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When to buy new climbing shoes
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Hi! I’m new to climbing and just bought my first pair of climbing shoes in August. When do I know it’s time to get a new pair? I feel like my feet have been slipping more so I don’t know if it’s because my shoes are losing traction or if it’s because the problems are just getting harder since I’ve been climbing for a few months now....any advice would be greatly appreciated |
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As long as your shoes are comfortable, keep wearing them until you start to get a tiny hole in the soles (all the way through the rubber, or most of the way). When you start to see those tiny holes through the rubber in the sole, it's time to get them resoled. If you wait too long, they can't be resoled. Resoling is cheaper than buying new shoes. The rubber on the soles don't get more slippery over time. (I'm sure someone will argue with that!) However, it's nice to have a second pair of shoes so you'll have something to climb in when your other pair is getting resoled. Enjoy! |
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Depending on whether you started with "beginner" shoes you might want to upgrade to something stiffer and/or more agressive |
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Unless there are holes all the way through the rubber, you can still climb in them. If you resole before your toe caps are blown through, you can save some money on the resole, but it's hard to tell. The local resole place has charged me for toe cap repair even where there was no visible damage to the rand. Depending on what your first pair of shoes cost, it might make sense to buy a new pair rather than resole. My local resole place charges $40 for a basic resole, but if you have holes in the toe caps, it's an additional $25. Throw in $15 for shipping and you're already at the cost of a new pair of Tarantulaces. |
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Hmmmm....when is it time to buy shoes? https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/111383977/how-many-pairs-of-climbing-shoes-do-you-own https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/114149305/how-many-pairs-of-climbing-shoes-do-you-own OP, the answer clearly is, whenever you think you can get away with it! Entertaining threads...enjoy! H. |
 Totally up to you, OP. Those keds knockoffs are what I first climbed in. The first climbing shoes, were way, way, way, too tight. You can see how vastly smaller they were from street shoes. Totally tortured my feet. Dumbass salesperson. Now? More than five years in? About six or sevenish pairs of climbing shoes, only about four now. Only one I wear all the time. But, I don't burn through shoes (yes, because I don't get the time on rock some do). I have bought, then sold some too, when they just didn't work out. Sometimes, it takes tweaking to even find what suits your foot. Then, there's specializing, even just broadly. Maybe something for the gym. Something for cracks, etc. My next purchase? Most likely the whopping fat investment to upgrade my ice climbing boots, if Bozeman ice fest is back next year, or I otherwise have reason to think it won't be as impossible as this year to get on some ice. Have fun! Shoes are, uh, kinda a bit of a "thing" for many climbers. They're just shoes....but they do matter to us, disproportionately, lol! Best, Helen |
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Beginners usually toe drag a lot, and that is the first place you will notice a lot of wear. Inspect your shoes for holes above the sole (called the rand) , as these are much more difficult to repair without altering the fit of the shoe. Once a hole develops that goes through to the leather, the shoe is toast IMHO. BUT, if you re-sole your shoes a lot, like I do, you can wear a pair of shoes for 20 years. I have some La Sportiva Synchro that are from 2001, and have re-soled them 6-7 times. EDIT: I also normally have 8-12 pair of shoes at any given time, so I use the shoe that fits the climb. Easy trad gets a LS Synchro or Boreal Ballet Gold; harder trad gets a 5.10 Anasazi Lace (pink) and sport gets a Cobra/Ninja or Skwama. The correct answer for when to buy new climbing shoes is "When ever you want to" ;-) |
Buck Rio wrote: Same here! I've some solutions that are on their second set of straps and probably 6th or 7th resole. Resole early and often, especially if you like the shoes and they fit well. |
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It’s pretty normal to wonder if it's time for new shoes. A few signs to look out for are if your feet start slipping more often, if you notice visible wear on the rubber, or if the shoes just don’t feel as snug as they used to. |
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Shoes are so expensive now that resoles are worth it. And if you want to resole: DO NOT wait until you have a hole in them... this is very poor advice. Even some "cheaper" shoes are worth a resole these days, provided you don't need a toe cap. Any shoe $80 and up is worth a resole in my opinion. However, if you chew through the rand and they are cheap introductory shoes, the resole is probably no longer worth it because it'll cost almost twice as much. At this juncture, then sure: blow through them, get a new pair and try to send them off for resole before they get too far gone next time. |
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I wonder if Sarah still has challenging time figuring out when to replace climbing shoes 3 years after her post |
