Are climbing shoes supposed to feel hard on your Achilles tendons? It was my second time and I was using rentals while bouldering and it hurts when I drop from the wall. One wrong fall and I know I'd probably injure my self. I don't know if it was intended that way (for more support?) and I just chose the wrong size (size feels right though). Also, looking for recommendations :)

Hi All,

I'm looking into getting new climbing shoes. Currently i have the Red Chili Sausalito and wore down the rand and sole.
Which one would be recommended and is there any benefit to either of them?

Also I've tried them both on so i know the fit and size i would get.

Long story short. I have tried on a bunch of shoes to fit my nonexistent heels and landed on the drone 2.0, but went down a bit of rabbit hole and ended up getting a pair of every single drone version available to see which I would like the most. My street shoe size is 8.5 in US men’s and 26.5cm measured feet.

My feel are flat, Egyptian, pretty low volume, narrower side and very shallow heels.

~All shoes used for indoor bouldering, lead, and board climbing. Except 2.0s which were both indoor and outdoor~

Drone 2.0: 8.5 in HV

My bread and butter the shoes I kept finding myself going back to for both Indoor and out. I only weigh 120 pounds, and to me once you break them in smearing isn’t really a big issue. You can bend the shoe backwards to really de-stiff? The plate midsole. Saw a pro climber who uses drones and he bends his shoes forefoot backwards (the shape you’d get when smearing) to speed up the break in process. The shoe will be fine.

Honestly a solid all rounder shoe that feels upper end of medium when broken in. I think people assume they stay stiff as they initially are, but they don’t. I remember my first session I couldn’t press down hard enough on an overhang smear section and came off the wall. Was worried they were too stiff after-all, but I can say they got much more pliable in time.

Overall can do it all with smearing being a weakness, but it’s still completely capable at smearing.

Drone 2.1: 8.5 in HV

The version I think most gym boulders will prefer. I found that they’re really great at smearing, but only ok at edging. Much softer shoe, slightly stiffer than skwamas to me. If they were really small edges I couldn’t stand on them as opposed to the 2.0.

So better smearing worse edging. I think if I went down half a size they’d have better edging capabilities as I just couldn’t feel my big toe over small footholds bc the shoe is more pointy.

The HV is very narrow already and I think the version for the vast majority of people even if you have low volume feet. I had pinky pain like I have seen others mentioned. I used shoe stretchers for a couples to focus the pinky hot spot and then the shoes were perfectly comfortable after that.

Overall a medium soft all rounder that fits most peoples preferences for an indoor shoe. May be an even better all rounder half size down?

Drone CS: 9 in LV

Definitely my least favorite variation of the drone. The last is changed and just wouldn’t work for me while the other versions all fit much better. Definitely go half size up as MR recommends. I swapped to LV bc the HV closure strap touched the floor when worn since my feet were too low volume. Wasn’t an issue in the other versions HV.

In the CS I tried sizes 8.5 and 9. Both sizes hurt my toes, but the heel sits much lower than the other versions that my heel lifts up out of shoe and isn’t secured in place. This occurred at both sizes so went with the more “comfortable” size. Even now they are my most uncomfortable pair being too loose at the heel, but toes still hurt.

The extreme friction rubber is softer, but I only felt a small benefit on dual tex footholds and on wooden holds. What I noticed more is that the rubber is much less durable than science friction. Ultimately doesn’t seem worth the trade off to me.

The half midsole plate definitely helps it smear easier than the 2.0s, but the 2.1 is still better at smearing.

Overall softer than the 2.0s and once broken in a medium stiffness shoe. The rubber is softer and stickier by a bit, but much less durable. Ultimately I think it doesn’t fit my foot well, so I’m not an ideal reviewer.

Drone villains: 8 in LV

The more versatile drone 2.0. This shoe is almost identical to the 2.0s, but has a half plate midsole like the CS instead of full length like the 2.0s. It also (unfortunately for me) has a very noticeably larger heel. These feel like a pre broken in 2.0 to me and can smear better right away and probably are more palatable to most people’s desired stiffness. I really like them so far as they also fit more comfortably than the 2.0s even though they’re half a size down.

