I find this topic interesting because I ride with the X2's and I when bought my last bike, I requested the X2 over the Zero because the X2's have always worked for me. I've had dirt in them once from walking through the mud but a little squirt from the water bottle fixed the problem.

I just don't see the need for the Zero's. I like the float that the X series have (even the 28 degree exit). I've never seen anyone have problems escaping from a fall with X series. It is pretty natural to swing those heals out to get un clipped.

Maybe one day I'll look at the Zero's more but for now I'm happy with what I have. Speedplay are the best.

I have been sticking with the X's due to the wider range of float.

I had interpreted the Zeros to be much more restrictive like the high end Shimano's.

My only beef with the X's is that the rotation around the spindle seems to have more friction than the Shimano's, like others in the rare event the clipping mechansim becomes clogged a quick shot of water or gatoraide seems to do the trick.

It seems that Speedplay needs to more specifically address the float difference between the two series of pedals.

Not sure what Speedplay is up to. I was never a big fan of the original X series pedals. Felt like I was skating on ice - way too much movement/float, and I have a very smooth pedal stroke or so I have been told. However, for much of my life as a cyclist I have ridden on a fixed Look set up. Recently moved over to Look Red Cleats with a bit of float and now prefer them.

One thing that I always found as odd was the HUGE popularity of the Speedplay X series pedals amongst triathletes and that almost NO professional or even top amatuer road cyclists used them. Not till they came out with the Zero's did Speedplay get any traction in the road market.

Based on your review, Tom, of the Zero's, if I was in the market for new Pedals, I would have have a serious look at them. They seem to "fix" many of the complaints that I and others had about the original X series.

Fleck

---

---

Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

I have X series on both of my bikes but have considered switching to the zero's because the X's release too easy when transitioning. I have been led to believe the zero's with some locked in float will resist unclipping when stepping off the top of the dismount shoe at transition. I find the X's very frustrating as I lose the dismount shoe probably 9 times out of 10. I don't know about the clogging as I have mine clipped on all the time, but at IMC this year where the rules forbid this I carried my shoes to the mount line and put them on there. I heard that many people had fouled cleats after running through the soft grass transition area.

B/c Simon Lessing uses X.....

I'm with you Fleck.

---

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

1) I have 3 sets. If I were to change I would have to shell out big bucks.

2) the float bothered me abt ONE day. Then I figured out that I was pushing my feet in all different directions except round. Does that sideways movement make the bike go? ..........NO. Get over it.

3) X pedals are the only pedals favored over toe strap pedals on the track just a few years ago. Sorry I have been to busy for track in the last 3 years so do not know current info there.

4) It is supposed to be hard to get out of the pedals. Witnessed one crash in a crit where the rider was leading and turned to see where the competition was but released foot , hit knee on handlebar, then it was broken body and bike... ouch.

PLEASE DO NOT PHASE OUT X pedals.

If you are moving a lot side to side with speedplay you are doing the same motion with a fixed cleat but the fixed cleat is stopping it from showing up. A smooth pedal stroke won't move side to side on a Speedplay because you aren't making any excessive side to side movements. If you find this is the case when you first start you will get the feedback of this movement which will help you control the rotataion at the hip that causes this. With some time this movement will diminish. With fixed cleats you just keep on pushing into the wall that is the end range of motion. ie isometric stress on the knee.

Plant your foot on the ground and move your knee in and out. Feel the stress in your knee? Now lift your foot off the ground and move the knee in and out. No knee strain what so ever. That is what a X pedal will do for you over a fixed/lower floating cleat.

And I hate when people say Speedplay has a small surface area. The surface area is not the pedal it is the cleat's contact with the shoe. I would hassard to guess it's as big as the Shimano if not bigger.

The force that it takes to clip into and out of an X series is only a fraction of that of a Zero making it probably the easiest pedal on the market to get into. Add to that the dual sided nature and the X series is the best pedal for the newbie using clip ins for the first time. Give them a Shimano pedal and watch them struggle to clip in when they start. Head down, looking to get the toe in first. The X series is just put your foot some what close to the pedal and it's in.

All right you guys, who can tell me which pedal Richard "copied" to come up with the X? It was my original clipless pedal and was also a company in San Diego County. Hint: Richard used common sense and "reversed" the design of this pedal - which was one of the first to break away from the Look style.

---

Jim Manton / ERO Sports

Hear what you are saying and agree to a certain degree. However:

1. I never had any knee or other lower limb problems related to cycling riding on a fixed cleat system and I did reasonably well on the bike in triathlons( just under 5:00 twice at IM).

