupset, wheels, seatpost AND water bottles :!: I wouldn't let one shred of Shimano touch it.

No doubt others who use Dura-Ace would feel the same about using a Campag Record seatpost

As for the pedals, you can get something similar from Ritchey or Exustar to name two. That's what's great about seeing everyone make "everyone else's products" - it's creating competition and (one would hope) driving the prices down a little. Did anyone really think five years ago that you would be able to buy Mavic PEDALS?

akcc05

Total repsect!!! There is no need for rivalry between committed Campy and Shimano users. I have an Ultegra 6700 groupset apart from a 6600 Cassette, crank and a Dura Ace chain (6700 Wheelset on order). I also have finishing kit from Shimano-owned Pro components. There are bits of Bontrager but that's because it's a Trek. I don't like to have European components on my bike which is quite fortunately much cheaper than having an Italian-only bike.
If I could I would like to have an Anchor, a Japanese domestic market only bike brand that no one has heard of, it's Bridgestone rebranded. Check this out:
http://www.anchor-bikes.com/bikes/2010rnc7eq.html
A beautifully made lugged steel frame.

rake

is it a model w.

Steve_b77

THose Wellgo's look good.

I've got the MTB pedals at the top of the page and they're hella light

Monty Dog

Quote: Did anyone really think five years ago that you would be able to buy Mavic PEDALS?

Err, yes because they used to sell some about 20 years ago (based on a Look design)!

I also have a pair of those Wellgo pedals, which I use on a commuter bike, but like many pedals of this type, they use a bushing rather than a bearing and wear out in time. If you want a really neat, compact road pedal, look at the Ritchey WCS single-sided SPD pedals.

Steve_b77

After the recommedations of the Wellgo RC-715's I've searched and only found them on ebay for £40.

Now you can get the RC-713's off there for £32, but I found THESE today in Decathalon, now someone tell me they're not Wellgo RC-713's branded as b'Twin's for £19.99

pianoman

Yes you would be right, they are RC-713's, they're 312g.

Of course you can shave 54g off by picking the 715's - and that's rotating weight too at a position of reasonable inertia (end of pedal cranks).

Proof that you CAN have the practicality of SPD pedals even if you won't let the seven-letter S word anywhere near your bike

Steve_b77

Well as my bike will have a full Ultegra 6600 gruppo I might have to go down the Shimano pedal route

Either that or get the Wellgo's and not give a hoot