asforme

My shoes and pedals arrived today and I wasted no time installing the pedals and attaching the cleats to the shoes but since I've done that 2 hours ago I've been unable to clip in.

I've loosened the retention on the pedals to the loosest setting but still have no satisfying clip. Right now all I've got is a pair of shoes that slips off my pedals. I hear others have trouble remembering to clip out, I wish I could get that far. Please help me figure out what I'm doing wrong.

d4c4c8

put your bike on a trainer and practice. get someone to look at where your foot is aligning the cleat with the clip in the pedal. I bet you're just missing the clip.

asforme

Let me clarify, I can get the front part in but the back never clips into place, even when standing on the pedal.

Seattle Forrest

The tension will make it harder or easier to get out, but not to get in. That's a matter of practice. The first time I had the shoes locked in, I was able to unclick in an instant, almost without thinking. But it took me about three weeks to become able to clip in without effort or any thought. If you're having trouble clipping in and it's only been two hours, you're ahead of the curve.

Here's a tip, but it's a difficult one. Line the cleat up over the pedal, while you're not on the bike. Push down will all your might, and you should be able to get the shoe locked in. That'll show you that it can be done, but it will also help you figure out or see exactly where the shoe needs to go over the pedal. ( Chances are the cleat should be under the center of the ball of your foot. )

Mr. Beanz

Sole/rubber looks pretty aggressive. I had one set of shoes that wouldn not let me clip in cause the rubber was acting as a stopper. I had to trim some of the rubber with an exacto knife. Cut to fit!

mvnsnd

First, take your shoe off and try to clip it into the pedal. It will take some effort as stated above. Check for any interference from the shoe to the pedal and note what part of the shoe is at the crank arm to make sure you can line that up later. If that works, put the shoe on and get over the bike. With the pedal at the top or horizontal, you should be able to put your foot over the pedal and give a slight push forward and down to clip in. It's a twist and lift up to unclip.

CACycling

I agree with Beanz. The combination of a heavily lugged sole with the platform on those pedals is going to create some conflict. As others noted, try it without your foot in the shoe to see if there is enough clearance to allow the cleat to engage.

asforme

Won't go in.

Looks like this is why. The rubber is hitting the platform of the pedal and preventing the back from clipping in. Cutting my brand new shoes does not sound like fun.

This sucks.

zoste

I've also found that the "store brand" pedals (eg. Forte, WellGo, Nashbar) don't work as smoothly as similar manufacturer's pedals from Shimano.

asforme

So here's the issue. I don't guess there are any non-destructive ways to fix this. I guess I'm shopping for new pedals and returning these. Finding shoes in size US-15 that wouldn't break the bank was difficult enough I'm not about to start looking for those again.
IMG_20100809_200718&.jpg

Mr. Beanz

I just look dumb!


FTR, I trimmed my rubber and they have lasted for YEARS (5 so far but it's getting close for other reasons).

mvnsnd

Send the pedals back and get these instead. M520L

They are a great general purpose pedal.

And a set of these if you need a platform. They can be removed when you want. Platforms

djnzlab1

HI,
SOme shoes try to hide the clips so you can walk on them sparin the metal clip from wear., other's have a spacer that goes on before the clip and lifts it alittle bit out away from the shoe, MTN pedals are the easiest to clip and un-clip, have a Bike shop look at the shoe/clip install they have spare parts and shoud fit it for free or at least show you the problem with the shoe/clip.
Some pedals have allen adjustments for that losens the gripping of clips this is critical to un-clippin if its that tight you will fall over when you try and unclip once you clip all the way in.... you'll be doin the turtle on your butt with a bike in the air...
I like the Beater pedals from crank brothers they clip on both sides of the pedal and have plenty of space too allow access to the clip in the shoe.
They are super cheap on B-BAy,
Be real carefull till you get used to clip in and out most people fall at least a couple times learnin practice in a parkin lot before going out with the cars,
after a couple dozen rides its instint to un clip when you see a stop sign or braking. dont be embbarased by a DUUGH moment its part of the fun.
Finally the down to MTB CLips for me is when the screw comes loose on the shoe its very difficult to unclip that shoe (real hard) so I use lock tight on my shoes screws once they are where I want them.
Some of the MTB pedals allow clipped and Unclipped because there's pedal and a clip holder within the pedal that collapses when you ride with regular shoes.
DOug

asforme

I've emailed nashbar to exchange my pedals for the M520L. Hopefully it goes smoothly. I guess having the best of all worlds, (a shoe that can be walked in and a pedal that can be used with tennis shoes) just isn't practical.

cyclist2000

I got a set of these for the same reason, I haven't had problems except that it is a little harder to clip in than standard spd's. I do use Sidi Dominators.

Also the shimano spd are easier to clip into.

professorbob

This is going to sound stupid, but make sure you didn't install your cleats upside down. I did that the first time and was frustrated as can be then figured it out and everything went smoothly after that.

jyossarian

Looks like Beanz was right. Are shims available for SPDs? I know they ship w/ Crank Bros. pedals. The shims will help clear the sole that's blocking the cleat from engaging.

Wanderer

You'd probably be very happy with the PDM324s from Jensen USA. Shimano makes really nice pedals. With the 324s, you can have it both ways.

deep_sky

It looks like the pedals the OP originally bought have built in "support" so that if you used spd cleats on a road shoe, there would be a greater area of support than just the cleat itself (think also such things are sold separately, called pontoons or something to that effect, for using spd cleats on a road shoe). At least, thats what the picture looks like. Swapping for something like the M520's should fix the issue.

cohophysh

Wait don't cut the shoe, you should be able to shim the cleat. I have a couple shims that came with the cleats.

asforme

I boxed up the pedals but haven't returned them yet so I can still give something a try, though I'm getting the impression that the shimano's are quite a bit better and for only $10 more I might as well get a better pedal. Only problem with that is staring at my shiny shoes with no pedals for a week.

cohophysh

I hear ya, I am actually surprised the cleats or shoes didn't come with shims..

StanSeven

If you aren't that knowledgable about cycling, search for a LBS you trust. Find one, get to know their employees, and develop a relationship. You might pay more but it makes riding much easier.

techie2

Try the Shimano a530. Has a platform on one side. You do loose the ability to immediately clip in, sometimes the platform side is up, have to take your foot off and get it flipped over.

CACycling

The M520s are $36.46 with free S+H from Pro Bike Kit in either silver or black. You could return the Nashbar ones for a refund and save yourself a few bucks.