Geez there are a lot of options out there. Thanks for all the input...I think I'm leaning towards SPDs, since it seems that only a few of you felt that you quickly outgrew them. Walkability isn't a huge factor but it would be nice (and I'd like to keep the total cost under about $200).

Don't do SPD. Some of the posters recommended SPD-SL, which are NOT the same thing. They are the road version from Shimano, much more similar to the LOOK type. IMO, SPD has no advantages over any of the other systems. At least get the egg beaters if you want a SPD type system, you have the advantage of 4 sided entry and easier exit.

Oooh, thank you. I was assuming SPD = SPD-SL. There really are just too many options for this.

He's right about the spd vs spd-sl thing. However, a lot of people use regular spd's and are happy with them - they haven't stuck around just because they're made by Shimano, they've stuck around because they're decent. Still think if you asked on mountain biking forums, you'd get a ton of advice for the Time ATAC's. :D But if you're just road riding, I don't think it's worth killing yourself over which one to get either.

I saw a fellow roadie, in bona fide road shoes, who must have decided walking wasn't important, fall on his elbow in a restaurant with a tile floor, because he had no traction in his shoes. Not trying to throw horror stories out (carbon's gonna asplode!), but I think being able to walk is a bigger deal than most people make it out to be.

:) Yeah, I know. To keep it simple, there are basically two families of systems. 2-hole "mountain bike" systems, and 3 hole "road bike" systems.

The 2-hole cleats are small (like 1"x1/2")and are secured by 2-bolts, hence the name. SPDs fall into this category. The cleats are designed to be recessed in the bottom of a mountain bike shoe so you can walk around. Most pedals with this system also have dual sided clip in, so you don't have to make sure the pedal is flipped a certain way. Egg beaters have 4 sided entry.

The 3-hole cleats are much larger (2"x2"x2" triangle). These bolt directly to the outside of a road shoe, which has no tread. The cleats are exposed and walking is harder. The pedals are only one sided entry, although they are weighted such that they always hang in one orientation, so it's still pretty easy to find the right side without looking.

Here's the answer:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20827654

Thus changes in muscle coordination improved the pedalling effectiveness during the upstroke phase but would probably lead to impairment of the oxygen consumption. Therefore, training the pull up action could be of interest to optimize this muscle coordination associated with better pedalling effectiveness by additionally relieving hip or knee extensors during the downstroke.

But even the gobbledy-gook study you cite states:

However, an active pulling-up action on the pedal during upstroke increased the pedalling effectiveness, while reducing net mechanical efficiency.

I'm not sure I quite get the set up that was used for this "study" WTF is a "single pedal" a platform with no toe clip? How would you pull up? The abstracts are not a lot of help visualizing the test set up in this "study."

This study seems to come to a totally different conclusion.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17545890

When the participants were instructed to pull on the pedal during the upstroke, mechanical effectiveness was greater

My conclusion is that these studies are pretty poor simulations of actual performance during a ride. They are poorly conceived and totally unconvincing in their conclusions.

Like here's a recent thread from mtbr (mountain bike review) on pedal choices -
http://forums.mtbr.com/29er-bikes/do...rk-685141.html

As you can see...there's a lot of differing opinions.

The one drawback to eggbeaters I don't like for road riding is not being able to feel when you clip in. There are some other drawbacks for other kinds of biking that probably don't apply to road riding - like unclipping if you hit the bottom of the pedal on a rock. All I would say is that with their reputation for unreliablity, I would just make sure if you bought Eggbeaters to buy the newer versions which are supposed to be more reliable.

I would agree. If you have mountain shoes, get mountain pedals. If you have road shoes, SPD cleats are nearly unwalkable. While SPD-SLs give a large platform for you to stand on, walking on SPD cleats feels like trying to balance on a marble. You have far less stability.

I've also never felt I had any traction problems with SPD-SLs with Specialized shoes. Walking is a little awkward, sure, but they're solid to stand on and plenty grippy for most situations. Far better than SPDs on the same shoes.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=214417 I just got these for my new bike. I have ridden Looks about 20 years ago, but these are great! They are basic Wellgo pedals and Shimano SH AM45 shoes. They work fine and won't look too out of place in any setting. Excellent walkability as the cleat is fully integrated into the shoe. They are still new, but the pedals have not slipped out yet and have a little lateral play.

Which is easiest to setup? I think the speedplays or 540s because they have more float. Never used speedplays but my commuter has 540s - they work good (but heavy). I think speedplays would be good for beginners. They do cost more but if you decide to upgrade later you will spend more .. can someone chime in on how long the cleats will last?

While I ride on Looks & shimano pedals I would say get what ever is onsale t obegin with. The larger platforms of looks & shimanos are great, but I see other stuff on sale often. As a way to get into the door you may want to grap one of those. It will take some time to get comfy with them.

My LBS told me to expect to replace them once a year and perform basic maintenance once a month. Replacement cleats are relatively expensive at about $40.

I have about 2,500 miles on SPD and I don't recommend them. Road shoes with SPD-SL, Look, Speedplay, etc. are all fine to walk into the coffee shop and back to the bike.