2. Again, as I said in my first post, it always struck me as odd this huge almost universal embrace of the X pedals by triathletes but none amongst road cyclists. That says something, but I am not quite sure what it is.

Fleck

---

---

Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

Think how fast you could have gone! :-)

We all know cyclists are opened minded individuals willing to try anything once.... no wait they are the opposite of that (except Greg "the triathlete at heart" Lemond)!

Sampson?

---

<If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough>
Get Fitter!
Proud member of the Smartasscrew, MONSTER CLUB
Get your FIX today?

Nope. Not Sampson. By the way, I wonder, after the Beboop lawsuit, if Richard will still admit to where he got the design idea? We spoke at length about it at a Cactus Cup in the early 90's.

Hint #2: The cleats from this pedal were absolutely horrific to walk around on.

---

Jim Manton / ERO Sports

I don't have any issues with the 28 degree release angle of the X series (it's only 25 degrees for the X/3). In fact, I like that feature. It allows me to keep the shoes on the pedals in T1 and hop on the bike and get my feet in the shoes w/o releasing from the pedals. I wouldn't be able to do that with Zeros set to release at 5 or 10 degrees.

Like many others, I am a pre-Zero guy. So when I bought pedals for a second bike a few years ago, I stayed with X.

Khai,

I might be wrong on the Sampson thing as they might have bought this company before the pedal was discontinued. The more I think about it, that might be the case - I just don't remember - man, I'm getting old. Still, Sampson wouldn't be the orginal pedal.

---

Jim Manton / ERO Sports

(See my post above on early releasing at T2)
Do the zeros with the adjustable float not lock in better than the X's which are free to keep moving out till they release as the tension is not adjustable. I thought that the zero's with the adjustable float also adjusted for the release tension? I would really like to know this before I switch to zero's as it is my only reason to do so as the X's have served me well other than falling off at T2. Is there something I should be doing different with the X's?

"And I hate when people say Speedplay has a small surface area. The surface area is not the pedal it is the cleat's contact with the shoe. I would hassard to guess it's as big as the Shimano if not bigger. "

Speedplays do have a large contact surface area when you consider the cleat/shoe interface.

However the pedal/cleat interface does have a small surface area.

Remember, this is a system that involves the pedal, cleat, and shoe. You cant just choose whatever two components you want to consider. It's kind of a the-chain-is-only-as-strong-as-its-weakest-link type thing. The result may differ from other small contact area systems (like SPD, yuck) but I still prefer wide pedals and cleats. To each her own.

aerolite pedals??

---

Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

Nope, but the company's name does begin with the letter "A" - hint #3.

---

Jim Manton / ERO Sports

With the Zeros your shoes will not fall off. They disengage just like other pedals, it requires pressure to do it. So your shoes can dangle all they want and will stay on the pedal. I have not tried it yet, but you might be able to have the tension so low that it will allow your shoe to fall off. I keep my shoes on my bike and they have not fallen off in over 30 mounts.

---

Reverend Dr. Jay
Lake of the Pines Triathlon fastest bike course record holder - Golden State Super Sprint fastest tri course record holder - Wildflower Long Course slowest run course record holder (4:46:32)

---

"If you have a body, you are an athlete." -Bill Bowerman

I initially went with the Zeros because of the adjustability of the float. The selling feature here is not just the amount of float, but how much inward vs. outward float.

I have since decommissioned my Zeros because of cleat failure issues. You get no warning before the c-clip splits and you basically have a non-functional cleat. Most other cleats just start becoming looser fitting as they wear. I have other teammates that dumped their speedplays for the same issue. I've also had more accidental unclippings in sprints on these pedals than anything else I've used. (I did run only a few degrees of float, so this may have been a factor, but you can't adjust the release tension.)

I ended up going with the Shimano SPD-SLs, and now have them on 3 different bikes. The only complaint is that the cleats wear out a bit fast, but you are able to anticipate when to replace them.

chances were good you overtightened the screws. unless the zero cleats are more finicky than the X cleats, they should last for years. I've never unclipped unintentionally unless I crashed.

I definitely didn't overtighten the screws. If they are tightened too much, it makes it more difficult to release also. I used blue locktite to keep them from backing out under the moderate tension after having one fall out, and finding others would loosen up.

The reason the c-clip brakes is that it is constantly stretched out every time you clip in and out. Over time, it weakens the clip until it fatigues and eventually splits. You could consider this normal behavior, and it is just a matter of having a spare, but I didn't like the fact that you pretty much got no warning.

Good pedals otherwise.