Ever since I bought new shoes and cleats I have had chronic squeaking that is worse when I stand. The old shoes were Sidi Genius 3 with standard red look cleats which never ever squeaked. The new shoes are Sidi Genius 5 with the newer red/white look cleats. Rubbing candle wax on the cleats helps but not for long, sometimes less than 1 ride. Walking in dirt makes it worse. It behaves the same on several different bikes with different Look pedals. Is this a cleat problem or shoe problem or both? I have heard of all kinds of possible temporary fixes like armour all, wax, etc. Is there a permanent solution that does not require reapplying something all the time?
Ever since I bought new shoes and cleats I have had chronic squeaking that is worse when I stand. The old shoes were Sidi Genius 3 with standard red look cleats which never ever squeaked. The new shoes are Sidi Genius 5 with the newer red/white look cleats. Rubbing candle wax on the cleats helps but not for long, sometimes less than 1 ride. Walking in dirt makes it worse. It behaves the same on several different bikes with different Look pedals. Is this a cleat problem or shoe problem or both? I have heard of all kinds of possible temporary fixes like armour all, wax, etc. Is there a permanent solution that does not require reapplying something all the time?
Beeswax - stays on *lots* longer because of its gummy consistency.
Cleat covers - keeps the dirt out. Dirt makes the squeaks a lot worse.
Dunno if there's a better idea (short of changing pedal type), but this works for me.
Are you sure it's the cleats squeaking not the shoes?
I had very similar symptons and spent a couple of months trying different lubing metods before someone suggested getting a stanley knife to the shoe rubber. Basically it was part of the sole making contact with the pedal. As you can imagine when rubber is rubbed for a period of time on metal it starts to squeak - having a bit of mud in there makes things worse.
Ever since I bought new shoes and cleats I have had chronic squeaking that is worse when I stand. The old shoes were Sidi Genius 3 with standard red look cleats which never ever squeaked. The new shoes are Sidi Genius 5 with the newer red/white look cleats. Rubbing candle wax on the cleats helps but not for long, sometimes less than 1 ride. Walking in dirt makes it worse. It behaves the same on several different bikes with different Look pedals. Is this a cleat problem or shoe problem or both? I have heard of all kinds of possible temporary fixes like armour all, wax, etc. Is there a permanent solution that does not require reapplying something all the time?
I have a friend who used a Dremel tool w/grinder or "sandpaper" bit to lightly buff off the "squeak points" on his Look cleats. (Obvious from dark discoloration. Old Look pedals may benefit from this, also) "Works for a day" or so. At least as good as the various other cures/palliatives.
Our new Shimano fleet <g> has been squeak-free so far. The supplied cleat screws don't seem to work with Sidi shoes, Gen III/IV's at least. Using items from the Look/Sidi/Campy grab bag. Otherwise, good results, and the cleats make store-stop walking more secure, too. It's possible to occasionally get a "false entry" but you can tell 100% when that happens. Not a "mud" pedal but then neither are the Looks. --D-y
I have a friend who used a Dremel tool w/grinder or "sandpaper" bit to lightly buff off the "squeak points" on his Look cleats. (Obvious from dark discoloration. Old Look pedals may benefit from this, also) "Works for a day" or so. At least as good as the various other cures/palliatives.
Just a square inch of medium sandpaper in the toolbag (such as is found in Rema patch kits) will do fine, but I use this only in a pinch becauses I don't like the thought of sanding away my cleats for a squeak solution that, as you say, only lasts for a day or so.
It seems one only needs to "roughen" the contact points.
Ever since I bought new shoes and cleats I have had chronic squeaking that is worse when I stand. The old shoes were Sidi Genius 3 with standard red look cleats which never ever squeaked. The new shoes are Sidi Genius 5 with the newer red/white look cleats. Rubbing candle wax on the cleats helps but not for long, sometimes less than 1 ride. Walking in dirt makes it worse. It behaves the same on several different bikes with different Look pedals. Is this a cleat problem or shoe problem or both? I have heard of all kinds of possible temporary fixes like armour all, wax, etc. Is there a permanent solution that does not require reapplying something all the time?
Thanks - Joel
synopsis: switch to Time:
I struggled through transient Look cleat noises (w/ Sidi shoes) far too long with lubricants/waxes/sandpaper/you-name-it, and am probably still somewhat shell-shocked and in need of therapy. In fact I went straight to Look when clipless first came to market, but switched entirely to Time 2 years ago and couldn't be happier. They have a dintinct click in/out that leaves no doubt about where you are, click in really easily and never out when you don't want out, have better adjustments, have perfect range of motion, the cleats are far easier to walk on (they call them "cafe" cleats), and they last about 8 times longer because your click-in/out is metal-on-metal, rather than Look plastic. Last, but not least: they are silent. The only problem is the newest generation is not servicable, but they look like they'll never really need it (like King headsets, which I regularly service anyway), and you can send them to QBP and they have the special tool. I had to send them in for recall already and QBP was very good about it. But the lack of servicability is an issue in particular for me because I have a "need" to disassemble all these things on a regular basis. Maybe Park will make the tool to open them up some day.
I have a friend who used a Dremel tool w/grinder or "sandpaper" bit to lightly buff off the "squeak points" on his Look cleats. (Obvious from dark discoloration. Old Look pedals may benefit from this, also) "Works for a day" or so. At least as good as the various other cures/palliatives.
Just a square inch of medium sandpaper in the toolbag (such as is found in Rema patch kits) will do fine, but I use this only in a pinch becauses I don't like the thought of sanding away my cleats for a squeak solution that, as you say, only lasts for a day or so.
It seems one only needs to "roughen" the contact points.
Lightly buff = lightly buff. Not much material removed, at all. Dremel offers a rechargable unit; very handy and when used before a ride, you don't have to listen to a squeak part way through or stop to de-squeak.
IME, if the pedal is worn enough (old Alu style body), the "fix" is short-lived, even after a pretty good attempt to clean pedal and cleat. One more advantage of the Shimano-- contact plate is replaceable. Yes, they're kinda cheesy, just thin, hard plastic, but replaceable. Haven't crossed that bridge yet but they just snap in there and you get a replacement set in the new pedal box. --D-y
