TrojanHorse

Its probably actually hard to get the little covers installed backwards or on the wrong foot, but as I mentioned above, I did it. I'm cut from the same cloth - I'd rather do it myself and figure out how it's done. I'm sure it would be nice to just buy an expensive bike and start riding it, but nooooooo! I have to spend 36 hours building it and cussing at it to get the full appreciation.

magohn

Ha!!! Fixed them!

Unfortunately I'm from the mechanical school of "its close enough". When installing the cleats to the shoes the instructions specifically tell of fitting the correct curvature shim so that the cleat fits flush with the curvature of the sole of the shoe. Well I had a 1mm gap between the cleat-mount and the shoe that could be taken up by tightening down the cleat-mount. WRONG - by tightening down the mount to take up the 1mm gap, I inadvertently "curved" the locking mechanism of the cleat and so it would not engage correctly.

So, I took apart the cleat, fitted the thicker 4-R shims (supplied), re-assembled everything and jumped on the bike. NO PROBLEMS!! The shoes snap in and out of the pedals and will not break away from the pedal unless I twist my foot to do so.

Im thrilled - thank you all and a special thanks to Trojan . Now I "get it"

El Conquistador De Amore

Nope, with the same shoes the problem went away with the different pedal/cleat system. The speedplays may work for many, just not for me.

CraigB

Hot spots seem to be one of those things (like saddle discomfort) that's different for everyone, and can come and go with changes that seem inconsequential or even contraindicated. I consider myself lucky that through 30+ years of riding, with lots of different bikes, pedals and shoes, I've never had a problem with them.

Now I've done it.

TrojanHorse

Glad to hear it... now that all is working, hopefully you'll actually like them...

cycler39

Been using Speedplay Frogs on my road bike for 6 years with no problems.

VaMoots

For me it's a symptom of having a size 48 wide foot with a pedal the size of a walnut. I use Sidi's btw so it's not the shoe.

snowman40

I switched to Shimano 105s. No idea why I didn't do it sooner, no foot pain over 30 km. Just overall a lot more comfortable and secure.

Though, I need to work on clipping in as I had a few hairy moments pulling away from some reds (in bike lane) oh well, I'll figure it out.

vesteroid

I didn't read the entire thread, but I have the stainless zeros and love them

TrojanHorse

Have you tried keeponkovers.com yet? I can't believe how much I like mine - they convert my cleat from slippery and low traction into walkable. and keep the cleat itself from being chewed up by the ground.

avance

I have the speedplay zeros with the keeponkovers. The kovers prevented me from loosing a couple screws too. They do make walking on concrete easier.

magohn

+1 - I love mine. Fit them and forget them. No need to carry them with you as they are always on. Also provide grip. Highly recommended

Mugre

No, No, No oil. Silicone or other dry lubricants. Oil attracts and holds grit and the grit adds friction and may prevent the pedal from releasing when you need it to. It also accelerates wear. I used silicone spray on my SPD's because they weren't releasing well if there was any twist in the foot when trying to unclip. It worked like a charm. I switched to speedplay and stayed with them even though they weren't completely trouble free. I liked the free float and I felt like entry and exit were both more reliable than with SPD's.

Mugre

TrojanHorse

I have so many damn bottles of lube for various things on my bike, I can't even keep track. My pedals (speedplay) require some weird speedplay grease for the main bearings (finally bought that over priced grease gun) and PTFE, whatever that is, for the cleat. You're supposed to lube the cleat every other ride. I have been on an every other lifetime schedule, no ill effects so far. I do lube the pedal bearings though about quarterly.

avance

I have yet to lube my pedals or cleats with about 400 miles on them. I guess that may be the reason I have a hard time snapping in my right cleat.

contango 

... and the M324?

evtl

I was also curious about the weight limit on the Speedplays. So I just asked them about my choice, the Speedplay X2 stainless steel:

"Hi evtl,

Thank you for contacting Speedplay.

There is not weight limit on our stainless steel spindles.

Regards,

Bill"

So, I bought them.


edit // Oh, I am six years late. Maybe a Googler will thank me :-D

jack_flack

This has been my experience with my speedplays. I've just switched them out for SPD-SLs and am looking forward to warmer weather to put some miles on.

1nterceptor

Had them on a few roadbikes; pretty good:

squirtdad

FWIW I tried speedplays and just did not like them. I found them a lot harder to clip into smoothly than spd-sl. and the overall care needed lube and maintenance was more than I wanted to deal with.

I use both spd (on combo flat/spd pedals) and spd-sl depending on the bike. spd is the easiest overall, but for my road bike i really love the spd-sl

Beachgrad05

Interesting. I found the opposite for me. SPD-SL's were a ***** to get into on the first try and there was more than one instance of slamming my crotch into my bike seat when I missed. Or one leg revolutions to get the damn pedal back around on a hill.


I have had speedplays since I started riding and don't think I have lubed them ever....I don't notice anything like they are having issues. I put a teeny bit of dry lube on the cleat here and there but that's been it.

Beachgrad05

Regarding the lube of the pedals...it is possible that my bike shop does that for me when I take it in for their fancy tune ups. I swear I was given new brake pads on my Domane that I just picked up from being tuned where they strip the drivetrain and the bike gets THOROUGHLY cleaned up and set to rights.

Rollfast

Nope, I just avoid Bell if I can. I like Wellgo metal BMX pedals but I also like the later AS with the reflectors I got for my straightbar Hornet.

JohnJ80

I was just going to suggest this when you posted it. Good work!

Speedplay also has a walkable cleat for the Light Action pedals that is similar to the walkable cleat for the Zeros. These are maybe the most walkable road cleat ever. The KeepOnCovers are also good but less walkable. I'd say that the KeepOnCovers on cleats approximate walking on the Look cleats I rode from the time they first came out in the '80s until about 10 years ago when I switched to Speedplay. I really like the Zeros and would never go back, ever.

J.

pesty

Put me in the camp of liking my Zero's better than SPD, SPD-SL or Look. For me, ease of entry due to being double sided was my big reason for switching from SPD-SL as I hit a lot of stop signs/lights. I also like the adjustable float and no spring tension in the float. Platform itself also feels ever so slightly more stable than SPD-SL, which was what kept me on the SPD-SL for several years. As for walkability, the aero/walkable cleats are better than anything other than recessed cleats IMO.

As for weight, I think the only ones that have a limit are the Titanium spindle ones. Personally, I'm fine with the chromoly ones. A few grams at the pedal spindles will do me nothing that dropping a few kilos of body weight won't.