Speedplay... play?

[Valy]

Boardman - yeah it's weird but whatever the reason for it, it's puzzling. I have noticed a bit more wear on the plastic adapter plates this time around more on left than right but having replaced the adapter plate with a new one on the left made no difference. Levelling out the cleat a bit may have helped but I definitely remember them being similarly flexed on both shoes in past and did not have the rocking problem.

I also gotta say that before the new set of pedals I cleaned (wiped with GT85 soaked paper tower or similar) the cleats and pedals pretty often - like not every ride, but maybe 1-2 a week, though they were not exactly dirty this time around.

The 105 pedals definitely feel a lot more solid in the way they hold your foot on both sides, however the right side did not feel bad to me with Speedplays.

Overall this is sort of disappointing, probably most so for not having a clear idea of the cause - user error or shoe compatibility (which are the same shoes as before and the left shoe has not been damaged in any crashes I had, only the right one funnily enough) or somehow bad pedals which does not look likely tbh.

Is there a SP rep around here somewhere? May try getting in touch with tech support see what they say.

[Zigmeister]

Boardman - yeah it's weird but whatever the reason for it, it's puzzling. I have noticed a bit more wear on the plastic adapter plates this time around more on left than right but having replaced the adapter plate with a new one on the left made no difference. Levelling out the cleat a bit may have helped but I definitely remember them being similarly flexed on both shoes in past and did not have the rocking problem.

I also gotta say that before the new set of pedals I cleaned (wiped with GT85 soaked paper tower or similar) the cleats and pedals pretty often - like not every ride, but maybe 1-2 a week, though they were not exactly dirty this time around.

The 105 pedals definitely feel a lot more solid in the way they hold your foot on both sides, however the right side did not feel bad to me with Speedplays.

Overall this is sort of disappointing, probably most so for not having a clear idea of the cause - user error or shoe compatibility (which are the same shoes as before and the left shoe has not been damaged in any crashes I had, only the right one funnily enough) or somehow bad pedals which does not look likely tbh.

Is there a SP rep around here somewhere? May try getting in touch with tech support see what they say.

And what does Speedplay have to say about this?

I personally have run Speedplay the last 1yr approx. I have Specialized Road Comp Expert shoes with the adapter plate on the bottom. I have only greased the spindles 2x maybe the past year, and I take the cleat assembly on the shoe apart every 4 months maybe and clean/regrease it well. I also never wear cleat protectors. I don't walk around in my cleats in the grocery store or out to dinner, and they are gouged up from stuff on the bottom somewhat though from rock/pavement/dirt at races and such.

My pedals don't rock and have worked the same since day 1.

So, either it is some tolerance issue with the manufacturer process, and just some variance from one pedal to the next, or something else is going seriously wrong. But there isn't much to a pedal, so that is why I asked, what does Speedplay have to say about this and what is their answer/solution to fix this?

A lot of top pros ride Speedplay, so I can't be led to believe they are problematic and can't handle world class cycling and different styles of riding/pedaling.

[artray]

I loved them . I just seemed to wear the cleats out quite quick so went back to Keos.

[Rick]

So, either it is some tolerance issue with the manufacturer process, and just some variance from one pedal to the next, or something else is going seriously wrong. But there isn't much to a pedal, so that is why I asked, what does Speedplay have to say about this and what is their answer/solution to fix this?

IMO there is not anything "seriously wrong", but there are tolerances to all mechanical parts. And in my experience in manufacturing it only takes about 1-2 thousandths of an inch to make the difference between "too tight to fit" and "so loose it is rattling". Combine that with the fact that some people's pedaling styles really do cause the interface to wear faster.
I don't think speedplay will have a "fix", because it is not really a "problem". It is just the way the design is.
Going back to my own experience, I am sure the small amount of play I was feeling was never causing any loss of power or any other "issue" other than it annoyed me. If I were riding criteriums a lot I would go back to speedplay just for the quick entry and cornering clearance. If I needed float, I would also go back. Different designs have different features and drawbacks.

[Cattiy]

In the end of 2014, is there a defintive cause identified? Would love to stay with Speedplay, but the rocking is giving me knee issues.

