SPD cleats removal

[foxyrider]

This evening, my technical team (my mate with all the tools) spent about an hour removing a worn out cleat from my winter boots. Angle grinder, drills, Dremelike and various mole grips, screw drivers etc finally did the job.

So the question I pose is, what do people do to prevent cleat bolts getting 'stuck'. I generally have lightly grease the bolts but in this instance that failed and only added more crud to the threads. I'll be fitting new cleats tomorrow.

[reohn2]

Copper grease on fitting,then a once a year loosening of each bolt in turn then retighten them.

[Brucey]

copper ease. Worth removing the cleats every year or so and repeating the application. Normally the cleats go back in the identical place very easily because the teeth on the back make a very positive indent into the shoe sole.

There is also something to be said for using a soft threadlock compound; this provides some corrosion protection for the threads, and this helps prevent seizure. However it is copper ease for me.

BTW it is worth giving a thought to two other things

1) getting a key to fit well in the screws; IME the screw heads on well-used cleats fill up with crud and the edges of the hex socket burr over. Normally it takes a while to remove the dirt/small stones and then you find the burrs can prevent you from getting a key in. Provided the burrs are not too big you can usually hammer in a ball-ended allen key, and then wiggle that around until it becomes an easier fit in the socket. Usually a minute or two spent on this lets you fit a standard 4mm allen key and then you can turn the screws.

2) is there something about your conditions of use that promotes more corrosion than normal? Specifically if you ride offroad, is the soil locally a weird pH value or something, so that soil residues are corrosive? Or do you ride a lot on salted roads in the winter? If so some extra maintenance/cleaning wouldn't be a bad idea.

Some folk use some kind of mastic to seal up the slots in the sole so that water and dirt don't get into where the screw threads are. I'm kind of ambivalent about this; if it isn't 100% effective at preventing entry, it might just hold water and dirt in there, making the problem worse not better. Some mastics are rather corrosive as they cure, too.

I would also note that (especially if you have used all the lateral adjustment available) the figure-8 washer between the screws and the cleat often has a gap at one or both sides; this can let dirt and water in. Years ago I broke this washer in a few months and didn't have any spares (I've since kept any of them that come out intact, and of course I have not needed them..... ) so I made a sheet metal washer that happened to fill the hole in the cleat completely. This prevented any further lateral adjustment (which didn't matter to me, I made the washers to fit) but it also helped prevent crud from getting to the cleat screws via the hole in the cleat.

cheers

[Mick F]

Copper grease on fitting,then a once a year loosening of each bolt in turn then retighten them.

Yep.
Same as any nut/bolt/screw open to the elements ........... even your BB, seatpost, crank bolts and pedals.

[alexnharvey]

I prefer a soft threadlock over antiseize for these bolts. It's not fun losing a SPD bolt and not realising until you try to release your foot.

[foxyrider]

Thanks for your replies.

I don't know that the conditions I ride in are particularly bad, it's a mixture of road and trails/bridleways. That said a fair chunk is on limestone and given my Pennine location, some of the council's do put a lot of salt down.

Of course it was the LH cleat that was the real problem, the key holes cleaned out nicely but nothing would turn the bolts. Destruction of the washer and grinding of the screw heads eventually removed the cleat, without the loading the molegrips then finished the job.

I'm erring to the threadlock, i've lost bolts a couple of times that were 'lubricated' when fitted (okay about 3 in 20 years but not a great scenario if it prevents pedal release)

[alexnharvey]

I think on some shoes you can see the bolt ends if you remove the insole and cleat cover plate/sticker which allows you to drop some oil or penetrant on the end of the bolt.

I could still get my foot out with one bolt but it was much more difficult.

[mig]

i only have one pair of SPD cleats/pedals. no idea which model (although it never dawned on me that they'd be different width pedals for some reason #smackshead.)

what's the meaning of the capital 'M' on the rear tab on each cleat?

[alexnharvey]

The M is for multi release (SH-56)



vs single release SH-51

[Brucey]

SM-SH51 cleats are black finished when new; SM-SH56 are silver finished and have a large 'M' on the back of the cleat. If you compare the cleats carefully you can see that they are differently chamfered where they bear against the pedal claws.

cheers

[foxyrider]

I think on some shoes you can see the bolt ends if you remove the insole and cleat cover plate/sticker which allows you to drop some oil or penetrant on the end of the bolt.

I could still get my foot out with one bolt but it was much more difficult.

Which is great except the problem cleat was on a winter boot with a sealed footbed - no access from the inside! Or ability to put pressure onto the retaining plate which caused more cussing!

[Vorpal]

So the question I pose is, what do people do to prevent cleat bolts getting 'stuck'.

Flats and normal shoes.

[rjb]

If the bolts are stuck I've had success by dousing the cleat with release oil, undo the laces, support the inner shoe on a hard surface, I use a steel block clamped tightly in a vice, a block of hard wood may suffice, then I give the bolt a sharp clout with the ball end of a hammer. This is usually sufficient to break the corrosion joint allowing the allen key to unscrew the bolt.

[Marcus Aurelius]

With SPDs ( 2 bolt ) I generally find the shoes are worn out before the cleats, so they go in the bin together. SPD-SLs wear out before the shoes, so I tend to unscrew and re screw the bolts every now and again to make sure they haven’t got stuck, if they truly are stuck, it’s a good excuse for ‘S+1’ ( new shoes )

[andrew_s]

With SPDs ( 2 bolt ) I generally find the shoes are worn out before the cleats, so they go in the bin together.

Replacement cleats are relatively expensive, so it's worth rescuing the cleats and bolts for your bits box if they come out readily (as per Brucey's no. 1 item above)