Chockstone Forum

      Sponsored By
      ROCK
   HARDWARE

Chockstone Photography

Australian Landscape Prints

Chockstone Forum - Gear Lust / Lost & Found

Rave About Your Rack Please do not post retail SPAM.

Author

bouldering shoes

snydas22

21-Jan-2010
8:21:57 PM

Hey guys
Well im a boulderer, thats all i do other than alittle climbing gym stuff on wet days. Anyway iv got a pair of cheaper Bufo V-machine boulder specific shoes tho am not sure im that keen on them now my performance/style has improved, so im looking at a new pair of velcro shoes. Im looking at getting chris sharmas Evolve optimus prime as its got a radical down turned toe and designed for steep slab, roofs, overhangs etc. The only thing im not keen/sure of is is it better for a bouldering shoe to have no midsole, and a thiner sole up front and no lining, or to have a mid sole, lining?
I definatly wont be buying anything without a radical toe angle but if you can let me know your thoughts on the above it would be great as im still a newbie(3.5months).
cheers
schneider

snydas22

21-Jan-2010
8:53:17 PM

What are the differences you look for between a bouldering shoe and a sport shoe? (thats a little easier to say)
chad schneider

evanbb

21-Jan-2010
9:11:37 PM

If I ever went mad and bought a bouldering specific shoe, I'd want them so tight they make me go blind when I put them on. They would also be velcro, have an obscenely curved last and very sticky (not long lasting) rubber. Make sure the heel cup fits really snugly as well; won't be long till heel hooks become critical for you.

IdratherbeclimbingM9

21-Jan-2010
9:25:11 PM

On 21/01/2010 evanbb wrote:
>If I ever went mad and bought a bouldering specific shoe, I'd want them
>so tight they make me go blind when I put them on.

Last time I climbed with you I wondered about that, ... after I had to point out (using my decrepit eyesight), the footers on the 'blank slab' you declined to ascend in favour of something else with thuggish holds!
Heh, heh, heh.

[At risk of thread hijack, since the topic is shoes...
Does anyone know which is the narrower profile between madrock and 5.10 Coyote in a climbing shoe? ... as I am likely to buy a cheap pair for a newbie, in the hope they might fit him, and I have a choice between the two.]

~> back to you snydas22 ...

larryfranklin

21-Jan-2010
10:24:33 PM

la sportive katana's are very cool shoe's if you can get them working for you!!

D.Lodge

21-Jan-2010
10:32:06 PM

Heaps of people are finding success with the la sportiva solutions, also the scarpa feroce and some of their other models are nice too. get out there and see what fits

snydas22

23-Jan-2010
7:53:34 PM

i have a real liking for the la sportivo solutions, a nice shoe, just that the nearest dealer isn close.
What do you guys think of the Evolv Optimus prime? would they go alright as a boulder shoe? i think the sole is abit thick tho.
cheers chad

dmnz

24-Jan-2010
11:47:36 AM

On 23/01/2010 snydas22 wrote:
>i have a real liking for the la sportivo solutions, a nice shoe, just that
>the nearest dealer isn close.
>What do you guys think of the Evolv Optimus prime? would they go alright
>as a boulder shoe? i think the sole is abit thick tho.
>cheers chad

the optimus prime is great for steep (think sharma on jumbo love) but the toe profile seems like slightly not as good at edging as say the evolv predator, which you may want to check out as well. but i guess less edging on the truly steep anyway

other people have suggested the miura vcs and then there are the 5.10 range: Jet 7, Dragon, Project. Then there is also the Team 5.10.

Although there is a lot of tech out there, end of the day yuou gotta try em on and see what fits you first!!

peterc

24-Jan-2010
10:12:26 PM

>la sportive katana's are very cool shoe's if you can get them working for you!!

...ahem...and on that note - if you are interested in a pair of La Sportiva Katanas, check out the For Sale thread. There is a pair of brand new Katanas going cheap!

