I am using flats occasionally and the old set of trainers I am using dont really grip the pedals.

Have looked at the Shimano AM40s and 5ten etc…. and they are an amazingly high price considering cost of SPD shoes and well any other shoes.

Anyone got any suggestions for decent shoes that will work fairly well. I use SPDs most of the time so £70 or more seems a bit of a waste of money.

Some skate/bmx shoes from somewhere cheap. I use Vans with a waffle sole on my bike and there really good. I have Superstar pedals which are nice and big and grippy though.

AM40’s are worth it, super grippy with DMR V12’s, be quick though, they’re discontinued.

Mid or high-top skate shoes with a decently stiff sole from TK Maxx, £25, job done.

AM40s are reduced in Evans at the minute. About £50 if memory serves.
They are very good.

If you can find some waffle soled Vans or similar skate shoe (DC/Etnies etc) at TK Max/eBay then they’ll be fine for using with flats.

Or if they’ve still got your size you could try these from CRC for under 30 quid. Same sole as the AM40, if you can live with the looks.

skate shoe

I used these for years when I was a teenager BMXing they were really good.

http://www.sportsdirect.com/airwalk-the-one-241131

Those CRC 30 quid shimanos do look pretty ugly, so do the AM41s.

AM40’s have a lace cover which keep your feet pretty dry.

Five tens really are worth it IMO.

661 filter….Very comfortable…nice stiff sole….about £60

Will convert to SPD as well should you require!

I really like my AM40s, shame they’ve been discontinued.

Check rollersnakes web site for cheap skate shoes.

Skate shoes can be fine though not all are, I’ve got some ancient dot-soled Vans which are pretty good- grippy but very flexible, you can feel the pedal edges through the sole which is good and bad.

5 10s are basly overrated IMO… Sure they’re incredibly grippy but they’re cheaply made. Mine started to fall apart in about half a dozen different ways after a year. If you’re spending this much you should get something that’s better made than a supermarket trainer, cardboard insoles in an outdoors shoe is just ridiculous frinstance. Bad in the wet too, they soak up water like you wouldn’t believe.

So, I like my AM40s. Not as grippy, but far better made, more water resistant, adjustable sole stiffness which is nice.You can remove the insoles to help dry them out if you do get them properly wet. And they’re less bulky too, which is good for pedalling. The reduction in grip isn’t a bother at all, they’re still grippy enough. Oh and cheaper somehow despite being so much higher quality, maybe the Stealth sole’s very expensive to make or something.

Both 5 10s and AM40s look equally stupid IMO. The lace flap on the AMs is great, but you can get that on 5 10s too.

Oh the cheaper ones, is it MP90s, from CRC, are like an AM40 but a bit less good, and far more stupid looking. Got a pair for winter use in a size up for thick socks and they’ve been fine once covered in mud 😉