Speed play pedals - worth upgrading to?

ashleymp777

Afternoon all,

Ive been running Look Keo 2 pedals for a couple if years and would like to upgrade. I would like something a little lighter and easier to clip in to and these seem to fit the bill. Would you agree?

Any views gratefully received.

Thanks

Ashley

dilatory

It's a bit more maintenance heavy but I prefer over the other two options I've used (SPD and Look).

The adjustable float is awesome, cleats last longer than Look etc. Double sided clip in. Look decent on the bike too.

ashleymp777

Ah, thank you. Without sounding daft, what maintenance are we talking about? Bearing greesing and tightening?

dilatory

Greasing the pedals and keeping the cleats clean and tight. Mostly just making sure the cleats are clean, I live by the coast though and one of the TTs has a car park that gets quite sandy...

It's not like a ball buster though, I'd say once a week maybe I give 'em an eyeball, check screws, spray with some GT85 and drop some lube in once dried. Not sure if that's proper but works for me and stops 'em squeaking!

ashleymp777

Sounds easy enough to me! Thanks for taking the time to respond.

DKay

I swapped from Look Keos to Speedplays mainly because I was sick and tired of pulling away from busy junctions and not being able to clip in fast enough, leaving me exposed to danger. With the double sided pedal and 'stamp and go' nature of Speedplays, this is no longer an issue and worth the cost of changing alone. The fully adjustable float and weight savings are just bonuses to me.

As already stated, the cleats require a bit more looking after, especially if you're going to be walking around loose surfaces. The alloy plates can be very slippy to walk on, although you can buy protective covers. What i do is apply Shoe Goo to the bottom which also tends to stop the screws from coming loose. Also, the cleats require a bit of a breaking-in period and cost more to replace. I won't be going back to any other pedal though.

ashleymp777

Perfect, sold!

Any suggestions on where to purchase them? Wiggle looks like they have them at a reasonable cost.

wishitwasallflat

ashleymp777 wrote:

Perfect, sold!

Any suggestions on where to purchase them? Wiggle looks like they have them at a reasonable cost.

Search around if you can get Chromoly Zeros for around £90 that's the best I've ever seen them for in 5 years of being a confirmed speedplay fan. That said I'm also a confirmed wiggle fan due to ther AAA customer service.

PS if you try them and don't like them they regularly sell on eBay for £60-70

dilatory

They cost more to replace but last longer I'd say. They have a metal plate rather than plastic and seem to hold up well if you don't walk excessive miles. What they don't seem to do is wear out just from clipping in and out like Looks etc. I roll my bike out of the front door, clip in and ride, put foot down at traffic etc. Walk from outside cafe into cafe and back once a week. Apart from scratches to the metal face plate the cleats are fine and dandy after 2,000+ miles.

brettjmcc

I've been on them for a couple of years now and probably won't change back. The only difference is that I may move to the Stainless from the Chromoloy ones. They will wear out eventually, in that you will get some wear and the clip may snap, but that is after a long time. Lots of advice on here if you search regarding how to maintain and how to do it.

It may feel weird when you try them at first with the free float, which you can dial in over time if you wish, but some people have likened it to stepping on ice.

Seen them as low as £83 in special sales, but a quick Google, I'd say this is probably the lowest: http://www.pedal-pedal.co.uk/cycling-co ... -layered=1

or I can also recommend just eBay hunting or the sales on here. Some people try them and don't get on with them. I've got 2 of my 3 pairs that way

cattytown

http://www.bike-science.com/products/ke ... tionpedals are excellent.

smoggysteve

I never like the idea of the massive cleat you have on your shoe with speedplays. Sure the pedals are light but the massive cleats kind of even out the weight in comparison to say dura ace or Keo Blades (which are the best pedals right now imo) Sure you can stick a cover on but that doesnt make them any easier to walk on

cattytown

It's all about selecting the right pedals. I am duck footed, so I don't have much choice.

Anyway, if you are walking much when you have a perfectly good bike you are doing something wrong :-)

dilatory

I really can't comprehend how anyone would find any of the cleats difficult to walk on tbh. Unless you find walking difficult in general perhaps...

StillGoing

Speedplay are lighter than all others even with the cleat taken into consideration. I have Speedplays on both road bikes now and wouldn't consider anything else. As others have posted, they are a doodle to clip in to and the float adjustment is so simple and infinite. Try Pedal Pedal for decent prices on Speedplay Zero in stainless. The green ones are the expensive ones.

macleod113

Speedplays changed my life... well kind of.

I also struggled setting off from the lights and on one particular junction am sandwiched between 2 lanes of traffic uphill. not good.
gave in and got lucky getting stainless zeros for less that £90 from Ribble. I also have a second Chromalloy pair for bike #2 I got on here for £50 used. they are awesome and you can clip in fairly easily and even if you aren't clipped in you can still normally get good purchase enough to pedal off and get momentum before trying to clip in again.
maintenance is easy, a bit of grease every 4 months or so from me. any grease will do, don't buy the expensive speedplay only stuff.
for keeping the cleats longer lasting and for easy walking, I also have some of these. not the cheapest but I love them.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KEEP-ON-KOVER-KOVERS-FOR-SPEEDPLAY-ZERO-OR-LIGHT-ACTION-CLEATS-/181177433619?pt=US_Pedals&hash=item2a2f043e13

Focus-rider

Speedplays are definitely the way forward. Got them in all three if my bikes. Currently using a set of titanium zeros on my condor. As folk have mentioned the float is superb, what folk have forgot to mention us that you can also put additional shims under the cleat to raise the outer or inner of the foot, thus allies you to fully customise the position if the pedal.
Great pedals and would never consider using anything else now.

rowlers

I changed to speedplay because of knee pain. They stopped the knee pain dead in its tracks.
The free float is kinda weird at first, but once you dial in the float they are as solid a platform as any other pedal.
I'll never go back from speedplays.
Get some cleat covers for the coffee stops etc... makes walking a breeze and looks after the cleat.

ic.

I've been using them for a year now. On my second pair but only because I wanted a colour change with new bike

I can't see myself ever buying any other type of pedal. I've used Shimano SPD-Sl and Look Keo 2 Max. The Speedplay are far superior in everyway.

True, they are slightly more maintenance heavy (keep the cleats clean and dry lubed every couple of weeks), but it's worth it.

dyrlac

Have been running speedplays on the new road bike for all of 285 km. My thoughts:

* There is a bit of a breaking-in/muscle retraining period, as I found clipping in to be a challenge (certainly compared to the SPDs on my other bike) for the first couple of hundred clips, and the first clip in of the morning requires a degree of effort. There is a technique to it, and make sure you do not over-tighten the cleat face plates, as this will inhibit the engagement/disengagement of the cleat spring.

* The effect of the float on knee pain has to be experienced to be believed. At the same time, you are absolutely locked in and can haul as hard as you like on the upstroke. Absolutely ace in every performance respect.

* But they are not terribly practical for every use case. Stopping in the vicinity of mud or sand (and presumably snow) will give you a bad time as they are prone to clogging up. Walking (even with "keep on kovers") is OK, but you wouldn't want to do it for very long, e.g., over Putney Bridge (see Commuting Chat discussion). That means I'll probably keep the SPDs on my caadx.

cattytown

Indeed - I firmly believe the perfect pedal has yet to be invented, but the Zero is as close as it gets for my needs.