jklasdf

I just turned 13 and joined a pretty serious junior developement team and am still on MTB pedals. I need to make the jump to road pedals. Which one's should I get? I don't want speedplays, I've been thinking about: Keo sprints, Keo classics, or shimano ultegra's.

Many thanks!

Jynx

I personally run Shimano SPD-SL's (Ultegra PD-6620) and love them. You will find a lot of different responses. Honestly you cant go wrong with either. Give them a shot and see how you like it you can always switch.

jklasdf

Forgot to mention, Riding '08 Schwinn Peloton, base carbon, shimano 105's

YOJiMBO20

May I ask why you don't want Speedplays?

Matt Gaunt

+1 on the Ultegras. There's nothing wrong with any of the ones you identified, least of all the Speedplays so go with whichever you think look the best

Fat Boy

Find out what pedals most of the guys on the Jr. team run and then get those. If you need to, you'll be able to borrow a screw or cleat or something in a pinch. There's not any big advantage in one type of pedal over another that I'm aware of.

jklasdf

I don't want speedplays because

1 I have heard about that "icecube float thing"
2 cleats are too expensive and I run through cleats really quickly
3 pedals that are right for me are too expensive
4 small platform area

YOJiMBO20

So you've decided against them based on what you've heard/read about them? I would recommend at least trying them before writing them off. I've got a set of Zeros that are great. And I have no idea what you mean by "icecube float thing." Also the platform area of Speedplays is the area of the cleat, not of the pedal, so really it's as larger, if not larger, than the platform area of the pedals you've mentioned that you want.

I'm just saying, see if you can try them before you 86 them.

fbxcore

Shimano PD-R540 ftw. Snagged em for $40.

silkywoods

+1 on the Ultegra's. Yea, they're a little heavy but the float is just right, the cleats wear well and you can still walk in them without covers, solid wide base. Well built and affordable.

urbanknight

+1 It was always nice when my teammates and my equipment were compatible. Same pedals meant we could try each other's bikes without swapping pedals, and same components (Campy or Shimano... SRAM didn't exist back then) with the same number of cogs meant we could just have one set of wheels in the pit to share.

lxpatterson

I also used MTB pedals for a long time on my racing bike bc my commuter and XC bike used SPD. I switched to Speedplay Zeroes last year and I love the damn things.

You are correct in that the cleats do need to be changed every so often, but it's not as bad as you think. In my experience, if you don't walk around in them too much and use a bit of dry lube or wax they will last more 2 years. If you do plan on walking around (ie. using it on a commuter bike as well) it's not the best choice.

The pedals themselves are around $150-200 new or used and they literally last forever, since they have no moving parts other than the bearings, which can be replaced easily. The cleats can go for about $40 if you look around. Other pedal systems which have the mechanism in the pedal (ie. look, spd-r, time...) itself will wear out and you have to replace the whole thing at a cost of $100+. So cost-wise, Speedplays are not as bad as you might imagine.

Just my two cents.

Camilo

Time RXS

jklasdf

totally agree, most of the guy's ride keo carbons, so that narrows it down to the sprints or classics, yes yojimbo20 i will at least try the speedplays, no promises though.

jklasdf

what about em?

wideAMG

wrong.

buy speedplay zeros.

gbg

Can't go wrong with these, especially now that they have the metal plate (was plastic) and little larger surface area.

jklasdf

I'm getting mixed emotions with the shimanos, not so with the looks and speedplays.

sirious94

Keo Looks definitely they have half the wieght the clunky ultegras and other than that they are exactly the same including price

urbanknight

I'll give you a negative for the Speedplays. I just switched from Speedplay Zero to Shimano 105. I do feel a more solid connection on the Shimanos, and more importantly, the Shimanos don't require finicky maintenance to keep them from squeaking. Also, the Speedplay cleats are very sensative on installation. If the screws are too loose, the cleat moves around on the shoe. Too tight and you squish the spring.

I would have gone to the Keos instead of Shimano (I was very happy with the Look Delta system back in the 90's), but I went with Shimano just because my tandem partner has them on her bike, so now I don't have to move pedals around or have a second pair of shoes/cleats.


I've hears good things about them, but they never caught on. They just don't seem any better than the others, and at least the others are usually shared among teammates.

Porsche917LH

I'm 13 (turned 13 several months ago) and compete in Junior Elite (pretty competitively for my crappy OCR3) on used Shimano Ultegra pedals I purchased on Craigslist. For my purposes they suffice. I'm inclined to say the Look Keo Sprints are the better deal given their leight weight and reputation. Essentially MTB pedals are the same except they tend to be heavier and protected better. It may be possible to remove the extra bits.

Carbon Unit

I might add that Speedplay cleats are metal and not plastic. They may cost more but will last much longer than the plastic cleats. I changed my first set of Speedplay cleats after two years and they will still working, I wasn't clipping out accidently they were just getting a little sloppy.

I think you would probably get 6,000 to 8,000 miles out of a set of Speedplay cleats.

Speedplay pedals will wear out faster if you walk a lot in them. If you do, use cleat covers. I don't walk much in mine so I was over 6,000 miles when I change my cleats for the first time.

jklasdf

Go junior Road cycling!!!!!!!!!!!! seriously, my 20 person team is the only one for 50 miles, and I never see a kid on a road bike, also, MTB pedals have a small platform area and can hurt your feet on a long ride. Main reason I'm switching to road

Carbon Unit

I put two sets of Speedplay cleats on and never had any problem with either of them. I put blue locktite on and just snugged the screws on and haven't had a problem with them moving at all.

Also, before I had the Speedplays, I had Shimano Dura Ace SPD-L which I hated. I don't notice that one of the pedals feels more secure than the other. I do notice that the Speedplays feel a little different because of the free float which I got use to within one ride.

jklasdf

I've heard speedplays are nothing special and the ones I want are $165 whereas 5 bucks more get me name brand and compatibility

Talk me down if you can, please.