SPD and Road Shoes

walkingbootweather

Apologies for a daft question.

I have always ridden with SPD pedals and mountain bike type shoes because they are easier to walk in. These don't really work too well with overshoes and since I will need a new pair of shoes I have been thinking about getting something of a more road style.

I appreciate most road shoes have different cleats and work with different pedals to what I have but I have seen some Specialized models that appear to take SPD cleats.

Does anyone out there use road shoes with spd cleats? Are they a better bet for commuting than mountain bike shoes? Can you walk in them? Do the cleats protrude and wear quickly?

Any better ideas for a commuting shoe that works with SPD cleats / pedals?

Cheers

pabsw

No I use a trainer type to commute in, bit more flexible and can walk in them, I keep my smart work shoes in a locker at work as I only use them twice a week

However, when it's wet... I also have road ones and I find them more comfy to commute in especially in the rain as they seem to hold less water

Both are made by shimano.

I have used Nike SPD trainer-type (laces and velcro) and really like them for off road etc
Also specialized off road shoes but were a bit pricey I thought.

The basic £40ish shimano road shoes would be nice, overshoes would go over them as well.they'll hold a SPD, SPD-SL clip. Clips do protrude but I walk on the grass.Wouldn't be good for anything more than 100m on concrete - you'd be hobbling and buying new cleats every month!

There is a solution though -- Cleat covers. Try ebay. not sure but Exustar make some. About £15.

pabsw

currently unavailable here but this is the kind of thing I mean...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Exustar-Cleat-C ... B001CJZC4W

dilemna

Typically road shoes are difficult to walk in as they have a much more rigid carbon or fibre glass smooth sole shell with cleats underneath on which to balance on with a couple of small areas of protective tread on the heel to grip with which minimises weight and keeps the shoe aerodynamic. I should imagine using SPDs that are typically used on MTB shoes could be done but they would be even more lethal to walk on than cleats which are typically larger and more importantly wider so you have more balance but not much more.

If you want a shoe where you can walk around pretty much as if wearing a pair of trainers then you should buy a MTB shoe which typically use SPDs as they are smaller than road cleats allowing for a sole with grips to be glued onto the underside of the shoe with the SPD cleat in the middle. You will find it nigh on impossible to fit road cleats to a MTB shoes/boots as the tread on the underside of the sole simply doesn't allow you to, but I am ready to be proved wrong as I am sure some one will have done it.

Why not go for a decent MTB shoe with SPDs and have Endura MT500 over shoes for when the weather is cold or shitty? BBB over shoes got a best buy/highly recommended in a review recently. I thought they looked suspiciouly like MT500s myself but that would be the cynic in me. If you can't beat the opposition's products, then copy them! There might be subtle differences that I have not picked up on which clearly distinguish them so I might be totally wrong.


£50 should see you with a good basic pair of MTB/commuting SPD based cycling shoes. My commuters are Shimano MT31s £30 from Merlin two years ago which are brilliant, them and Merlin. My road bike shoes are more expensive Sidis which are gorgeous and to use an anatomical analogy fit like a glove although obviously I wear them on my feet. They are so comfortable and well made. I have Endura MT500 over shoes. For really cold and sh1t weather I have a a pair of Shimano MW080 boots, but I only wear these as a last resort as they are the nuclear option. DHB (Wiggle) apparently do pretty good shoes for £50.

HTH.

Ps. Shouldn't this thread be in Buying Advice?

nation

All that distinguishes road shoes from MTB shoes is the pattern of holes for the cleats. Sometimes MTB shoes are designed to be a halfway house between trainers and bike shoes, but not always.

There are plenty of MTB shoes (mostly for XC racing) that resemble road shoes in their ridigity, the difference is that they tend to have more tread and a couple of replaceable studs in the toe so you can still hike-a-bike up a muddy slope.

