valygrl

I have the speedplay frogs (mtb, touring bike) and the light actions (road bike). the light action is made for smaller people, with lighter spring tension to get in (not out) of the pedal. I wish they made the light action in a nicer spindle, however - they only use the really heavy steel spindle.

i really like both sets. the float saves my crappy knees, and i like the dual sided entry. the light action cleats clog horribly with dirt/sand, and can be hard to engage and release when clogged. the frogs clog somewhat with mud, but not with dry debris. the cleat on the frog wears out pretty fast if you walk a lot - i use it on my touring bike, and don't bring any shoes other than the shimano sandles w/ the cleat, so i have to walk on the cleat a lot, which wears it out fast. i think this would be a non-issue under more normal day-riding circumstances.

the frog cleat is un-walkable if you put it on road shoe, but find on an MTB shoe. the light action cleat is reasonably walkable, but not great. the cleat covers protect the cleat and make it less slippery, but make the toe-up even more, so they are still hard to walk in.

the float on the light actions is not nearly as ice-cube-y as the frogs, but once they break in it's sufficient. the icecube thing just takes a little while to get used to, as others have said.

for those who have a serious knee problem, the light action disengagement does require more twisting force, but the frog is force-less.

i can never get the spd's on my indoor shoes to work well - but maybe that's b/c the spin bike's pedals are so poorly maintained.

RadioFlyer

A lot of float is over-rated. For some knees, it's actually very bad. One really nice aspect of speedplay is that it takes so little effort to exit, unlike, say, crank bros eggbeaters. I say float is less important for you than ease of exit.

How long ago was your reconstruction? Which tendon did you use as the donor?

If you've never used clipless before and you're less than six months from surgery, play it safe and hold off a little while longer.

And if surgery was recent, focus on range-of-motion and not building strength.

Above all else, listen to your physical therapist over anything said on the internet.

SuperStroke

November, it was a lengthy process(5hr+), loose cartilage chunks floating around, mashed meniscus, etc......used hamstring graft to replace the ligament.
My strength feels back up to par, I do 40+mi rides....just often I notice I cant/angle the said leg's foot outward a bit, I immediately correct it when noticed so as not to develop the bad habit, but it goes back on its own, thanks RF

prendrefeu

I use bebop pedals. 20° of float. I swear by them! Even if they are rare, hard to find, and the cleats aren't readily available at your local LBS... still, they are *amazing* and I absolutely love the system. Most bebop owners I've known will attest to that, and most would feel the same way. (BTW, the bebop pedals are now being manufactured by another company... which means, down the line, more availability! finally!)

I've noticed that those of us who play sports that require a more flexible path of movement (soccer, for example) already have our bodies condition to allow our knees to have that flexibility yet retain the strength in movement...
Many cyclists are purely cyclists (as in, their bodies are not conditioned by the other sports such as soccer) and their knees are more accommodating to being taught to stay on a true orientation. Hence, a lot of cleat systems have 0 degrees of float, etc:.

To each their own! FTW!

merlinextraligh

Incorrect. Go to Speedplay's pedal comparison on the web and it lists weights with and without cleats for speedplay pedals and all major comparators.

And Speedplay pedals with 4 hole mounted cleats are lighter than any comparable major competitor. For example, X/1s are 49g lighter than Look Keo Ti with cleats.

https://www.speedplay.com/index.cfm?f...re.roadresults

And X/2's with cleats weigh 260g, not 322, and again are lighter than the comparable Look.

https://www.speedplay.com/index.cfm?f...re.roadresults

-VELOCITY-

I love my Speedplays. Wow I guess someone needed to revive a 5 year old thread.

joconnor

Yeah, I have a set of the Speedplay Zero's and I love them. They give you the ability to adjust the float to suit your comfort zone and allow you to go all the way up to 15 degrees. The double-sided entry makes it really easy to enter at any time and the covers you can buy for the cleats both protect the cleats in the long run and really make it easy/safe to walk around even on slippery surfaces.

spdrcr5

I just recently switched from Look Keo Sprints to Speedplay Zero's. I did it because my Keo cleats wore out too fast and when walking around without cleat covers they were too slippery for me.

The Speedplays are safe to walk around in, but I have cleat covers to for them to save on wear. As for the float, it feels great and you get used to it rather quickly. At least I got used to it fast. I was originally going to adjust the float but so far have not touched it, it's still set for 15* and I can't tell the difference as my feet don't float side to side when I pedal. But it's nice knowing it's there. My Keo's were the gray with the 4.5* float for comparison.

As for the weight issue, who cares? Lose 1 pound off your body and it will more than make up for the gram difference between the pedal/cleat setups.

