The BEST pedals? Look, Simano, Time, Speedplay?

petemadoc

Which pedals are the best. No budget in mind, just want the best pedals for long rides and would like to hear peoples good and bad experiences. Currently using shimano SPD's, good for MTBing but want some "proper" road pedals.

The usual suspects seem to be

Shimano 105, ultegra, DA

Look Keo classic, max2 carbon

Time i-click, RXS, racer

Speedplay, they all look the same, the nanograms better be good for £500 :shock:

any other suggestions welcome

Pokerface

I've been riding Look pedals (Keo Max) for a few years now, but while I think they are OK, they don't last.

Next time I think I'd go for Dura Ace pedals (SS version for durability over the new carbon ones).

emx

PeteMadoc wrote:

Which pedals are the best.

There is no 'best' - there is only personal preference. They will all do the job well enough. The only limiting factor on all these pedal systems is the rider they are attached to.

rc856

I've been riding Time for years and my current set of RXS carbon since about 2004 without any problems (touch wood)

chrishd883

EMX wrote : "There is no 'best' - there is only personal preference. They will all do the job well enough. The only limiting factor on all these pedal systems is the rider they are attached to."

+1

My experience is limited to MTB SPD's and Look Keo's.

Done 100 mile rides on both systems - no difference.

Although when I need to clip in and out often, I still find the SPD's easier.

rajMAN

EMX is right, there is no "best" each pedal has different characteristics which suit different people.

I have just switched from using LOOK for 20+ years to Speedplay Zero's and so far I would not go back! £500 for Nanograms - completely OTT.

sungod

it's personal choice

my choice is speedplay zero, bit fiddly to set up initially, and if not done right things can come loose, but with careful fitting they're fine, and the freedom to easily adjust heel in/out to get it just right for my knees is worth it

if you don't need the fine adjustment, then i'd say go for a more traditional road pedal

imho shoe choice is more important for long ride comfort

petemadoc

Yeah I know there isn't a BEST pedal as such. Just interesting to hear different opinions. I was thinking of getting some Look Keo's but then after looking at loads of fancy bikes in the your bikes section lots seem to be using speedplay.

@ rajMAN , you say you've switching from look to speedplay and wouldn't go back, any particular reason?

Just trying to weigh up the pro's and cons of each

rajMAN

With the original Look pedals (Delta) cleat style, I always used top of the range without issues etc. Then when the Keo range appeared I bought a cheap pair of Keo Easy pedals' which i found ok but a bit rattley(spelling). fancied a change and have always been keen on the small size of Speedplays, so took the plunge with Stainless zero's.

Initial setup bit fiddley and first few rides was a bitch to clip in. First few goes out of the saddle and its like your on ice, but a few rides later I find them perfect and to be honest once riding I can't tell any difference whats under my carbon sole. I love the float of them and they seem more natural! I do find them even easier than Look's to clip in to and very solid like your properly connected to the pedal/crank. With the cheap Look's I could rattle the cleat about so there was a lack of solid connection.

Keep the cleats as clean as possible and a bit of maintenance with re-greasing now and again. The coffee covers are great if you need them.

It is early days but overall I have no intention of going back to Look or any other more traditional pedal. I know some people who have gone onto Speedplay because of knee issues but that wasn't the case for me, I just fancied a change and they look great too.

yaya

Tried road pedals and shoes and decided to stay with MTB pedals

Got XTR's on both bikes, same shoes, same cleats...

Work for me...

steelem

had used Keo for years - last year i built up a new bike & was looking for new pedals so gave Speedplay a chance thru the good reports i had seen - 2 rides & that was it they was on ebay they felt horrible could nt get any force behind my pedalling so that was it back with Keo Carbon & love em.

hopper1

I've spent years riding Shimano SPD-SL's. Recently, I was considering treating myself to some new carbon DA SPD-SL's, but thought that before I splashed the cash on them, I would give Speedplays a trial...
Bought a set of the stainless Zero's and was instantly impressed... Double sided, for easy clipping in, loads of float available (though I don't need it!), variety of colours...
I now have three sets, two of which are Ti

Before you make your mind up, get some off ebay/classifieds, see how you like them, then shell out the big bucks on your preferred system...

