Clipless Pedals FAQ

[Smurfy]

Couple of points to watch out for.

Shoes, try them on if possible.

Shimano come up small, Northwave are a bit bigger and normally wider. But best to go to you LBS.

The pedals have an adjuster, loosen it off all the way before going out for the 1st time.



SH51 are the normal cleat that most use. to release just twist your heel

SH56 are multi angle release.

I use SH56 but thats because they suit me and i like to be able to just flick my heel and be out. some will tell you they are too loose. It really is personal preference.

If you find the SH56 to loose you can tighten the pedal mechanism.

What on earth does the up arrow mean in the SH-56 picture? I thought the whole point of clipless was that you could pull up and bring the pedal with your foot!

I use the standard SH-51 cleats, and have never had an issue releasing or staying in. On fixed-wheel you have to be totally confident not to release by accident, so I certainly wouldn't want anything that released easier than SH-51.

 

[Peteaud]

What on earth does the up arrow mean in the SH-56 picture? I thought the whole point of clipless was that you could pull up and bring the pedal with your foot!

I use the standard SH-51 cleats, and have never had an issue releasing or staying in. On fixed-wheel you have to be totally confident not to release by accident, so I certainly wouldn't want anything that released easier than SH-51.

Ive never managed to pull up and out on a pair of SH56 i have, so the answer is, i don't know.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

What on earth does the up arrow mean in the SH-56 picture? I thought the whole point of clipless was that you could pull up and bring the pedal with your foot!

I use the standard SH-51 cleats, and have never had an issue releasing or staying in. On fixed-wheel you have to be totally confident not to release by accident, so I certainly wouldn't want anything that released easier than SH-51.

They release by twisting/moving the foot in any direction which in practice means left/right twist and diagonally up/left & up/right.

The upward arrow indicates that they will release upwards but they only do so with a lot of force.

I have used these for over a year now and have never had an accidental release.

They are much easier to release than SH51's which are plain nasty imo. With SH56's I would say that 'clipless moments' are an impossibility.

 

[Smurfy]

They release by twisting/moving the foot in any direction which in practice means left/right twist and diagonally up/left & up/right.

The upward arrow indicates that they will release upwards but they only do so with a lot of force.

I have used these for over a year now and have never had an accidental release.

They are much easier to release than SH51's which are plain nasty imo. With SH56's I would say that 'clipless moments' are an impossibility.

Ah, OK, that maybe rules the SH-56 out on fixed-wheel for anyone who wants to use leg-braking with lots of force. I haven't had a clipless moment for a long time, I'm happy to track-stand on fixed-wheel with SH-51, and have never had a problem releasing whenever I need to. However, I did learn to use clipless on a mountain bike, and off road there are always singletrack situations that challenge your ability to engage and disengage at a moments notice. Using clipless for road riding is a piece of cake by comparison to off road singletrack!

 

[Harv]

Just ordered some SPD shoes.

Hopefully this isn't a mistake.

 

[Acesand8s]

It isn't a mistake, just be easy on it, be sure you have spd pedals, and i never had a clipless moment in my life, i literally clipped in 250 times and out both sides at varying angles before i rode outside. If you practice enough, clipless moments are not inevitable.

Just ordered some SPD shoes.

Hopefully this isn't a mistake.

.

 

[Harv]

It isn't a mistake, just be easy on it, be sure you have spd pedals, and i never had a clipless moment in my life, i literally clipped in 250 times and out both sides at varying angles before i rode outside. If you practice enough, clipless moments are not inevitable.

.

Thanks for the advice. I have some pedals and cleats. The shoes should arrive this week. Will practice this weekend if the weather is good.

 

[DefBref]

Don't necessarily need good weather, you can practise indoors supporting yourself against a wall to practise clipping and unclipping.

 

[marcwlms]

Just taken the plunge myself. Got r540 light action pedals waiting to go on bike and about to buy some dhb shoes as they are reduced to £35 on wiggle website.

 

[James Ots]

I just bought the £35 dhb M1.0s from Wiggle, because my one month old Aldi shoes have already fallen apart. The dhbs look like they're much better quality, and feel more comfortable — at least for a quick zip around the block. Hopefully they'll also be good for long distances.

 

[Harv]

Don't necessarily need good weather, you can practise indoors supporting yourself against a wall to practise clipping and unclipping.

Tried clipping and in un clipping. Think I need to adjust the pedals as I found it quite difficult to get my feet in and out.

 

[Louch]

Keo question

Have only used grey cleats, does the black having no float mean

1- any twist unclips
2- harder to unclip?

 

[Harv]

Decided to sell my SPD shoes.

Couldn't get on with them

http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/for-sale-scott-mtb-size-44-spd-shoes.158063/#post-3122698

 

[bororider]

Upgraded to spd-sl pedals and shoes/cleats last week. Done 80 ish miles with them now and not come close to having a topple yet.
The biggest struggle I have atm is getting my foot back in after I've had to stop somewhere. Sometimes it falls right in other times I'm faffing for ages, sure it will come with more experience.
I only feel comfortable releasing my right foot atm too altho left would be better being kerb side.

On the plus side also my avg speeds have been quicker, clocked a 17.1mph avg today for the first time

The convenience of flats is great but I'm not sure i'd change back now. Was dreading it to begin with but there really is nothing to it

 

[marcwlms]

I just bought the £35 dhb M1.0s from Wiggle, because my one month old Aldi shoes have already fallen apart. The dhbs look like they're much better quality, and feel more comfortable — at least for a quick zip around the block. Hopefully they'll also be good for long distances.

Good to know. Holding out for payday, hopefully they will still be reduced.

M