Five Ten Grandstones

Well, I've finally put enough pitches on these b-boys to give a thorough review on them.

The Good:

These things are damn comfortable out of the box. A very roomy toe box is a huge benefit (although to be discussed later as antithetical to some things) to comfort. They edge on a dime and are comfortable to do so in, having climbed some 10+ slab at Donner using them. While they are very stiff, they give enough that you can smear pretty well in them. The TRUE high top on this is nice, gives ample protection in the land of the wyde and keeps gravel and such out of the shoe since it laces to the top, unlike the TC Pro's mid-top. The rubber, as usual with Five Ten, is the best.

The Bad:

Finger cracks. Don't climb finger cracks in these. Maybe I am just not a very good climber (already knew that) but had some difficulties with the incredibly fat toe box in finger cracks. Additionally, the sensitivity on these is lacking in a significant way, but not too bad once you get used to them. Aside from those two main points, the other complaint is more or less me being pedantic about the lacing, but it takes a while to lace them up since you lace them up so high. Not necessarily a terrible thing, but enough that I would make note of it.

Hope this helps someone trying to get a steal on these as they are being discontinued unfortunately...

Weston

+1

Have a pair of the Grandstones and TC Pros and would agree with this review %100!

Happy sending

I agree man, just got a good 5 days in mine at smith and struggled on anything smaller than a fist sized crack.

I sized mine to be comfortable in winter with heavy wool socks. I figured that I would be happy if they climbed 5.9 well. I have since taken them on a bunch of pitches up to 5.11 or so.

Even sized huge, these shoes still edge well due to the stiff sole, even on thin 5.11 slab. The downside there is a complete absence of sensitivity. I think my fruit boots are as sensitive. I never noticed a problem with thin cracks, but that may be due to the fact that my toes lay perfectly flat. They aren't Moccs, but they surely jam thin cracks better than any of my downturned shoes.

The comfort and protection is wonderful. I can wear these around the house like slippers. The high top design works way better than tape for protecting my ankles on the wide.

just picked up a pair at a heavy discount.

only been able to do a little bouldering to get a feel for them but so far so good.

i sized down one size from street shoes and they're comfortable out of the box,
if a bit snug.

they are my first pair of five ten shoes and the rubber is definitely rubbing me the right way- seems a lot grippier than the vibram stuff on my miuras.

one question to those who've had them for a while now-
they are wicked stiff, not very easy to get the sole against the rock for smearing- will they losen up after a while?

I've only put about 20-30 pitches on mine, they did start to loosen up slightly but I don't think they'll ever become super flexible just due to the thick rubber and shape of the rand.

Maybe work on stretching them calves a little more to compensate for the stiff shoes?

They do soften up enough to get a solid amount of rubber on rock. Agreed regarding stretching the calves so you can drop the heels properly for slabalicious climbing

Just got mine, haven't used them yet. I like the construction -- doesn't seem quite as refined as Sportiva, but they are much less expensive than the similarly intended TC Pro.

My biggest problem is that they offer 13 as the largest size, and it seems like a small 13 at that. Because it is a lined shoe, I'm not sure these will stretch enough to comfortably fit my size 14ish feet. My toes are curled pretty heavily right now, but I have yet to climb any pitches and break them in.

I found that out of the box these shoes sucked and I was not too pleased with them. BUT, after a year of climbing in them I have found they seem to get better with age. It took probably a 12 climbs to feel like they were finally broken in and no they are my go to shoe. I guess they are like many things, it just took a little time to find there groove.

yeah, out of the box i'm on the fence.

they fit really well, comfortable, the rubber is super sticky, they edge really well....

on the other hand they i was not prepared for the crazy stiffness of these.

i knew they were going to be stiff but holy shit.

guess i'll just keep bringing them out towards they end of the day to slowly get them broken in.

I totally agree. I hated them for quite a while and now I love them. As they've broken in they've become much more sensative.

If only Five Ten had made the toe profile thinner....what could have been....