Jixr

I bought some Forte ( performance bike house brand ) road pedals, wore through the stock cleats, replaced with look cleats, then replaced with shimano cleats and its damn near impossible to clip in or unclip.

I was under the impression that the forte pedals use the same cleats as shimano/look, but comparing the size of the ones that the pedals came with, and my shimano ones, the shim. ones are quite larger.

A buddy of mine who uses shimano 105 pedals couldn't clip in my bike either.

So are there slight differences between shimano/look and other road cleats? I thought they were all interchangeable.

Andrew R Stewart 

There are a few versions of Look road cleats (Delta and Keo) and so too with Shimano (Look delta compatible and their own similar but different design). Also know that each type can have a fixed/non float and a floating option. So there are many road cleats that can look similar but be rather different when it counts, like when trying to clip out in a hurry. Andy.

lavielemond 

G'day Jixr,

I just 'googled' your Forte pedals & within the Corsa2's description (link to that page is at the bottom of this post, btw), it clearly states that these pedals require LOOK Keo cleats - "it's fully compatible with all LOOK Keo-style cleats--the most common and easiest to find road cleats in the world."

Also, the 2 different versions of LOOK cleats & Shimano' SPD cleats are NOT interchangeable with their respective versions of pedals. Mind you, as I'm sure you're already aware, LOOK & Shimano's cleat designs do utilise the same triangular/3-point thread patterns as one another when it comes to the soles of cycling shoes.

So, as you have already stated that you initially purchased a pair of LOOK cleats after your OEM cleats were finished, if they DEFINITELY will not engage within the pedals (but if you DO have Keo cleats, perhaps spray them lightly with a lubricant - WD-40 or something similar - in order to make initial engagement of the cleats easier from new), I can only assume that you mistakenly purchased a pair of LOOK's older Delta/Arc style of cleat (which were used upon all LOOK road pedals for 20 years, from their initial launch in 1984 until being replaced by KEO pedals/cleats in 2004), rather than the Keo cleats that have been used upon all LOOK road bike pedals for more than a decade now & will continue that way, at least for the foreseeable future.

But it is a little strange IF you purchased the older LOOK Delta cleat, because they're FAR less common nowadays than their Keo counterparts - with which the marketplace is saturated - & one usually has to actively pursue the Delta cleats, otherwise only the Keo cleats - in their 3 different "float options, designated by the colour of the cleats (black = 0 'float, grey = 4.5 degrees of 'float' angle& red = 9 degrees of 'float' angle & all new LOOK pedals come with the grey 'medium' float cleats) will usually appear within your search results!

I own more than 50 pairs of LOOK pedals, which consist of more than 35 of the older Delta style of pedal (in all manner of colour schemes & either NOS or near-NOS condition, as they're all-too-rare nowadays & thus I've amassed a decent collection to last me & my 8 'vintage' bikes beyond my lifetime, at least!) to use upon my 8 "vintage"(from the mid-80s until the early 90s) bikes & about 15 varieties of Keo 2 Max/Keo Blade pedals for my 2 "modern" LOOK bikes. So I obviously require more of the older style of cleat upon 9 of my 13 different pairs of cycling shoes, with only 4 pairs of shoes presently kitted out with Keo cleats. In fact, if you hadn't previously been using the OEM Keo-compatible cleats that must have come with your pedals, I'd be guessing that you DO in fact have a pair of Keo cleats & you're simply doing something wrong when trying to engage them in the pedals - but seeing as though you have used the OEM cleats to the point of wearing them out, then I'm guessing that you know what you're doing re: how to use them?! Also, have you simply compared your old, worn out cleats with the LOOK cleats that you have purchased? Although they may look the same to the casual observer, once you compare them properly you will see a number of differences between the older Delta & current Keo cleats.

Also, you do have options when it comes to Keo cleats, as you can choose from either LOOK-branded (& then you have the choice between their standard cleats or their Grip version of cleat, which simply feature additional rubber sections upon them in order to make them less slippery to walk upon) or a wide variety of aftermarket, Keo-compatible brands that also invariably offer the 3 'float' options.

My apologies for writing such a verbose response to your question but once I got going, I thought that I might as well provide you with as much information as possible, in order to help you out! So you DEFINITELY require KEO cleats for your Forte Corsa2 pedals & from there, you have the option of either LOOK branded cleats (regular or the rubberised Grip version) or a variety of generic offerings. Then you have to choose between the 3 different 'float' angle options, which are designated by their colour, as I mentioned earlier. And finally, I would heavily recommend investing in a pair of rubber cleat covers (again, either from LOOK or other generic brands) to be worn whenever you're wearing your cycling shoes but you're not riding. For one thing, you're protecting the cleats from premature wear of the plastic or from any contaminants entering the cleats (& then your pedals once you're riding again) & the other reason why they're a sound investment is that unless you purchase the more expensive LOOK Grip model of cleat, then they are FAR less hazardous to walk upon at anytime that you're off your bike, PARTICULARLY when the road/concrete is wet.

I really hope that my "novel" of a response is helpful to you!!

Best of luck, mate...cheers & best wishes from "Down Under"...Matt.


Forté Corsa2 Team Road Pedals