For example, compare and contrast, MTB shoe:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/sidi-five-xc-mtb-shoes-2011/

Road shoe:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/sidi-five-2011-road-shoes/

If you want a competition style shoe there's no reason why it necessarily has to be road shoe. You can even put overshoes over them if that's what you need.

stevec205gti

I used to use SPD cleats on road shoes, and the engagement is a real pain the backside. On an MTB shoe as the cleat is recessed it's guided into the pedal when you try to engage it. On a road shoe there is nothing - you just have a small cleat sticking out and no guidance. With road pedals/cleats this isn't a problem as the pedal normal hangs down and the larger road cleat turns it round and locates, whereas I found that using SPD pedals and cleats there was a lot of missed engagement and foot sliding off when trying to pull off in a hurry across roundabouts, traffic lights etc. I have been using clipless pedals for 15+ years, with various designs of shoe and pedal, and using SPD pedals and Road shoes is the worst combination I have exprienced. However, as you have already mention, they were the best I have used with overshoes!

pabsw

my MTB shoes aren't that bulky. They are the basic shimano ones. model M076 . £37 from jenson.

walkingbootweather

Thanks for some great advice guys.

I currently use a trainer style mtb shoe not dissimilar to Shimano MT31. I've caught the laces in the chain a few times and felt they were a bit too bulky to wear with over shoes, so I thought a change might help.

The Sidi shoes suggested by nation look fantastic but £180 is a bit rich for me, especially for communting.

The comments made about a road shoe / spd combination being less than ideal for walking confirm my fears - thanks for that. I hadn't considered cleat covers which look like a boon to roadies but they do look like a solution for a problem than can perhaps be avoided for a humble commuter.

The best solution for me appears to be one of the lower profile (non-trainer style) mountain bike shoe with perhaps the bbb overshoes.

Apologies if I posted in the wrong place. I saw a buying advice forums in the Mountain and Road section, but since I was 'mixing disciplines' I wasn't sure quite where to post. As hoped my fellow commuters have come up trumps.
Cheers

nation

walkingbootweather wrote:

The Sidi shoes suggested by nation look fantastic but £180 is a bit rich for me, especially for communting.

I was just using them as an example to illustrate that there are plenty of "road-style" MTB shoes. I used the Sidis because they're literally the same shoe with a slightly different soles on the MTB and road versions.

These:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/dhb-m1-mtb-shoes/

are similar in style and quite highly regarded.

walkingbootweather

Thanks nation. I think these are also what dilemna mentioned. Exactly the sort of thing I was looking for, although some bloke called Speedking reckons Wiggle are trouble.....

Not my opinion you understand....

cjcp

walkingbootweather wrote:

Thanks nation. I think these are also what dilemna mentioned. Exactly the sort of thing I was looking for, although some bloke called Speedking reckons Wiggle are trouble.....

Not my opinion you understand....

I've used these on the commute and training rides for over a year, and used them for the odd cyclo-cross race. Really good VFM, very pleased with them. Will buy another pair when they go.

I used SPD-SLs for about three years, but the frequent foot-down meant they wore out quickly, so I keep those for "best" now .

Fwiw, Gore or Planet X overshoes have worked fine with these.

garrynolan

walkingbootweather wrote:

Apologies for a daft question.

I have always ridden with SPD pedals and mountain bike type shoes because they are easier to walk in. These don't really work too well with overshoes and since I will need a new pair of shoes I have been thinking about getting something of a more road style.

I appreciate most road shoes have different cleats and work with different pedals to what I have but I have seen some Specialized models that appear to take SPD cleats.

Does anyone out there use road shoes with spd cleats? Are they a better bet for commuting than mountain bike shoes? Can you walk in them? Do the cleats protrude and wear quickly?

Any better ideas for a commuting shoe that works with SPD cleats / pedals?

Cheers

Firstly - not a daft question. Anyways... I wear Shimano MO86's. Look like road shoes (with a bit of bling) and go well with overshoes. Think they're about £65.00. Got mine from CRC.

biglebowski

If you are looking for something that allows you to walk off the bike, and allow SPD compatibility on the bike, you should take a look at DZR's Range here:

http://www.alwaysriding.co.uk/manufactu ... -shoes-52/

or Chrome's Kursk SPD Shoe:

http://www.alwaysriding.co.uk/chrome-ku ... s-897.html

Both brand's shoes are designed for on and off the bike, with recessed SPD cleats and a natural walking gait.

Alternatively, the forthcoming Quoc Pham Tourer Shoe, whilst a little more expensive, is also a great choice:

http://www.alwaysriding.co.uk/quoc-pham ... k-925.html