SPD or SPD-SL for first time clipless

prhymeate

I'm having a bit of a nightmare trying to decide between SPD or SPD-SL shoes/pedals.

I often use my bike to get to and from friends houses, which is only about a 4mile ride. Other than that I might ride 30-40miles on the weekend and will probably stop for 15mins along the way to have a snack. However I'm looking to make my rides longer in the future as well as use my bike for commuting.

I purchased a pair of Shimano R087 shoes which I can use both styles of cleats on, and a pair of SPD pedals because I'm a bit worried about not being able to clip in to SPD-SL's at traffic lights (I took the toe clips off my flat pedals because it was so annoying how they'd hang bottom side up at the lights). However, I have since read that SPD cleats/pedals on what are mostly road shoes are not a good combination as the pedal is too close to the ground. Also, the Road shoes aren't that great for walking which I don't do much of, but will sometimes walk on the grass to sit on a bench if I'm cycling in Richmond Park.

I can't decide if I should just go for it and buy some SPD-SL pedals, or return the shoes and buy some Shimano M087 shoes which are just for SPD's. Any advice is much appreciated.

HoHoHoBlueGiant

I'm probably not going to help here, both have their merits.

I went from SPD's to SPD-SL. I certainly find I have to concentrate more when clipping/unclipping with SPD-SL. With the SPD's any type of action in roughly the right direction let me clip in/out.

I imagine if I was in traffic more and clipping in and out a lot I'd go SPD. I just found it easier with the pedals being double sided, and if you do miss, SPD type shoes have 'grip' which allow you to pedal even if not clipped in. SPD-SL's do tend to 'hang' the wrong side up also so flipping them is just another thing to think about. SPD's are more 'stomp and go'.

But I'm fortunate that I live close to the open countryside so on many rides I clip in once and only clip out again when I get back home.

I certainly wouldn't recommend 'road' shoes (perfectly flat, no recess) with SPD's. I tried this, absolute nightmare. Very difficuly to walk in and clipping in was a painful experince. Very difficult to guide the cleat into the pedal (no helpful recess) , caused many a bruised shin!

prhymeate

Thanks, I appreciate the reply. I think your advice regarding road shoes with SPD's is useful for me to know, I was thinking I could move from SPD to SPD-SL's without having to buy new shoes, but it looks like that might not be a good route to go down.

I currently have some road shoes and spd pedals, so I guess I either return the pedals or the shoes. haha!

simon_masterson

Until you mentioned commuting, I'd have recommended the road shoes and pedals.

It really needs to be said that the 'road' option is not what you must have and the 'MTB' one completely unsuitable, but nevertheless you may as well get the most appropriate tool for the job. I haven't used SPD-SL myself, but I continually read that that they are harder to engage and disengage than SPD pedals, which is hardly unlikely given whom they are designed for. Even if you did decide to use road shoes and pedals for commuting 'door-to'door' (i.e. not much walking to do), it limits your options - cycling is a great way to get around - and will wear your cleats down.

For that reason I would suggest that you return the road shoes and get some recessed SPD-compatible ones. You can even get such shoes styled after road shoes if you want the aesthetic; they're usually listed as 'touring' shoes.

keef66

I've got touring style shoes with spd cleats / M540 pedals on my road bike. Perfect combination as far as I'm concerned.

slowsider

I have road shoes with spd's and have been happy with them. Most of my riding is door-to-door though - but for walking to a park bench they'd be fine.

prhymeate

Thanks again for the replies everyone. I have ordered some Shimano M087 mtb shoes to compare with the road shoes that I have before sending them back. I think that for the most part, SPD's sound like the better solution for now...especially as quite a bit of my cycling is at night and would only make finding the right side of an SPD-SL pedal even trickier.

My only concern is hot spots on longer rides, I've read some people saying that they can get pretty uncomfortable after a long ride and others who say they can't even tell the difference between the two...

Gizmodo

Prhymeate wrote:

My only concern is hot spots on longer rides, I've read some people saying that they can get pretty uncomfortable after a long ride and others who say they can't even tell the difference between the two...

I think it will very much depend on the quality of the sole of your shoe - the stiffer the better. I have a friend that only rides SPD on his road bike - he is faster than me (more to do with age rather than pedals) and has done 100 mile rides without a problem.

prhymeate

Gizmodo wrote:

I think it will very much depend on the quality of the sole of your shoe - the stiffer the better. I have a friend that only rides SPD on his road bike - he is faster than me (more to do with age rather than pedals) and has done 100 mile rides without a problem.

