Using Clipless shoes on flat pedals

[StevieG]

Ok so I know this is probably an idiotic question, but has anyone done this before? I'm not talking about the carbon, skinny, racing snake clipless shoes, i'm talking about the kind of shoes that look like they belong on flats, but have cleats in them. Have a pair of Giro Chamber 2's, like the pic, and they're going to waste at the moment because i'm only riding flats. The cleat section is quite minimal in the shoe, so if I removed the cleat, and left it open, do you reckon it would be an issue? Would have loved for them to include a cover plate, so they could be used for either type of pedal, but sadly that's not the case.

Bare in mind the pins on a flat pedal are predominantly on the outside of the pedal, so doubt they would interfere with the cleat holes. Just wondering if anyone's tried it before.

[TheoG]

10 minutes ago, StevieG said:

Ok so I know this is probably an idiotic question, but has anyone done this before? I'm not talking about the carbon, skinny, racing snake clipless shoes, i'm talking about the kind of shoes that look like they belong on flats, but have cleats in them. Have a pair of Giro Chamber 2's, like the pic, and they're going to waste at the moment because i'm only riding flats. The cleat section is quite minimal in the shoe, so if I removed the cleat, and left it open, do you reckon it would be an issue? Would have loved for them to include a cover plate, so they could be used for either type of pedal, but sadly that's not the case.

Bare in mind the pins on a flat pedal are predominantly on the outside of the pedal, so doubt they would interfere with the cleat holes. Just wondering if anyone's tried it before.

If you unscrew the cleats but leave the "plate" that they screw into in place under your shoe inner, you wont even know there is a "hole".

On both my shoes the cleats are sunken sufficiently for me to ride either with clip-in pedals or flats.

Edited February 15, 2022 by TheoG

[StevieG]

Perfect. My cleats stick out slightly since I battle to clip in, so thought raising them a bit with the spacer would help. Would probably just take them off entirely then and use the shoes as flats for now. Thanks man 

 

[Grease_Monkey]

Not a great idea. I've just pedaled a friends bike with flats around the parking lot using my cleat shoes (similar to the ones you have). Pins got stuck in some little hole and I nearly didn't get my feet off. No way I'd do it. This is probably unique to each shoe though so you may not have the same problem. 

 

Your other issue is that shoes with cleats usually have a stiffer sole than flat shoes (even the ones that look like they belong on flats), so climbing is going to be fine, but descending you are probably going to find that the shoes don't have enough flex to be used on flats and you are going to be coming off the pedals or at least not have ideal grip. 

Edited February 15, 2022 by Grease_Monkey

[StevieG]

2 hours ago, Grease_Monkey said:

Not a great idea. I've just pedaled a friends bike with flats around the parking lot using my cleat shoes (similar to the ones you have). Pins got stuck in some little hole and I nearly didn't get my feet off. No way I'd do it. This is probably unique to each shoe though so you may not have the same problem. 

 

Your other issue is that shoes with cleats usually have a stiffer sole than flat shoes (even the ones that look like they belong on flats), so climbing is going to be fine, but descending you are probably going to find that the shoes don't have enough flex to be used on flats and you are going to be coming off the pedals or at least not have ideal grip. 

Makes sense. I might try one ride with them and see how it feels. If it all goes pear shaped, i'll let you say "I told you so"

[mazambaan]

I wouldn't do it too regularly but I went for a mid week jaunt and left my flat shoes but had a pair of "regular" MTB cleats which I used without a problem. In my case they didn't stick as well but no issues as the cleat is usually between the pins and they don't clash. BUT I do not ride any hectic stuff that needs feet off the pedals a lot.