New bike....shoes....

[kg648]

Hi guys,

I will be getting a Specialized Sirrus Elite 2012 in a few days, however I was looking at replacing the pedals but since trying my friends I quite like the idea of the clip on's.

I am right saying I need obviously shoes and "cleats" which go on the bottom of the shoe? which then clip onto the pedal?

Also it seems there are different types of cleats, what type would I need?

Quite fancied the Shimano SPD RT51's but seems they are out of stock everywhere with only small sizes left. ( need 10's but after reading you should go the next size up as they are smaller than normal shoes )

Any suggestions would be great.

Budget is £50 tops give or take a few quid for the shoes.

 

[touch]

The type of cleats on the bottom of your shoes depends on what type of pedals you have. (If you dont have pedals, you'll get a pair of cleats with them when you buy pedals)

The shoes then depend on the type of cleats you have. Theres 2 main types of fitting, 2-bolt and 3-bolt (sometimes called "look" style). Some shoes also have both types of bolt holes on them. The SPD RT51s are 2-bolt type (you can tell by the two parallel slots on the bottom, 3 bolt fittings just look like 3 little holes.). Generally, MTB pedals use 2-bolt and road pedals use 3-bolt but check to make sure first.

I like shimano SPD-SL pedals. They need to be used with 3-bolt shoes.
Here's a couple to look at:
Pedals
Shoes
(i have linked to shimano shoes + pedals, but as long as you use the same fitting type, you dont need to worry about different brands)

 

[[DOD]Asprilla]

DHB R1s can be picked up for £49.99 and are compatible with three and two bolt cleat types. If you are starting out and are commuting then I'd recommend Shimano M520 pedals. They use two bolt metal cleats which are more robust (plastic cleats wear badly every time you touch down) and they are double sided which makes clipping in a lot easier, particularly in traffic.

You can get them for £20 for pedals and cleats.

Then when you want to upgrade you can without changing your shoe.

Shimano do a similar shoe, but I can't remember what they are called.

 

[#Chri5#]

+1 for M520 pedals - cheap and very robust.

I've previously found Shimano shoes to be very narrow - my winter SPD boots are Shimano and I'm something like 3 sizes up on normal! Specialized shoes suit my feet better.

Wiggle's DHB R1 shoes certainly offer value, but I'd think about visiting a local bike shop so you can find a good fit without several trips to the Post Office to send mail order shoes back.

 

[kg648]

Thanks for the suggestions/advice guys, what is the difference between the m520 which claim to be ( for MTB's ) and some which are for road bikes? is there any vital difference?

 

[[DOD]Asprilla]

Biggest difference is the size of the cleat and pedal. With road cycling you tend to put down more power than you do with MTBs. Bigger pedal / cleat contact helps with that and with comfort over long distances.

 

[kg648]

Since this is a roadbike, would I be better going with some road pedals? or would you still say look at the m520's to start with?

 

[#Chri5#]

I've got 520s on my roadbike. Initially as I didn't have any road shoes, though I've still not got round to buying any in 3 years. I've done 100km rides using my summer MTB shoes (Specialized) with no grief.

 

[[DOD]Asprilla]

I use M520s for commuting since they are much better for all the stop / start of riding in traffic. For riding in the sticks with the club or sportives i use look keos.

 

[willems]

i recently got dhb r1s and look keo classic. not used them yet but hoping to this weekend coming. i have been using shimano spd and fancied the change

 

[kg648]

in the end just went ahead and purchased the 520's, just need to decide on the shoes - a bit unsure about the look of the r1's too much silver but going to try and find some IRL to look before final purchase I think.

Thanks for the advice guys.

 

[willems]

in the end just went ahead and purchased the 520's, just need to decide on the shoes - a bit unsure about the look of the r1's too much silver but going to try and find some IRL to look before final purchase I think.

Thanks for the advice guys.

i got them in black. i can take a pic of the r1s on friday if that helps?

 

[kg648]

If you don't mind that would be superb pal

 

[willems]

oh and big advantage of mtb pedals is they are double sided whereas road are often single sided. i'll let you know how the change to single goes for me

 

[kg648]

I assume this means you can clip either side of them? or is it for different fittings?

 

[[DOD]Asprilla]

I assume this means you can clip either side of them? or is it for different fittings?

Same clip on either side. Getting into road pedals whilst trying to get away from a junction is a bit of an art.

 

[Jonny ///M]

I run M520s on my road bike with cheap aldi shoes my brother gave me. If I could afford it I'd be getting some RO77 or RO87 shimano shoes with 105 pedals but I commute and I'm forever unclipping.

I actually have one side of the pedal set so loose that I can pull my foot out if I give it the message and the other side is a wrestling match to unclip so it means I just ride easy mode through the city.

Lake shoes are nice but tend to be a bit more expensive and probably over budget.

 

[kg648]

Aldi sell SPD shoes?? :O

 

[Jonny ///M]

Aldi sell SPD shoes?? :O

They did a while back. They had clothing in the other week there but not sure if they carried the shoes this time.

Not the stiffest of shoes but the ones I have are velcro and ratchet style and do the trick. I'd spend as much as you can on shoes though as better shoes do seem to fit better. Like a ball and socket type affair.

 

[willems]

if i have resized them too small i can post bigger if required. sorry bit late had a big night out fri and was a bit rough yesterday