I have shimano combo pedals, spd one side only with a cage cos I wasn't sure about clips initially having never used them before.
I have unclipped before when I'm bricking it, but to be honest I found it worse out of the clips – the non-spd side is not grippy enough when you need it and sods law dictates that the spd side always presents itself when you don't want it, giving you even less stability with your foot slipping all over the mechanism. Just try flipping one over without looking when you're seconds away from disaster !

I have seen some shimano spds with a removable cage that makes them flats – anyone on here have experience of these ?

The combo's are only really any good if you might ride with non-spd shoes once in a while, which is the only reason mine are still on the bike.

Otherwise, set your tension so you can unclip confidently – the shimano pedals should let go if you lift your heel, as well as twisting your foot, but they need to be pretty loose to do this every time, especially when full of crud.

+1 for ditching the standard clamp.
I put a 30.0 hope QR on my post after having the same trouble on a 2010 frame (no shim).
Although it still slipped initially unless I tightened the QR heroically, it's now fine (?!) shame about how it looks – the post is a real mess after managing to slip with the original clamp tightened (beyond) fully.

Just don't pop it all the way out – they don't travel far without coming all the way out of the caliper body.
2 1/2 pumps of the lever on mine from the piston being all the way in the caliper. 3 would pop them out for sure.
When you get it moving, wipe and then lube the exposed piston with some DOT4 and press it back in. repeat until both pistons move equally, this can take some patience !
I ring spanner works well as a lever to push the piston back without damaging the centre peg.

I used to have a thudbuster on my old alu hardtail after suffering back ache when riding for any more than half an hour. Worked like a charm. It would be on my current bike had it not been nicked by some scrote.

You can add fluid but without a bleed kit to push it through the system you will be reduced to adding a few drops at a time, closing the caliper back up, operating brakes and then repeating.

If they work and the lever feels OK, leave em !

Looks like your weekend ride is back on…

Shakey,
The filler has an 'o' ring so it should not vent fluid at all. If you've had reason to remove the screw (or anyone has for you), have a look to see if the 'o' ring is in place and undamaged, it should definitely not leak.

It should be possible to push a siezed piston back in. Take the pads out first so that you dont damage them, and use a ring spanner on the end of the piston so as not to damage the stud that sticks out of the centre.
If it really won't budge check that you have not pushed it in at a slight angle, maybe even use the lever and push them back out a tiny bit first ?

It would be normal for one piston to move with the lever while the other does not if one has siezed. They usually sieze through getting wet/dirty and then not being moved (like when you wash your bike and then put it away for a week), but they don't usually get too stuck if this is the case, they just need a little help to get going again.

Dogmatix, how much is a new caliper ? If you get a bleed kit you could pop the pistons out of your current caliper and clean them up so they don't stick.

There is a very small hole on the lever which should let fluid out before it is forced out through the filler cap, which should not leak at all.
Operate the lever with something between the pads to stop them moving together and see if any fluid comes out of the lever, and where.

You could try loosening the filler cap and then pushing the pads back in to see if that helps, as any excess fluid would bleed out with the filler undone.

Whenever my Juicy 3s have been stiff it has been sticking pistons, and you really need the bleed kit before you attempt to fix that.

Whatever you do, protect your frame; brake fluid strips paint really well.

I had by beloved bike stolen earlier this year, along with my wife's bike – both were on the roof of the car outside my home, so let that be a warning to you if you do not secure them when you are travelling.

Two weeks later I passed my wife's bike on my way to work not a mile away from home riden by a grandad who had bought it from 'two blokes at the pub'. I had to let him ride off after stopping him and asking him a few questions, because I couldn't prove the bike was mine as it was a completely standard halfords model – seems unlikely thay many would be knocking about in the same town in virtually unridden condition given it was a 3 yr old womens specific bike. Annoyingly, had it been my bike I would have known it instantly because everything except the frame had been swapped over the 6 or 7 years I'd riden it !

