new bike ...yipee but what now

[Sully]

Hi guys whilst looking at the link for the cateye el-530 I saw these pedals what du think, am I better off using the SPD type pedals and I noticed that if I buy these I ll get cateye light free http://www.cyclestore.co.uk/productDetails.asp?productID=9773

 

[BentMikey]

Those are SPD-SL, or rather much the same as Looks. When the posters above said SPD, they meant mountain bike type pedals:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Shimano_PD-M520_Pedals/5360008792/

These have much smaller cleats that fit in shoes with a recess. This makes the shoes easier to walk in. I know they are called MTB type pedals, but many use this sort of cleat on road bikes. Nothing wrong with that.

I have SPDs on my fixed wheel road bike, and Look deltas on my recumbent. The Looks are great, but not for walking in.

 

[Tynan]

i got SPD, summer shoes re MTB too as almost fine to walk in, winter ones are road and a right nuisance to walk in, bad for wood floors and lethal on tiles

you kinda get used to them and I do walk a fair way in them sometimes but I give another paid of road shoes serious thought before I bought them for commuting

 

[Sully]

So the MTB pedals are actually mountain bike pedals ? Ill tell you what I need sommatt which ll be light but ok for a beginner and sommatt which enable me to walk a bit

 

[marinyork]

Sounds like you want normal SPDs then. If you do a search you'll see quite a few people on here have the PD-M520 pedals bentmikey linked to.

 

[Tynan]

and some mtb shoes for them, the same really but with a sole tread that comes beyond the cleat and stops it touching the pavement, much

 

[BentMikey]

Many of the serious long distance audaxers use SPDs on road bikes and swear by them. The sort of chap/chapess who would do the dun run and ride back home, and think that was a nice little ride.

 

[Sully]

Hi thanks for your advice, so if I went for these PD-M520 pedals, can I pretty much use any cleats/shoes with them, and indeed are there any cleats/shoes which you can recommend to me please ?

 

[BentMikey]

You'll need SPD cleats - only SPD cleats will work. There are other types of cleats such as Road: SPD-SL (not the same), Look delta, Look Keo, or MTB: ATAC, bebop, crank bros. Here are some SPD cleats on wiggle:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Shimano_SPD_MTB_Cleats/4000000886/

I have an older version of these MTB shoes - see the tread on the shoe? There's a recessed bit under teh ball of your foot where the above SPD cleat will fit in:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Specialized_Pro_MTB_Cycling_Shoes/5360028353/

I recommend not buying shoes online, and instead going to your LBS to try them on to make sure you get a pair that fit you well and are comfortable. Remember that everyone's feet are different, and shoe manufacturers use different foot shapes to make shoe, so fit is a very individual process.

 

[Sully]

I think on this occasion I ll go and try some shoes on, I like the thought of being able to walk a bit in the shoes aswell heard by lots of people abaout the Look Delta, I ll be asking again real soon about where to get winter gloves which helmet etc...hope you dont mind....

 

[BentMikey]

I have both SPDs for my fixed wheel, and Look deltas for my 'bent. The looks are great, but then I almost never unclip at traffic lights because I put a hand down instead, and my commute has almost no walking involved. That makes the looks the best choice for me on that bike, especially given that I thumped my foot on the seat very painfully a few times from unexpected SPD release when powering away from traffic lights. Looks never released like that for me, although even teh SPDs didn't do it very often.

 

[Sully]

Hi Mikey, I ll look for a pair of Looks Delta then and see where I can find the best price locally to Nottingham, If you think of owt else please feel free to suggest ty
Craig

 

[marinyork]

I've had two false releases in 6 months of using SPDs. I do use the multiway rather than the standard SPDs too (more likely to false release).