That's good to hear, at least I can compare the Shimano R087's with the M087's before I decide to return one. Hopefully the mtb soles aren't a lot less stiff.

nolight

If you compare it like that, surely M087 will win hands down since it is designed to work with SPD pedals? R087 goes with SPD-SL and having a larger cleat contact is the main reason why it is designed with less walkability I would think.

prhymeate

nolight wrote:

If you compare it like that, surely M087 will win hands down since it is designed to work with SPD pedals? R087 goes with SPD-SL and having a larger cleat contact is the main reason why it is designed with less walkability I would think.

I just meant I'll be able to compare the stiffness of the soles and overall comfort as both shoes work with SPD pedals, although admittedly the M087 is more geared towards them.

Finlaz22

I've recently gone clipless and have SPD-SL. No problems what so ever, it becomes second nature to clip-out after a few rides. Although you can bet your horses you will fall over at some point in the beginning, just takes a second to clip-out of the wrong pedal and you're gone!

Finlaz22

I've got 105 pedals reduced from CRC and Shimano RO64 shoes for anyone who's interested. Super combo and less than £100

#david2012

I've been struggling to get along with standard spd's I must admit, but looking at a previous post i was also trying to use road shoes which were always difficult to clip back in on the move... Got myself some SPD-SL Last week and for me worked so much better! bigger platform helps a lot, yes the pedal tends to hang a little but for me a big improvement

keef66

My touring shoes aren't carbon soled or anything, but I've never experienced any discomfort or hot spots with the spd pedals. Can't recommend the model to you cos they are an old Nike shoe which you can't get now.

prhymeate

Thanks again for all the replies everyone. If I'm completely honest, I still feel unsure about which way to go though. It's a shame I can't try both and still be able to return them.

gezebo

I've both as I mountain bike and road bike. I've used SPD's on my road bike for the distances you've described. Shoe flex is a small issue but I wouldn't use that as a deal breaker.

Ease of entry/release is the same for both styles once you've got used to it. If you miss a clip on either style you can still pedal to get speed up, although it is easier with the SPD style. After a while the SPD-SL pedal generally hangs with the back of the cleat hanging down so it makes entry pretty easy even if stopping at lights.

However in your situation I would go down the SPD route with a trainer style shoe as with short commutes/rides the stiffer sole won't be noticeable and you can go to friends houses/shops/pubs and not have to remove shoes or skid around on smooth floors.

What is pointless in my option is using road shoes and SPD pedals. it's either one or the other!

alxce

I have recently got back into road cycling and gone clipless for the first time. Main considerations for me were ease of clipping in/out and being able to walk short distances without danger of slipping or falling. I went the Shimano RT32 SPD shoe and A530 pedal route and have absolutely no regrets mainly due to the recess on the shoe being perfect for the job.
I have even looked at what I would upgrade to in the future thinking that SPD-SL must be the way forward but have found little by way of justification for doing so. I can see me buying some better touring shoes next year and maybe upgrading the pedals but they will be SPD again unless I can see some valid reasons for going SPD-SL.
I have to assume these reasons exist purely because of the proliferation of SPD-SL gear in the online cycle shops, what they are is currently escaping me.

prhymeate

Maybe I should take a look at some touring shoes then. I like the look of the Shimano RT82's but I don't think they will fit me. I have tried on a Shimano R087 in a wide 49 which fitted okay, so unless the touring shoes fit differently I might be out of luck.

migrantwing

Works for me.

prhymeate

^ That is another combination I'm considering.

The M087 shoes arrived today, the sole seems almost as stiff as the road shoe but they fit tighter than the road shoe does. It's all becoming a bit of a headache to be honest, I'm tempted to just give up on the idea for now and stick with my regular shoes and flats.

964cup

MTB shoes and SPDs (or Speedplay, but that's £££). I have SPD-SL and SPD for my roadie, but only use the SL's when out of town. As others have said, clipping back in after the 87th red light is beyond irritating with SLs. Turn the clip springs down, too, since IMO it's more important to be able to unclip in a hurry than transmit maximum power.

Mountain bike shoes have a deep recess and tread around it that protrudes past the cleat so they're surprisingly easy to walk in and you don't wreck the cleat.

prhymeate

It looks like a road style/touring shoe with recessed spd cleats and a ratchet strap is what I want.

I'm going to have to go and try more sizes and styles on in store at some point. It's frustrating as I have large wide feet so they don't often stock the larger sizes. I tried the Shimano R087 size 49 wide, which fitted okay but the mountain bike version of the same shoe was tight. The only shoe I can see that might fit me and be what I want is the Specialized Elite Touring shoe, but it's £90 and I don't want to spend that much. I really like the look of the Shimano RT82 but it doesn't come in a 49 so I know it wont fit.

