Egg Beaters VS SPD 51 Cleats vs SPD 55 Cleats

This started out as: Do EggBeaters us the same thing in the shoe that SPD's do?

Floyd,

I have a set of Egg Beaters on my Tour Easy and SPD's on my V-Rex and Tailwind. I have two pairs of
Shimano Sandals, my new pair (my Sunday pair) has Egg Beaters clips and my old beat up everyday pair
has SPDs. Plus I have a pair of Specialized mountain bike shoes I rarely use with SPDs.

Egg Beaters release no more easily than SPDs. I repeat: EGG BEATERS RELEASE NO MORE EASILY THAN
SPDs! IMHO!

Why? Read on!

Two years ago I had purchased my V-Rex. At purchase I exchanged the Primo Comet front for a Tioga
Comp Poole. The dealer, for some unexplained reason, left in the smaller inner tube for the smaller
Primo Comet. While biking on a tarred rail-trail the too small inner tube exploded at the presta
valve (I found out later this is where a too small tube will eventually tear). At 20+ mph the bike
and I went down. My right foot released from the SPD but my left foot didn't and was twisted in many
different ways it was not designed to be twisted. I was still clipped in after draging the bike and
rolling and flipping a few times. My riding buddy said it was something you only see in the movies.
I was lucky and just ended up with a massive sprain. I still have trouble with that ankle today.

And Yes, I did have the pedals adjusted as loose as I could get them. In fact, my one pedal was
adjusted so loose the adjustment screw has not been in since I first adjusted the pedal and lost the
screw. I've been riding with the screw missing for the last five years.

I wondered, why didn't that foot release? I found out:

Mountain bikers do NOT want to EASILY clip out of their pedals. I know the first time my foot
slipped off my pedal mtb'ing (I have an 83 Stumpjumper Sport) I sang soprano for a while! I went
out and bought toe clips. In fact, it took a while for clipless pedals to be accepted in the mtb
world because the first ones unclipped too easily. I still mtb with toe clips, but then at 53 I
rarely mtb.

True roadies also do NOT want to EASILY clip out of their pedals. In fact, almost no true roadies
wear SPDs. That's another story. Lets not argue here!

SHIMANO MAKES TWO STYLES OF CLEATS! The SH51 Single Release Cleat is for mountain bikers and roadies
who do NOT want to clip out easily. Every shoe, except most Shimano sandals, I have looked at
include the SH51 clips with their shoes. I do realize I have not looked at every shoe sold. In
addition the SH51 cleat, IMHO, unclips easier on a DF bike because you have your weight on your
pedals. The SH51 can be seen at:
http://bike.shimano.com/Footwear_Pedals/SPD_Accessories/componenttemplate.asp?partnumber=SM-SH51

The SH55 Multi-Directional Release Cleat is for bikers who want to clip out easily. The only shoe I
have seen that includes the M55 is the Shimano Sandal. On the first day of RAGBRAI two years ago,
two months after my accident, about 20 of us were sitting around on the grass by the main retail
area when others started asking me about my sandals. Needless to say about an hour later most of the
people in the group went out and bought Shimano sandals for the ride. They wiped out one merchants
inventory and found another who was also selling sandals. In the boxes from the 1st merchant were
SH55 cleats. The sandals from the other merchant included SH51 cleats. After explaining the
difference between the two cleats the riders who had the SH51 Cleats found a merchant who had SH 55
Cleats. Just because you purchased Shimano sandals does not necessarily mean you have SH55
Multi-Directional Release Cleats. The SH55 can be seen at:
http://bike.shimano.com/Footwear_Pedals/SPD_Accessories/componenttemplate.asp?partnumber=SM-SH55

So where are we going here?

Compared to SPDs with SH51 Cleats, that are included with almost every bike shoe sold, Egg Beaters
"SUBSTANTIALLY clip out more easily and smoothly."

Compared to SPDs with SH55 Cleats, that must be purchased separately and I have found very few
dealers stock, Egg Beaters and Shimano pedals clip out about the same.

However, I do feel and like the 6 degrees of float Egg Beaters have, versus the 4 degrees of float
Shimano's have. I also like not having to flip my pedals to the right spot to clip in. In other
words, I find it easier to enter Egg Beaters. Trouble is, with five bents in the garage switching
them over to Egg Beaters can get spendy.

In Conclusion:

If you want to clip out easier, either replace your SH51 Cleats with SH55 Cleats, or buy
Egg Beaters.

