I have a pair of Shimano XC7 shoes, currently on PD-M540 pedals, would shifting to a XT PD-M8120 Trail Wide SPD give me a bigger contact area?
I know it probably "should" but in the real world does the extra pedal cage actually make contact with the shoe sole to do so?
This article seems to think yes:
https://cyclingmagazine.ca/mtb/matching-your-shoes-to-your-pedals/
but I'd be interested to hear views from the pews.
Ta
I broke my leg and ankle on the bike some years ago and moved from from xc to trail pedals after recovery for the extra support and have to say that they really helped and I still use them now. The extra support is subtle but definitely noticeable and worth any perceived penalties.
The extra cage is better (but still rubbish) when you’re not clipped it, and marginally easier to ‘flip’ into.
Once you’re clipped in, the extra cage is just there to bounce rocks off.
That’s my experience anyway. It might be shoe-dependent.
I've never been able to tell the difference. Maybe a very, very subtle feeling that in no way equates to an increased power output. As someone else said above, I always thought that the cage was there to protect the SPD mechanism from rock strikes associated with trail / enduro riding.
From memory, the newest Shimano trail pedals have slightly more contact area than previous generations so maybe worth a shot?
I have both and there is zero benefit to the trail version over the race version for me.
IME this depends on how stiff your shoe is.
On my softer shoes, the sole flexes enough that the cage definitely helps.
On my stiffer shoes, the extra cage is pretty much window dressing.
I've used trail wide pedals for years and recently stopped using my XC shoes on them because the XC shoe sole just doesn't provide a stable platform.
I found that clipping in and out on techy sections and trying to find the spd gate was difficult as you slip off more often than now - and with the racy carbon soles I had it was becoming lethal.
I've moved to a set of FiveTen Ketral shoes and its loads better - I would massively recommend a set. I also found that hotspots disappeared as well due the spread of the load across the wider shoe sole.
@qwerty - I also have XC7 shoes, On my CX bikes I have the M520 pedals, on my mtb I have the XT trail pedals - an older version from about 4 years ago.
I find the trail pedals to be worse in general use to the extent I'm trying to think of a reason to replace them - unfortunately they are pretty indestructable.
I'm not sure why exactly, I find them no different in terms of clipping in and out, I never have an issue with just clipping straight in after unclipping for a corner etc, but I feel like the cage slightly impedes the shoe-pedal interface when actually clipped in. It may well be psychological but i feel slightly less secure on the trail pedal and that the float can get affected more when muddy
I have a pair of XC7 and the cage and non-cage versions of those XT pedals. In my experience they work with both. They must work pretty well as I've never really thought about it 🙂
Thanks all.
In true shonky style, I've purchased a pair of Shimano PD-M8120 pedals from eBay for £20, the cage is broken on one pedal, they have a much larger contact patch around the axle area than my M540's and it mates to my XC7's sole. I plan to cut off the cages, file 'em down and then use as an uncaged pedal whilst taking advantage of the pedals trail wide contact patch.
Like this (scroll down a bit):
http://drj0nswanderings.blogspot.com/2011_08_01_archive.html?m=1
I'll let you know how it goes.....!
