Road Cycling - New bike Pedal problem!

I just put money down on my new bike a Trek 2100.I'll be picking it up on Monday.I rode with ritchey mnt pedals before.This time I went with a road shoe and he switched out my pedals for Shimano 105 road pedals.I went for a test ride with them on I felt that they were harder to release than what I was used to.Is this typical of road pedals? The guy at the bike shop said that it was.I tend to disbelieve this statement.I need your help before I pick up my bike. I need to have a little play in the pedal.I have a problems with my left knee.Do you think that this pedal will help or hurt me?

Robin

I just put money down on a trek 2100.The problem is I used to ride with Ritchey Mnt. pedals so this time I decided to go with a road shoe and road pedals.The guy at the bike shop switched the pedals that came with the bike out for Shimano 105 pedals.I took the bike for a ride with these pedals and I felt it was harder to release.The guy said it was that way with any road pedal.I tend to disbelieve this.Is this true? I'm picking up my bike on Monday.I have knee problems I wanted to make sure there was enough float to help me.I don't want to take the bike home without the right pedals.

Help!! Robin

No...at the back of the pedal there is a small allen type bolt. This is the adjuster for release tension. Shimano tends to send their pedals out with the tension maxed out at the tightest it can be. Before I let anyone test a bike with Shimano, if they are going to clip in, I adjust them out to almost the loosest setting. Last thing I need is someone testing a bike and falling because they cannot get out of the pedals.

BUT....if you have a choice in pedals, get a set of Looks. A3.1 would be a nice set for that bike. Lots more comfortable.

I just put money down on a trek 2100.The problem is I used to ride with Ritchey Mnt. pedals so this time I decided to go with a road shoe and road pedals.The guy at the bike shop switched the pedals that came with the bike out for Shimano 105 pedals.I took the bike for a ride with these pedals and I felt it was harder to release.The guy said it was that way with any road pedal.I tend to disbelieve this.Is this true? I'm picking up my bike on Monday.I have knee problems I wanted to make sure there was enough float to help me.I don't want to take the bike home without the right pedals.

Help!! Robin

See my other reply. Get Looks or Speedplay.

I have the 105 pedals. I also have had knee problems in the past so i have them almost on the lightest tension and do not find they give me any hassle at all. I would say go with them if they are what you like or even the looks are nice. Everybody seems to like speedplay because of the float and such things. I personally dont like it. Try pedals out its the only way you will know.

No...at the back of the pedal there is a small allen type bolt. This is the adjuster for release tension. Shimano tends to send their pedals out with the tension maxed out at the tightest it can be. Before I let anyone test a bike with Shimano, if they are going to clip in, I adjust them out to almost the loosest setting. Last thing I need is someone testing a bike and falling because they cannot get out of the pedals.

BUT....if you have a choice in pedals, get a set of Looks. A3.1 would be a nice set for that bike. Lots more comfortable.


Thank for replying sorry for the dupicate I had problems posting.I'll see about the adjustment on the pedals.I'll ask him about the looks when I pick up the bike. Whats the price range?

See my other reply. Get Looks or Speedplay.


I was thinking of speedplay but the guy at the shop said it would be harder to get used to.What do you think? I had road pedals before.

I have the 105 pedals. I also have had knee problems in the past so i have them almost on the lightest tension and do not find they give me any hassle at all. I would say go with them if they are what you like or even the looks are nice. Everybody seems to like speedplay because of the float and such things. I personally dont like it. Try pedals out its the only way you will know.


Thanks! I'll check the tension. I was worried about have to kickout with such force.I don't want to screw up my knees anymore than they already are.I have artheritis (spelling?) in my left knee from and injury when I was 13.

the Shimano pedals tend to be harder to get out of than most. a friend had some on her bike & literally had to unclip very early before stopping because it took great effort
to accomplish this. She finally took a lot of others advice & switched to LOOK pedals.

I use an older pair of Ultegra pedals, the ones with that use R cleats.

They do take a while to get used to as far as unclipping easily and quickly. They are also more difficult to clip into because of the pedal rest position, which is with the binding facing backward and down. When you get used to the pedals, however, they are nice, and the Shimano R cleats last considerably longer than Look cleats.

the Shimano pedals tend to be harder to get out of than most. a friend had some on her bike & literally had to unclip very early before stopping because it took great effort
to accomplish this. She finally took a lot of others advice & switched to LOOK pedals.

it is funny that you say this, I have pair of shimano SPD-SL pedals, the 105 ones, just like the original poster. I haven't found them especially difficult to unclip from. hey are more difficult, obviously, then my old Mountain bike SPDs, but I think this si good thing. I'd much rather have a difficult time unclipping then unclip when I don't want to...I have slammed my nuts into the seat more times then I'd like to think about unclipping on my old mtn pedals...