Enjoy,

Perry B Ashby, Minnesota

88? Tour Easy 98 Tailwind 01 V-Rex

"Floyd Sense" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I used SPD pedals on my DF bikes for many years, and installed them on my Rans Vivo last year as
> well. One day, I was sitting still on the bike and lost my balance and the damned cleat would not
> release from the pedal. Result - broken rib, damaged seat mesh. After reading about how the Egg
> Beaters would release more easily, I tried a pair and can tell you that
they
> release SUBSTANTIALLY more easily and smoothly. Also, the manufacturer makes one of the cleats so
> that it releases with less angular motion than the other, so you can put that cleat on the shoe of
> the foot that you most often unclip first when stopping. I put of pair of Egg Beaters on my DF
> bike as well, and the ease of exit is even more pronounced on that bike. After I got used to the
> pedals, it was also easier to get clipped in, but that took some time.
>
> I looked very carefully at three pair of SPD type pedals that I have, including the Shimanos that
> I fell with. In every case, I found that the metal surface that the cleat mates with was very
> rough, resulting in the inability to quickly get out of the pedals when necessary. Perhaps the
> highest priced SPDs are better finished. Anyone riding SPDs on a
recumbent
> ought to consider using a Dremel tool to smooth the cleat contact surfaces to prevent release
> problems.
>
> FS in Angier, NC on a Rans Vivo
>
> "PreciousBbird" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> > I was reading a post about clipless pedals and am intrigued by the Egg Beaters mentioned in the
> > post. I saw a pic and wonder:
> >
> > 1. Can you clip into (and out of) them easily? Is there a 'right-side-up'?
> > 2. Would whatever is in the shoe that works with SPD pedals work with these or does one need a
> > new thingy in the shoe?
> > 3. What is the advantage of the Egg Beaters besides their very cool looks and their (I assume)
> > light weight?
> >
> > Thank you!
> >
> > Forgot to mention I am considering them for my HepCat!! That's why I am posting it here.....
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > >--------------------------<
> > Posted via cyclingforums.com http://www.cyclingforums.com
>

 

"Perry Butler" skrev

> If you want to clip out easier, either replace your SH51 Cleats with SH55 Cleats, or buy Egg
> Beaters.

I went the other way. From 55 to 51. The 55 unclipped when I didn't particularly wanted them to when
sprinting or starting off etc. 51's clip out when I want them to, so I now use them exclusively.

M.

 

i have to dissagree with you to an extent.

egg beaters, in my opinion, are the best clipless out there for a few reasons:

1) simplicity - there is very little in the way of moving parts here it's just a spindle
and a spring

2) weight - outside of my bebops, the egg beaters are the lightest pedals i've used

3) float - if you have knee or ankle problems these babies are perfect. the float they offer is not
only substantial but buttery.

4) ease of clip-in/clip-out. these pedals are set up so that you can make either the right or the
left pedal clip out more easily. this is done with the cleat. if you take a look at the cleats
you will notice a slight difference. one cleat unclips at a lesser angle than the other. if you
need both shoes to clip out more easily you could buy a second set of cleats and use both easier
cleats on your shoes. these pedals also have 4 sides to clip into making them, IMHO, the easiest
to get into.

5) reliability - i've been using my eggs on my mountain bike for over a year now and haven't had a
single problem. i plan on getting a second pair to put on my optima dragon now.

you won't regret moving over to the eggs.

jack On Sun, 11 May 2003 19:41:45 +0200, Mikael Seierup wrote:

>
> "Perry Butler" skrev
>
>> If you want to clip out easier, either replace your SH51 Cleats with SH55 Cleats, or buy Egg
>> Beaters.
>
> I went the other way. From 55 to 51. The 55 unclipped when I didn't particularly wanted them to
> when sprinting or starting off etc. 51's clip out when I want them to, so I now use them
> exclusively.
>
> M.

 

Perry Butler wrote:
> ... Compared to SPDs with SH51 Cleats, that are included with almost every bike shoe sold, Egg
> Beaters "SUBSTANTIALLY clip out more easily and smoothly."
>
> Compared to SPDs with SH55 Cleats, that must be purchased separately and I have found very few
> dealers stock, Egg Beaters and Shimano pedals clip out about the same....

Most Shimano SPuD pedals comes with an extra set of SH51 "S" cleats except for the 324 [1] SPuD
side/platform side pedals which come with SH55 "M" cleats.

[1] And its predecessor, the 323.

Tom Sherman - Various HPV's Quad Cities USA (Illinois side)

 

>"Perry Butler" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> At 20+ mph the bike and I went down. My right foot released from the SPD but my left foot didn't
> and was twisted in many different ways it was not designed to be twisted. I was still clipped in
> after draging the bike and rolling and flipping a few times. My riding buddy said it was something
> you only see in the movies. I was lucky and just ended up with a massive sprain.

Your accident appears to be different from most that I have read about. It is usually the foot that
unclips that is injured, often a severe break. This happened to a rider in our club. I was of the
opinion that staying clipped was best. Guess you never know.

 

"jack wallen" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...

Jack, I have to dissagree with you to an extent.

> 4) ease of clip-in/clip-out. these pedals are set up so that you can make either the right or the
> left pedal clip out more easily. this is done with the cleat. if you take a look at the cleats
> you will notice a slight difference. one cleat unclips at a lesser angle than the other.

The cleats are made so you can choose two degrees of release. If you mount the cleats with the
"circles" on the outside of the shoe, BOTH shoes release at a specified angle. If you put the
"circles" on the inside then BOTH shoes release at the other specified angle.

If you choose the 6 deg "heel out" release then the "heel in" release will be the larger angle.

Mine have worked flawlessly and "exiting" is smooth and natural. As with my MTB, when I see that I
won't be able to release in time, I just stay clipped in and ride it out. Grip the bike with your
knees, hang on to the handlebars, pull in your elbows and hunch your head way down tight!!!!

Ride, ride, ride.........

Jerry