If you've had a bike stolen by an opportunist (not very well secured, etc) keep your eyes open locally – the thieves aren't very clever, they will steal them and sell them on in their back yard, so to speak.

It's the only group of people I would advocate lining up and shooting, no trial.

I recently got a P7 (S).

Hated it at first, brakes constantly binding with a piston in each caliper siezed and the system full of air; v. annoying slipping seatpost; headset rusted up solid after a couple of wet rides…

Happily I have sorted each of the above (spent another £60 in the process – on a brand new bike !), and now I can honestly say I would not change it for anything else.

Fantastic grip and handling on singletrack – it can just keep going quicker until you can't pedal any faster – it never seems to reach a speed where it feels ready to let go.

Loads of scope for adjustment to the ride position with the u-turn forks and the lock-out is a god-send for tarmac to/from trails. Sliding drop-outs are rock-solid so far. I have to agree with the BB being slightly low, I have clipped the odd pedal here and there, but I guess that's also a big part of the whole grip and handling thing.

A great all-round bike which is exactly what I wanted, but if you have other rides available, ultimately the weight might be a big negative for dedicated xc use. You don't feel it when you're on it, but it is incredibly heavy, and the laws of physics imply that you are dragging all that weight around everywhere you ride.

Nice colour though !

Remember to factor in the cost of a bleed kit (£30) for the juicys if you haven't got one already. I have found the threes prone to sticky pistons, and the more you mess with them to fix this, the more they need bleeding.

Park tools website has a good guide for getting the play just right so that there is a tiny amont to compensate for the skewer when closed.
It involves mounting the hub/wheel outside your frame using one drop-out, and adjusting the other side while checking for play by opening/closing skewer. Works a treat.

Mine is 2010. In fact I ordered a late 2008 originally, but had to wait so long I too got one of the first 2010 frames in September 😡
I'll contact the shop for advice because it is slipping with the supplied clamp or the hope one installed.

enfht, is your P7 a 2010 ? If so does it have a shim ?

I thought this would be a minor niggle to solve, but the post is still slipping even with the s**t tightened out of the hope clamp – and i've only been on tarmac since I fitted it !
This bike took nearly 9 months to arrive (long story) so there's no way I'm sending it back to the shop 'cos I might never see it again – I need to fix this myself – any help or info about the 2010 set up appreciated.

BTW the post looks a bit of a mess because the original clamp scratched it when it slipped – nothing too deep, but I'm wondering if it's possible to clamp the post at all if it is getting damaged before it even grips ?

I got the slipping with the stock clamp too (no size marked on it)

I had been told that you can go slightly bigger when fitting a clamp – I don't think you can get a 29.8mm hope clamp anyway – but surely a clamp can close a gap of 0.1mm around the tube ?

Doh!

This is exactly what I'm looking for !

Thanks for the tip

Are they likely to blind drivers when I'm on the road ?

RichPenny – are you saying your tube is too big for a 31.8 ?

I though I'd made a mistake when the 30.0 clamp arrived – it looked tiny – but it slipped straight on – that would indicate that the outside diameter of the seat tube is different on the 2010 frame

Can't find 'dxextreme' on google – can you be any more specific please ?

Also, are these lights going to be within my budget (under 50 quid – i'm not that desperate to bike to work in the dark and cold !)

I have measured my 2010 P7 seat tube and bought a 30.0mm hope clamp which arrived yesterday and fits perfectly. The seat post is marked up as 27.2 if you remove it. However, I am still having to tighten the clamp up to a ridiculous degree just to get the seat post to stop slipping. I have wondered about a shim because of this – I seem to remember the P7 being shimmed at some point, but I'm not sure if the new reynolds tubing on the 2010 frame has done away with that ? I really though a quality clamp might solve the problem as the post has consistently slipped over rough terrain even though the bike has had very little use ( about 6 weeks old, but ridden very little due to a host of other component problems )
It's a pity because I have ridden the bike with everything working (once!) and it was fantastic, but little things like a loose seat post can ruin the experience.
Anybody else with a recent P7 with any knowledge about this ?