Spd's new user advice

davidwhitehead

Taking the plunge and ditching the flat pedals for some spd's. got some shimano am45 shoes but I am now unsure of which pedals to go for ? I have read crank brothers are easier for new users as you can in clip easier, but I do want pedals that have a cage round as well like dh style spd's!
Please give my your thoughts and any tips for going spd!
Thanks

sharky1029

I have used SPD's and crank bros and prefer the feel of SPD's. I have never heard a good thing about crank bros from people I know however some people on here swear by them. You can get both with a surrounding cage.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... delID=4516 for the shimano's which I use for all round use from DH to XCish stuff and they feel far more sturdy than regular SPD's.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=68951 for the crank bros however they offer far more variety and look more like flats than the spd's. Never used mallets though but I hear they are only good for DH so my opinion would be only gor for them if you are only doing DH, otherwise go for shimano.

felix.london

I have just swapped from M530 Trails (after years of using SPD's) to CB Mallet 2's and I've gotta say I prefer the Mallets by a mile. I think it could be more to do with where I'm riding very technical, lots of tight switchbacks and the Mallet's are far easier to unclip for a quick dab.

Saying that - just had my first weekend of the season on the DH bike (that has flats) and thinking I might just go flats on the other bikes too...still undecided

bennett_346

I would say crank brothers are not good for a new user based on the fact there's no tension, so it's hard to tell for sure whether you're actually clipped in or not. Far better imo to start with shimano on the lowest tension then you know for definite whether it's engaged properly or not.

I wouldn't say they're harder to clip out of either but this is personal preference - i prefer to only twist my ankle a few degrees and have it unclip as opposed to crank brothers which are a whopping 15 degrees.

I've used both and my crank brothers fell apart after just a year of light use and near as damn sheared my leg off, too, btw.

shdaxner

I too have tried CB's and SPD albeit not with the cages but, I prefer SPD's...I also think SPD would be better for beginners as if you loosen the tension to the lowest setting to start then i think they are easier to clip out of than CB's. I think if your looking at getting a clipless pedal with platform then the CB may lose the benefits which alot of people choose them for - 4 sided entry and better mud shedding (this may not be true but this is my thinking anyways).

Also, personally i think theres no point with the SPD/platform style, as once your used to clipping in you will end up doing so all the time i unclip sometimes at hairy parts of my rides and just re-position my foot on my pedals (Shimano PD M450 - these pedals have been really good so far) which dont have platforms and it works fine for me.

Hope this all helps anyways.

jairaj

I've read far too many stories about poor reliability for Crank Bro pedals, the pair I tried were broken out the box.

Now use Shimano SPD. I have m520 and the DX ones with the plastic platform (sorry can't remember the model number).

They work and feel very similar but I prefer the DX pedals, the platform helps with clipping in and finding the pedal, it also gives a bit more support to your foot. Also works just about well enough on tricky sections where you can unclip and just rest your foot on the pedal. If not doing anything too technical I don't really notice the difference.

davidwhitehead

Shimano looks to be the way forward the , a nice set of the dx I think, thanks all!

shdaxner

Not sure if these will be any good for you but I remember seeing them at a decent price earlier today

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mobile/MobileModels.aspx?ModelID=67249

Stefan

97th choice

M520, work perfectly. Why pay more?

bennett_346

If you prefer a caged design. I prefer it because it stops the pedal rolling over if you clip in in a hurry.

Dan_xz

For a newbie to spd`s I`d recommend you get the multi-directional release cleats. (sh56 i thnk).
Makes it a lot easier to unclip while you're getting used to it.

