Breaking up with Katanas - any edging shoe recommendations?

After years of trying to make them work, I'm realizing I wear my Solutions 99% of the time and my Katanas are just collecting dust.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a shoe that is primarily for tiny foot-holds, mainly on vertical sport routes, for a (very...) narrow foot?  Preferably a brand that is not LS as I feel like I've tried all of the typical LS options and they don't work for me.  

Thanks in advance for all the input!

I just ordered a pair of Scarpa Magos as they're on sale this week at BC and S&C. They get good reviews for this purpose so we'll see what happens.

Evolv has a new edging shoe - Geshido. I think it works for a narrow foot.

The scarpa boostic is considered by many to be an equivalent to the the best edging shoe ever made, the miura vs. 

that guy named seb wrote:

The scarpa boostic is considered by many to be an equivalent to the the best edging shoe ever made, the miura vs. 

But the new version seems to be a lot softer and has lost edging prowess - see other MP threads.

Thanks for the Mago and Geshido recommendations - I had never heard of either of those before.

Boostics are high on my list to check out, but I've also seen that they've gotten softer recently so I'm proceeding with caution.

The Scarpa Instinct edges really well.

Idk if it's available in your area, but I just picked up a pair of Geniuses and I'm never going back. They edge on things I can't get my tiniest Katanas to stick to and are comfier to boot. Also great for smears, but the no-edge hype is real. I know that they're marketed for overhung climbing, but I've loved them on everything vertical that I've tried them on so far.

Elijah Benson wrote:

Idk if it's available in your area, but I just picked up a pair of Geniuses and I'm never going back. They edge on things I can't get my tiniest Katanas to stick to and are comfier to boot. Also great for smears, but the no-edge hype is real. I know that they're marketed for overhung climbing, but I've loved them on everything vertical that I've tried them on so far.

That's funny, because my experience has been the opposite. I'm on my second pair of Geniuses and I'm ready for something stiffer and edgier for certain terrain. Don't get me wrong, I love the Geniuses for anything steep enough that you're mostly pulling/clawing with your toes, or anything with slopey, blobby feet, or the Moonboard kicker holds. They're also the comfiest darn shoes for the amount of performance you get. But for true edging on near-vertical climbs, I find them lacking. Their softness and conformity is what I love on slopey or steep climbs, and they like it when you sink down on your heels and smoosh that soft rubber blob onto the rock. But when it's truly edgy--tiny feet on vertical terrain--I can find myself unable to stand up as far as I want to on my tippy toes for big reaches. 

I'm thinking of routes like Cannibals in Tahoe or Diamonds and Rain in Wild Iris; I was unhappy with the Genius's performance (and with my lack of talent, perhaps) and am ready to try something stiffer again.

There's probably a limit to how stiff I want to go, though. I recently got a second resole on my Katana Laces, which I have loved, with Trax SE rubber and that crossed the line. The shoes are now too stiff. I can barely bend them into a smear and they now have a disconcerting tendency to skate on rounded feet. They now feel like a 140 flex race boot. Oh well. 

Maybe the Magos will be the golden ticket, maybe not.

ETA: I second the suggestion of the Instinct VS as well.

There's probably a limit to how stiff I want to go, though. I recently got a second resole on my Katana Laces, which I have loved, with Trax SE rubber and that crossed the line. The shoes are now too stiff. I can barely bend them into a smear and they now have a disconcerting tendency to skate on rounded feet. 

This was my exact problem with Katanas.  Having climbed in Solutions for so long (w/ the much sticker, softer Grip2 rubber), I'm no longer able to trust the combo of the super-hard XS Edge and very insensitive Katana lasts.  I'm hoping to find something else that is still supportive to put power through my toe (I have long skinny flat feet...) but is at least slightly more sensitive than the Katanas, and preferably doesn't have XS Edge.

Thank you for all the opinions so far!  I appreciate everyone's time.

Im really liking my up-rise pros for edging and face climbing.

You might be interested in the Evolv Kronos. Fairly narrow, slight downturn, and stiff sole

What size and condition, maybe someone here can take your dusty katanas off your hands. 

Highly recommend the tenaya Tarifa as it is exactly the shoe you are looking for. Also incredibly comfortable without any compromise in performance. I wear a 10.5 in those for performance while I'm normally a 44 in TC pro.

Perhaps I am mistaken, but it seems like you are looking for a high support shoe that is also sensitive. I believe this is a bit of an oxymoron. I get your struggle though. When I first switched to stiff shoes such as the Katanas and TC Pros, I hated them. I couldn’t trust my feet at all since I was used to the women’s skwamas and solutions. Finally, one year later, I am able to completely trust both of my stiff shoes. I believe it was a combination of the shoes fully breaking in as well as training my mind to not need as much input feeling from my feet in order to trust the holds. Now I can trust my foot will stay on a hold just by looking at it. I believe this has also made me a much better climber regardless of the stiffness of shoes I am wearing. Unless you have a problem with the fit of the Katanas, I reckon the issue is you need to just get used to them more. 

Jon Browher wrote:

Highly recommend the tenaya Tarifa as it is exactly the shoe you are looking for. Also incredibly comfortable without any compromise in performance. I wear a 10.5 in those for performance while I'm normally a 44 in TC pro.

Great suggestion. A good edging shoe with a very narrow last. Supportive, but not crazy stiff and insensitive like the Katana. Uses XS Grip rubber. Seems to meet OPs specifications exactly.

Pretty much. I have narrow feet and good arches and they fit like a dream. The internal sock top is unbelievable. Also Alex Megos climbs 5.15 in them and Sharma uses them now, so they can't be half bad. 

Doug Chism wrote:

New 2022 Mago coming out in a few months that's supposed to be all about using the tiniest footholds imaginable. 

https://issuu.com/scarpa_aut/docs/scarpa_workbook_ss22_eng

So the new Mago is supposed to "dominate" small foot holds like no other but the not-so-new Boostic is the edging machine (but sucking at that compared to the original Boostic). $100 says that the new (gen 3) Mago can't edge anything like the original Mago.

reboot wrote:

https://issuu.com/scarpa_aut/docs/scarpa_workbook_ss22_eng

So the new Mago is supposed to "dominate" small foot holds like no other but the not-so-new Boostic is the edging machine (but sucking at that compared to the original Boostic). $100 says that the new (gen 3) Mago can't edge anything like the original Mago.

 I had a pair of the original Mago, and those things were rad. Crazy stiff, but also quite downturned. It was like if you put a steel shank in the front half of a Testarossa. Amazing on small sharp holds. Not a great shoe if you wanted sensitivity though - couldn't feel anything. Probably not OPs thing.

But that's the Gen 1.  I haven't tried the Gen2 Mago, and know nothing about the Gen3.

Will B wrote:

After years of trying to make them work, I'm realizing I wear my Solutions 99% of the time and my Katanas are just collecting dust.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a shoe that is primarily for tiny foot-holds, mainly on vertical sport routes, for a (very...) narrow foot?  Preferably a brand that is not LS as I feel like I've tried all of the typical LS options and they don't work for me.  

Thanks in advance for all the input!

Next year la sportiva are bringing out new versions of the katana lace including a LV one with XS grip.the softer rubber..How different they are from the LV of the kataki I have no idea !!!