Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - clipless

Hi clydes/althenas

So I have been clipless for some time. I had a pair of Keo, didn't like them, I found it hard to clip in, now I have speedplay and really don't like the difficulty clipping into those either. Do any of you use Crank Brothers on your road bikes? If so how do you like them.

Oh, and if anyone wants to swap for a set of Crank Bros. Quattro or Candy PM me, I am not interested in the egg beater.

I've heard good things about the CB line of pedals: Easy to clip in, good amount of float, easy to clip out.

FWIW, I've used SPD pedals for around 17 years. Actually, the same pair of Shimano M545 pedals that I bought back in college. And I'm putting some Nashbar house-brand SPDs on my ss/fg project, and their SPD/Platform combos on my utility bike. I've never had a problem with SPD pedals.

Speedplay Zero's. Just my 2 cents.

Speedplay Zero's are pretty stiff to clip into. My wife tried them as her first clipless pedal and almost gave up. We got the Light Action ones and it is all she has gotten since.

+1 on SPDs. I have them on my commuter and my MTB and they work great. My wife has them on her road bike and refuses to even consider anything else.

is the Speedplay light action spring different than the zero???

I don't have the cleats for my old Zero's to check and speedplay doesn't seem to want to give up the goods on their pages. The cleat/pedals aren't supposed to be compatable so something is different. Once clipped in they pedal and float just the same.

I busted up my Zero's on a curb (really bad hit after lots of abuse) and went to the light action so we'd be one big happy family and found them alot easier to clip into they required almost no pressure at all. I have not accidently released from the light actions even during time trials and sprints, although my time trials and sprints are pretty pathetic and all.

Initially I missed the ability to set my exit angle like the Zero's had but it ended up not being that big of a deal.

I have Crank Brothers Eggbeater pedals on all my bikes. They're great! They provide just enough float that I don't have to worry about knee pain. Relatively easy to clip in and out. Also pretty light in comparison to other clipless pedals. I wear MTB shoes and love the fact that I can walk around without twisting an ankle or slipping and cracking my skull.

My first clipless pedals were Shimano SPDs, about 12-15 years ago. They had very little float, so knee pain was always an issue. The ones I had were also pretty difficult to clip.

I ditched the SPDs pretty quickly and went to Look clipless pedals. They were similar to the current Shimano SPD-SL pedals and Look Keos. These were the easiest pedals to clip, which makes me wonder why the OP is having trouble with them. On my pedals the back weighed a little more than the front, so the pedals tended to point "nose up" when you unclipped. To clip in, you kicked the front of the cleat into the nose of the pedal, bringing the pedal horizontal, then stepped down to complete the clip. Mine had adjustable float and release tension, so I could fine-tune them to perfection. The only thing I didn't like about the system were the shoes: walking around on the plastic cleats made them wear quickly and walking in the shoes always felt treacherous.

In comparison to my old Look pedals, the Crank Brothers pedals require a bit more precision to clip. Not the same level of precision as SPDs, though. If you get the cleat anywhere close to correct, you can stomp down on the pedal and the cleat will engage. The downside to this is that you don't get a precise "click" like you do with SPDs; the Crank Brothers engagement feels slightly more mushy.

I installed a set of Candy SL's on my Giant FCR and love them. Granted, I've never had any others. This is my first bike not to mention my first clipless experience. They are very easy to clip in/out, the learning curve was fairly short. I would surely buy these again, well, in fact I did buy another set and put them on my girlfriend's FCR and she likes them too. I plan on upgrading to a full road bike as opposed to the flat bar style in the next few months and plan on putting on the Candy SL's or going to the Quattro's. Hope this helps, Good Luck!

I was looking to buy some speedplays but was advised against them for a big powerfull rider like myself. Two other big guys in the club have broke the shoe cleat on them. I went with dura ace spd. Tons of people using them, in our club likely 60% shimano.

SPD's (yellow) with the float for me as well. Have never considered anything else.

I use CB egg beaters for my winter boots and Look for my summer/racing shoes. I like the Look's better as it gives me a safer feeling of being clipped in tight. Especially important for sprinting to the finish line when nothing but 185bpm and leg fatigue is controlling my riding style.

But it is easier to clip out of the egg beaters. Important for riding in snowy weather with slippery conditions.

I was looking to buy some speedplays but was advised against them for a big powerfull rider like myself. Two other big guys in the club have broke the shoe cleat on them. I went with dura ace spd. Tons of people using them, in our club likely 60% shimano.

I know MANY people with Speedplays and have never heard of that. I know a guy that's 6'7" that rides with them. Heck, I'm 6'3" and 225 and can leg press quite a bit, so I'm not sure how big and powerful you have to be to break them?! :)

update, I bought a set of Crank Bros. Candy on Ebay.....so I will see how I like those. Good thing my wife doesn't know I will have 4 sets of pedals :eek:

Did you buy new or used? I bought a set of Candy pedals from eBay, too. Mine were well used, however. The retention springs were very loose and I ended up going back to my Eggbeater pedals. The Eggbeaters felt a bit easier to clip, but that might have been because the Candy pedals were so worn... In any event, good luck with the new pedals!

I have Crank Bros. Candy bars....They are 'ok', but I think I prefer SPD. They have lots of float, but almost too much sometimes so that I'm twisting much more than I think I should before they unclip. Also, occasionally I just can't get them to clip in for a long time...I looked into adjusting them, but I don't see a way to adjust the tension of the clip like my SPD pedals could.

I have a set of older spds that were on my mtb.

I have a set of older spds that were on my mtb.

Thanks...I still have my old SPDs.

I can't find what I really want. I'd like a set of SPD pedals that have clips on both sides but aren't hugely fat. All double sided ones I see are big fat MTB pedals. The ones I have are the perfect profile, but only one sided.

I got the Candy Bars because they seemed to fit the bill. Some days I like them some days they annoy me.

I know MANY people with Speedplays and have never heard of that. I know a guy that's 6'7" that rides with them. Heck, I'm 6'3" and 225 and can leg press quite a bit, so I'm not sure how big and powerful you have to be to break them?! :)

That's really odd. I am 6'2" and closer to 240 than I would like and speedplays are the only clipless I ever used - without any problems, of course.

Thanks...I still have my old SPDs.

I can't find what I really want. I'd like a set of SPD pedals that have clips on both sides but aren't hugely fat. All double sided ones I see are big fat MTB pedals. The ones I have are the perfect profile, but only one sided.
What is your definition of fat? Shimano M520s (http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_info.php?products_id=6495) are pretty small.

I switched from SPD to eggbeaters and candys. Lots of float, no accidental unclipping (until the cleat wears down which they haven't yet in over a year of use). I ride a fixed gear so accidentally unclipping during skips and skids was why I switched from SPDs. I'll stick with the Crank Bros. pedals.