allthegearnoidea

as above, for a newbie go for the shimano m520's, they can be had for £20 ish, wind the tension right off them to start with, as you get used to them you can add some tension on,
Early cb's were shocking on reliability, that said, 18 months before a rebuild isn't too bad, but the newer are much better, there is not a tension adjuster on them so it is clip and go and they do take a while to bed in and loosen, but when they have they are great, you certainly Do know when your clipped in that's for sure, after 2 1/2 years hard use my foot started to come out on he upstroke a few times so i switched to Time pedals, Much stiffer engagement and solid feel, but then they are ££ more!!!
if you've knee issues you'll find that cb's and time's offer a better degree of float on the pedal to shimano's, but start off with the m520's and you wont go wrong,

cleat position does make a difference too, front of shoe for spinning speed back of shoe for Power stroke, i run mine towards the front under the ball of my foot,

lostboysaint

I have AM45s and Crank Brothers Mallets and it's the best combination I've ever used. Easy in and out, great support from the cage, utterly reliable.

dusk

the spd vs crank bros seems to be marmite thing, I hate crank bros and find them far more difficult to clip into than spd's and when you can get the caged version for £20 which is super reliable I know what i'd get

steve1200s

I've had the cheapo SPD pedals for 7 years now, and moved them from bike to bike. Never serviced, just cleaned with the rest of the bike. Still going strong (but a bit rusty.....) and you can get them for £20.

Not much point trying owt else for your first go.... I'm sure you'll love being clipped in and not look back either way.

Just look out for the SPD police snipers that silently take you out just as you come to a stop..... :P They'll get you at least once!

johnmcl7

I'm considering changing to SPD's as well but would like to keep the option to be able to use normal shoes for when the MTB needs to do commuter duty, are dual purpose pedals like these too much of a compromise or do they work ok:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=67250

John

jairaj

Not tried pedals like that before but comments from other people on here seem to suggest pedals like that are rubbish.

markhewitt1978

97th choice wrote:

M520, work perfectly. Why pay more?

This, they are so good, and reasonably priced, every review I've read basically just says that unless you have very unusual requirements, just get the M520.

felix.london

jairaj wrote:

Not tried pedals like that before but comments from other people on here seem to suggest pedals like that are rubbish.

They are rubbish and dangerous for any serious riding. They're never the right way round and you end up fannying about trying to clip-in and even looking at the pedals when you should be looking at the trail ahead

The Rookie

You can get an incompatability between some double sided (one flat and one SPD) pedals and some shoes, I can't use my daughters as my shoes foul the pedal surface before they are down far enough to clip in comfortably, work fine for her.

She uses double sided as she uses her bike to commute to Uni as well as real MTBing, if she gets the wrong side she just rides it as a flat until it's convenimnat to clip in.

Shimano are great, my 520's have done over 3500miles of commuter use, are rusted to heck from road salt yet the bearings are solid and they clip and unclip just like they did when new (I do use some chain lube to keep the pivots etc free moving), they are a bit heavier than other options though, even basic wellgo SPD's are 335g (520's 370g).

I've never needed to run my 520's on anything but minium tension despite bunny hopping the commuter with 6Kg of pannier on the back and pulling up on them (I'm rubbish at bunny hopping on flats!)

markhewitt1978

felix.london wrote:

They are rubbish and dangerous for any serious riding. They're never the right way round and you end up fannying about trying to clip-in and even looking at the pedals when you should be looking at the trail ahead

I used them for a while and didn't find them dangerous as such, yes flipping the pedal over while riding takes quite a bit of practice, but you do have the advantage that you can pedal without being clipped in up to junctions etc. After using them for about 6 months I went and bought some M520's as I'd stopped using the flat side.

lostboysaint

markhewitt1978 wrote:

felix.london wrote:

They are rubbish and dangerous for any serious riding. They're never the right way round and you end up fannying about trying to clip-in and even looking at the pedals when you should be looking at the trail ahead

I used them for a while and didn't find them dangerous as such, yes flipping the pedal over while riding takes quite a bit of practice, but you do have the advantage that you can pedal without being clipped in up to junctions etc. After using them for about 6 months I went and bought some M520's as I'd stopped using the flat side.

I used them a lot before switching to Mallets and they are rubbish. Fine as a SPD but useless as a flat pedal as they have no grip whatsoever*, this is a real problem if you get them the wrong way on a tech section or just want a quick dab.

*the metal cage is flat. I know someone who took a file to the cage and sharpened up the edges but it still wasn't as effective as the pins on the Mallet (or flats for that matter!).