JimboV10

27-Jan-2010
9:36:28 AM

On 21/01/2010 D.Lodge wrote:
>Heaps of people are finding success with the la sportiva solutions, also
>the scarpa feroce and some of their other models are nice too. get out
>there and see what fits

La Sportiva are "the Solution to your bouldering problems!" ;)

I am a bit of a shoe whore so here is my 2c on all things bouldering shoe

Scarpa Inferno - Shit for performance, but good comfortable all day shoe
Bufo Weapon (old version) - Beginner shoe only
5.10 Anazasi - Awesome for slab/smear/all day wear.. You will suffer toe hooking in the cave with their thin upper, and heel is average
Mammut Goblin - Very very good.. Only dramas was the heel when they first came out which I think they have now fixed...
Scarpa Vision Velcro - Sweet all around shoe.. Solid heel, comfortable with performance, found the toe a little blunt but thats just me
La Sportiva Venom - Awesome for edging and front on steep problems. I found the heel average
La Sportiva Muira (lace) - All around solid performer... Can do most problems in these
La Sportiva Solution - My pick for a bouldering shoe... If sized correctly, these will do anything.. Solid toe rubber (on top), 1 piece heel (so no material deadspot), PPP tech in toe box - basically your toe is in a toe doewn power position whilst your foot is flat... These also fit my heel the best

Mates have also had success in teh Scarpa Styx slipper

pmonks

27-Jan-2010
10:20:04 AM

Consider this another vote for Katanas - for my feet they are awesome for anything less than about 5 pitches long (including cracks, face, bouldering, gym - you name it).

For the record I have relatively short but wide feet, and have struggled to find shoes that fit well (including popular makes like Boreal Aces and La Sportiva Mythos, both of which suck for my feet).

porkpie

27-Jan-2010
11:15:33 AM

get the Katanas best boots ever for everything.

wallwombat

15-Feb-2010
12:09:43 AM

On 21/01/2010 snydas22 wrote:
>Hey guys
> .....Anyway iv got a pair of cheaper Bufo V-machine boulder specific shoes tho am not sure >im that keen on them now my performance/style has improved......

Why aren't you that keen on them?

They got a pretty good review in a survey in Climbing Magazine.

I'm after a pair of shoes to use for bouldering and was actually looking at the Bufo V-Machines. I don't really want to spend a fortune on bouldering shoes as I already have four pairs of climbing shoes and I don't just boulder. My current shoes are all lace-ups, which I find a pain, putting on and taking off frequently so I'm after something with either a velcro closure system or slippers.

snydas22, what's the sizing like with the V-Machines?

They have a unlined, synthetic leather upper, so I figured they might stretch a bit.

snydas22

15-Feb-2010
2:01:07 PM

the sizing with bufo is odd, they aren't actually to scale sizes, like a 42 climbing shoe is actually a 39 or 40, they have sized there shoes so you can buy the same size as your sand shoe but still get that couple of sizes smaller fit that you want as a climber. i wear a pair of 43 bufo shoes but my la sportiva solution is a 41 and my running shoe is a 43 so if you can understand it, sorry its hard to explain what the guys have told me on the phone.
Also the bufo shoes dont actually stretch but they do conform to your foot, so rather than your shoe getting bigger it actually just fits more snug/comfy. Kind of like how a thong conforms to your foot.
hope this helps

wallwombat

15-Feb-2010
2:43:51 PM

Thanks for the sizing tip. I've contacted them to go up a size from my original order.

one day hero

15-Feb-2010
3:22:37 PM

Wow, you're taking shoe sizing advice from someone who says they've only been climbing 3 and a half months!?!

wallwombat

15-Feb-2010
3:42:51 PM

No, I'm taking shoe sizing advice from someone who has the same pair of shoes and spoke to the distributers on the phone, regarding sizing them.

There are 17 messages in this topic.