game

I have been thinking about getting clip-ins. I ride to and from the gym almost every day and around town and although its convenient to wear normal shoes, I'm anxious to try clip-in pedals. It just seems like it's the natural thing to do eventually. Plus I'm planing to take an intro course at the LA velodrome very soon. What are some nice pedal brands out there? I have been looking at crank brothers.. those look really nice. What kind do you have? Any pros & cons? I'm not too concerened with cost if I'm getting a great product.

Thanks in advance

Dubbayoo

I started with Look, went to Shimano SPD-R and now SPD-SL; don't see a reason to get away from Look style but many do. I just don't fix what isn't broken. I may try Keywin if I start racing on the track and reach some limitation. They all have pros and cons.

goodall

I really like Look, or at least Look-compatible. With the black cleats and the tension dialed all the way up, it's great for the track. For you, you could just dial the tension back (easy to do with an alan wrench) when you want to ride street.

Mike T.

Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL are a great pedal for most track riders and racers.

Yoshi

Crank brothers pedals are nice for riding around on the street since you can use mountain bike shoes with them. Mountain bike shoes are easier to walk in than road shoes.

However if you want pedals for the track, I'd go with road pedals/shoes. Personally I use LOOK Keos.

dutret

basically what you want in a track pedal is the complete opposite of what you want in a riding around pedal. I say you get some MTB set up for riding around and then a seperate set for the track if and when you get serious about it.

I can't stand egg beaters but others swear by them. If you have friends try their pedals otherwise I suggest time ATACs.

bitingduck

Pretty much all good advice.

For the intro classes people ride any and everything except bare platforms. There are a number of sets of mountain bike SPD's that get used, as well as cages and straps, and most people who have clipless pedals for the road just bring their road pedals and shoes (which is recommended).

For racing you'll want something that's really secure-speed of getting in and out doesn't matter because you do that on the rail or with a holder. If you're just riding open sessions or intervals for fun or cross training, you can use pretty much anything except bare platforms.

San Rensho 

Yep. I have Nashbar's Look-alike pedals, cheap, around $40. With black cleats, and tension set on high, I have yet to pull out of them, road or track.

Yoshi

The problem with LOOKs on the street is not clipping/unclipping (although frantically clipping in can sometimes be difficult) but rather trying to put your foot down. The cleat is very slippery and the shoes almost impossible to walk in.

But in any case, ride (and race) what ya got. I've ridden on the street with LOOKs and I've raced on the track with eggbeaters.

game

Thanks for the replys... very helpful. I am new to cycling. This fixed gear bike has become my favorite toy. I am so impressed by it and look forward to riding every day. I can't wait to invest in a road bike in the future. Point being... I am trying to do everything right the first time.

For those of you who have tried both LOOK and SHIMANO, is one more user friendly than the other? I'd like to be able to get in and out relatively easily. Having never tried clip-ins, the thought of being stuck IN is a bit intimidating.

Thanks again.

dutret

Shimano makes both road(spd-sl) and mtb/touring(spd) pedals. The later are much easier to get into and out of especially when combined with the multi-release cleats. They are not the best choice for the track though they can work as long as you don't have the multi-release cleats.

Yoshi

If you are talking about the SPD-SL (the Shimano road pedals) and the LOOKs or LOOK Keos, they are pretty similar. I haven't personally used the SPD-SLs though I have used SPD-Rs (the older Shimano road pedals). The Shimanos and LOOKs are probably just as easy/hard to clip in and out of, I think the biggest difference is that the SPD-SL cleats have a rubberized texture that makes it easier to walk on.

Although now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure the new LOOK Keo cleats have the same thing.

Ste_S

I tried using SPDs on the track once, and although I didn't unclip, I didn't feel as secure as I do with road pedals.
Time, Look or SPD-SL are fine, and as other people have mentioned dial the tension up a bit.

Didn't Shimano do a SPD-R with straps at one time ?

Yoshi

I don't think Shimano ever made SPD-Rs with straps but they were very easy to modify so a lot of people added straps to them.

I've actually seen straps added to SPD-SLs, but that took some more serious modifications.

Dubbayoo

If you don't know just stick with off the shelf clipless road pedals.

Some advanced options:

Keywin clipless pedals with track adapter for extra security. Probably your best bet if you're hell-bent on not using straps but it is possible to pull out in a crash, which I see as a good thing. You can see the lever on the bottom right.

Disengaged versus engaged:




MKS Exa: Very versatile system. This clipless pedal can be used with or without straps AND with or without engaging the locking pin you see in back - used with straps by Josiah Ng. If you pull out of this full setup you are a real man. Works with Look 3-hole shoes.





Shimano SPD-R with double strap similiar to Theo Bos' setup. This may even be his pedal; I forgot. The disadvantage here is new shoes that accept SPD-R cleats are rare now. Even Rocket7 customs won't do SPD-R. So in addition to paying $150+ for pedals you have to find a new old stock pair of shoes.




Shimano SPD-SL with single strap.




Shimano SPD-SL with double strap as used by Giddeon Massie.




Shimano PD-7400 - The gold standard; used with clips and straps. Expect to pay north of $300 for new ones, if you can find them.

dutret

that look a lot more like an spd-sl

bonechilling

I don't know, they look almost exactly like my SPD-Rs, but it's impossible to tell from underneath. Also, the photo says SPD-R and it's by Tomity, and if anyone knows about track ****, it's him.

As for the SPD-R cleats, last I heard, they were still being manufactured.

Yoshi

The cleats may still be manufactured by very few shoe companies are making shoes with the SPD-R bolt pattern.

dutret

look at yours again. Looking at them more carefully I am certain they are spd-sls. Note where the spring is, the contour of side, and the bit of plastic poking behind the strap

Yoshi

I agree - they definitely look like SPD-SLs. Perhaps Shimano made an SPD-R that looked similar to the current SPD-SL, but more likely the picture is mislabeled.

Dubbayoo

It is an SPD-SL pedal.

11.4

Tomity's label was wrong, but the text accompanying the photo is accurate. Those with the tab attached to the center shaft with two tiny screws are SPD-SL's. I saw a couple pairs of these and in both cases, the screws torqued out of the pedal body within a couple months. There's another approach where you have a bracket above and below the center shaft and pinched together, with a toe clip loop attached by the screw that pinches them together, but this is also a bit funky. Some people just use zipties, but if you really need the straps you can also break a ziptie and be in for a big surprise.

SPD-R pedals definitely have the problem of finding properly drilled shoes. However, I've worked with half a dozen different riders who have all found (as I have for myself) that the front SPD-R cleat bolt basically mounts exactly at the front Look hole (and in fact is moved offset on most shoes just to accommodate the Look studs). You can get a Sidi stud from almost any Sidi dealer, drill a hole in the carbon sole of the shoe to accommodate the stud, and use a sharp edge to cut a flap in the insole of the shoe to insert the stud. Then you have two studs that do a nice job with it. The single drawback is that you get one chance at it so you want to measure carefully. You can mount the cleats with just the front Look stud to see if it works for you, but plan to step out of your shoes, remove the pedals and then use a screwdriver to pop the cleats free since the pedals grab them pretty tightly and the cleat will twist in the shoe with only one bolt holding it. Many trackies are doing this now.