Which pros use speedplay

Post by prendrefeu on Tue Dec 31, pm Ok, so why are Speedplays not so great? The pedals are light, but the cleats are heavy, so they aren't necessarily any lighter than other pedal systems. You need an adapter for common road shoes or Speedplay-specific shoes to use them. The adapter increases the stack height which negated the claim of lowest stack height. The cleats need covers if you're going to walk on them to the same extent as any other rider might with another cleat system.

The cleats will muck up with debris and prevent clipping in. The cleats also need to be lubed. Why would anyone willingly enter into a high-maintenance relationship? Shouldn't one be able to simply place the cleats on the sole of your shoes and leave them alone until they need to be replaced? Shouldn't a person be able to put their foot down on the pavement or earth without worrying that you won't be able to clip back in? The company?

Sends threatening letters and their lawyers after anyone who 'tunes' their products and posts about them. We had to start a thread here with a new name just to avoid their litigious m. Tried to sue Bebop, and lost outright - so badly they were denied any revisit to the case! They can be a bit like the Specialized of the pedal world. If you like Speedplays great. Try Look's systems. Try Time's newer system. Try Time's RXS system still going strong.

Try Xpedo. Try Exustar. Try Mavic. They aren't the same. They each have different float and binding characteristics. Speedplay, as a business, has done well on marketing. Thanks for any advice you have. I have three pairs of Speedplay pedals all with the left pedal needle bearings worn out, the right pedal is perfect.

I decided to take them apart to see if there was anything I could do with them. I took the bow ties off and swapped the left pedal clip inserts with the right pedal clip inserts. I had to install them back to front in the pedal body to match the left cleat arrangement.

Now I have a perfect pair of working pedals made up of two right pedal bodies. I also have two pairs or speedplay pedals with the left pedal needle bearing worn out. Why is it that the left pedals wear out first? My last pedals were clip-less mids Mavics. Basically, they looked pun intended just like LOOK pedals of that same era. So, I Googled and Googled and even talked with the Speedplay people. They are very nice and said essentially the same thing you did — it just takes a bit of time to get used to the float.

Have you tried relubing the seized pedals? I once had my other side Speedplay Zero Stainless seize on me.. I however pushed new superlubes trough the pedal and it has been fine ever since.. Hello, I am in AZ and also have speedplay x5 pedals which I love.

I do not race but really enjoy cycling for fitness since I am unable to run. My cleats are fine but I need a new right pedal. Would you be willing to sell me a right x5 pedal? Yes, they are expensive, but they are worth every penny IMO— I love them and will never ride anything else! He David Baker might have the same problem I had recently, I bought a speedplay grease gun to lube my pedals and found out on close inspection that the small bolt under the spindle cap had no grease port.

When I checked online I realised that some models older ones do not have a grease port. You have to dismantle the pedal to get the grease in , which after finding a youtube video I done quite easily being basically mechanically minded , good luck. I love my speedplays. Not a single issue. Not an issue either way. Once my foot and pedal come loose from the spindle broken circlip? Biked home pressing leg and pedal in, rebuilt OK. Cleats expensive, get the walkable stay on covers, I never remove mine.

No prob getting used to float. I ride each bike maybe 50 miles per week and grease about once per year. My CrMo variety do not have the dust cap which can pop up and make it hard to get the grease in — they just have a little hole in the otherwise solid outside end of the pedal.

Big plus for the CrMo. One thing I tried just yesterday which made things a lot easier: I took the pedal off of the bike and placed it in a vice on my workbench before trying to inject the grease. Everything went much more smoothly.

Just saw this post. Very odd to hear about failure or the need to add lube every miles — that does not match my experience at all. Shoe setup can be a little fiddly — need to get the right shims, and also need to loctite the screws or they will wilggle loose eventually. I tried to order new cleats for my x-series, and they are basically unavailable in the U. Also I contacted Wahoo, asking if the new shims come with the cleats, and they sent a form email, which did not answer the question, obviously.

I used to be able to deal with Speedplay directly, and now nothing. The correct technique is to leave them on the bike, unlike the initial pictures in the article.

Use any needle nose grease gun with appropriate bike grease. Remove the screw and push HARD with the grease gun before pumping the grease. You will get filthy grease coming out around the spindle. Keep pumping, and gently turn the pedal a bit, until you get clean grease appearing. If the pedals spin freely the grease has dried out. They should turn with drag from the grease, not spin. If they spin they need re-greasing, or if there is excessive resistance ie not just the drag of grease.

Depending on conditions wet and salty for example they may need greasing more often. Half a dozen winter wet rides and I re-grease mine — the water gets in and contaminates the grease. This can lead to bearing failure. I have never had a bearing fail on any Speedplay pedals. Cleats need to be cleaned, especially if you put a foot down on a muddy verge.

They get clogged and bits of grit and sand sit between the cleat and the pedal body. This is what wears the plastic body leading to lateral rocking eventually.

I have half a dozen sets and all have pedal body wear after about 3yrs use. Does depend on mileage I guess. I too have bought a couple of pairs of Pave pedals to overcome the body wear issues. They also clear muck from the cleat much better. Speedplay being Speedplay they would only rebuild your pedals for you….. Another issue is wearing of the lip of the bow ties. This is simply down to use, clipping in and out.

