Are Speedplay Pedals any good?

macleod113

Hi All,
With previous issues with SPD SL's i have noticed the supposed ease of use the Speedplay (X5, Zero, Light action) type pedals.
My previous issues have always been struggling to engage at the lights (especially on an incline) quickly enough so as to not look like Bambi on ice and gettign run over.
Does anyone have any experience with Speedplays and are they worth the £100 for a basic set?
Cheers

Cubic

My Speedplay Zeros are one of the best things I've ever bought for my bike. One of the reasons I bought them was because I too struggled to clip into my Look Keos at the lights/on uphill roads etc. and the Speedplays have been a massive improvement in this respect.

There are many other benefits to them too, so, yes, I do think that they are worth the money. Just use the cleat covers to protect the cleats and they'll last for years!

jrduquemin

I have Speedplay pedals on both of my roadbikes. I have dodgy knees and find the float on them to be invaluable. Ok, they're expensive but, if looked after correctly, will last for years.

sungod

not everyone likes speedplays, but personally they're my favourite

entry is double-sided, you put your foot on the pedal and press down, as long as you line up reasonably well, the cleat will centre itself on the pedal and engage, clip-out is by rotating heel out

if you choose speedplay zero, the angles of heel-in and heel-out are independently adjustable - which i really like - and the float is free, i.e. until you reach the limit there's no spring pressure against the roatation

setting them up right is important, follow the instructions to the letter, especially the bit about how much to tighten the four cleat screws

cleat covers are an extra, walking without them gets *very* slippery, and wears the plates, make sure you get the ones to match the model of pedal, for zero it's these...

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... ction_Caps

macleod113

Thanks guys, much appreciated :-)

Headhuunter

Speedplay are supposed to be very good but they're expensive...

Wirral_paul

I've got them too - and love them. I even upgraded my S/S spindled Zero's with some very nice slightly shorter Ti spindles from the USA. Much cheaper than the Ti Speedplays, and without the pretty low weight limit of 185lb for Ti Speedplay Zeros. Mine are rated to 235lb

Cleat Eastwood

I was reading a ride report of a guy who cycled with his club over to the wirral and they stopped by the beach to have their photos taken and some sand got in his speedplays and he had trouble un-clipping - is there any truth to this - can sand/dirt mess up the clipping in/out?

marin_maniac

Cleat Eastwood wrote:

I was reading a ride report of a guy who cycled with his club over to the wirral and they stopped by the beach to have their photos taken and some sand got in his speedplays and he had trouble un-clipping - is there any truth to this - can sand/dirt mess up the clipping in/out?

Getting crap/debris in the cleats will affect clipping in. Thats why i use the cafe covers as soon as I get off the bike. Ive never had a problem clipping in.

Wirral_paul

Cleat Eastwood wrote:

I was reading a ride report of a guy who cycled with his club over to the wirral and they stopped by the beach to have their photos taken and some sand got in his speedplays and he had trouble un-clipping - is there any truth to this - can sand/dirt mess up the clipping in/out?

The release spring is in the cleat, and so if you stand in sand then of course it could cause problems. I'd hardly call that a fault of the pedals though - its asking a bit much to expect them to work perfectly after exposing them to sand in that way by walking about on the beach.

I've never had a problem and I always start off from home - with my door being 15 yards from a Wirral beach.

rpd_steve

their not that sensitive to dirt though... I don't use covers with mine and often frequent coffee stops with shingle/stone gardens and have never had any clipping in issues.

fungus_the_muffin_man

Speedplays are awesome. I've only ever had one incident where I struggled to clip in due to debris. Been fine any other time

dennisn

Cubic wrote:

There are many other benefits to them too, ......

Many other......? Please be more specific.

rpd_steve

dennisn wrote:

Cubic wrote:

There are many other benefits to them too, ......

Many other......? Please be more specific.

-very large range of float that is adjustable separately for toe in/out
-One of the lightest pedals when you include pedals and cleats
-Cleats last forever as the mechanism is not exposed when walking as with all other systems (cleats wear and float changes on look/spd-sl ect)
-one of the best q-factors (width across the outside of the pedals - this gives more ground clearance when cornering, meaning you can pedal around tighter corners)
-low stack height (the distance between your foot and the pedal axle is minimized, which reduces your foots tenancy to rotate around the pedal and feels more stable)

dennisn

RPD Steve wrote:

dennisn wrote:

Cubic wrote:

There are many other benefits to them too, ......

