Pedals. Shimano M530 or A520?

ajoten

Not having the £ for a new pair of road shoes, I need to get some mtb SPDs for my road bike. Word on the street is that those A520 ones give you a bigger platform.

The M530s look similar but double-sided. As they are marketed as a "trail" pedal however, I wonder if they're a lot chunkier and heavier than the A520 (and would look a bit daft).

And does your mtb sole actually touch any of the surrounding cage to give you this alleged benefit?

Has anyone experience of both?

Ta.

dj58

A520 single sided so slimmer and lighter (315g) and larger platform, M530 double side chunkier and heavier (455g), and yes your sole will make contact with the platform.

Not used either of those models myself, only the XT M785, however I have read on BR that some people really like the SPD touring models A520 and A600 combined with a stiff carbon soled shoe for all day comfort.

Might have to flip the single sided touring pedal to engaged the mechanism, not sure how they hang/sit when not in use.

mercia_man

Experience of both single and double sided SPD pedals. I prefer the A520 for all day comfort. The larger platform spreads the pressure better, even with stiff carbon soled shoes. Your shoes do make contact with the platform. If it matters to you, some people think they look more appropriate on a road bike than doubled sided pedals. And they are slightly lighter. If you ride a lot in traffic, however, double sided is more convenient for clipping in and out.

Just edited this after realising M530 has a bigger platform than older style small body 520 etc so will certainly give you more support than those.

apreading

A520 better if you want to also use flat shoes
M530 better if you dont
M520 better if you are really worried about weight more than convenience (and super cheap at CRC)

mercia_man

DJ58 is right in saying you have to flip the A520 to locate the cleat. Not too difficult. The pedal hangs in such a way to make it relatively easy. The A520 is not really suitable for use with flat shoes as the under side is curved. The A530 is the one which can be used with flat shoes as it has what is effectively an SPD mount on one side and a flat pedal on the other.But the SPD side doesn't have the bigger support giving platform that the A520 has.

Lord_V

I have the M520's - I really like 'em. The double sided bit is very useful commuting through town.

Although they are chunky, they don't look daft at all IMO.

slowbike

M540s & M520s on my bikes - no issue with hot spots for 10 miles or 100 miles - it's the shoe that matters.

I don't think I can use the larger platforms as my shoes have grips on the sole so the cleat is recessed - a larger platform would clash with those grips. The grips are handy when touring or commuting and mean that the cleats don't take a bashing.

apreading

Slowbike wrote:

M540s & M520s on my bikes - no issue with hot spots for 10 miles or 100 miles - it's the shoe that matters.

I don't think I can use the larger platforms as my shoes have grips on the sole so the cleat is recessed - a larger platform would clash with those grips. The grips are handy when touring or commuting and mean that the cleats don't take a bashing.

My shoes have recessed cleat too, but work fine with M530 and M424 etc - both my Shimano MTB shoes and my Northwave Hike-a-bike shoes.

t4tomo

A520 - much much comfier than M520s - I used to get foot pain on long rides with M520s, no such issues with A520 due to the bigger platform that does contact with the sole.

I've not tried the M530s but they are more MTB looking than Road, would be my comment, but looking to provide some support like a A520 (although the platform does curve away from the sole a bit).

bobmcstuff

Using M520s on one bike and no issues. Got M785s (proper MTB - Shimano XT) on the winter bike because they're caged and I wanted to be able to do short rides across town on it in normal shoes without changing pedals.

Thing is my shoes support either SPD or 3-hole cleats so they're impossible to walk in - worst of both worlds
Looking to replace them with some shoes I can walk in.

aberdeenal

I have A530's on both my commuter and carbon road bike (awaits to be shot down with that confession) and I can't fault them - plenty of support and can be used with flat shoes without fear of slipping like the A520's I used to have.

ajoten

Thanks for the comments. Hmm.

See I've got M520s and M545 for mountain bike use... in fact my question should have been "are M530s more like M545s or A520s?". Disregard double or single-sidedness.

fatsmoker

the A520s are uncomfortable if you find yourself in shoes or trainers. I sometimes go up to the bike shop in work shoes and wouldn't like to go further than a mile in them. With cleats, very comfy, and easy to clip into.

Dippydog3

ajoten wrote:

Not having the £ for a new pair of road shoes, I need to get some mtb SPDs for my road bike. Word on the street is that those A520 ones give you a bigger platform.

The M530s look similar but double-sided. As they are marketed as a "trail" pedal however, I wonder if they're a lot chunkier and heavier than the A520 (and would look a bit daft).

And does your mtb sole actually touch any of the surrounding cage to give you this alleged benefit?

Has anyone experience of both?

Ta.

The A600 are the premium product IMHO. Lighter, better looking and reasonably priced.

You also get to wear shoes that do not make you walk like you really, really could do with a visit to the facilities!

Don't apologise. SPD's are not really "mountain bike" cleats. it wasn't that long ago that they were the default road clip in.

