Flat pedals for road bike - suggestions

BikeAndEarly

Hi

I am in the process of building a bike from scratch. The bike is a Specialized Roubaix with full Ultegra components including wheels. My friends and the guys at the bike shop are recommending the Ultegra SPD SL. I cannot tell you how much of a mistake that is for me:
1. I live in a very hilly area (very)
2. I want to use the bike in town and on Sportives
3. I am new to the world of cycling (after a long break)

Please can you recommend something sensible that can put the power down and does not weigh a tonne?

I am thinking:
a. MKS Sylvan
b. Token Track Pedals TK457TM
c. MKS Nuevo
d. Speedplay Drillium

I will start off with flats and then put SPD SL on my winter bike to see if I can learn how to use them after I gain confidence in riding the local roads/hills and getting comfortable with bicycles again.
I will cry if I fall (and I will) on my carbon bike plus if I fall in front of a bus my bike will be ruined so I cannot have that

Thank in advance

Grill

Do you have any idea how much more difficult hills are on flats? SPD SL are a good choice. Time Xpresso are even easier to clip in. If you really think you're going to have trouble (you won't) then just get plain old SPDs, but for the love of God stay away from flats.

fatdaz

I have Shimano PD-A530 pedals on the bike I use for messing around with the family on. These are flat on one side and SPD (not SPD-SL) on the other. I can ride with normal shoes if going out somewhere with the family or use SPDs if I'm going on a longer or quicker ride with my son (now 10). This could be a good compromise for you to get you introduced to clip ins. They aren't very light however

BikeAndEarly

oxoman

that is exactly it; I also have pain in my right knee. And yes sometimes you really do not want to arrive somewhere with cleats. I understand the benefits of clipless pedals. This is not a question or argument against them.

I just believe given that I am starting off and that I love the carbon bike too much and I want to go to the pub etc I must stick to flats with toe clips. I am not pro and initially will not be doing more than 20-30 miles for the first few months. Nothing is for ever as they say.

I will look into the Shimano PD-A530 even though and please do not laugh / scorn I do not know the difference between SPD and SPD SL.

MichaelW

Anything better than Sylvian is bling.
I prefer the Sylvian touring

drlodge

I've got look pedals on my CX bike (actually on all bikes) and was thinking of changing to flats, but really wanted the option of both. I then found these http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/p/36603/Exust ... -Converter which seem to do the job - I can slot them into the look pedals for when I want to wear trainers, possibly also with toe clips/straps.

BikeAndEarly

yes this is a very good idea drlodge. nice bike by the way (really nice)

If I had two bikes it would not be a problem. I could practice on the hack bike. but in this instance I know a couple of people who fell off their Domane and Pinarello and they wanted to cry due to the scratches etc. Plus buses are a real concern of mine.
anyways I will keep it cheap. i.e. buy flat pedals with toe clips and use my friends Ultegra 6700 pedals to practice before I commit to buying clipless in the first place. If get the hang of both then I can look at the adapter/converter solution

Thanks guys

curto80

These are the answer to everything

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-ct45-cl ... 5360651170

JayKosta

Any type of decent vintage-style road pedals that use toe-clips and straps should work ok. Pedals that have adjustable loose ball bearings are good.
Old-style shoes with cleats for the pedals are great if very little walking is needed.
Regular shoes with a stiff and non-slip sole also work very well, but make certain the width of the shoe fits the pedal and doesn't cause rubbing of the strap against the crack arm.

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

top_bhoy

I use MG1 flat pedals (http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/au/en/wellgo-mg1-magnesium-platform-flat-pedals/rp-prod44059) with Shimano AM40 shoes on my commute bike which works very well...just not as good as the Look Keo pedal and shoe system used on my road set-up.

The MG1 is a large platform pedal with raised small pins which interface with small grooves in the AM40 (cycling specific, flat, stiff soled) shoes. It requires no technique to disengage from the pedal or move the foot around freely if required. Its a flat pedal system which gives a degree of pedal/foot retention and is a good compromise. On my commute its a great system because of the need to regularly stop/start quickly at lights and in traffic. I also use the AM40 shoes on the track bike I hire every week because they are stiffer than normal training shoes hence they do work very well with fully tightened toe straps also.

It's a pity you have the bike now because I'd have advised against getting the Specialized Roubaix with full Ultegra until you have the cycling confidence to use the bike closer to its potential; which means fully transitioned into using a clipless pedal system.

kajjal

These are light weight mountain bike flats which will provide a wide stable platform to cycle on until you decide to move to clipless /spd style pedals. I have them on my road bike as I prefer flats and they come in various colours. They have lasted constant use since last summer with no problems at all.

