Shoe discussion - looking for feedback

[bjones625]

I’m looking for feedback on shoes.  I’ve tried a lot and purchased a lot and can’t seem to find the right shoes.  I was looking for feedback on what others use and or suggest.

some information - boulderer and sport climber in southeast US.  Mostly on sandstone.. 

here is where I’m at today 

shoes I’ve tried 
Evolve shaman - heel too wide 
black diamond shadow - heel too wide 
5.10 - every shoe I’ve tried heel is too wide 
Sportiva solutions - heel fit and worked well.. solid shoe but caused awful hot spots on top of toes 

shoes I use/own today
mad rock drone LV - great heel, toe box too narrow.. super soft shoe 
mad rock drone HV - heel a little wide but can cinch down with the multiple options to Velcro.  My go to for indoor climbing, and roof problems.  To soft and weak edging shoe for me.
black diamond focus - crazy stiff and heel too wide but edges unbelievably 
black diamond aspect - stiff flat shoe, heel too wide only use for ARC honestly 

really struggling finding the right shoe, or I’m just impossible to please.   Looking for a semi stiff, slightly downturned shoe that is low to medium volume.  

Any suggestions or am I just picky AF and need to use multiple shoes and live with dead space around the heel?

[Chris W]

I would suggest finding a store/gym that carries many different types of shoes and trying them all on.

Alternatively, order a lot of shoes to be delivered to your house, try them on, and return the ones you don't want to keep.

I like the Tenayas. When I decided to try them, I called up the guys at Trango and told them my plan. I got a rough size estimate and then placed a big order for three different sizes of several shoes.

[brians]

Based on all your inputs I would try the Evolv Oracle. It is narrow in the heel, slightly down turned, a little more flexible than the Shaman, and I found I didn't get the top of foot hot spots some of the other Evolv shoes (Aggros, X1) gave me. It is lace up (which I don't usually like) so you can get a bit more of a custom fit. Only negative is the cost ($175) but I feel that way about most shoes these days.

[rockmoose]

Like you, I found evolv's to be too big in the heel, and sportiva's to be too tight in the toes.

Scarpa provides the perfect fit for my foot. The Vapor has a slight downturn, but I can wear them all day (my v2 are slightly more voluminous than my v1).

The Furia is an aggressive bouldering shoe, that gives me gecko like abilities.

La Sportiva's long-term designer, Heinz Mariacher has been with Scarpa since about '08.

[erick]

Has anyone tried on the Scarpa Mago? How did you size them, can you compare the size to the drago or maestro? No shop near me has them.

[cozisco]

I can't compare them to the drago or maestro, but I found them to be really similar to the Testarossas in both fit and style. This is how I sized them relative to my other shoes; hopefully some of these models are helpful for comparison:

Scarpa Mago -- 39.5

La Sportiva Testarossa -- 40.0

La Sportiva Futura -- 39.5

Evolv shaman -- 8.5

[erick]

Can I ask how the Mago climbs compared to the testerosa

[cozisco]

It's honestly really really similar. The Mago feels a little stiffer and not quite as supple as the Testarossa. The last is also more asymmetric than the Testarossa.

Otherwise, the rest is super similar -- great edging, great smearing, same exact type and thickness of rubber, both have a suede/microsuede upper. Unfortunately, low quality heel/toe hooks with both.

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