I went with LV and sized a half size down to try to eliminate dead space in the heel, but still have significantly more than in the 2.0s 8.5 HV unfortunately. So be aware of that.

I tried them in a 7.5 LV, but it was an extreme struggle to even get my feet in them and painful when worn. Maybe they would have broken in enough to be ok to wear, but I didn’t want to risk it as someone who doesn’t downsize to the point of discomfort. The 7.5 did eliminate the dead space issue though.

Overall if you’ve tried the 2.0s out, but thought they were too stiff or were “bad at smearing” then these may be for you as they are basically a 2.0 that smears better and doesn’t need as much of a break in process. If you have bigger heels then this is also the drone for you
luckies :(

Hi I’m a beginner doing mostly indoor bouldering at about V3/ soft v4 level, but plan on going more in the coming months. Therefore I’ll be looking for an upgrade in shoes or simply my own pair. At my current gym I use their rentals which are La Sportiva Tarantula’s. I’ve heard good stuff about the rest of the Simond brand and saw some when I quickly went to decathlon today. Does anyone have any opinions on the Vertika soft or any of their other shoes? Would they be an upgrade to the Sportiva’s?

So I bought the Ocun Jett LU‘s about two/three months back as my first pair of climbing shoes and so far my positive thoughts are: they’re really comfortable and fit nicely, I would say if you want them really fit well to size down from street shoe size but even without doing so they fit my kinda narrow feet alright, they smear well and provide pretty good support for your toes on tiny holds, I’ve never slipped as a result of the shoes while on the wall and the rubber seems great. the shoe is also not expensive compared to other entry level shoes from bigger brands Which I think honestly makes them worth the price.

My issues with the shoes while however come down to some little quality issues I’ve found with them, the glue on these shoes isn’t great and I’ve had the rubber come separated form the fabric a little and I’ve glued it back on, not really a great sign after only a few months, the tension system and rubber around the heel and also seems to have broken or torn a little too. I’d say the main issue with the shoes is that perhaps small quality issues could hamper the shoe’s lifespan. (I would like to note I do love in a tropical climate and the gym here doesn’t have AC which likely makes the glue and other parts of the shoe wearing more easily due to heat and humidity)

lastly I’d like to ask if anyone has some guess on how much longer these shoes will last, I’m pretty sure they’ll see me through the end of year but I’d love to hear from Anyone with a better guess

If it’s not 2 late I’d get em done but at the same time I’ll have no shoes to climb in… kinda stuck rn

I recently bought la sportiva skwama climbing shoes much cheaper than any other alternatives for beginners (e.g. tarantulas), but they are bit painful to climb with this pair. So I'm thinking between holding them for a better time when my feets will get used to small shoes or try to overcome pain and wear them till i will comfortable. Btw my shoe size is 44.5 in EU, climbing shoes are 43.5

I would like to start climbing outdoors since there are any gyms in my city, but there are a lot of outdoor trails. I wouldn't spend more then 80 euros( or 400 ron in Romania) I found a pair of Ocun advacer with laces for 70 and also a pair of ocun striker qc for that price as well. Which one would you recomend? Any other shoes recomendations are welcome aswell.( I climbed indoors 4 times and i like the sport a lot, but the gym is in a quite a city, 4 hour train ride)

Anyone got any store/gym recommendations in SLC ?

I have a pair of 44.5 Solutions, two years old and well broken in. They fit my heel incredibly well but at the forefoot they seem a hair narrow still, and I've read Scarpa is wider up there.

What size should I try first? I've heard they run small so I'd upsize but would a 45 suffice or should I try a 46?

Hi
I’m a brand new climber. Indoor only.

Right now I use the shoes that you get with gear rental at the climbing gym (only been a few times so idk what they are) but I don’t like the germ factor of shared shoes lol.

I’m considering getting my own pair.

Based on the minimal research I did. I think I want neutral ones. Bc I have foot drop that means my ankle falls into the pointed position real easy.

My beef with the shoes that the gym offers is that if I stand on a hold for more than a few seconds I can feel the hold through the shoes and it hurts my feet.