I have two ideas to overcome this:

1. Start with a new pedal and cleat with a shorter spindle, so that i can run the cleat more centered and not pushed outwards.

2. Switch the spindle and the bounties to titanium, because titanium is harder wearing.

[WheresWaldo]

1. Might work, but you could also try some Lemond Cleat Shims to force the outside of the shoe up from the cleat just a bit. It might help with the feeling that your foot is rocking to the outside.

2. Finding Ti replacement parts for Speedplay that doesn't come from Speedplay with it's associated high cost is not easy. Speedplay is by nature a suspicous and litigious company. They tend to go after anyone they feel could cause harm to their brand. They are much worse than Specialized ever was and tend to keep their bullying out of the press. Bowties will be easier to find, and do wear, but the Ti ones won't wear any better than the steel ones. Its only the aluminum "weightweenie" bowties that wear abnormally fast.

[TheKaiser]

Yes, this ^^^, I second that the titanium bowties should not be any more durable than steel.

If you do decide to go the cleat wedge route, I think the Lemond "Lewedges" are now marketed under a different name by Bike Fit Systems (http://bikefit.com/products.php).

Regarding the rocking, I would have to assume that if it is side to side rocking or "Roll on the X axis" that we are discussing, and it is coming from pedal wear not cleat wear, then wear to the plastic body is probably the source rather than wear to the bowties.

@Cattiy, did you simply try new cleats yet? That would be a good start for the process of elimination/troubleshooting. If the majority of the play remains, then I would guess that you are suffering wear to the left and right plastic/resin portion of the pedal platform.

You may be right that, for long term prevention, a different spindle length might help. My take on this whole issue is that abnormally fast wear (outside of a particularly abrasive operating environment) is probably due to uneven loading, due to some idiosyncrasy of an individual's pedal stroke. I am sure you have all ridden in a paceline and noticed the knees or feet of person in front of you wobbling in or out on each pedal stroke, or noticed a kind of bow-legged or knock-kneed leg posture that distributes the majority of the pedal load to the very edge of the pedals. The high point loading, combine with the constant movement/grinding that tends to come from that sort of instability seems like a perfect mix for high wear.

Before you make any fit adjustments, I would ask myself "am I doing this because I think bad fit is causing accelerated pedal wear, or am I changing my fit to accommodate weak equipment". It can be tough to tell the difference, but it should go without saying that the former is a great idea...the latter not so much.

The new Speedplay "Pave" pedal would probably fix the pedal body wear possibility as it makes the whole area steel. I would like to see them come out with a new Zero pedal body with a steel cross shaped plate rather than a bow tie to achieve the same end with the Zero, but have not heard any plans for that. Replacing cleats 1 time per year is something that I can take, but more often than that, or having to replace the whole pedal body yearly due to wear is simply too much for me to tolerate.

I am just coming up to the 1yr mark on my current set and am watching them closely to see how much play develops.

[Rick]

There are a number of incremental tweaks that speedplay could implement that would reduce the wear in the rocking axis (such as a cross-shaped plate on the zeros) . In fact, if they just rotated the current bowtie 90° it seems like it would still operate the same, and there would then be no tendency to wear in the axis that rotates around the pedal spindle, so there would be no increase in weight. I am sort of surprised that they haven't had an update for so long. I would like an excuse to go back to speedplays, but and the price of the pave is just too ridiculous to even try and it really added quite a bit of weight. I don't know anyone who has actually ridden them.

[wheelsONfire]

Why not change pedals and use Time Xpresso? Or even Mavics which are same.

[Rick]

Everyone has personal preferences. I just have no affinity for using pedals that look like I have miniature Klingon Warships attached to my feet.
But I don't really have anything specific against them except that they look really fragile.

[WheresWaldo]

Thanks TheKaiser, when I bought mine they were labeled Lemond. Those are the wedges I was speaking of. I use it on one leg to solve a small issue that used to cause my left knee to loop up and down. Now the knee tracks straight. but it would also help with the feeling that your foot is rolling to the outside on each pedal stroke, by small adjustments to the angle your leg hits the pedal.

[Zoro]

Are there any lighter cleats out there?
Team uses Speedplay and looks like we need to switch from Shimano. These cleats are heavy.

[Butcher]

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/speed ... road-cleat