Look or Speedplay Pedals...??? HELP!
 

Just ordered my new System Six, and I get it this friday... I dont want shimano pedals because its all SRAM FORCE components etc... lol... My 2 options are the LOOK CARBONS or the SPEEDPLAY STAINLESS... which I hear bad things about both... more importantly I like the look of the speedplays but hear MORE negative things about those... I only ride about 75 mi p/wk to give you an idea of how much wear and tear I will be putting on either set...


This is what I hear...

Speedplay pedals:
1) Need to be LUBED ALL THE TIME? or is that just for the 5,000+ mi a yr riders? whats the deal with this?
2) Adjustments come loose regularly, and potential loss of screws???
3) HOT SPOTS? does everyone get that, not sure what that is...
4) Different spindle lengths...?

Please help... if anyone has used these please clear some of this up in detail... I know cleats have to be periodically replaced, etc, but Im worried about the maintenance of lubing and loosing screws, etc... what differs these from say shimano dura ace pedals (which i have thousands of miles on) ??? Thanks!

I only have 2300 miles on my speedplay light actions, but like them a lot so far. I lube the cleat every week or so, takes 5 seconds. Speedplay recommends you grease the pedals every 2000 miles. Takes 5 minutes.
I have heard tales of cleat breakage, but haven't experienced it yet.
I really like the pedals. I like the float, the ease of use, the 2 sided entry.
The biggest downside is they do clog with dirt very easily, so you have to be careful if you walk in dirt/gravel, to brush out the cleat before clipping in. If they clog they can be hard to engage and (scary) disengage.

Speedplay advantages = easy, secure double-sided clip-in, clip-out; good cornering clearance, great non-self-centering/knee-saving free float, low stack height, low weight. Disadvantage: clunky cleat on shoe for walking; dirt/mud can impede clip-in/out. IMHO the advantages FAR outweigh the disadvantages.

I've used both Look Keo's and Speedplay Zero's.

Look Keo Advantages
Easy to clip in/out
Replacement cleats are found easily

Look Keo Disadvantages
Fixed Float, it isn't adjustable except by replacing the cleat
Dangerous to walk in without cleat covers
They wear out very fast
Break fairly easily

Speedplay advantages
Float is adjustable (on the Zero's)
Can walk in them without cleat covers safely
Double sided entry
Once greased/oiled they clip in/out easily

Speedplay Disadvantages
I need to oil the cleats every ride or every other ride
Can't walk in dirt/sand
Don't always engage easily, but most times they do

Overall I much prefer the Speedplay's over the Keo's. I like the double sided pedal and like that I can walk around without fear of slipping and falling which I had done with the Keo's.

As someone who has ridden Speedplay and Look pretty much exclusively for around 20 year (mostly Look obviously) - except for that brief forray into Time.....here is my opinion:

I really do like Speedplay better - right now. There are some drawbacks, but you learn to live with them. The only thing I do not like about Looks right now is that the Keo cleat is prone to breaking. If their cleat was more durable I would tell you to go with the Looks....

In Road riding, I think you become some sort of a mechanic by force of the equipment. It adds up to quite an investment. And you want everything to work well.

My first Speedplays in 2001 were the $109 xp-3 and now I use the $185.00 Zero stainless.

The 4 screws get loose so you need to maintain them. The Zero's are a tighter fit compared with the X-3. That is, snapping in and out takes more effort.

The claim of hot spots I do not buy. Speedplay merely switched the platform from the pedal to the bottom of the shoe. Go to Speedplay's FAQ and this will be explained quite well. What I think might be happening is that if the bottom of the shoe is not stiff, then it "might" be a hot spot. I bought SIDI Genius 5, which is a pretty good stiff shoe.

Lubrication has to be done with a grease gun. Its not that difficult but maybe a bit messy as in all grease activity. I lube every 1,500 miles. Not really the "big deal".

