Bought some Shimano SPD pedals, and Shimano XC3 shoes. I tried to cycle around a little bit, trying to detach. Found it pretty difficult especially on my left foot. I also set it to the lowest tightness. But love how they look.
by Legitimate_Fault7708
25 Comments
For most folks, it’s much easier and safer than the negative stories let on. Swinging your heel out on the standing foot will become 2nd nature in no time. 520’s? Good dependable choice.
You’ll get used to finding the spot with the left foot. I’d then tighten the mechanism back to the original setting. I personally think that it isn’t enough on my left foot but haven’t tried one click tighter yet.
Solid Pedals. I’ve got some on one of my bikes. Have a look on YT for some tipps about the best cleat placement on your shoes. It my be best to avoid foot and knee pain. Check that the cleats are clean as well. Sometimes a small stone can get between the them and the pedal.. I’ve had it once or twice..
Those are fine. Will probably last thirty years.
You’ll get used to them pretty quickly and it wil be second nature.
Clipless pedals are awesome. They connect you more securely to the bicycle. On gravel, though, sometimes that is an issue – at least for me, so I have one-sided pedals on my gravel bike. These are my favorites: [https://dmrbikes.com/products/dmr-versa-pedal](https://dmrbikes.com/products/dmr-versa-pedal)
I love them but for gravel I installed hybrid pedals. They have the SPD cleats and on the other side are flat. I can use them for quick trips in the city or commuting or in difficult terrain. I don’t mind the extra weight.
Solid pedals – I’ve run Shimano road pedals for years and they’re still spinning freely. You can find lighter and better options but the benefits don’t really warrant not using a Shimano branded pedal. Good luck with your transition to clipless!
I use SPDs for everything, including road cycling. Fuck the rules. SPDs are awesome and those are solid ones that will outlive your bike.
If you can figure out the model of cleat you have, shimano makes two variants. The SH51 is sort of “standard” and the SH56 is “easy release”. You may try swapping em out.
They’re the best clipless pedals you can get in my opinion. Plenty of float. Easy to unclip (and quick to unclip if they’re maintained well). Should last for years.
Practice in the grass and expect to fall over once while sitting still before your brain is trained
Practice in a grassy field, dedicate an afternoon to it, be prepared to struggle a bit at first, but it’s worth it
Try leaning yourself against a wall or something and practice swinging your heel out to unclip
You made a great choice. There really isn’t any noticable benefit for the majority of people when you get nicer SPD pedals than the ones you did.
They just work.
In time you’ll get the hang of it. My only advice would be to unclip the same foot… Every… Time.
Don’t think – if it’s your right, always do your right. If it’s your left always do your left.
You don’t want to think about it as you’re coming up to a stop and then forget to unclip. Just unclip early as you’re coasting to a stop and make it muscle memory
1. That’s a solid workhorse pedal that you’ll get years and years of faithful service out of.
2. You are going to fall over.
3. If you’re like me you’ll do it in a crowded intersection in Chinatown in SF front of 372 people and then 25 years later at an intersection in the middle of the desert, completely abandoned except for the national cyclocross champion and bike company exec between who’s feet you’ve just landed.
4. I like your bike.
520s are great pedals. I have them on all my bikes, even my road bike. Tens of thousands of kilometres of trouble free service on them. Once you get the hang of them, you’ll have no problems clipping in or out.
Nice looking bike, too. Can’t go wrong wity Decathlon stuff.
It will take some practice, but I won’t ride unclipped anymore. Back the tension down and consider the multi-release cleats. Makes it easier to get unclipped.
I got those same pedals for my first time years ago and they’re great! One awesome thing is that there’s no “wrong” side. You can just clip in however. Un-clipping will become second nature as others have mentioned! Just a simple twist of the ankle will do
‘Clip ins’. Also known as ‘SPD’s’. Shimano Pedalling Dynamics, or ‘Silly Pedal Design’ or even sometimes, ‘Serious Predicament of Doom’. (When you’re heading for death & can’t unclip).
We’ve all been there.
It becomes muscle memory pretty quickly. I actually have far more issues getting clipped back in and rolling at lights then I do worrying about not being able to unclip
My opinion? A lot of MILF (man, I love flatpedals) enjoyers can benefit from trying some MILK (man, I love Klickies).
Jokes aside, the clipping is so engrained within my brain now, falling over is just not a concern.
And especially the pedal guiding the foot to go straighter helped me a lot to pedal rounder and for longer
Practice Practice Practice unclipping
I have similar Shimano pedals and swop them with all my bikes. I go to the lowest point then count the clicks to the highest on the tension. This gives me a mid point, start there, it also helps get both sides the same as in top and bottom. 🤘
Your rear light is upside-down.
My opinion is that Shimano spds are the shit. Wouldn’t use anything else.