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... -11-45208/

Anonymous

Your best bet by far (IMO) is half decent/stiff MTB shoes and pedals.

A thousand times better to cycle in, you can unclip easily, you can walk in them and you can get a second pair in all sorts of styles from trainers to walking boots, and even brogues!, for the pub trips.

Stay well away from those silly duel sided ones as they are for people happy to clip in rather than those afraid of doing it.

I would get another bike for the pub personally.
Are you not frightened of damaging your Roubaix on way back from pub (if its not stolen while you are there)?
You are equally likely to fall in front of a bus when your foot slips off your flat pedals.
When I first got rollers they were easier/safer to ride on being clipped in than wearing trainers.

As you have a Specialized you will probably only want Shimano pedals, but if you want to walk on the wild side get some Candy 1's.

I love the thought of a Roubaix with flats on but if this thread is not a wind up then take the advice and clip in.

littledove44

Put on SPD a600. They weigh the same and you can walk into a restaurant in the shoes. The Specialized MTB shoes are EXACTLY the same as the road ones but with the addition of a support on the sole so you don't have to walk like a puppet.

They look great on a Roubaix.

Anonymous

Not sure single sided touring pedals are going to be good for someone not that happy about clipping in.

Double (but not duel) sided would be better as it takes the issue of orientating the pedal out of the equation.

Candy 1's are one pedal with two sides rather than a completely separate mechanism on both sides like most Shimano's.
They release from the front and back of the cleat at the same time too.

They do/did a special edition white version that would look better on your Roubaix than the A600's maybe littledove44.

http://static.jensonusa.com/images/Defa ... 260A02.jpg

antonyfromoz

if you want to have many of the benefits of clipless pedals but not have quite the same Level of attachment then you could get some fairly basic flats and add some pedal straps, for example http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pow ... s-ec005334 if you do go the route of using flat pedals then i recommend using a pair of shoes which have grippy, fairly stiff soles. Good luck with the new bike!

iron-clover

I would definitely go for clipless pedals, and I'd go for a similar setup to what I have on my hybrid hack bike for town and light off road duties. I have the dual sided spd pedals (shimano M324) which have the mountain bike style mtb cleat on one side and standard pedal on the other.
They are relatively expensive and heavy though, so you could simply buy the cheap double sided spd pedal and fit the cheap plastic converter into one side to convert it into a simillar pedal (but you can remove the flat plastic side for sportives when you're confident with the clipless system.

Get some decent stiff mtb shoes and you won't have much difference in performance from road shoes and cleats, if any, ecxept you can unclip easier (with the right cleat style- check you've got the multi direction release before fitting!) and walk in the shoes. If you need to do lots of walking, the touring shoes would be better but as their soles are more flexible you'll probably get 'hot spots' on top of the cleats as they try to push through on longer rides.

It might seem daunting at first, but once you've tried it you won't go back. I now hate riding without clipless even around town as it feels far more dangerous with the feet able to slip on the pedals if you're not paying attention. They also really do help with hills- you can utilise so much more power from the upstroke even if you don't actively pull as well as push on the pedals.

Whatever you do, avoid the pedal cages! In order to get the same benefit from them you have to do them up so tight you cannot remove your foot, which is why clipless was developed! If you won't do them up tightly they will hold your foot in a good position over the pedal and you're less likely to slip off, but they are still a faff to flip over and slot your foot in each time you start off...

Good luck!

BikeAndEarly

Thank you all

i have learned a lot. This forum is a life saver sometimes.

I will start off with normal double side flat pedals. No cages and no toe clips. It is very important not to be put off from cycling just because I feel like an idiot in the beginning

When I master the hills and traffic in my area I will make the move to clipless pedals at which point they are likely to be Speedplay or Shimano. I like the idea of the speedplays despite the problems with maintainance

In terms of brand, more likely MKS pedals or Token.

Thank you for the replies regarding knee problems and advantages of different systems over others. I believe that even mountain bike style clipless will work better for me in the short term as my bike will be used for leisure.

When I start joining proer groups or go out of town I will make the transition to clipless. first fall in love and then get tied down!

Cheers

gabriel959

How about the Shimano ClickR easy click in double sided pedals such as these:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... lsrc=aw.ds

They are cheap, easy to click in and out, come with the cleats that allow you to disengage at any angle, etc.

top_bhoy

BikeAndEarly wrote:

Thank you all

i have learned a lot. This forum is a life saver sometimes.