You can also buy aftermarket stainless or titanium spindles to match your Speedplays. Again, be careful on aftermarket quality — yet again Dulight work for me. So I buy chromoly Speedplays, just for the bodies which can be swapped onto aftermarket titanium spindles for a fraction of the cost of titanium Speedplays. I am looking at trying to see if a local engineering works can cut down Zero bow ties to fit Paves.

Why do Speedplay have to make it so hard by not selling aftermarket spare parts? And one final point. The wear to one pedal — it depends which foot you normally clip out of when you stop at junctions, traffic lights etc. I always unclip left foot. This puts extra wear on the left pedal body, the bow tie and also means you pick up more wet mud and dirt, the bearings getting a bit more water in past the seals compared to the foot that predominantly stays clipped in.

So I love the feel of Speedplays — the benefit is to adjust the float, not leave it maxed out. Mine have very little float which works for me. However, this design is appalling and there have been numerous accounts from users losing the rubber shoe from their cleat s.

I have lost 3 and tried various glues to hold them all — from superglue to araldite. It is a great pedal if you are a cycling purist who wants a high-end, light cleat and pedal. Best For: Avid road cyclist who want a unique, higher-end pedal and cleat system.

Very similar to the Look in its 3-bolt design. In fact, we wish Shimano would find a different, distinct name for them because they can be confusing to some. For now, we will just call them the SL cleats, because about the only thing they have in common with true SPDs is the naming. The SLs really resemble the Look cleat and pedal design in style and feel. Like the Looks, they are a 3-bolt system with a triangular profile.

Like the Looks, they have a broad and wide platform so the foot has plenty of surface area on the pedal to transfer power. And like the Looks, they have impressive float from side to side to provide comfort to any cycling stroke. We ride the SLs on some of our road bikes, and love them. They are compatible with many of our favorite shoes, shoes which are stiff and high-performance, and we feel give us max speed.

A three-bolt shoe that first a Look cleat will also fit an SL cleat. But the sizes are just a few millimeters off when it comes to the cleat-pedal fit, so a SL cleat needs to fit to an SL pedal. A Look cleat is needed in order to properly fit to a Look pedal. Best For: Advance road cyclists who want great power transfer and compatibility with excellent shoes. A road bike usually comes either with no pedals, or with very basic alloy pedals which are intended to be swapped out by the buyer.

As you can gather from the info above, the pedal you choose will make a difference in the cleat that you then put on to your shoe, as well as the shoe itself. Putting a pedal on your bike is a piece of cake. Each bike is made with universal threads that a pedal can screw in to. Just remember, the right pedal loosens by turning counter-clockwise, whereas the left pedal loosens by turning clockwise. This throws some people off. There is a thing called a pedal wrench, but most people with some basic wrench tools at home can fasten and loosen a pedal very easily.

The second thing you need is a cleat. As you can see from our reviews above, the cleat needs to be compatible with the pedal you choose. The cleat that you choose also makes a difference on the shoe that you choose, as the configuration of the holes for screwing the cleat on to the shoe can be different by shoe.

Putting the cleat on to the shoe is easy, and can be done at home with an Allen wrench. You can typically adjust the positioning of the cleat to best align with how your pedal stroke moves. Be sure to adjust it throughout the first few rides to be sure the point of contact between your foot and the bike feels right for your knees and legs.

Finally, you will need a shoe. The shoe should be one that feels good on your foot, but is also practical for what you plan to use. If you prefer long road rides with a group of hard-core riders, you might be a good candidate for the stiff and efficient SPD-SL. If you want a shoe that will be compatible with your spin class, it is most common to choose the SPD. For beginners, we recommend SPDs. The compatible pedals often have a larger platform, which is nice at a stoplight.

We could have started with this point, as it is a key distinction when it comes to cycling cleats. Bike shoes are typically compatible with either a 2-bolt or 3-bolt cleat, not both. You will also hear the 3-bolt cleat referred to as the Delta. Bolts and holes are synonymous. Generally speaking, the SPD are the standard 2-bolt cleat and pedal. Most Speedplay models also fall into this category. This is probably a good place to talk about the uber-popular Peloton bike. The pedal on a Peloton is compatible with any 3-hole or Delta cleat, and the company highly recommends that you use their supplied pedal and not swap out with your own.

You can always use the shoe that comes with Peloton, but many riders prefer to use their own shoe, one that they can ride outdoors with too. Whichever system you go with, be sure you practice with it enough so you get comfortable before you take it out on a high-traffic road or in a race like a triathlon or time trial.

Each system feels a little different. There are a few tricks for getting comfortable with the system. Sustainability expert lauds Trek's moves, says other companies need to follow its lead.

Posted in Industry News 1 day 13 hours ago. Grassroots Outdoor Alliance launches IndieOutdoor, a national non-profit trade association to empower, elevate and unite independent specialty outdoor retail. Posted in Announcements 1 day 15 hours ago. Join the Conversation. View all events ». Contact Staff Directory Contact Us. Classifieds Browse Classifieds Submit a Classified.