I need new pedals and have pretty much decided on Shimano. Any input on the benefits of the Dura Ace over Ultegra? They look like the same mold, is the difference just weight and price?
Ultegra. Have you considered the Time RXS?
Thanks for the input. I haven’t looked at the Time pedals. Going to LBS this afternoon and will compare.
I have the Ultegras and love 'em. To me the DA aren’t worth the extra $ for a few grams in weight savings.
in addition to the time’s, take a look at the new chromo-carbon Keo’s from Look… 115g
Speedplay. X/2
Everyone I know has speedplay, but I’ve got a Morton’s Neuroma, foot goes numb on the bike, thinking a larger platform would help…?
There is a differnce in the Q-factor between the 2 models. The Ultegra use a standard pedal wrench to install but the DA pedals require no pedal but rather a large allen key that goes in through the backside of the crank. Thus the DA pedals give a “narrower” Q-factor. Could lead to soreness. I use the DA and like them.
My ultegra’s have that allen key. Maybe they’ve changed in the two years I’ve had them but I can use either the allen key (5mm I think) or standard pedal wrench.
I’m happy with my Ultegras and my plastic cleats are still OK after 2,000 miles and 60 rides or so … I think good ole’ Nashbar is selling last years ultegra Spd sl pedals for like $80 instead of $140 … Those are what I have.
If you’re a real weight weenie, there may be a difference. But if you’re more the practical type, then save the bucks. Of course, you should try Speedplays if all your friends use them 
Cheers
Barry
Yeah…and get Time
.
Time RXS. Better float options (similar in float to Speedplay, at least, within reason. Nobody uses the 35deg or whatever you get with speedplay… Time RXS is like 15deg, which is plenty. If you need more than that, something is wrong with the way you pedal.) than Shimano pedals.
Better cleat size than Speedplay. Speedplays also can be prone to jamming if you put your shoes on your feet in T1. If stuff gets in between the little “spring” bars, you can be screwed. This happened to me when I rode Speedplays and I had to stop during a race to clean them out, even though I’d done it right before the race. There was a lot of grit in the transition area.
Time RXS is a reasonably priced, very solid pedal. I couldn’t be happier with them. Very adjustable. Good size cleat. Best pedal on the market today…
I don’t know that I use all of the float in both directions on speedplays, but the last cleats I bought I had to grind the left cleat a bit to give more float than standard.
Styrrell
I second the Time RX5, although being a newbie, I have nothing to compare them to. I just got them 10 days ago for my new bike (more on that later), and have had nothing at all to complain about on my rides with them.
And for other newbies out there, I have had no problem at all unclipping from them when I need to (knock on wood). Still have to get the hang of easily clipping back in, but I think that just comes with practice.
Before somebody gets me wrong…I am guilty of this as well, so my point is well taken at home:
Why is it that when someone asks for opinions between X and Y, or even X, Y, Z, that we just can’t resist popping in with something like “You should get A, I use A, and love it/them”
On topic, I have both DA and Ultegra SPD SLs. The DAs are my favorite pedal that I’ve ever used. I have used Look, Time (original), Speedplay (both X and Zero), and Shimano SPD (original, R, and SL).
I like them better than the Ultegra only because the float on the Ultegras is SLIGHTLY “snappy-stiff” compared to the smooth DA. This “snappy” feeling also applies to disengagement…where the Ultegras continue to be stiffer than the DAs despite several adjustements to both pedal system’s tension. I doubt this makes a hill of beans of difference in terms of performance. But the DAs just feel like what they are: a top-of-the-line, highly refined mechanical part. The Ultegras are perfectly fine, and really nice. If you’ve never had the DAs you’d never think there was an even better model than the Ultegras.
I like the SPD SLs over the other pedal systems because the cleats allow me to walk on them without silly covers, yet are inexpensive as Looks. Speedplay is a great pedal system, but at $40 each, the replacement cleats are rather expensive, AND prone to breakage if you walk on them without covers. All in all, my ONLY knock on Speedplay is the logistics costs… Look is a solid system, but you can’t walk on the cleats either…you slip around if you try to do transitions without pre-mounting your shoes on the bike. This is the ONLY area where the Shimanos beat them. Time has the durability competition won hands down, for ANY of their models…but, again…running through transitions in them is not as sure-footed as with the Shimanos.
So at the end of the day, I’m for the DAs.