I've returned all the shoes and pedals that I ordered so I'm back to square one now.

slowsider

You could try second hand while you are exploring options, then spring for a new set and eBay the non-starters.

hsiaolc

I know how you feel. I have tried both system so far and I am thinking back to SPD instead of the SL. I started with spd instead SL because I was worried about SL being harder to clip in and out. After a few months I was extremely effective with the SPD but I encountered problems with hot spots and so I have decided to take a leap of faith with SL. It did solve my hot spot problem and it is more stiff.
But I feel so unsafe in them because few time when in emergency if I didn't take immediate action I would have crashed because of SL and one time in emergency braking I fall. Most importantly I am so much slower at push off from the lights because I can't clip in as fast as normal spds. I would say I am about 20 meters behind. So I am seriously thinking buying a stiffer sole spd to solve my problem but I definitely would ride in either one of the system than none.

bendertherobot

I find neither system better or more efficient. But a lot of my cycling is social. So the ability to walk is nice. So I'm using spd after years of sl

jezzpalmer

I use Shimano RT82 with A530, and Bont Vaypor with Speeplay.
And TBH while the Bont/Speedplay setup is nice, it's a bit unnecessary; the RT82 looks a bit like a road shoe (as opposed to MTB) is easy to walk in, reasonably stiff, super easy to clip/unclip, comfortable (for my feet at least) and used with the double sided A530s is super convenient if you're stopping a lot (commuting, touring, waiting for the missus to catch up).

RT82


A530

prhymeate

jezzpalmer wrote:

I use Shimano RT82 with A530, and Bont Vaypor with Speeplay.
And TBH while the Bont/Speedplay setup is nice, it's a bit unnecessary; the RT82 looks a bit like a road shoe (as opposed to MTB) is easy to walk in, reasonably stiff, super easy to clip/unclip, comfortable (for my feet at least) and used with the double sided A530s is super convenient if you're stopping a lot (commuting, touring, waiting for the missus to catch up).

RT82

These are the shoes that I definitely want to get, but when I tried a Shimano R087 I needed a 49 Wide, and the RT82 only come in a 48 Regular. I'm going to find a pair to try, but I don't have much hope.

Thanks again for the replies

CasperCCC

SPD, for sure. I've got both. M087 and R087 shoes. I've done the Dunwich Dynamo (120 miles or so) in the M087s and they were great. The R087s are slightly better when I'm actually pedalling, but it is a major pain in the arse to clip in compared to double-sided MTB pedals. I'm used to the road shoes now (Look pedals) but it is never going to be quite as easy.

prhymeate

CasperCCC wrote:

SPD, for sure. I've got both. M087 and R087 shoes. I've done the Dunwich Dynamo (120 miles or so) in the M087s and they were great. The R087s are slightly better when I'm actually pedalling, but it is a major pain in the ars* to clip in compared to double-sided MTB pedals. I'm used to the road shoes now (Look pedals) but it is never going to be quite as easy.

Do you find the M087's slightly tighter than the R087's? I felt like the toe box was a bit smaller on the M087's. I'm hoping the RT82's are slightly roomier than both because I tried a 49 Wide in the R087's and RT82's only go up to a 48 Regular.

prhymeate

In case anyone else is in the same boat I thought I'd post my end result as it's taken a couple of months to find the right set-up. I have wide feet and usually wear a size 12/13 UK shoe.

I have ended up with Specialized Elite Touring shoes, size 49. My feet feel a lot more comfortable than they did in the road and mountain bike shoes that I tried on (R087 49 wide, M087 49 wide and RT82 size 48). I have paired them with Shimano A520 pedals and together they are really comfortable to ride in. The fact that the A520 is single sided isn't an issue, it's really easy to cycle off from the traffic lights and keep pedalling until you find the right time to clip in your shoe if it doesn't happen first time. The sole of the Specialized shoes makes a big difference though so I guess it partly depends on your shoes. I currently have them set as loose as possible and they are super easy to clip out of and don't feel too loose to be cycling in. I'm pretty confident that when the time comes and I completely forget to clip out, that I'll be able to unclip before falling...I hope.

With regards to overshoes, after trying on a few pairs of neoprene shoes that did not fit (XL Planet X neoprene, Pro New Classic neoprene XXXL) I have settle on the Gore Softshell Windstoppers 48-50. They fit my size 49 touring shoes perfectly and are easy to get on and off.

Cheers for all the helpful replies, I hope this info can also help others in the future.