I was thinking of speedplay but the guy at the shop said it would be harder to get used to.What do you think? I had road pedals before.

If anything, since you were used to offroad pedals, the Speedplays will be easier to use since they are double-sided and pretty much are stomp-and-go just like SPDs... heel-out to release. There are two models of Speedplay road pedals (X and Zero) plus a third if you consider the Frogs which some people do use on road bikes (I did for a while). The X and Frog pedals offer free float but they're not adjustable. This was one of my major gripes with the Frogs and I never could get used to the riding on icecube feeling with them. They were otherwise excellent pedals however. I skipped over the X pedals and went to the Zeros which offer independent adjustable float in both inboard and outboard directions as well as aggregate float and release angle adjustment. You can even crank them down and ride them as fixed position pedals and even dial in the angle you want to be fixed. The one thing about Speedplays is that you do have to break them in a bit as they'll initially be hard to get in and out of. They will loosen up after about 50 click-ins/outs. Also remember to lube the cleats and don't tighten them too much when installing them as compression of the bottom plate will cause restriction in the C-clip spring which will make it hard to get in and out of the pedals. The other nice thing about Speedplay road cleats is that although you still walk funny, you won't damage them much (if any) if you accidently walk on them without cleat covers because they're made of metal and the bottom plate is steel. I walk on gravel roads all the time with my cleats.

If anything, since you were used to offroad pedals, the Speedplays will be easier to use since they are double-sided and pretty much are stomp-and-go just like SPDs... heel-out to release. There are two models of Speedplay road pedals (X and Zero) plus a third if you consider the Frogs which some people do use on road bikes (I did for a while). The X and Frog pedals offer free float but they're not adjustable. This was one of my major gripes with the Frogs and I never could get used to the riding on icecube feeling with them. They were otherwise excellent pedals however. I skipped over the X pedals and went to the Zeros which offer independent adjustable float in both inboard and outboard directions as well as aggregate float and release angle adjustment. You can even crank them down and ride them as fixed position pedals and even dial in the angle you want to be fixed. The one thing about Speedplays is that you do have to break them in a bit as they'll initially be hard to get in and out of. They will loosen up after about 50 click-ins/outs. Also remember to lube the cleats and don't tighten them too much when installing them as compression of the bottom plate will cause restriction in the C-clip spring which will make it hard to get in and out of the pedals. The other nice thing about Speedplay road cleats is that although you still walk funny, you won't damage them much (if any) if you accidently walk on them without cleat covers because they're made of metal and the bottom plate is steel. I walk on gravel roads all the time with my cleats.

Thanks for the advise. I wrote the type of Speedplays down(zero's) in case I can't get used to the 105's
and the Looks also.I just picked up my bike last night.It took 2 hours for them to figure out how to hook up my specailized etilte computer that I just bought the end of last year.The handle bars are wider on the treks so only trek computers fit (what A racket!!!)at least they firgured out a way to get it on .that computer cost me 60$ and I got it end of riding season last year.
Thanks Again ,
Robin :)

The handle bars are wider on the treks so only trek computers fit (what A racket!!!)at least they firgured out a way to get it on .that computer cost me 60$ and I got it end of riding season last year.
Thanks Again ,
Robin :)


???...we are a huge Trek dealer and do not sell their computers. Cateye's work just fine and can be easily mounted to the Bontrager handlebars.
Who told you this? :eek:

???...we are a huge Trek dealer and do not sell their computers. Cateye's work just fine and can be easily mounted to the Bontrager handlebars.
Who told you this? :eek:


The guy at the bike shop told me that.My computer is a Specialized Elite. They hadto use my reflector bracket to get it on .Now it sticks up a little high but it's better than buying another one.I didn't even get a full season out of the Specialized.Plus I already put out 1,400 for my bike .

Later,Robin

The guy at the bike shop told me that.My computer is a Specialized Elite. They hadto use my reflector bracket to get it on .Now it sticks up a little high but it's better than buying another one.I didn't even get a full season out of the Specialized.Plus I already put out 1,400 for my bike .

Most likely you have a 31.8mm (oversized) handlebar. Most older computer mounting kits (more than a year ago) come with only a 26.0mm clamp. However, most of the manufacturers, and I know this to be true of, specialized do sell oversized clamps. I guess it'd be up to the bike shop to try and charge you for the new clamp or not. If you've just purchased the bike from them then they should have been nice enough to just do a no-charge swap. I know the shops I go to have such practices.

Also remember to lube the cleats ...

How do I lube the cleats and what do I use?

How do I lube the cleats and what do I use?

I just squirt some lube into the contact area and spring. Then I click in and out a few times on the pedal and wipe off any excess. Remember that with Speedplays, the mechanism (simple as it is) is in the cleat and not the pedal. Speedplay recommends White Lightning I believe but just about any light lube will work.