Heavenfire

I've just returned from our friendly local Evans, where I bought my first road shoes (Shimano RO87) and pedals - Ultegra 6700. I was going to get Look Keo 2 Max (incredible price of £69.99 right now at www.welovestorck.com) but the colour didn't look right. As has been observed here before, the white is an off-white and already looks dirty, whereas the graphite just didn't look right against the colour of the new ultegra chainset. The Keo Carbon in black looked great, but £121! So for me it had to be the Ultegras. Heavier by 25g per pedal than the LK2M, but beautiful and well-made.

MrChuck

As above, pick your price point and the ones you like and off you go, I'd be very surprised if there's any significant objective difference between any of the big names.

I've got Shimano 105s which I'm perfectly happy with- I chose them because everything else on my bike is 105, which is as good a reason as any when talking about pedals I think!

northpole

I have 7800 s/s dura ace pedals on one bike and look carbon/ titanium pedals on another.

The looks spin easier and I use them with my better shoes which may distort my perception!

Main difference I find is that the dura ace are much easier to clip into. I have been using them much longer but for commuting/ riding in town stop/ start between lights (for those of us who do that!!) they work much better for me. Looks have a better clip out but it's the clipping in where I notice the biggest difference.

Out on the road, I prefer the looks.

Peter

pastey_boy

all the systems mentioned are good. after trying many i have settled on speedplays as my rides usually involve lots of unclipping and speedplays are by far the easiest pedals to get in to quickly, they're very light too. crank brothers quattros are superb too and their road cleat is easy to walk in, i have no idea why they stopped making them.

JRooke

I don't think these type of topics really have a correct answer, total person preference, I would never use anything but speedplays ever again and am completely confused why other pedals even exist, but I've got exceptionally strong riding friends who absolutely hate them. Spend over £100 on pedals and your never really going to be disappointed.

carl_p

I bought some used Speedplay X2s off Ebay 2 years ago and they are still going strong. Clipping in and out couldn't be easier. The only think I would say is you need to be careful where you walk. Get them clogged with mud or grit and you won't be able to clip in.

They are rediculously expensive for such a simple design though.

pastey_boy

another speedplay warning is never get sand in them. i did and i could not clip out, twas a hairy moment.

mrushton

[quote="raj £500 for Nanograms - completely OTT.[/quote]

Cheapskate! You should have got those new ones at £700 that are for 'race days only' acc. to Speedplay as they are not designed to last!!!!!

rajMAN

I hope the Marketing bods dont run with that one, MASSIVE prices for "race day only" bits and bobs!!....... don't forget its "not built to last" Didn't Reggie Perrin try that one?

petemadoc

rajMAN wrote:

With the original Look pedals (Delta) cleat style, I always used top of the range without issues etc. Then when the Keo range appeared I bought a cheap pair of Keo Easy pedals' which i found ok but a bit rattley(spelling). fancied a change and have always been keen on the small size of Speedplays, so took the plunge with Stainless zero's.

Initial setup bit fiddley and first few rides was a ***** to clip in. First few goes out of the saddle and its like your on ice, but a few rides later I find them perfect and to be honest once riding I can't tell any difference whats under my carbon sole. I love the float of them and they seem more natural! I do find them even easier than Look's to clip in to and very solid like your properly connected to the pedal/crank. With the cheap Look's I could rattle the cleat about so there was a lack of solid connection.

Keep the cleats as clean as possible and a bit of maintenance with re-greasing now and again. The coffee covers are great if you need them.

It is early days but overall I have no intention of going back to Look or any other more traditional pedal. I know some people who have gone onto Speedplay because of knee issues but that wasn't the case for me, I just fancied a change and they look great too.

Great post

It's great to hear the other opinions too, I think I'm torn between speedplay and look so may try out a scond hand ebay set first. I was telling my neighbour about my pedal dilema today and you should have see his face when I told him they cost over £100 . . . . for a set of pedals only :shock: you forget how daft the prices are, but then he spends £££ on fishing rods, so eah to their own I guess.

