Suitable decent road shoe compatible with Speedplay Zero

sharifgh

Hi All

I have just bought some Speedplay Zero pedals and am looking for some decent road shoes that are compatible with the pedals. I have seen the Lake CX road shoes and other brands recommended on the Lake website. I was looking for ones that would not require the speedplay adapter which would add height to the shoe (based on Evanscycle staff opinion).

Your opinions and guidance would be appreciated

Thanks

mattbass789

Any shoe with a three bolt pattern (look, SPD-SL etc) will be able to take speedplay pedals, with the use of an adapter plate. Obviously this adds on a few MM to stack height, which some people say is a bad thing. In all honesty, it might change the feel somewhat and might cause you to raise your saddle a few MM.

Sidi, Lake and DMT are the only ones that spring to mind that offer SP compatible soles. I think northwave might too. Generally, because of the high price of speedplays, shoes with compatible soles tend to be similarly high priced so are of high quality and build etc. can't go wrong in that case.

macleod113

I ride with speedplay zero's and have Shimano R-087's with no fancy adapter kits needed. they were reasonably priced and are comfy (about £60).

Anonymous

MacLeod113 wrote:

I ride with speedplay zero's and have Shimano R-087's with no fancy adapter kits needed. they were reasonably priced and are comfy (about £60).

Anyone have a link to speedplay specific Shimano's?

Cleat Eastwood

Speedplay have a helpful list with info on what fore and aft shims to use

here

Anonymous

Cleat Eastwood wrote:

Speedplay have a helpful list with info on what fore and aft shims to use

here

Cheers for that. Could not see any four bolt pattern Shimano shoes listed though.

Wheelspinner

I have some DMT ones with Speedplay specific soles, which are really nice. Only caveat is the ventilation on hot days is not the best I've used, but otherwise would recommend them any day.

mpatts

Cleat Eastwood wrote:

Speedplay have a helpful list with info on what fore and aft shims to use

here

They do indeed. I have them on my LG shoes.

Anonymous

MacLeod113 wrote:

I ride with speedplay zero's and have Shimano R-087's with no fancy adapter kits needed. they were reasonably priced and are comfy (about £60).

So do the R-087's have 4 bolt holes in them?

pilot_pete

I would be extremely surprised if you could feel a difference in pedalling using Speedplay Zeros and a 3 hole shoe...I certainly couldn't when I fitted mine. You will be better off getting a comfortable shoes that fits correctly and some quality moulded insoles, be the shoe 3 hole or 4.

PP

Peddle Up!

For what it's worth I use Specialized (three hole) shoes with my SpeedPlays. Works well.

Wirral_paul

Pilot Pete wrote:

I would be extremely surprised if you could feel a difference in pedalling using Speedplay Zeros and a 3 hole shoe...I certainly couldn't when I fitted mine. You will be better off getting a comfortable shoes that fits correctly and some quality moulded insoles, be the shoe 3 hole or 4.

PP

Be surprised then Pete - i felt a noticable difference when going from my Specialized shoes with adaptor plates to the Giro shoes I have now that are Speedplay specific. I had to drop the saddle and bars by 5mm on both ends, but the difference in stack height was well worth getting the Speedplay specific soles.

Agree on fit being most important anyway - its crucial to get that right more so than the lower stack height of a Speedplay specific sole. Consider it a nice bonus if a perfectly fitting shoe can be had with 4 bolt soles

vala

I use Mavic Zxelliums with my Speedplays, do the job fine.

Anonymous

Pilot Pete wrote:

I would be extremely surprised if you could feel a difference in pedalling using Speedplay Zeros and a 3 hole shoe...I certainly couldn't when I fitted mine. You will be better off getting a comfortable shoes that fits correctly and some quality moulded insoles, be the shoe 3 hole or 4.

PP

You would not unnecessarily space out a cleat on a 3 hole shoe/cleat so why do it on a 4 hole cleat? If one spacer/adapter feels no different, would two, or three?

Seems sensible to buy specific shoes if you are bothering to use Speedplays and not using existing shoes.
Is it not defeating the point of having four bolts if you just adapt them down to three?

I would have thought being attached with four bolt shoes is better in five ways. Correct/more secure connection, correct height, less weight, less complication, and easier to walk in.

Not a biggie if you have to use adaptor with existing shoes, but I would definitely seek out a good four bolt shoe if I were buying the shoes at the same time.

cattytown

The adapter that comes with speedplay cleats works just fine - zeros on Specialized shoes here.

Anonymous

Am not saying it does not work, just that I would have thought it would work better without it and using a 4 bolt shoe. If you are buying a new shoe anyway why not get the correct one for the job?

cattytown

The problem with constricting oneself to four bolt shoes is the choice is restricted. Better to get the shoe that fits the foot best, and if available in a speedplay fit, fine get that. If not , use the adapter.

As has already been mentioned, speedplay fit also tend to be the higher end of shoe ranges. A quick check on Wiggle shows only four shoes below £200 with a speedplay sole, with the cheapest £120.

So I say speedplay fit is better *IF* the right shoe is available n a speedplay fit, but the choice of shoe should be first.

Paul,

Mr Will

I've just been researching this and can hopefully offer some useful advice.

Firstly, Speedplays with the adaptor still have a lower stack height than any of the competition. Yes, switching to the Speedplay specific sole gets you another 4mm lower but is that really worth it?

The advantage to the adaptor option is that you are not tied in. What will you do if you decide that you don't get on with the pedals? Sell your expensive shoes second hand at a big loss? It also opens up a much greater choice of shoes, which will likely make much more difference than anything else.

I was all set on Speedplay soles when I started shopping. Now I'm leaning the other way, until I've spent a good few years with them at least.

epo rocks!

Seriously, dont waste your money buying Speedplay specific shoes, as you are really limiting yourself in case you want to swap to another type of pedal.

I have Specialized S-Works shoes and they are 3 hole and i use Speedplays, best pedal i have used IMO, and the three hole system with the plates provided from Speedplay have been fine.

A lot is made about setting Speedplay cleats up but as long as you follow the guidelines provided its not difficult. Also the cleats need a bit more looking after than others, like regular lubing with ptfe dry lube, but again, its a 2 minute job and easily done. I would also recommend buying the plastic cafe covers for the cleats, will save you money in the long run.

Anonymous

If it boils down to cost and wanting to buy a cheap pair of shoes, or a pair that are not available in Speedplay specific then fine, but I would personally not buy a pair of Lakes in 3 bolt fitment when they were available in 4.
I think you have to be sure you like the pedals and commit to them.

The pedal height thing was interesting (SP with adaptors being lower that a lot of other systems) but in my mind that does not change anything. The 4 bolt shoes will still be lower (and better connected I would have thought) than 3 with adaptor which sounds great.