I will start off with normal double side flat pedals. No cages and no toe clips. It is very important not to be put off from cycling just because I feel like an idiot in the beginning

When I master the hills and traffic in my area I will make the move to clipless pedals at which point they are likely to be Speedplay or Shimano. I like the idea of the speedplays despite the problems with maintainance

In terms of brand, more likely MKS pedals or Token.

Thank you for the replies regarding knee problems and advantages of different systems over others. I believe that even mountain bike style clipless will work better for me in the short term as my bike will be used for leisure.

When I start joining proer groups or go out of town I will make the transition to clipless. first fall in love and then get tied down!

Cheers

The first time I tried clipless pedals over 20 years ago, I didn't get more than 10 metres from the LBS door when I went to put my foot down....you can guess the rest

I wasn't put off and I quickly mastered it and it didn't happen again. The moral of the story is not to practice clipless pedals in a traffic environment.

lancew

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shi ... s-ec005287

I used these for the same reason, I don't always use my clip in shoes when I ride. You can still ride these shoes in a pair of VANs.

Another option could be an adapter.
http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/article/shim ... aid:115758

Please may I be clear though that I get that you're really after flat pedals and thats cool, I'm just letting you know about some other options as since buying my SPD's I've never looked back. But yes I did crash on my lovely road bike having used them, and that made me very very unhappy.

markhewitt1978

Hills are indeed way easier on clipless pedals. I was surprised when I did my first ride for years on flat pedals the other week, it was like my legs were working like pistons rather than as one smooth power output.

As mentioned SPD is your best bet, and probably double sided SPD so it's easy to clip in. M520 pedals are the usual recommendation. I use Shimano M088 shoes and walking in them feels just like normal shoes.

Unless your racing or so serious about cycling that you probably should be racing, then SPD-SL are going to be overkill.

Moonbiker

Im still a nub that rides flats coz clipless scare me :evil:

Did a sportive recently & out of about 600 hundred people only i had flats. :oops:


I like the MKS ones:




http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-t ... 0000000000

I have bought spd a few yrs back but never used as I fell over so much I im scared of dying under a bus etc. Need to MTFU & practice with them.

markhewitt1978

Moonbiker wrote:

Im still a nub that rides flats coz clipless scare me :evil:

Put some on then find a nice soft area of grass to fall over into. Once you've got that out of the way you won't have any problems

djp66

BikeAndEarly

I had same the dilemar, I'd been using SPD's on my MTB for years but I didn't want to have two sets of shoes, different cleats etc so I bought some better SPD-A530 pedals x2 and fitted them to both MTB and Road bikes. Ok, I could have gone a bit lighter/aero but at my level of fitness & ability it wouldn't make any difference.

That means I have an old but servicable pair of Shimano SPD-M424 pedals that you can have if you want. I also have a pair of Specialized MTB shoes with matching cleats. They're fairly old but usable, size 41/7 which again you can have.

All I ask is that if you decide to go clipless and buy yourself shoes and pedals you pass these on to someone else who wants to give them a try.

If you want to take me up on this, pm/email me your address and I'll stick them in the post.

dowtcha

drlodge wrote:

I've got look pedals on my CX bike (actually on all bikes) and was thinking of changing to flats, but really wanted the option of both. I then found these http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/p/36603/Exust ... -Converter which seem to do the job - I can slot them into the look pedals for when I want to wear trainers, possibly also with toe clips/straps.

Being looking for something like this, ordered.

drlodge

Dowtcha wrote:

drlodge wrote:

I've got look pedals on my CX bike (actually on all bikes) and was thinking of changing to flats, but really wanted the option of both. I then found these http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/p/36603/Exust ... -Converter which seem to do the job - I can slot them into the look pedals for when I want to wear trainers, possibly also with toe clips/straps.

Being looking for something like this, ordered.

I tried them on their own, but they're very top heavy which makes them difficult to get your feet on them, and also quite unstable. I've now ordered some toe clips and straps which should help on both counts, this will be an option only for short rides like going into town or a round trip < 10 miles.

kajjal

Nukeproof electron flats are light weight but offer a good platform for you feet with plenty of grip. I used them over the winter on my road bike with no problems at all. They are really for mountain biking so have no problems with road biking.

derosa

gabriel959 wrote:

How about the Shimano ClickR easy click in double sided pedals such as these:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... lsrc=aw.ds

They are cheap, easy to click in and out, come with the cleats that allow you to disengage at any angle, etc.

I use these for commuting duties. Dead easy to use and come with a built in reflector.