So would I. I got a pair of Nashbar LOOK-style knockoffs when I switched from SPD, but soon after bought a pair of Shimano 105 SPD-SLs and have been happy for the last few years.

Is this even a question? Speedplay Zeros are the best pedal system, period. Completely adjustable float (as little or as much as you want), dual-sided entry, secure when riding and yet easy enough to clip out of.

It is right up there in the BF Canon with stalwarts like the CAAD9/10 and GP4000s - and deservingly so.

You don't need to buy an MTB shoe for the eggbeaters. As long as the shoe has a 2 hole for the cleats, you can use that shoe. Shimano's shoes has the 2-hole and 3-hole triangle for the cleats. Crankbrothers also has an adapter for a 3-hole if your shoe does not have a 2-hole.

http://crankbrothers.com/accessories_cleats.php

One advantage of the eggbeaters is you can easily clip out. Another is the minimalist and gorgeous design - imho.

However, I really found it hard to clip in (maybe because I was using a road shoe or got used to a SPD-SL cleats). You also actually lose a lot of power transfer compared to a SPD-SL since your shoe tends to sway from side-to-side when your pedaling especially on an uphill where you tend to stand up. Lastly, compared to Shimano 105 clipless pedal, your shoe clearance to your bike's frame when clipped-in is shorter. Many times, I had my shoe hit the lower part of my bike frame.

These factors made me decide to go back using my 105 clipless pedal. Goodluck!

What you can do and what is a good idea are not the same thing. Using mountain style cleats on a road shoe is the worst of both worlds. Very hard to walk in.

Agree. I think that the only drawback is relatively expensive replacement cleats.

I have used spd (regular ones, mtn bike type) on my touring bike, commuter and cross bike (really used only on road) for about 20 yrs.

Recently got some new shoes--Specialized mtn ones with nice stiff soles-which I find great for comfort and pedal force transfer, and still being relatively easy to walk in. A plus for me.

Last summer my wife expressed an interest, just like you, to gain some efficiency and she went the same route as I have for shoes, but after using my old set of spd pedals, she got some spd on one side/flat on the other, and she likes them a lot.

I still see spd shoes that allow reasonable walking (there are tons of models out there that can take the cleats, from regular looking, easy walking shoes, to super stiff mtn bike shoes) combined with the reasonable cost of Shimano spd pedals (520 models cost about $50) and the fact that Shimano pedals are very well made and will last many many years--seems like the best option.

If you see in the future that you want to go whole hog roadie shoes and setup, then do it, but the spd setup can be done with very good quality shoes and pedals for $200 easily.

PS, as for shoes, try as many as you can and go with the one that fits the best and feels good right away. Arch support and fit for my narrow feet were my priority, and were worth spending $50 more for the shoes I got compared to others that were good but not perfect.

Really appreciate being able to read this conversation, even though it is quite old. I bought Shimano EH-500 pedals (SPD on one side, flat on the other) for my road bike, that I have been using with EX-300 shoes without the cleats attached, except when it was below 40* recently, when I wore my flat bottomed street shoes. But as I'm getting better at biking, I want to return to the efficiency I had when I wore toe clips in the 80's. I won't be able to ride for a few days with our high winds and rain (fairweather cyclist and golfer here). But I did install the cleats on my shoes today - my only cycling action at all. Maybe tomorrow when the wind isn't howling in the garage, I'll practice clipping in and out. I'm planning to only clip in on one side for a while to make sure I'm used to it. I'd like to be one of those people who has never fallen over. It never happened with toe clips.

:) If that were true, we'd see some racers using flats. I've never seen or heard of one. It's pretty obvious that foot retention allows the use of more muscles which increases endurance. Short-term power is limited by aerobic ability, not one's pedals, but all-day power is another story. Hence everyone who's riding any distance uses clipless.

I've liked SPDs used with MTB shoes. It's nice to be able to walk around. I prefer Sidi Dominators. They're expensive but I had a pair that went over 50,000 miles before they were stolen. They didn't even show wear. Double-sided pedals are the easiest to clip into, no need to turn them over. I captain a tandem and use double sided there because I can never miss a clip. I use single-sided on my single road bikes, well, just because it's cooler, looks more roadie.

I've been riding for a long time, but only went clipless last year. I now own everything from Shimano's lineup. Here's my advice for any beginner: just get the entry level Shimano pedals with yellow cleats. The RS500 SPD pedals. You can get them for about $65 with the cleats. You're all set with that. Probably never need to upgrade.

Hows that ?. Standard SPD’s are just fine for road use. I’ve been in them 25 years or so, have used SPD-L for some of that, PITA to get into compared to the step in and done SPD. My Shimano XC-7 or something shoes are essentially the same as the road version, carbon mid-sole, comfortable as anything I’ve used. I would guess maybe 50% of folks using road bikes ride SPD with no issues. It’s all personal choice, there’s zero advantage to SPD-L/Look if you use good shoes.

Hey folks just an FYI this thread was last active in 2011 which for your eagle eyed viewers is nearly 14 years.