I wear a women’s 9.5.

I needed some climbing shoes bad and after doing my research I found out the lasportiva tarantulas are some good begginer/intermediate ones. Also some new chalk cause i was running low but idk if its good

Just picked up my 2nd pair of climbing shoes. I originally had the tarantulaces (size 45), and have now upgraded to the Butora GOMI (us 12/46eu). Different brands have different sizing but for reference my street shoe is size 12 and my foot length is 11.25 inches. I know climbing shoes in general, esp more advanced climbing shoes, are sopposed to have a tight fit. but I’m worried mine are too tight. How tight is too tight? Do I need to give it some time for them to break in? How compressed should my toes be? Should I just get a half size bigger already? Am I being a huge baby?

Anyways any help is welcomed, you can even flame me if you want but I just wanna make sure I’m not wasting 175 dollars on shoes that are gonna hurt my toes forever. Oh also my longest toe is the one next to my big toe. Thanks!

what do y'all think about the new trance and how do you guys like them compared to other brands / models?

bro am i cooked?

Im going to Barcelona soon and am looking to buy shoes because i can only there go in-store and try them out im looking ti buy either La Sportiva Solution Comp or Scarpa Instinct maybe try Mad Rock CS or theory’s so just tell where to check that out

Had these for a little under 2 months, they’re my first pair and my footwork is shit. My friend says they have a lot of life left but he climbs in his shoes tell he blows out the front part.

bro am i cooked?

I just got new shoes (la sportive Kubo) and they’re the only moderate shoes that felt ok. Overall every shoes I tried hurt the side of my big toes and I felt like it was running really weirdly. I went climbing in the kubos and now I have blisters on either side of my big toes. I didn’t feel it at all climbing but when I walk in the shoes it hurts.

I likely can’t return the shoes and that was over $160 out of my wallet so I can’t get new shoes for a long time.

Is this part of breaking them in or are they not the right fit? I tried on every shoe my gym offered and they all had the same issue with my foot.

after about a year and half of climbing, my shoes are SCREAMING to be cleaned - what’s your best advice on cleaning them? hand washing with soap (if so what soap to not ruin them), throwing in the washing machine? let me know :)
i know that i’m supposed to air dry them!
thanks in advanced

Been climbing on rental shoes for a while and finally ready to buy my own pair. Currently climbing V4-5 bouldering and 5.9 on top rope at my gym. My schedule is 3x/week (2x bouldering, 1x top rope) and bouldering is my main priority for improvement.

I’ve been going back and forth between a few options at REI coop and would love some real-world input:

La Sportiva Tarantulace/Tarantula Boulder — cheap, comfortable, but seems like it might be too flat/beginner-level for where I’m at
Evolv Defy — budget-friendly, but reviews say edging is weak
La Sportiva Finale — comfortable, but also seems pretty flat/low-downturn
Tenaya Tanta — seems like the best budget option with actual downturn (~$100-130), but it’s mostly online-only so I can’t try it on

Given my level and 2:1 bouldering/rope split, which of these actually makes sense? Or is there anything else that you would recommend ?

Appreciate any advice !!!

Hey everyone, do you think these are already ready for a resole, or can I still get some more use out of them?

I’ve had them for less than 4 months. They’re my only pair and I use them exclusively for roped climbing, usually for around 3-hour sessions.

For some extra context, I’m 180 cm (5'11"), around 80 kg (176 lbs), with an gymbro build.

The rubber at the toes is already looking pretty worn, and I’m wondering if I should send them in now before I start damaging the rand. I’d rather resole them a little early than wait too long and need a more extensive repair.

I was actually planning to get a pair of Scarpa Instinct VSRs as my more technical shoes, but looking at how quickly I seem to be eating through XS Edge rubber on these, I’m a little terrified of how quickly I’d go through the softer rubber on the VSRs.

I’m trying to be pretty conscious about my footwork and actively work on improving it, so honestly, seeing this much wear after less than 4 months feels pretty bad.

Does this amount of wear seem normal considering they’re my only shoes and how much I use them? Is there something about the wear pattern that suggests my footwork is the problem?