Road Bicycle Buying Advice

[Lazarus]

You might know this but there should be two clicks on the front shifter when you shift which will move the FD either further out or closer in depending on where you are running the rear cogs to keep it from rubbing. When you engage it all the way push the little shifter just enough to bring it back a bit without taking it off the big ring. Also what gears is it rubbing in. You should not be extreme cross chained, Big ring front big cog back or Small ring front small cog rear that will wear the chain and cogs fast and will rub on most road bikes.

[Gone4]

Originally Posted by Lazarus

You might know this but there should be two clicks on the front shifter when you shift which will move the FD either further out or closer in depending on where you are running the rear cogs to keep it from rubbing. When you engage it all the way push the little shifter just enough to bring it back a bit without taking it off the big ring. Also what gears is it rubbing in. You should not be extreme cross chained, Big ring front big cog back or Small ring front small cog rear that will wear the chain and cogs fast and will rub on most road bikes.

I did not know this! I guess I should get my pedals and ride it for real to make sure I am actually having problems. Up until this I only had mountain bikes with 27 gears, or fixies, and the borrowed road bike last summer with 27 gears that weren't indexed.

[Gone4]

Originally Posted by Who

http://www.crankbrothers.com/quattro.php

Disadvantage: A bit slower to engage than typical road pedals

I do rando riding (200 - 1200kms) and these are incredible pedals and can be had for under $100 if you shop around. These are essentially eggbeaters with a platform.

Are they too slow for riding in the occasional traffic?

[Who]

Originally Posted by GenKreton

Are they too slow for riding in the occasional traffic?

They are totally fine for that in fact some pros race with them. They are just a tad bit slower for clipping in. No maintenance or adjustments needed. Also the cleat is protected to help with walking, although it is not a fully recessed cleat like the SPDs and other MTB style pedals. The cool part with the longer platform area is that it makes them far easier to adjust angle than SPDs. With SPDs it is very difficult to only move them a degree or two because you are turning it right at the cleat. With these the housing is 2 or 3" long so it's like a longer more precise way. Fit is everything when cycling any distance, and cleat position and angles are vitally important.

[AndrewJ]

I currently have regular eggbeaters and eggbeater mallets (the ones with the huge BMX style platforms) and I find that both of them are equally fast to clip into. I've never been able to clip in as fast with any other pedals, and the only other type of pedals I haven't tried are speedplays.

[Who]

Andrew, I had Speedplay Zeros before the Crank Bros Quattros... sinfully expensive and a nightmare for maintenance. Philips srew-heads (is anything worse?) that have to go snug plus a ¼ turn and then it's up to locktite to save the day. The float is wonderful, even if you feel you you are walking on ice, but they just weren't durable and if they got really wet they wouldn't release.

They'd hot spot on long rides, were terrible to walk in, and you could pull out of them in a sprint.

[Gone4]

Just to serve as a thread update. I was given a Cateye bicycling computer, including cadence, I found some egg beater quattro's pretty cheap, and bought a pair of shoes. After my grueling week of school work, I should be taking the bike for a ride this weekend in the field house. We're getting a good 28 inches of snow starting 12 hours ago and extending for the next 24 hours, so I won't get to try it on pavement for a while...

Total spent is $497 for the bike, shoes, pedals (free), and computer. If I were intending to ride this to displace driving costs, it would take me quite some time. This is discounting the considerable amount of time it took getting good deals on everything. Fortunately I fully intend to use it for recreation.

Should I get (and carry?) a spare tube or tire repair kit? I did about 3k miles last summer without giving it a thought, honestly.

Thansk for all the help, I'm sure I'll be back with questions after my first ride

[SVOboy]

Nice! Cadence!

I carry a spare tube and a pump/c02 canister...the last time I got a flat it was a long 2 hour walk home, and think if I had gotten the 15 miles out that was my goal...