Many other......? Please be more specific.

-very large range of float that is adjustable separately for toe in/out
-One of the lightest pedals when you include pedals and cleats
-Cleats last forever as the mechanism is not exposed when walking as with all other systems (cleats wear and float changes on look/spd-sl ect)
-one of the best q-factors (width across the outside of the pedals - this gives more ground clearance when cornering, meaning you can pedal around tighter corners)
-low stack height (the distance between your foot and the pedal axle is minimized, which reduces your foots tenancy to rotate around the pedal and feels more stable)

Well done. You can back up what you say.
Me? I have had a set of DA pedals for about 8 years now. Have NEVER done any type
of maintainance on them other than new cleats every year or so. I would love to spend the big money on the new DA carbon model but for the life of me I can't figure out why I would want to give up on a set of pedals that have NEVER given me any reason
to curse them. To each his own.

macleod113

Wirral_Paul wrote:

I've got them too - and love them. I even upgraded my S/S spindled Zero's with some very nice slightly shorter Ti spindles from the USA. Much cheaper than the Ti Speedplays, and without the pretty low weight limit of 185lb for Ti Speedplay Zeros. Mine are rated to 235lb

Weight limit? oh pants. I am a larger gentleman shall we say. am i likely to snap my pedals if i plant 18 stone of cycling idiot on them? i've had MTB and 105 Road spd/spd sl's before with no issues but if i'm spending £100 i need to know if they are up for a challenge?

cheers

Cubic

dennisn wrote:

RPD Steve wrote:

dennisn wrote:

Cubic wrote:

There are many other benefits to them too, ......

Many other......? Please be more specific.

-very large range of float that is adjustable separately for toe in/out
-One of the lightest pedals when you include pedals and cleats
-Cleats last forever as the mechanism is not exposed when walking as with all other systems (cleats wear and float changes on look/spd-sl ect)
-one of the best q-factors (width across the outside of the pedals - this gives more ground clearance when cornering, meaning you can pedal around tighter corners)
-low stack height (the distance between your foot and the pedal axle is minimized, which reduces your foots tenancy to rotate around the pedal and feels more stable)

Well done. You can back up what you say.
Me? I have had a set of DA pedals for about 8 years now. Have NEVER done any type
of maintainance on them other than new cleats every year or so. I would love to spend the big money on the new DA carbon model but for the life of me I can't figure out why I would want to give up on a set of pedals that have NEVER given me any reason
to curse them. To each his own.

What RPD Steve said. Forgive me if I didn't reply swiftly enough to you Dennis, it was Sunday and I had other things to do. Since the OP asked specifically about Speedplay's ease of engagement, I figured it would make sense to respond to that query, rather than write about every aspect of the pedals. Maybe I was wrong?

sungod

MacLeod113 wrote:

Wirral_Paul wrote:

I've got them too - and love them. I even upgraded my S/S spindled Zero's with some very nice slightly shorter Ti spindles from the USA. Much cheaper than the Ti Speedplays, and without the pretty low weight limit of 185lb for Ti Speedplay Zeros. Mine are rated to 235lb

Weight limit? oh pants. I am a larger gentleman shall we say. am i likely to snap my pedals if i plant 18 stone of cycling idiot on them? i've had MTB and 105 Road spd/spd sl's before with no issues but if i'm spending £100 i need to know if they are up for a challenge?

cheers

only the ti ones have a specified weight limit, it's not unique to speedplay, there are other ti pedals with weight limits

speedplay's stainless steel and chromoly don't have one...

http://www.speedplay.com/index.cfm?fuse ... .zerospecs

there are track riders using speedplay, if the pedals can take their starting power then there's not much to worry about for the rest of us

macleod113

.................and breathes a huge sigh of relief. thanks

SR7492

MacLeod113 wrote:

Hi All,
With previous issues with SPD SL's i have noticed the supposed ease of use the Speedplay (X5, Zero, Light action) type pedals.
My previous issues have always been struggling to engage at the lights (especially on an incline) quickly enough so as to not look like Bambi on ice and gettign run over.
Does anyone have any experience with Speedplays and are they worth the £100 for a basic set?
Cheers

I bought my Speedplay Zero's for the same reason; and I love them.

Yes, they are expensive and yes they do need a bit of maintaining, but I now rarely have to 'look down' to cleat in and makes the ride more enjoyable instead of worrying about stopping at the lights.

Defo worth getting