Road Cycling - Which speedplay pedals should I go with?

I'm just curious, do most people prefer the Speedplay X2's or the zeros? If I go with the zero's I will probalby go with the stainless steel spindles.

My current pedals are egg beaters and my pedals before that were looks. I don't need a ton of float.

Thanks in advance.

THe only benefit of the X series is float, so if you dont need float go with the zeros

Actually the X series are a more simple design, and I would recommend you try them first. I have never seen the zeros, but I did just check out the web page, and the zeros seem to be just an enhancement to the X in order to restrict/control the amount of float.

I originally went to speedplay X because they are simple, light and not based on a spring. I could care less about the 15 degree float, but you get used to it. I prefer and would recommend the X, unless you really don't like having all the float the X provides.

I actually used both the X3 and the Zero Cromo. the X have a much smoother, no friction float, "like standing on an ice cube"... The Zero have very little friction, but most importantly the have a limited float which is adjustable.
The reason I needed the Zero is that inside my heel use to touch the crank and chain stay, and was scratching my shoes and with the adjustable float I can make sure my foot stops short of touching. The X are very simple and elegant design and they work very well.

Speedplay in general are great pedals, easy to get in and out of, low profile, and light..

I just recently (1 week ago) switched to speedplays. Here are my observations…

My LBS owner is a big proponent of speedplays and he really managed to talk me into these. Even though my original choice of pedals were more expensive. His reasoning was you get used to the movement quickly and unless you have a real reason to restrict the float you don't need to spend the extra $$. My concerns were that I didn't want my heels to be able to move towards the frame, and I was concerned that 47 deg. Of float may make the pedals harder to get out of. After a weeks use I must say he was right. Once you get used to them you don't even notice the float. They are extremely easy to get in and out (double sided is a HUGH benefit!). I must say that during my first ride I was afraid to get out of the saddle to climb a hill as all that float made me feel like I was standing on ice. By the second ride I didn't even notice.

Now I've got about 95 miles on them spread over 4 rides and I'm happy with the decision. The only negative is the size of the cleat (although the look cleat is also no picnic). If you go with the speedplays, you need the cleat covers for your shoes.

I just got my first pair of pedals and I went with the X5's. I am thrilled. They are so easy to get used to. They are just great. Everyone told me that at first it was hard to get used to clip-in pedals. I found that with these it was so easy.

I got the zeros b/c I was worried about 47 degrees on the normal model, but I can't say I have ever noticed hitting the float restriction. It was probably a waste of money.

I did have to apply more loctite to the screws that hold the cleat in. They kept coming loose with just the dip they come with. Nonetheless, best pedals I have ever owned. By far.

Great comments. I am new to clipless pedals and have the Zero's on order. Can't wait!

Aside from the configurable float on the zeros, another big advantage of the Zero system is that the cleats are less prone to getting jammed up due to their improved flat C-clip style spring design over the coat-hanger spring design found on the X-series cleats.

I'm just curious, do most people prefer the Speedplay X2's or the zeros? If I go with the zero's I will probalby go with the stainless steel spindles.

My current pedals are egg beaters and my pedals before that were looks. I don't need a ton of float.

Thanks in advance.

We have both in our family. Two pairs of zeros and a pair of X's. I like the zeros better, because the float in the X pedal is fixed, but the zeros offer inward and outward adjustable float from zero to 15 degrees. I also like the cleat setup better in the zeros. The zeros are slightly more expensive, but are later technology than the old X's. There is one new X - the X5, but the target audience for that is beginners.

Having ridden with Zeros for two years now, I vote for them. Speedplays are the best option on the market for the recreational rider and one of the best for anyone who races. They are very light and the double-sided entry functionality is tough to beat. On group rides I am often waiting for people that can't clip in without some trouble. Speedplays are the most functionally sound out there. The only drawback is the smaller platform. The company explains this away with the size of the cleat, but I think there is some validity to the arguement of better power transfer from the newer Look designs. It depends on how you ride and how far you ride, but the Zeros are great all-around. The difference in price between the X's and the Zeros is worth it. No one needs 47 degrees of float.

Zero the Hero

No one needs 47 degrees of float.

