montrail?

Hey does anyone have any experience with Montrail brand climbing shoes? I'm looking at getting a cheap pair of shoes, and Montrail Zealots always seem to be the cheapest, but I don't know ANYTHING about their sizing, or how decent/crappy the rubber is... or really anything about Montrail or their Zealot. I'm not looking for anything great MEDIOCRACY is totally fine if the shoes are cheap enough... I'm just looking for something not terrible to take with me on a trip i dont care if they don't last all that long

the zealot looks somewhat aggressive, which i like, and supposedly it doesn't stretch but they could be amazing or terrible for all I know...

anyone got any insight or input that could help? or any suggestions for other inexpensive shoes I could take with me?

rockclimbing.com/cgi-bin/ge…

bunch of user reviews on RC.COM

I had a pair (forget the model... grey and red) a few years ago. I wasn't impressed at all - slick rubber which delaminated pretty quickly. Had to keep gluing the edges down till I got rid of them. Fit my feet well tho'.

I like the Zealots enough that I have two pairs so I don't have to do without when one pair is in for resole. They're my favorite "aggressive" shoes for sport climbing, great edging. And like you said, they're pretty cheap. But I thought they'd been discontinued (which might account for why they're cheap).

JL

I picked up a pair from steep and cheap for $12, They were actually really good performers. The only problem I had was the toe box was too narrow for my feet. I ended up giving them to a friend and he used them every climbing day from May until now and loves them.

I don't recommend them, at least at the lower end of the scale. I picked a pair up for ~25 bucks on steepandcheap. climbed in them twice and hated how non-sticky they were. I blame them for a big fall I took.... heh heh.

people don't call the rubber "sliptonite" or "craptonite" for nothing. it's terrible. you might as well smear vasaline all over the bottom of your converse all-stars...

Im wearing a pair of Wasabis (the green velcros) which have been excellent shoes. Ive considered picking up a second pair before they disapper for good. The original rubber wasnt bad, if anything it was soft. I burned through it in a summer of climbing 3-4 times a week almost every week. Ive since resoled them with C4 and honestly didnt feel any difference in them.
When I bought them they were fucking tight, but theyve stretched out to be very comfy after two years in them. I think that CTX foam in the toes works pretty well too adding to the comfort.

Think ill go see if I can find any in my size.

Can you say,,,suck? Slick rubber on several models. Sizing is just awful.. even from Euro sizes. They seem to be over 2 sizes smaller than tne number says. Good luck, even if they are always a bargain for 29.95 at sierratradingpost.com

It should be mentioned that Columbia recently "acquired" Montrail, and their other products have started to go to shite

sstrauss wrote:It should be mentioned that Columbia recently "acquired" Montrail, and their other products have started to go to shite

i second this. i have an old (7 years) pair of Torre gtx hiking boots that are still kicking and the best backpacking boot i have ever owned. I bought a pair of continental divide gtx trail runners this summer and the sole started to fall apart in about 2 weeks (20 miles of hiking). It makes more sense now that i know columbia is in charge now

sstrauss wrote:It should be mentioned that Columbia recently "acquired" Montrail, and their other products have started to go to shite

They've owned them for ~4 years now. Moved everything to Portland in 05/06? With millions of shoes being made in each model it's had to say if one pair someone has that's bad is from new production set up, or just random?

I've used them for ~10 years. I have a few pair of trail runners from them now that I use for ultras and they seem fine?

Their approach shoes are pretty good, but some people called the climbing shoe rubber "sliptonite." (It's official name was gryptonite.)
After one resole it is all the same, if the shoes fits, wear it.

EMT wrote: They've owned them for ~4 years now. Moved everything to Portland in 05/06? With millions of shoes being made in each model it's had to say if one pair someone has that's bad is from new production set up, or just random? I've used them for ~10 years. I have a few pair of trail runners from them now that I use for ultras and they seem fine?

I don't know if that was directed at my post and you make a good point EMT.I did notice on various reviews after I bought them that others had the same part of the sole blowout. All the same maybe that was just a bad run of glue or something. i wouldn't say everything bd makes is crap even though the xenos has an issue