Can anyone recommend any of these? I saw some in a bike shop that looked like proper flats with the pins but had the spd thing as well, can’t remember what they were though.

Or are they just too much of a compromise? Pretty happy with my spds for normal use but getting more into jumping etc recently.

Shimano do several SPD pedals with cages – either two-sided ($24s) or one-sided (though I don’t know these are suitable for jumping). There’s also Crank Brothers.

The problem I find with the two-sided pedals is that it’s pretty difficult to stay unclipped (or at lest sods law says your cleats will home in on the spds at exactly the moment you don’t want them to.

i tried some once, then jsut went to flats after i found myself climbing uncliped most of the time.

I use Time Z Freeride on my HT and Time Atacs on my commuter/road bike. Time Z are really good and very happy with them. Used to have older red Shimano 636(DX spd) a bit heavy, sometimes got clogged up with mud but lasted about 7 years. I wanted to run only Time pedals and managed to get them for a good price. Some eBay sellers can have them for as little as £28 posted for a new pair. Another good thing in my opinion is that they don’t look as chunky as Shimano platform spd especially the new DX model.

The Shimano ones don’t last, as the cage seems to break where it fixes onto the axle. So personally I would either get proper flats, or proper spd’s.

My Shimano DX M647’s have lasted 2 years so far and have a massive amount of abuse. Quite a few I ride with have them too, and none of them have had any problems. Great pedals.

Cheers – wish I could remember where I had seen this ones I was talking about though – they looked like V12s or something with pins but with a cage in the middle. Pretty sure they weren’t crank brothers. The Shimano ones look ok but I would imagine proper flats style pins would grip better when not clipped in.

I should probably just man up and get some flats and 5.10s but I can’t afford it easily at the mo and its a lot to spend if I find out I don’t like it.

(cough)

you dont need 5.10’s, buy some element/vans/etnies from TKMax

wellgo MG1’s off flebay

all for under £60 easily

and if you find you like it you can buy better shoes once you know what works (not all shoes are created equal)

re-soles in C4 rubber (the stuff they make 5.10’s form) cost about £35, so even if you buy a pair of shoes from TKMax you can get them re-soled for less than the cost of a new pair of 5.10’s! And they wont look quite so special

(/cough)

GNARGNAR will be allong in a minute to tell you about the death followed by the special circle of hell devoted to non 5.10 users.

Had the original Mallets – didn’t like them as the eggbeater bit rolls within the flat pedal which for me lead to my foot rolling off the front as I tried to clip in.

That’s because I’ve got a Time Atac style kick into the pedal motion.

So I got some Time Zs (the more expensive variant, though to be honest I doubt there’s much difference) – sorted.

I like them – others will hate them. But think of them as an SPD with more support and a more forgiving nature as you try to hit the pedal quickly rather than as a spiked flat pedal.

Try twisting your foot on a spiked flat pedal and gain instant enlightenment as to what chance you’d have of getting out of a caged SPD style pedal if it gave that sort of resistance to twisting. (The answer’s none)

For a laugh I run Time Atacs, Time Zs or Shimano DX spiked flats depending on how I’m feeling – and whether my son is one the bike too.

Iain

Shimano M545’s are pretty good.

You can also get pedals that are flat ‘n pinned on one side and have a clipless mechanisim on t’other. In fact I have a pair in my shed back home.

Not a bad idea really, and these particular ones have a nice amount of pins, shimano compatible SPD thingy and sealed cartridge bearings, yey!

I use those Time Z pedals.

Good as a clip-in pedal with extra support to enable you move about on the bike while unclipped in techy bits – but no substitute for proper flats.

I use them for trail centres and long rides that are likely to feature bumpy stuff.