SHIMANO M323 MOUNTAIN CLIPLESS PEDALS

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Shimano M737 SPD Mountain, Shimano M525 SPD Mountain, Shimano A525 SPD Road / Mountain, Shimano SPD Overview

Released in the 1994 season, the M323 pedals reach down with SPD for everybody. The pedal with an identity crisis. Not many people realize, that industry insiders believe that the M323 pedals were intended to be sold only on new bikes, not as after market replacements. The reason for this thinking is that the M323 don't fit into a defined category. They have a forged aluminum pedal body like toe-clip styled pedals have, and a cage that was taken in design and style from the XT Comp pedals. Unlike the Comps, the M323 cage is die- cut from steel then painted Black. The cage is held onto the braces with 4 removable bolts having 3mm heads. The 323s use standard cup and cone race construction with loose ball bearings. The aluminum body has an oversized center, in the form of a platform, for the SPD cleat retention mechanism to be bolted into.

The tension on the cleat retention system is adjustable with a 3mm hex wrench. If you want to use the traditional non-SPD side, you must maneuver the pedal to the proper side and then position your foot. At a weight of 539 grams, these weigh more than any other toe-clip pedal, and they weigh slightly more than the clipless M737 so not a light- weight match for an expensive SPD clipless pedal, and they are somewhat heavier than the M525 pedals, though they sell for just $25 less. But when we tell you that they don't come with the needed SH50 series cleats and they will cost you at least $18, you will wonder why you should buy M323s instead of M525s. Now you will understand why industry insiders think they were made for new, complete, factory built bikes only, so that people who haven't used clipless, much less SPD pedals, will only have to spend $18 to get SPD clipless functionality. The pair weight is 539 grams.