Originally Posted by
staehpj1
It varies with the shoe. Yes some (most?) shoes you can just take out the insole and swap plates. I had a pair that the plates didn't come out without cutting the sole. It probably could have been cut from the top inside the shoe, but I didn't think that was a great idea and would have only done it as a last resort. Since I could get the same cleat position with the other set of holes it was not a problem to just use the other holes.
Yeah, you're right. My shoes had a very subtle, almost invisible perforation inside under the insole that I could (with some effort and a blade) remove and get at the plate.
The fun part was on the trail: of the two bolts, one stripped and IIRC, fell out, so the cleat would rotate around the other one. I couldn't unclip from the pedal, so had to take the shoe off to get off the bike. Of course I fell down the first time. Since then, I've made sure to grease the bolts and check them every now and then.