Any more opinions on look and speedplay or anything else much appreciated

paul64

I rode Look Delta then Ken (the script always looks like that to me more than it does Keo!) for a long time, then I tried Time iClic last year, gave up after 6 months and now ride Speedplay Zero.

I have noticed no difference in performance or comfort and did not expect to. I can't say I really noticed any difference in unclipping either except when a cleat was loose and that could happen to any system. I changed from Keo to iClic because I was fed up trying to re-clip after stopping at junctions and traffic lights. I changed from iClic to SP Zero because I was fed up with Time cleats cracking, a truly appalling design in my opinion, the Time cleats do not properly sit over the shoe soles, there is overhang which can't be good. Time changed the cleat design due to broken returns but the latter were the ones I broke. If you look at a shop display Time's own shoes still don't support the cleats 100%. They need to rethink.

SP seem as good as the others. I haven't seen a single other user when stopping at places like Box Hill for a cakestop. I like the adjustment options on the soleplates and I like the double-sided clipping in which is why I changed to SP and not back to Look. They're not cheap though.

rajMAN

Pedals are a bit like saddles, there is no "Best" its what suits one doesn't suit another.

I always found with the older style Look pedals I wore out the left pedal bearings (unclipping) while the right pedal was fine. I am curious to see over the coming months how the SP's stand upto the same wear. With the SP's its not so much clipping in as just placing the foot on the pedal and pushing down as it clips in. I have found it possible to pedal without being properly clipped in, like when your getting across a junction quickly. Whereas with the Looks it was always possible(not often) to flounder badly as the sole of the shoe just slipped over the pedal with a corresponding sound of plastic scraping on metal!!

emx

paul64 wrote:

there is overhang which can't be good. Time changed the cleat design due to broken returns but the latter were the ones I broke. If you look at a shop display Time's own shoes still don't support the cleats 100%. They need to rethink.

overhang is not a consideration - I've had it on Look and Time systems. As long as all three cleat bolts are secure, there is no practical issue.

antikythera

And now for something completely different. Always considered these my secret weapon. They may not have the bling factor of uber-pricey carbon tat, but...

light as... even without unobtainium materials and marketing gimmicks. I use the titanium axle version and they are seriously light. (I haven't compared against recent gimmicks, but this was true the last time I checked.)

They feel absolutely planted and secure, the large contact area provides amazing power transfer, especially if you don't have super stiff carbon soled shoes.

And as an added bonus, you can use them like platform pedals (when you have too)

Oh and I still have and use the first pair of cleats that I bought over 10 years ago. Yes they look manky and I'm think about replacing them coz I can, but they still work as good as ever. Can't even say that about steel SPD's

paul64

emx wrote:

paul64 wrote:

there is overhang which can't be good. Time changed the cleat design due to broken returns but the latter were the ones I broke. If you look at a shop display Time's own shoes still don't support the cleats 100%. They need to rethink.

overhang is not a consideration - I've had it on Look and Time systems. As long as all three cleat bolts are secure, there is no practical issue.

You may be right, there is a problem though and it certainly baffled my LBS. Time couldn't give assurance it was being sorted. They were rather, err, French about it all.

captain_tiara

I really like my Time RXS pedals. Have had absolutely no problem with them since I started using them 1 1/2 years ago.

A good article comparing them with speedplays is;
http://www.bikesportmichigan.com/featur ... dals.shtml

bendertherobot

I bought these when they were, IIRC, £40 on CRC



PD670 which are, basically, Ultegra level.

So good I bought two pairs, couldn't see the need for Dura Ace.

They work well for me. And, rather luckily, I don't wear through Shimano cleats like I did with Look.

T.C.

Pete, i've had the original Look since i started, i have thought of changing many a time, but always thought better the devil you know.

petemadoc

OK so I've just picked up some speedplays from CRC in their "private" sale for £79

I will report back. Hopefully it'll help with my dodgy knees too