The only issue I've had with my Speedplay's has been getting used to clipping in and making sure the cleats are clear of any dirt. I've now made it part of my bike cleaning ritual to put a dab of oil on the cleats and have not had any issues clipping in. Clipping out has never been an issue. The self centering of the clear/pedal design and the two sided entry of the pedal is much easier than the Keo's, no more looking down to see if the pedal is "right side up".

dpr

What is this "float" concept you guys refer to in clipless pedals. Ive only ever used platforms but I might be getting a new road bike with Look pedals (Keo Sprint). Thanks

nostromo

I was going to get the X/1 pedals (Ti) but I was informed they should not be used for any rider over 185lbs (I'm 192 at this time). Would the X/2's suffice?

ColorChange

I love my Speedlay Zero's.

merlinextraligh

Only difference is stainless steel spindle, rather than Ti. A few grams heavier.

I'd bet the majority of people riding X series pedals, ride the X/2's

cuevélo

The great thing about speedplay is that none of the mechanism touches the ground. When you walk on an SPD pedal, you wear out the cleat that locks in to the pedal. When you walk on the "cleat" of a speedplay pedal, the only thing that touches the ground is a cover plate. This eliminates any wear to the mechanism.

Another good thing is that your foot isn’t held in by a spring, SPD is. When I had SPD pedals I never unclipped by pulling up out of the spring, but the Speedplay website says it can happen. The speedplay mechanism is more like a door latch. If you look at a speedplay cleat you see two wires parallel to each other. They move out of the way and spring back in when you clip in. That way the spring isn’t holding you in.

I got used to the float on my first ride (15 mi) with them. The only problem is that they need to be kept clean. It isn’t even a problem if you don’t walk in water/mud.

Jimbo61

Ti pedals do have a weight limit. As mentioned earlier, loose some body weight and save the extra $100 and use the steel versions.
In our shop we sell 100:1 Look vs. Speedplay. I have tried both and like both. Look cleat replacement is a bummer. Fact of life with this pedal.
One suggestion - go for a TIME Atac MTB pedal (again, you can blow the wad on Ti version, or go a little more reasonable, and they offer great float adjustment, and are the recommended MTB pedal for people with knee problems around here). Then buy a high end mountain bike shoe such as Shimano SH-M300 (for the carbon sole stiffness/performance it offers), but get better walk around ability with the cleat associated with this pedal. This option was pointed out to me by a manufacturers rep. and now is my choice of pedal/shoes for my MTB, cyclocross and road bikes.

ukie

Ditto + you can walk too.

patentcad

I went the other way - from 12+ years on Speedplay X pedals to Look Keos. Why?

• Hot spots on longer rides - the Speedplays focus energy into a smaller area of your footbed, the Keos are considerably better on warm days, 5+ hour rides. Less painful for my feet.

• I like the clip in/out a bit better on the Keos, and the cleats are less prone to getting gunked up with snow, dirt in winter when I take a rural whiz break.

The keo cleat design is more of a downer for urban cyclists who walk on their cleats on concrete quite a bit. I don't, my keo cleats are lasting much longer than I ever expected, and they're also simpler and much cheaper than the Speedplay cleats.

Very happy with the switch. Liked the Speedplays, but the keos are like slimmed down look style pedals, and I really like them more. And changing pedals was pricey, had to buy two sets initially, and I'll have to buy another set later this year. Worth it.

patentcad

I have the Frogs on my MTB, they're great.

SushiJoe

Have to add a +1 for the Keos

patentcad

Can't knock Speedplays though. Great pedals. It's all good, advantages to each. Didn't think I'd like the Keos so much, I do really like the feel better, I've had them on the bikes about 6 months now.

umd

Of course, if you've already lost the body weight, the weight limit for the Ti pedals isn't really an issue...

halfspeed

A few things to clear up here:

The Frogs are Speedplay's 'MTB' pedal designed for two bolt drillings. They use a very different pedal/cleat setup from their 'road' models. The stainless steel spindle model is walkable and weighs 304 grams per pair, including cleats and a full load of grease. The Ti version will, of course, be lighter. I've been using them with no ACL in my right knee for over four years and my knees have no pain.

So for walkability, reasonable weight, and ACL issues I'm happy to recommend Speedplay Frogs with Shimano SH-RT50 shoes.

Brian6751

I've been thinking of switching to Speedplays since I cannot get my Shimanos adjusted the same on both sides to save my life. I want both feet to feel the same.

bostongarden

I've used my Time Magnesium from 1991-1996 (then off the bike) and Sept. 2007-present and I love them. I used Look before 1991 and was thrilled when I switched to Time. Although, I suspect that float issues which were new back then, have been addressed reasonably well by most manufacturers.

I have thought about giving the Speedplays a try some time.

cohophysh

anybody use Wellgo?

Psimet2001 

Man! I love this new search function. It's been bringing back a lot of old threads lately. This has got to take the cake though....going all the way back to 2002. OP...I hope you've figured it out by now.

Actually I just hope you're still cycling.