Pedal tension

[skinnydog1973]

Hi i rode my bike for the first time at the weekend and used my new pedals and shoes,it was the first time i had been clipped in, i set the tension on the pedals to the lowest and felt comfortable clipping out, what i was wondering is what benefit,if any do u gain by putting the tension to the highest, is it so you might not clip out accidentally, cheers for any help

 

[Rob3rt]

Basically yes, so it requires a greater force to disengage the cleat from the pedal. This means you are less likely to accidently pull your foot out when sprinting of climbing steep hills. TBH, if you don;t have bad habits like rotating your foot throughout the pedal stroke you should not have any problems running the minimum setting. Don't worry about it.

 

[Biker Joe]

As Rob3rt says and may I add:-
Generally speaking, reading from other clipless users comments, it seems that most are quite happy with the factory default settings.or perhaps, from first timers, using the least tension until they get used to it. Myself, I use the factory default settings. It's what suits me.
The highest tension certainly holds you very securely but might put you in a difficult position when experiencing a near clipless moment or you need to unclip in a hurry.
Try various tensions and then use what you feel is most comfortable to you. Do it somewhere quiet though till you find your sweet spot.

 

[MattHB]

I have my SPD SL's wound out quite loose as I find them quite tight naturally (new cleats). And I have my SPD's wound up tight so they're about the same as the roadie. If I don't match them I have scary moments on the roadie when I nonchalantly twist my foot out and it doesn't move!

 

[ColinJ]

I always set my pedals to minimum release tension. At least, I try to ...

 

[fossyant]

I wind my SPD's up tight as the two road bikes pedals are very tight by default and they are in the middle of the range.

 

[AndyPeace]

imo cleat tension is a bit like tire pressure, the looser it is the more of your energy is lost. That said don't go tightening them to higher settings if your not comfortable, It's better to loose a few seconds effort and be happy with your ride!

 

[ColinJ]

imo cleat tension is a bit like tire pressure, the looser it is the more of your energy is lost.

Hang on ... if you have the release tension really low and never unclip accidentally, that means your feet are not moving about much, therefore that begs the question 'Exactly how does your energy get wasted?'

OTOH if you have your pedal tensions set high then you could be twisting your feet against the tension and that might very well waste energy.

 

[AndyPeace]

Hang on ... if you have the release tension really low and never unclip accidentally, that means your feet are not moving about much, therefore that begs the question 'Exactly how does your energy get wasted?'

OTOH if you have your pedal tensions set high then you could be twisting your feet against the tension and that might very well waste energy.

A small amount of energy is wasted as your foot, as you say, is moving about a bit, all be it not much. I have no proof or quantity as to how much, was just a passing lunchtime comment from someone with no race or time trial experience, probably one of those moments when I should have realised I knew nothing but it blurted out anyway

I run my pedals on low tension, my feet have never come unclipped when powering the bike, but that could be more down to a lack of muscle on my part! However, I was thinking of tightening them, on the assumption that my current set up is inefficient. I also feel a lot of vibration through my feet and wondered whether that might be lessened by doing so too. I guess I'll try to add bit by bit to the tension...
I was drawn to this thread as I wanted to know a little more about clipless pedals and properly setting them up.

hmmm... I need to read this thread don't I?! http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/clipless-pedals-faq.74358/

 

[TonyEnjoyD]

Hi i rode my bike for the first time at the weekend and used my new pedals and shoes,it was the first time i had been clipped in, i set the tension on the pedals to the lowest and felt comfortable clipping out, what i was wondering is what benefit,if any do u gain by putting the tension to the highest, is it so you might not clip out accidentally, cheers for any help

I ave ad my SPD's and SL's on minimum since I got the 4 and 3 years ago respectively and never had an accidental unclip
If they're fine, just leave them

 

[simmi]

You guys seem to me to be making something that is very simple seem complicated.
Set them to minimum tension, if they don't accidental unclip leave them there, if they do tighten until they don't.
I would think the only exception to this would be if you had 2 or more bikes and wanted to balance them like MattHB.

 

[Brommyboy]

All this begs the question: do you ride for pleasure or are you determined to continually increase your input? I use multi-release cleats and have my pedal tension set to the minimum, as I have done for many years. In heavy traffic I can get a foot out in an emergency without difficulty, and in wet, slippery conditions, my foot stays properly connected. I might be an entrant in the Brompton World Championship race but do so for enjoyment, not to win (fat chance of that!).