walterb

Greetings ,

looking for proper toe clips / straps for my son’s late-80s Bianchi Campione d’Italia. I see various sizes but no sizing chart. He wears size 9ish (U.S.) shoe. So, we figure, medium? Also, what’s a good source for both clips and straps (to avoid having to order from two places and incur double the shipping costs, which in this case tend to amount more than the items themselves)? He’s more or less flexible on the brand - his components right now are a mixed bag - but ideally something that makes sense on an Italian frame. Thanks for your guidance.

oneclick 

9 is usually medium, but it may depend on where he likes his feet on the pedal.

You need a LBS or co-op with some old ones he can try, then get the shiny new ones that size.

merziac

@walterb

These are classic, clips come s/m or l/xl, you don't want them to be small.

The Bianchi is into the clipless era so... I never use them, oldschool all the way.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/29173622825...0AAOSwUKxYm0Ad

https://www.ebay.com/itm/38173513758...YAAOSwxNxbW2Rf

These are free shipping.

And this is my normal setup.

Double gate for more stability without really tight straps.

3alarmer 

.
...the laminated straps that Velo Orange sells now maintain their stiffness and shape longer than any simple single layer leather toe strap, and they are cheaper than the really good laminated ones from Japan. Pperformance used to sell them in their online store for half as much, but they don't any more. Clips are sort of a personal preference thing. Those Zefals recommended above work fine, but I've lately gone to these Soma clips . They fit my shoe toe better, and the white powdercoated ones are pretty cheap. They sell them in chrome, but at two or three times the price.

3alarmer 

SurferRosa

I try to get used Christophe clips from the LBS or co-op. They often come with peddles. I buy new Christophe straps on eBay for under $14 shipped (+ tax).

P!N20

I love Soma toe clips, their straps are also excellent, but I've moved away from them as they're expensive to get to Australia.

They're a copy of an ICS design:

Bad Lag

Be careful about this purchase. There's one more thing to consider besides the clip's size (length).

If the shoes have tall toe box (like the ones shown below), you will need to buy TALL clips. The extra height will allow the very blunt shoe to fully enter the clip. Without that, the blunt-toed shoe will not be able to go all the way in and the metal clip will quickly damage the leather shoe.

If your shoes have a narrow toe and are tapered top to bottom (like Merziac's photo above), the regular clips will be fine.

52telecaster

This is all great advice and as a person who hits the coop often I certainly suggest that avenue. Our coop routinely has used clips and straps. Personally I buy the straps whenever they are cheap for touring and commuting with loads. The straps are great for securing bulky items to a rack or trailer. Pretty much better than anything else I have tried.

alcjphil

I clicked on those links. Like me, the OP lives in Canada. Shipping is not free and they also have to deal with exchange rates and possible duties

merziac

Well I tried, guess that will be the case no matter what. Can you search efbay for Canadian sellers maybe? I realize they would be more $$$ just because.

merziac

Good point, I have a set of republics that I plan to have modified or do myself by grinding the sole flat and having protective soles put on like the ones above.

79pmooney

Random comments from a guy who's got way over 100,000 miles on toeclips. (And who has been pulling them tight and pulling up hard on the pedals to climb and accelerate the whole time.) Plastic toeclips are simply better because they are lighter and far easier to pick up. Also survive the "crunch" when the tip hits the road as the pedal hits 6 o'clock. Yes, they break sooner than metal but serve far better in the meantime.

Christophe straps, while being very time appropriate on almost any era bike, are the bare minimum quality as a strap to be ridden hard. Yes, laminated should be better but not all are of good quality. Some are junk. Really good quality simple leather straps can be far better. I raced the all leather Bindas back in the day and used many since. If you come across them, grab them.

And I've given up on the quest to find those good ones. (They're out there. But usually expensive and no longer there next time I need a pair.) I simply have the local leather shop cut me 1/2" strips of their quality cowhide and rivet them to quality old buckles. For me, toestraps are consumables; lasting somewhere between cloth handlebar tape and chains.

Bad Lag

I was able to remove the lugs and cleats by unscrewing them and installed thick rubber just like you show. The toe box is still too tall for conventional clips.

merziac

Well the protective soles are` only about 1/8 - 3/16ths thick and on those shoes and make for a good fit once the straps are adjusted right.

