- Cleats on shoes
do wear out.
They are not an item, I'm afraid, that last forever.
How often you need to replace them
depends a little bit on how much you ride,
but actually mainly on how much time you spend
walking around
in your cycling shoes.
Basically, how much time do you spend in cafes
when you're supposed to be riding?
Hm.
Now, replacing them is a simple process,
but it's absolutely critical
that you get the new cleats in exactly the same
position as your old cleat, in order to prevent
any injuries.
So, coming up
are ways of making sure that your cleat
is in the right place, both a new cleat on an old shoe and
getting the right position
on a new pair of shoes.
(jazz music)
Putting a new cleat on an old shoe is by far,
the simpler process
of the two.
All you've got to do, is before loosening any bolts,
is draw an outline
of the old cleat on the shoe.
Now you could use a permanent marker to do that,
you could use a Tippex, which will show up more clearly
on the sole of the shoe.
But with both of those, I find, that it's slightly harder
to actually get in to mark the exact position of the cleat.
So,
my preferred method is to use electrical tape.
So with that, you can get it in exactly the right place.
You can see I've got tape at the front and the back
to mark how far forward or back the cleat is,
and then I've got two diagonals there,
that tell me exactly what angle the cleat needs to be at.
Then it's a case of loosening the bolts,
greasing the new ones up,
and popping the new cleat
in exactly the right place.
(jazz music)
Now when it comes to replicating cleat position on a new
pair of shoes, there's clearly gonna be some issues,
even if, like I am here, you're using the same make
and model of shoe.
Because, in the first instance, you have nothing
to mark the cleat on.
And even these lines here,
we would always advise against using them.
Not all manufacturers can be relied upon,
and most of them aren't as usefully placed
or detailed as these ones.
So,
you need a new technique.
And this is actually our secret one
that was inspired by a pro-mechanic at the Tour de France,
last year.
Tape a piece of paper carefully over the edge of a straight
edge, like a table, or your work bench.
Place your old shoe on the bench, with the cleat tightly
positioned against the edge.
Now, using a straight edge, like a ruler,
translate the key points of the shoe
to the paper.
So the very back of the shoe, which will govern
the correct forward-backward position of the cleat,
then either side of the back of the shoe,
which relates to the twist on the cleat,
and then finally, mark either side of the cleat itself,
where it hits the bench.
Then, drop a straight edge
from the inside point of your shoe,
and mark it on the paper.
That will decide your Q-factor.
Attach a new cleat onto a new shoe,
and then using your marks as a template,
line it up with them before tightening
to the correct torque, and then rechecking for accuracy.
(jazz music)
Okay, what if
you are going for the double whammy?
New shoes,
and
new pedals.
Well, first of all,
good luck to you.
No, seriously though, golden rule
is if you are doing any major changes like that,
that you give a bit of bedding-in time,
so don't fit new cleats, new shoes, and then go
and ride 100 miles the next day.
That's asking for trouble.
But,
we still have use for our old shoes.
'Cause if you're happy with your cleat position,
then you want to take note
of the little mark on the side of your cleat.
Now, these are looks, but most
pedal manufacturers have them.
And that little mark shows where the pedal axle sits
in relation to the cleat.
So, what we do is
we put the shoe back on, and we find
the little bony point on the ball of your foot,
both on the inside of your foot and on the outside.
And then make a mark
on the outside of the shoe that corresponds to that point.
Now, if you don't want to use a marker, pen, whatever,
you can always use a piece of tape, again.
Then, you take note of where that sits in relation
to that all-important mark on the cleat.
And then, regardless of whether you're using
new pedals and new cleats, that position will remain
the same.
So normally, you're probably find
that it's about half a centimetre to a centimetre
behind
the ball of your foot.
Although we won't get into that here,
that's a video in itself.
(jazz music)
With those three techniques then,
we should have you covered, but
there is always
the option of buying a specific cleat fitting jig.
Now they're relatively inexpensive,
they are
accurate
so they reduce the margin for error,
and they are probably less time consuming.
But, if I'm being completely honest with you,
I don't own one.
Nor do I necessarily feel the need.
Just gonna put it out there.
Right.
Do make sure you subscribe to GCN before leaving
this video.
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And if you're after more content
related to this,
why not click up there for How to Set Up Your Cleat Position
in the first instance, which is super important,
or up there if you're new to clip-less pedals,
how to choose them in the first place.