Sunday, August 4, 2013

Shimano Click'R Pedals PD-T400

What is SPD? SPD is an acronym for Shimano Pedaling Dynamics, which refers to the system used to bind the cycling shoes to the pedals. There are also many other clipless systems out there, by other pedal/shoe companies, such as Look, Crankbrothers, Time, etc.

For cyclists who are new to clipless pedals, fixing the shoe to the pedal can be scary. The main worry is that you cannot or forget to remove the shoe from the pedal when you stop, ending in a fall. But this risk can be minimised with the new Click'R SPD pedals from Shimano.

Before you read further, do read up more on clipless pedals at the post here. It will be useful info when you decide to use SPD pedals on your bike.

A Beginner's Guide to Clipless Pedals

Shimano came out with the new series of Click'R pedals last year. The main selling point of these pedals is that the clipping in and out force is much lower than other pedals, making it easy for beginners to learn the basics of cycling with SPD. With that in mind, I found the Shimano PD-T400 which seemed like an ideal training SPD pedal.

The weight of these pedals is slightly over 500grams, which means it is not for weight weenies. However, the large platform and easy clipping in/out makes it ideal for beginners.

Bought half a year ago, but didn't have the chance to install it till now...

Good looking pair of SPD pedals! It comes in white colour too.

The two sided spring mechanism

 The front part of the spring naturally pops up, making it easy to locate and clip in the cleat

Click'R logo clearly visible on the pedals.

As installed on the Dahon Vitesse X20-TT! Swapping the pedals is a simple 10 min job.

Close up look. The spring tension can be easily adjusted using an M3 allen key. Remember to adjust for both sides of the pedal!


Yup the SPD shoe clips in fine. All ready a la triathlon style.

Yes the pedal looks really huge. Which is good for beginners for a stable pedaling platform.

I have tried the pedals, with the spring tension adjusted 2 clicks up from the weakest position. I have been using SPD pedals for over a year, and I find the spring action too light as I am used to it. But for beginners, this is perfect, as they can clip in easily, and can also yank their foot out in emergencies.

As I have stated earlier, these Click'R pedals are designed more as a training set of SPD pedals. Once you are used to clipping in and out, you can turn up the tension for more secure clipping, or upgrade to a nicer and lighter set of SPD pedals.

This means that once the SPD pedals on the Vitesse have been upgraded, I will have one pair of PD-T400 to pass to the next person to try SPD...

I found this very detailed and honest review of the PD-T400 pedals by another writer. It is worth a read as it provides so much more information than my short review. Here it is!

Shimano Click'R Pedals - Less is Much More

3 comments:

  1. Can I use the normal SPD cleats on the SPD click R? Thks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes you can use either SH51 or 56 cleats with those pedals. But the SH56 cleats will release more easily no matter which pedal it is used with.

      Delete
  2. Nice post. I was looking like this. Really it is very useful and informative post. Thanks for sharing. Thanks again!

    ReplyDelete

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