I don't know if I'd go so far as to say that and I don't know about anyone else but 47-deg was definately overkill for me.

Lowcel- I ride the Zeros and love em. Besides the advice above, also check on your shoe compatibility. For example, I ride Shimano RD-150s with carbon soles, and according to Speedplay those shoes won't work with the X2s because the carbon soles are wide and the X2 cleat doesn't give it enough clearance to the crank arm. However, the Zeros work great.

- RJ

I don't know if I'd go so far as to say that and I don't know about anyone else but 47-deg was definately overkill for me.

I do ... :eek:
I use the X2s and love them. But having never used the Zeros, I can't comment. I did have problems with SPDs and so the switch to true float was what I was after.

I'm just curious, do most people prefer the Speedplay X2's or the zeros? If I go with the zero's I will probalby go with the stainless steel spindles.

My current pedals are egg beaters and my pedals before that were looks. I don't need a ton of float.

Thanks in advance.

My 2 cents.... :)

Get the Frogs. Their new cleats are SPD two bolt compatible. If you had mtn shoes with your eggbeaters you can keep your shoes to go with the Frogs. With mtn shoes you'll still be able to walk comfortably on the Frog cleats. Aside from that the Frogs offer many of the same advantages of the X2s or Zeros. Either way you won't go wrong with Speedplays of any sort... :D

My 2 cents.... :)

Get the Frogs. Their new cleats are SPD two bolt compatible. If you had mtn shoes with your eggbeaters you can keep your shoes to go with the Frogs. With mtn shoes you'll still be able to walk comfortably on the Frog cleats. Aside from that the Frogs offer many of the same advantages of the X2s or Zeros. Either way you won't go wrong with Speedplays of any sort... :D

I've used the Frogs on my roadbike before. I originally got them spec'ed for my roadbike when it was being built also thinking I could just reuse a pair of old MTBing shoes which I had a few of.

http://www.neebu.net/~khuon/albums/2001-aegis-aro_svelte/Aegis_002.jpg

And the walkability factour was a great bonus. I figured if they worked out great for my roadbike, I would convert my MTB to them and only have to have one pair of shoes.

However...

Some things that didn't work out for me personally:


While I like a bit of float, I never got used to the high amount of float, the pedalling on ice-cubes sensation and vague engagement feeling.
I didn't end up walking that much when road-riding.
I didn't like the inherently high stack height when compared to the X and Zeros.
Double-sided is great but the toe-first entry was kind of annoying because I was used to stomp-and-go. And in actuality, the toe-first method probably would keep me from considering Frogs for MTBing despite the fact that Speedplay markets them as a MTB pedal.
I still needed to have a seperate set of shoes for road and MTB because my MTB pedals were not Frogs. And because of the above issues I didn't want to convert my MTB to Frogs.
My old shoes were rather flexy so I got new road-specific shoes for a really great price (also got new MTB shoes at the same time) on a business trip to Italy which weren't drilled for SPD compatible cleats so I had to use cleat adapters which were made of plastic and flexed a lot as well as increased the stack height. As it was, I also had to dremel out the insides of the adapter in order to even get the cleats to fit. The whole setup was fairly gross.


The Zeros completely solved all these problems for me. Sure I can't use the same shoes for road biking as I do for MTBing but I'm not sure I even want to. When I bought my roadbike shoes, I picked up the MTB counterparts which share the same shoe design except for the very bottom sole where the road version is smooth, has a variable stiffness mechanism and is drilled for road cleats and the MTB sole has replaceable tread/lugs and is drilled for SPD. Now I'm not saying my problems will also be your problems, my needs will be your needs, etc... but these are some things to consider and these have been my experiences. I do agree that for what they were designed to do, all the Speedplay pedals are well made and great pedals.

I didn't read the replies you've already gotten so this may be repetitive but...
If you don't need unlimited float and want to set the release point on your pedals, get the Zeros. They are the best pedals I've ever used - plain and simple. Opting for the stainless steel is your best bet IMO as you get the better bearings and the weight is nearly as low as the Ti. I've owned both the Ti and SS models and the only difference I could notice was the spindles on the Ti are a touch shorter causing my shoes to rub the cranks more when I had cold weather booties on.