I got inspired by this thread and dug out my new in the box Republic's. I took the front lugs off and ground off the guides, sanded the soles, cleaned them with solvent and put big dabs of Shoe-goo on, filling the cleat slots so the plates got stuck in place.

Walked around on the slick concrete in the garage and then test rode them today and they worked very well, going to add more Shoe-goo and see how well it stays stuck in regular use, protective soles are still the back up plan.

The dual gate Soma Oppy clips are big enough and I have tweaked them to work even better.

Toe clips are tough so they can be hard to tweak, patience is key as they can break or get sprung out of shape if you go too far, but you have to go pretty far to make it stick so its a process. I do them on the pedal on the bike so you can really lean into it carefully.

The fit and the ride with them was very good so I am good with the fit at this point.

These shoes may be a bit shorter in the toe box and they have some give but so far they work great, still if need be the clips would see it my way.

Here's some pics.

JohnDThompson 

MKS α-fit straps are about as nice as the Binda laminated straps, and are still being made for the Keirin riders. Prices can be all over the map, though. I got a couple new sets for about US$12 a couple years ago, most are in the $30-40 range, sometimes over $60. Shop around. Electra used to offer a laminated strap with a nice buckle pad, but they were laminated with the finished side of the leather facing out on both sides, which made it hard for the buckle teeth to grab. They kept slipping on me when pulling up hard, so I gave up on them. Toshi made top quality straps, but stopped a few years ago. You can still find new sets, but they're not cheap.

CroMo Mike 

While on this topic, I found a way to get toe straps through the holes in the pedals without them stripping the finish off the edges of the straps. I applied some Lexol leather cleaner to the edges of the straps before pushing them through. It lubricates the leather so it can slip through pretty easily without damaging the leather, then the Lexol dries and disappears in a few hours, leaving no oily stuff, no color change, and no evidence that it was ever there. Use some more later when you want to remove the straps.

merziac

Pics ?

merziac

Circling back to add that another 12.5 miles today with the first 7.5 being to the Dr. hustling for me and this new setup is very good, stiff soles and comfortable shoes make for much better effort return and feet still feeling like they can go a lot further.



was I waiting for?

Have had these for a long time.

Thalia949

I would be interested in finding out how your glueing project turns out for the republics. I have a leather pair where I've removed the side pieces and I am considering finding a cobbler to do the same.

I'm also about to test another set up by using the Vittoria cleats by bolting one side of the SPD slot and one bolt from the side cleats.

merziac

So the protective soles are spendy, $70 after talking them down on the oldschool ones above, still absolutely worth it IMO.

The shoe-goo will be on going, hoping that adding some more will shore it up better, we'll see, I may add some grooves for it to stick to if it doesn't hold up.

Going to fill in the screw holes with it to resolve the last bit of slip and slide, may be challenging to keep them from being slippery the last 10% of the time.

Thalia949

Thought I would share a pic of what I am trying with my Republic LX's - attaching a Vittoria cleat. I've ridden once with this, but need to get the position right before I drill the cleat to attach to the bolt point where the lug was.

Not at all sure if I will end up with this as a solution. I like the idea of gluing a sole on the bottom as I have bad knees and need a high amount of float - which the cleat does not provide.

merziac

I would be very hesitant to use that screw mount for the cleat, it may not be robust enough and If that insert blows out it might screw up the sole I think.

Thalia949

Thanks merziac - I agree with you on the screw mount. I may be better served using these cleats on another shoe and going the sole route!

merziac

Its amazing the amount of abuse soles take that we don't realize until we go to a place like this.

I was out on another ride yesterday afternoon and stopped at a shoe shop that I had talked to about the protective soles I had put on the other shoes, it was done at a different shop.

I asked this shop about protective soles on the republics and they said they wouldn't want to do it for the danger of the sole peeling up and getting stuck in the pedal while riding.

They probably have a good point as the Shoe-goo struggles to stay stuck so better prep and and or a glue may need to be found.

I'm going to ramp up the prep and goo, probably should have left the ridge guides for the lugs alone to provide a hardstop for the goo.