Viewing 21 posts - 1 through 21 (of 21 total)
  • Roadie Pedals – Recommendations
  • kennyp
    Free Member

    Any thoughts on good (but not too expensive roadie) pedals? Has to be something easy to clip in and out of as I'm a bit rubbish at that.

    A couple of possibilities I'm thinking of are the Look Keo Classic Clipless and the Shimano R540 SPD.

    Oh, and I know this is a mountain bike forum, but I'm not really an out and out roadie, and the advice on here is usually pretty decent (sarcastic, "witty" replies excepted).

    Teetosugars
    Free Member

    SPD-SL.

    Spot on IMHO.. from the 105s- Dura Ace.. all good… 😆

    sofatester
    Free Member

    Are you going to race? Or just ride a bike on road that happens to have thin tyres and funny bars?

    If the latter just use the same pedals you have on your MTB to save hassle.

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middling Edition

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middlin...
    Latest Singletrack Videos
    druidh
    Free Member

    I've been using the Shimano 6600's for over a year now and I'm just trying out some Look Keos at the moment.

    Clipping in and out of either is a cinch – once you're used to the motion required. The Shimanos go in with more of a tight "click", the Keos with a more hollow "clunk".

    Can't say I've noticed much difference when riding, although I did have a rather sore left foot after a jaunt on Sunday. We (at tbc) now have the Look FIT system in, so I'm going to give that a go to see if I've set them up correctly.

    Reliability of the Shimanos has been first class. Too soon to comment on the Keos.

    If you're after something dual-sided, I can recommend the CB Candys. I use them on the commuter as it's easier/quicker to click in after each set of lights etc.

    For "touring" (i.e. with a more flexible soled shoe), I've found the Shimano A520s to be great. That wee platform ensures no hot-spots.

    kennyp
    Free Member

    No plans to race, but I am doing the Fred Whitton and Dragon Ride sportives, and might try a couple of time trials over the summer.

    I use flats on my mountain bike, and on my commuter, hence the reason I'm crap at clippiing in and out.

    ourmaninthenorth
    Full Member

    kennyp – if you're doing sportives and some "testing", the "proper" road pedals will be better that MTB double sided, as the platform is bigger and more comfortable over time and distance (especially important on a hot day hauling yourself up big climbs).

    I use Shimano SPD-SL (Ultegra/6600 – equiv to XT) and carbon soled Specialized shoes. A comfortable, easy to use combination.

    aP
    Free Member

    Time rx series, work, last and the cleats don't wear out in 3 days.

    Philby
    Full Member

    I use Look Keo's – no problems generally, although it stills feels unusual to be only able to clip in on one side.

    Some people swear by Speedplays – apparently much easier to clip into as they are double-sided, but much more expensive than the Look or Shimano pedals.

    JoB
    Free Member

    "Are you going to race? Or just ride a bike on road that happens to have thin tyres and funny bars? If the latter just use the same pedals you have on your MTB to save hassle. "

    hmmmm, i rode a bike on road that happened to have thin tyres and funny bars for over 25 years before i even thought about entering a race because oddly lots of my rides tend to be longer than any race i've done, in both ride and race instances road pedals have a more secure fit and offer more support than MTB pedals.

    Shimano, Look and Time all feel pretty much the same on the bike with subtle differences in clipping in/out and float, Shimanos and Times just work, although you can't put Shimano pedals on a bike with Campag on as it's 'wrong', and Look cleats wear out in 3 days.
    i haven't tried Crank Brothers although i hear they have great warranty.

    oink1
    Free Member

    +1 for the Keo's 😀

    aracer
    Free Member

    "proper" road pedals will be better that MTB double sided, as the platform is bigger and more comfortable

    road pedals have a more secure fit and offer more support than MTB pedals.

    Given stiff carbon soles, exactly what difference does it make how big the platform is? How is the fit more secure when you can wind up the tension on the MTB pedals?

    I have road pedals on my nice road bikes – they are road pedals that take standard SPD cleats though (original 7410s on the TT bike, modern Xpedo single sided jobs on the road bike). Makes life so much easier when shoes and pedals are all interchangeable – road shoes for training on the hack bike, MTB shoes for using it as transport. Alternatively (and the reason I went this way in the first place), when racing with road and off-road sections and bike swaps, no faffing with shoe changes.

    Blazin-saddles
    Free Member

    I'm an SPD sl man, Dura Ace on the best bikes with 105 on winter machine. all work just as well as each other, cleats are same etc. Dura is better finished, lighter and seems to last longer but it's 10x the price of the cheapest one.

    I tried to use Keo's a couple of years back, bought some carbons but they were too narrow for me and gave me knee issues, also, the cleats lasted about 10 minutes, where I change the Shimano's once a year.

    Road shoes and pedals will reduce hotspots on the balls of your feet on long hot rides as they spread the load better.

    nickc
    Full Member

    105 here. In theory I suppose MTB pedals shouldn't make a difference, but it does. Dunno why

    FuzzyWuzzy
    Full Member

    I've always used SPD-SL's (105 and Ultegra), I'm tempted to try Speedplays at some point though just to see what they're like.

    cp
    Full Member

    105 spd sl's from Merlin for 39.99 inc. cleats

    warton
    Free Member

    +1 Look Keos
    Or if you're feeling flush get the new look carbon blades and pretend you're Alberto Contador

    higgo
    Free Member

    Shimano SPD-SL here too, UltegraSL on one bike, 105 on t'other. As others have said, it just works.

    105 spd sl's from Merlin for 39.99 inc. cleats

    Nice.

    njee20
    Free Member

    I've had a set of Keo Carbon Tis since they first came out, think it's about 5 years now, also got Classics on the winter bike. I changed from SPD-SLs, the Keos are great in use, slightly smaller making clipping in slightly harder IMO, but not difficult.

    The cleats do only last about 10 minutes though, and they've recently made them far worse by putting 'non slip' stuff on. Now they 'stick' to the pedal for the first 6 minutes making clipping in harder, then the rubber starts coming off and the plastic wears even quicker!

    Both my pairs also 'tick' when you're out of the saddle. I'm very tempted back to SPD-SLs, although less so now they're so expensive!

    I must say that I do find road pedals more stable than MTB ones, even with stiff soles, there must be a bit of 'rock' in the pedal body or between cleat and pedal which is reduced with the larger contact patch. When I have used MTB pedals and stiff MTB shoes on the road it doesn't feel anywhere near as nice.

    missingfrontallobe
    Free Member

    I've got two road bikes, one I use with Look delta pedals and dedicated road shoes, the other which is morew of a hack/winter bike I use with Shimano 515 MTB pedals and boggo MTB shoes.

    You might want to consider cost of road shoes alonside pedals if you decide to go along the dedicated road pedal route.

    thumbie
    Free Member

    Tried Keos & very nice indeed…although cleats wera quickly as others have said & can take a little getting used to. Currently use Speedplay Zeros…lovely to use although the cleats are on the large size due to design…worth a go IMHO.

    kennyp
    Free Member

    Thanks for the replies. Sounds like the Keos are good, but I'm not so keen on replacing cleats all the time, so will check out the Shimanos I think.

Viewing 21 posts - 1 through 21 (of 21 total)

The topic ‘Roadie Pedals – Recommendations’ is closed to new replies.