Speedplay: busted again

[verbs4us]

Seems about once a year I bust the C-spring in my right cleat. I bale in and out with my right foot, so it gets the most wear, but...every year? I think the cleat set-up is correct, not warping since the spring moves freely. I lube it with a wax-based lube and keep it clean, always walk with cleat covers. Is this common? I also can't seem to find a vendor that sells just springs. Everything else is fine; just need the damn spring. Advice?

[ojingoh]

I’ve broken a bunch of them. Nobody sells the springs. When I retire the odd cleat I always save the springs.

[robt57]

Rotate left to right cleats before your clip out foot wears that cleat so much? Should prolong life, no?

[Peter P.]

Try unclipping predominantly with your left for for a year or so and see if the left spring breaks. Then you'll know it's a spring issue and not you.

[htwoopup]

I don’t think I have ever broken a Speedplay. And I have been on Speedplays since the year of the flood. Although on the Pave’s I do have to lube more and make sure to use the metal plate under the cleat. I use NFS which is a wet lube. Perhaps it is the wax clogging things up?

I have also never used the cleat covers/ coffee things. Because it is just another thing to carry.

I also use them on 4 hole Speedplay specific shoes so I wonder if the stack/ something else with using the cleats on 3 hole shoes changes the stresses or something.


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[berserk87]

I ride the X-2 series, soon to be completely extinct. I break about 3 to 5 cleat springs a year, including most recently last week. There's no fix for it. I've ridden them since the mid-90's. Seems like they used to be more durable. I lube the cleats before each ride, use the torque device on the screws - still break them. They work for my dodgy knees though.

[oldguy00]

Weird, add me to the list of folks who have been using these for 10+ years and I've never had one break!

[gbcoupe]

20 or so years for me on Zero's. I've never broken one.

[Mark McM]

I'm about 25 years on the X-series. I know a number of people who have broken the springs, but I never have. I wear the springs down so they are really thin and the fit gets really sloppy, but they've never broken for me.

[cmbicycles]

20+ years on X2s and never had a spring break.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by oldguy00

Weird, add me to the list of folks who have been using these for 10+ years and I've never had one break!

Same for me and when in the trenches and sold a LOT of SP..both X series and Zeros..I saw maybe 2-3 springs break. I have been using them for 15 years and have never broken a spring(Zeros).
Altho the OP says the cleat is flat..having it not perfectly flat is the most likely scenario that leads to broken springs.

[unterhausen]

I think I broke an X series spring once. But I used to ride them on gravel, which is a bad idea.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by verbs4us

Seems about once a year I bust the C-spring in my right cleat. I bale in and out with my right foot, so it gets the most wear, but...every year? I think the cleat set-up is correct, not warping since the spring moves freely. I lube it with a wax-based lube and keep it clean, always walk with cleat covers. Is this common? I also can't seem to find a vendor that sells just springs. Everything else is fine; just need the damn spring. Advice?

PM sent.

[muttley]

Another X/2 rider (20+ years) that has never broken a spring. Definitely worn down springs, but never broken. I always wear out the cleat plate as I don't use cleat covers. A few times I've used ShoeGoo over the plates to slow down the wear and protect the cleat screws.

[whateveronfire]

I abandoned Speedplays because I kept breaking those springs. (More often than once a year). I'm sure it was a combo of something I was doing and the design of the product not getting along.

Time has done right by me since and the cleats are less than half the price.