To clarify the issue of the shoe, criticised by MM, and on offer from the excellent Spa cycles.
I have used this leather shoe for commuting and leisure cycling for a quarter of a century, kept in condition by regular polishing. I recently had to replace these shoes for no other reason than that the sole of the left shoe had worn down beyond the cleat, which made it slippery on walking on hard surfaces. A new pair of cleats was obviously not the answer. One pair of shoes used pretty well daily for a quarter of a century. I was delighted to find the identical shoe still being made and available from Spa. How many really comfortable leather shoes used daily have you got that have lasted that long? And that you can still replace?As for the solution to Mr Morley's problem, Shimano seems to have anticipated this in the design of their SPD pedals. No more than an alan key is needed to adjust the tightness of grip on the cleat. I know that MM has previously had difficulties with his foot coming out of the pedal. Might he now have over-tightened the adjustment screw? To be fair, however, the adjusting screw is inaccessible with the shoe in place, so brute force may be the only answer. Or did somebody maliciously use superglue?
I do hope that he has by now been able to remove his shoe from his pedal. The problem however would seem to be with the cleat, not the shoe.
Let nobody be in any doubt about the excellence of the Exustar Stelvio touring shoe. If it is good enough for Chris Juden, it is good enough for me.
Jeff
5 comments:
I fully agree with this assessment of Exustar cycling shoes. I bought a pair in 2008 from Condor - primarily as a work leather shoe that, in appearance, was barely indistinguishable to a normal shoe: very handy when worn with a suit attenting out-of-office meetings by bike.
They have been my default winter cycling shoe for 10years and have stood the test of time. They may even last as long as Jeff’s!
Persevere Mike; with some fine-tuning of your cleats you’ll be hopping on-and-off your bike like a spring chicken!
Hi Ged & Jeff. Glad that you both agree about the excellence of the leather shoe, unlike me however neither of you have a severely arthritic right ankle which is both painful and difficult to twist to release the cleat. I would point out that at elevenses I did unscrew the SPD tension screw to it's maximum and still the shoe would not release. I do not have the same problem with my specialized Velcro (non Lace) shoe when riding my van Nic.
I think that the problem lies with the fact that the shoes do not come with cleats only the pedals. What Spar cycles sold me as extra are cleats that they said are SPD compatible but clearly are not. I will persevere as I like the idea of an all leather shoe but I have to say that the lace up process is also a pain to me and I will rearrange the lacing configuration on the right shoe to see if it makes it any better.
Gentlemen I thank you both so much for your concern and appreciate your comments. Terry will no doubt confirm that it was only with his helpful intervention and a decent size screw driver that we were able to release the shoe from the pedal. Actually the whole exercise would make a good BBC Compo comedy. As they say it's good to Laugh!
I agree with the comments on the shoes - I have had excellent service from several pairs over tens of thousands of miles. The problem is very unlikely to be caused by them.
Shimano cleats come in two versions; the 'S' type, that come with the pedals, and the 'M' type, that are available as an accessory. The 'S' type will only release with a sideways twist, the 'M' type are multi-way release which come out with a slight tug - I find them better, and entirely reliable.
Many years ago, when SPD was new, I was persuaded to fit a pair of 'Wellgo' compatible cleats. They were nothing but trouble and I have used Shimano 'M' type ever since.
I have just has a chat with Mike. It seems that he has fitted a pair of so-called Shimano compatible (Wellgo?) cleats. These came with a metal shim which he fitted between the cleats and the sole. This will have exacerbated the problem. Solution? Bin the cleats and replace with Shimano 'M' type.
Wellgo are a real nightmare. I had a pair of Wellgo pedals and within a few hundred yards, found that I could not release my left foot. I returned home immediately.
Mike may have more to say.
Hi Ged, Mark & Jeff. All will be revealed tomorrow at the picnic. I have taken away the S/S shim with elongated holes and am still bewildered as to what they are for. So far I have only done the RHS shoe and the problem seems to have been solved. No more laughs about I can't get it out Jeff please!
Looking forward to the picnic & trust that it is not at Hanging Rock!
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