Originally Posted by
MudPie
Neat project and let us know how it goes. Recessing the cleat would be difficult since you don't have much material to work with, but that's part of the challenge.
My concern is the stitching of the uppers to the sole may rip out. Cycling shoes are reinforced to resist the upward pull of the foot against a clipless pedal.
This was the issue when the Cinelli M71 pedals were introduced- the shoes of the time were not built to resist the upward pull on the pedals. That's what toe straps are for!
If you're truly insane, you could get a set of NOS Cinelli M71 pedals:
http://www.cambriabike.com/shopexd.asp?id=40456 and nail the cleats to your Italian shoes. You'll be so stylish you'll never want to stop! (You won't be able to, either. The Cinelli pedals have a manual lock- you need to reach down and unlock the cleat whenever you want to put a foot down
.)