The different spindle length, I don't know about but it might be related to the platform situated on the bottom of the shoe. YOu can post to Speedplay's web site and they will give you the answer.

Cleat covers for Speedplays if you are going to be walking at rest areas. Lube the cleat springs for the first 500 miles or so, after that it won't be needed. Lube the pedal bearings once a year. Requires a special nozzle on the grease gun or have your LBS do it.

I found that I can use one of my infant son's medicine syringes to lube the pedals. The end is narrow enough to fit into the end of a tube of Phils grease, and tapered so that by pulling just the screw out at the end of the pedal and pressing inward you can force the grease into the pedal.

Old grease comes out the spindle end. Keep pushing until the grease is "clean" coming out the other end. I find I get a lot of grease coming out the next couple of rides after the pedal has been supporting some weight.

I have had my Speedplays going on 3 seasons. I had to replace the cleats about this time last year, and I am starting to get the feeling that I need to replace them again. I'm only getting between 2000-3000 miles on my cleat, but I walk in them everywhere without covers. ...and i could ride them farther, but they lose a little in performance (rock more on the pedal, become a little bit more difficult to clip in, etc...)

+1

+10 on the Speedplays. And another useful tidbit to Speedplay owners - when the time comes to replace the o-rings on the spindle, they're size #6 - 7/16 ID x 8/16 OD x 1/16 thick. You can find them at any Home Depot in the plumbing section.

I went with LOOK KEO Carbon pedals primarily because I was used to Shimano SPD-SL pedals but, like you, I have a non-Shimano bike now so I simply could not go with Shimano on a Campy bike. Also, I commute on my road bikes regularly and plastic cleats are much easier on my travertine and hardwood floors. If I had Speedplays I'd be forced to put my shoes on outside every morning...a minor annoyance but one I'd rather not have to worry about.

I get about 1200-1500 miles out of a set of cleats and find that I wear out the right one much sooner than the left one (since this is the side I unclip at stoplights). A pair of replacement cleats costs $20 and I usually have a spare or two lying around since I don't replace them in pairs.

Walking around in them isn't difficult but I try to keep walking in them to a minimum.

I agree with the Time RXS - but, for the money, don't bother with carbon. We're talking about the weight difference of a credit card between the two sets.

I like the wider platform pedals - it just makes more sense from a stability standpoint. I also HATE float, so I use the Look black deltas.

The knocks on speedplays are way overstated.

1) lubing cleats: I rarely do it, unless I've gotten them really dirty, and they work fine.

2) lubing the pedals. Speedplay says 5,000 miles. I probably do it more like 10,000 and haven't had problems. Any pedal is going to need bearings lubed, or replaced eventually anyway.

3) screws loosening. In my experience, hasn't been a problem since Speedplay started putting loctite on them a number of years ago.

4) walking in the cleats. This is a problemif you're going to walk in them a lot and not use cleat covers, but Looks aren't the greatest things to walk in either.

Ive ridden both of these pedals and can say with certainty you want Shimano pedals.

I despised the Speedplays.. constant hot spots. The KEOs I just hated because the cleats were awful.

The new Ultegra pedals (6620s) are the bombdiggity tho.

I too ride speedplays, hardly ever lube the outside of the pedal unless I really trashed them. Once every six months or so I push the old grease out as described here. Don't listen to the weight argument. Look at the weight of your looks PLUS cleats and then compare the speedplays plus that massive freaking cleat. Also, take a look at the price of replacing a cleat which all systems will need periodically. I can by three sets of Looks to one set of Speedplay zeros. They are super easy to get in and out of, the Speedplays that is; unless of course you get dirt in your cleat and then it gets tough.

If I had the money to replace all of my pedals, I'd put Look Keo Carbon/Ti on all of them.

+1.

I know the OP doesn't want Shimanos but the Ultegras are very good.

Speedplays gave me hotspots.

Look aren't that bad but you can get that "Look" squeak and the cleats can be dodgy.