Fashion is a weird thing. It's a shame the shoe selection for SPD is so limited. Theses days if you want to use SPD on s road bike you are limited to a few so called touring shoes, or you have to buy something that has tread like a Caterpillar boot.

I would happily buy expensive comfortable "road shoes". But they have to be SPD for me. Missed opportunity for the shoe manufacturers. Looking at some nice Lake shoes today. good fit, good styling, wrong cleats. They lost that deal.

rsilvers

Dippydog3 wrote:

Don't apologise. SPD's are not really "mountain bike" cleats. it wasn't that long ago that they were the default road clip in.

The Shimano SPD road pedals are nothing like and not compatible with SPD mountain bike pedals.

mike1-2

Dippydog3 wrote:

ajoten wrote:

Not having the £ for a new pair of road shoes, I need to get some mtb SPDs for my road bike. Word on the street is that those A520 ones give you a bigger platform.

The M530s look similar but double-sided. As they are marketed as a "trail" pedal however, I wonder if they're a lot chunkier and heavier than the A520 (and would look a bit daft).

And does your mtb sole actually touch any of the surrounding cage to give you this alleged benefit?

Has anyone experience of both?

Ta.

The A600 are the premium product IMHO. Lighter, better looking and reasonably priced.

You also get to wear shoes that do not make you walk like you really, really could do with a visit to the facilities!

Don't apologise. SPD's are not really "mountain bike" cleats. it wasn't that long ago that they were the default road clip in.

Fashion is a weird thing. It's a shame the shoe selection for SPD is so limited. Theses days if you want to use SPD on s road bike you are limited to a few so called touring shoes, or you have to buy something that has tread like a Caterpillar boot.

I would happily buy expensive comfortable "road shoes". But they have to be SPD for me. Missed opportunity for the shoe manufacturers. Looking at some nice Lake shoes today. good fit, good styling, wrong cleats. They lost that deal.

I have the A600's on both my road bikes, never really jumped fully into road when I moved across from MTB so they were a good inbetween. This was 4 years ago and I'm still using them.
I prefer the Shimano RT82 shoes with these, very stiff sole but comfortable for longer rides, I'm not a mph chaser so any benefit of proper road shoes are of no use to me, but the ability to walk around at cake stops and not look like a mong are of higher priority.

MiddleRinger

I've been using A520 pedals on both my road and TT bike for years now. They do a fine job and look a bit more "roadie" than other SPD offerings.

ayjaycee

Here's another big shout for the A600s as a very good pedal BUT (and it might be just me being unlucky or clumsy with clipping in techniques but I don't think so!) don't expect that nice Ultegra blue/grey finish to wear well. For me, I think it was scratched up after the first ride and, after a couple of years, they are now almost entirely down to the bare metal. That might also be down to the Shimano MT44s that I often wear - they are a good example of the SPD shoes with tread like a 'Caterpillar boot' that Dippydog3 mentioned. A plus point is that my A600s recently developed a creak and I consequently discovered just how easy they are to service - very, even for a mechanical numpty like me.

LimitedGarry

This thread is one of the first things that pop up if you google M530 vs A520. A bit of my own input.

Let's get one thing out of the way. I've seen it said here and on other forums. The A520 are not touring pedals. They're single sided SPD pedals. Period. If you want pedals which you can use with SPD and regular shoes, these aren't it. Shimano A530 are what you have in mind.


The M530 is doublesided so much easier to clip-in. is heavier and bulkier. There's little chance you're going to ruin them out on the trails. And even should you hit them so hard the functional portion gets damaged, you've still got the other side. All in all, a trail pedal. More appropriate for commuting out of the two, simply due to being easier to clip in.

The A520 is single-sided, lighter and thinner. Vsually more fitting a road bike (subjective). It's not weighted (doesn't orient itself the right side up) so it'll take a while before you get a feel for it. Would be very impractical on actual trails, potentially even dangerous. Attempting to clip in on the wrong side of the pedal will usually result in a slip. A violent one if you put your weight into it. The spring is a bit tighter. On the lowest tension, it's about as tight and maybe even tighter than the M530 moved about a click or two in (not sure how many rotations right now). Nothing dramatic, but noticeably tighter.





Something that may not occur to everyone immediately - in order to make use of the cage, you need a MTB shoe, not a two bolt cleat compatible road shoe. Otherwise, the only advantage it gives you is a better platform to keep your foot on while unclipped.
Also, for long trips I strongly recommend getting a regular MTB shoe, not a touring one. Touring shoes are very comfortable to walk in pretty much anywhere, but they're not as comfortable on the bike after a couple of hours of riding.

pblakeney

rsilvers wrote:

Dippydog3 wrote:

Don't apologise. SPD's are not really "mountain bike" cleats. it wasn't that long ago that they were the default road clip in.

The Shimano SPD road pedals are nothing like and not compatible with SPD mountain bike pedals.

Who tries to mate pedals? You are thinking of 3-bolt SPD-L.
SPD shoes have SPD cleats and are compatible with all SPD pedals.
Use of flat shoes defines if you want double sided.