What pedals to buy?

MartAstur

I have just ordered a Boardman Team Carbon (the wife is going to kill me when she finds out) but have read it comes with basic flat pedals that should be changed for clip in pedals. Can anyone suggest a decent (but not too expensive) pedal. I have just started riding and have been using an old road bike with thick tires. I changed the pedals on this bike for Shimano PDA 530 because they can easily be used clipped or unclipped which is very useful when going on recreational rides with the kids when I just have trainers on. However, the new bike I will only use for training and serious rides. I have one pair of touring 2 bolt cleat shoes so should I stick with SPD pedals or buy SPD-SL?
Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Anonymous

I have shimano Spd-SLs and love them, but they need 3 bolt shoes. If you only have 2 bolt touring shoes then stick with the pedals you have.

I find SPD-SLs are fine for use with trainers for pottering as they have quite a large platform anyway.

MartAstur

Thanks, I am tempted to go for SPD - SL but the thought of the extra cost in having to buy another pair of shoes is a little off putting. Guess my cheapest option is buy another set of what I put on the other bike.
Good to know that the SPD-SL can be used with trainers too

Anonymous

For shoes - I have shimano R077 which are fine, but also the R-087 (or R086) can be pricematched or bought cheaply online

alihisgreat

Having used both SPDs and SPD-SLs my vote goes for SPD-SLs.

They just feel much better on the bike -> more stable and secure... and more comfortable if you're not shelling out for top-end super-stiff shoes.

rolf_f

Stick to SPDs. M520s online for £20 inc cleats.

If you've got on OK with them up til now, all things being equal you'll be happy with what you have. If you find that they aren't comfortable on longer rides (assuming the road bike is for longer rides!) then you can try road pedals and you've only lost £20 (and not even that as a pair of 520s and spare cleats are always worth having for emergencies!). The road pedals represent a much larger investment which you might simply not notice any benefits from.

I have one road bike with 520s on and one with Keo Blades. The Keos are better but I can happily do 100 miles on the spds and not once think that the ride would be more enjoyable if I had the road pedals on.

jameses

^ What he said.
SPD-SL's are nicer to ride (IMO), but you're not really going to notice a significant difference over SPD's for now. Nothing that would justify the £50-60 you would have to spend on a half decent pair of road shoes, anyway.

kayo74

If you have the cash then Speedplay all the way for me. Best I've ever used.

Peddle Up!

kayo74 wrote:

If you have the cash then Speedplay all the way for me. Best I've ever used.

I'd echo that comment. If you're not sure which pedals to go for, why not grab a cheap set off eBay and try them out?

MartAstur

Thanks all for the useful feedback!
After reading all your comments I think I will put the PDA 530's I have on the new bike and buy some cheap SPD's for the old bike. There seems to be a general feeling that the SPD-SL's are better and I am not that wild about the SPD`s so a set of SPD-SL's are going on the Christmas list along with a pair of shimano R077's. Speedplay will have to wait until my birthday
Thanks again!

Anonymous

Look at R 087 and R 086 as they have ratchet straps whereas the 077 are velcro only. Better for getting a perfect fit and adjusting on the go

Wacky Racer

kayo74 wrote:

If you have the cash then Speedplay all the way for me. Best I've ever used.

I hope so. After a great deal of deliberation I took the plunge yesterday. I've yet to use them, and boy they are smaller than I realised, they look so much bigger in photographs. Will fit them before the weekend and see how I go. I'm interested in knowing how others manage their cleats, they look vulnerable.

JamesB5446

Ignoring Rule#34 I had Egg Beaters on my road bike. They were ok until I lost a cleat bolt and the cleat just span in the sole of the shoes rather than unclipping.

Got some Look Keos now.

Peddle Up!

Wacky Racer wrote:

kayo74 wrote:

If you have the cash then Speedplay all the way for me. Best I've ever used.

I hope so. After a great deal of deliberation I took the plunge yesterday. I've yet to use them, and boy they are smaller than I realised, they look so much bigger in photographs. Will fit them before the weekend and see how I go. I'm interested in knowing how others manage their cleats, they look vulnerable.

Don't worry about that, they work well. You might find them a bit stiff to begin with, so give a little twist when you clip in. The cleats look vulnerable, but they're pretty tough being made of metal. I use "Coffee Covers" if I think I'm going to be walking on gravel etc., when you might get stones jammed in the cleats, otherwise just take reasonable care.

simon_masterson

You have NOTHING to lose in opting for SPDs.

I get it, but the whole 'can't use it if it doesn't have 'road' in the name/does have 'MTB in the name' thing that seems to occupy many of today's newbie cyclists (and others for that matter) is silly.

I also feel the need to point out, as I always do, that flat pedals with clips and straps (which is what your bike is likely to come with) are great as well.

But when my next bike joins my stable (within the next decade if I'm lucky ), I think I'll be wanting Speedplays, since the bike will be a 'no concessions to commuting' sort of machine. I like the look of them, though they ain't cheap...

Gizmodo

As a compromise take a look at Shimano PD-A520 - SPD so you don't need to buy new shoes, but they are a touring pedal so they have more support than the M540/M540 and look more like a road bike pedal than a MTB one. I used them for a while before buying a new bike and gave them to a friend who is still using them 12 months later.