mountain SPDs on a road bike?

VeloSpeed said:

Hi,

What (if any) is the advantage of road pedals over mountain bike SPDs?

My girlfirend and I are picking up our new bikes tomorrow. As we both have MTBs and shoes already I was considering getting the bikes fitted with mountian SPDs. Anyone else ride with these on their road bikes?

The LBS has offered some free kit with the bike purchase that might allow us to stretch to cheap shoes and pedals but we could also easily spend the cash on other essentials!

Cheers

David

Greetings David,

Congrats on the new road bikes, you will love road riding. You will have no problem uusing SPD pedals on your road bike. I do it and think it is the best option for me, as I commute and don't like to change shoes once I get to the office. My mtb shoes are "all day comfortable," and feel almost as good as my everyday shoes.

The main advantages of road specific shoes vs mtb shoes are weight, the road shoes being lighter, and stiffness. Road shoes, at least the better ones will almost invariably be stiffer then mtb shoes (since you won't be walking in them very often) and many will offer carbon soles. The advantage to this stiffness is a more efficient power transfer during your pedal stroke because of less flex in the sole. I have been using my mtb shoes for over a year now and I can tell you that I don't plan on switching over to road shoes and pedals. Don't be intimidated and don't let anyne tell you that you have to have road shoes and pedals on your road bike...it simply is not true. It is an especially good idea for the 2 of you since you already have the shoes.

As far as the advantages of the pedals, that may depend on the type of pedal and cleat system you use. Most (if not all) road pedals are one-sided for entry, as opposed to dual-sided for most mtb pedals. Weight, again, would be another issue. If you are not racing you may not want to concern yourself with that. Also there are a greater variety of road pedal systems so there is a greater variety from which to choose. Give them a look, but don't limit yourself just because you have a road bike.

I hope this helps,

Cheers,

Brian

There are "road" SPD pedals. 😎 Shimano PD-A520. Perfect for your comfortable MTB shoes.

Thanks for the feedback guys. Pleased I don't need to rush out and get a new pair of shoes!

Those PD-A520's look ideal! I'll see if my LBS have them in stock. May just run on my familiar SPDs until I can get a set of these

Cheers

David

Road pedals typically have a larger platform.

There's no problem using SPD's on a road bike, and there's a lot to be said for having the same type of pedals on every bike in the house. The "road shoes are stiffer" myth keeps getting circulated despite the fact that most manufacturers use the same internals to make their road and mountain shoes. It's simply cheaper for them to do it that way.

Yes, correct. My Sidi Dragons are not quite stiff, thank you. 🙂

artmichalek said:

There's no problem using SPD's on a road bike, and there's a lot to be said for having the same type of pedals on every bike in the house. The "road shoes are stiffer" myth keeps getting circulated despite the fact that most manufacturers use the same internals to make their road and mountain shoes. It's simply cheaper for them to do it that way.

I found this to be true only in the lower end shoes. A high end road shoe will be stiffer than a low end mtb shoe, at least it was with every shoe I tried.

Stiffness is the difference I notice.

When my wife and I want to get out on the tandem, I pirate the SPD's off of my MTB, because you can get in and out quickly, and that comes in handy when getting the tandem started.

However, they don't lock your foot into the pedal the way my Chorus pedals do, and they aren't quite as steady a platform. It's a somewhat subtle distinction, not to say that the mountain SPD's won't work at all on a road bike, just that they don't have that rock solid feel that dedicated road pedals do.

But... if you already have the shoes and pedals, put them on the road bike and enjoy. There are much more cost effective expenditures you can make on a road bike than going from mountain SPD's to a dedicated road pedal.

Cheers for all the replies folks!

I ended up opting for a new set of entry level MTB SPDs. I looked at the PD-A520 in the shop but I wasn't convinced they would work well with the recessed cleats in my shoes.

Itching to get out a have a ride. If only this bloody snow would stop!!

Cheers

David