Best Walling Shoe

Now that Addidas has discontinued my favorite big wall shoe, I'm looking for recommendations. What are people's favorite approach shoe for walling? 

Stiff and comfortable in slings  

Don Harder wrote:

The lacing system on these shoes really sucks. The lace on lace causes the laces to wear very quickly and then when you do need to replace, you need a rally long lace and it is a PITA to lace them up. I’ll not be buying another pair laced  like this and I certainly wouldn’t want to potentially deal with that on a wall. If it weren’t for that issue, I’d love these shoes.

csproul wrote:

The lacing system on these shoes really sucks. The lace on lace causes the laces to wear very quickly and then when you do need to replace, you need a rally long lace and it is a PITA to lace them up. I’ll not be buying another pair laced  like this and I certainly wouldn’t want to potentially deal with that on a wall. If it weren’t for that issue, I’d love these shoes.

You sure you’re not talking about this shoe. These do have a lace on lace system. I’ve heard bad things about this system.

I don’t have an answer for your question- but I’ll agree that the Guide Tennie is the best wall shoe for me.. as a Barefoot Runner and Minimalist shoe fan they are the only approach shoe I’ve found with a wide enough toe box, minimal heel drop and lack of arch support- but solid enough to stand in Aiders.. My five tennies and a pair of alpine boots I never wear are the only non-minimalist shoes I own.. 

anyway- sorry to whine and pine for a pair of shoes being discontinued..

My solution: after the sole on a new pair of 5.10’s completely delaminated half way up Lurking Fear- I bought a couple pairs off the 5.10 website for 1/2 price, and I’ve been sending them to the Rubber Room in Bishop for a wall treatment.. they put beefy bumpers on the toe, and a new sheet of C4 that is smooth under the ball and toe, and grooved from the middle back for traction.. all in it cost the same as the original retail price and it seems to really extend the life- and I’m sure I can send them back at least once for a re-do.. 

After seeing your post- I searched around, backcountry  and Streep+Cheap have limited inventory, and I grabbed one more pair at $85.. they’ll go straight to Bishop once they get here.. 

Don Harder wrote:

You sure you’re not talking about this shoe. These do have a lace on lace system. I’ve heard bad things about this system.

Look at the picture of the Boulder X above...same lace system. I’ve got a pair...that currently have a broken lace.

csproul wrote:

Look at the picture of the Boulder X above...same lace system. I’ve got a pair...that currently have a broken lace.

Looks like the shoe in the top post has a 1 lace system and the second has a 2 lace system with a thin orange lace creating the “eyelets” and the dark lace lacing the shoe? 

The old-school Robbins boots are the best big wall shoe I’ve ever used. They were $25 in the early 70’s. I think I wore out at least three pairs and have only one pair left. Tony at the Rubber Room laughed at me when I sent them in to get resoled. They were just too hammered, kinda like me. I’ve been trying to find a resole-able pair for years.

Don Harder wrote:

Stiff and comfortable in slings  

I bought this shoe and wore holes in the front of the rubber after about 6 days of wearing them, including 2 aid pitches. Not sure if I had a bad pair but they didn’t impress me. 

Quinn Hatfield wrote:

Looks like the shoe in the top post has a 1 lace system and the second has a 2 lace system with a thin orange lace creating the “eyelets” and the dark lace lacing the shoe? 

Yeah, I thin you are correct. Either way, the “eyelets” are lace on lace. I have other shoes where I have never replaced the laces. My Boulder Xs are on their 2nd for each shoe.

csproul wrote:

Yeah, I thin you are correct. Either way, the “eyelets” are lace on lace. I have other shoes where I have never replaced the laces. My Boulder Xs are on their 2nd for each shoe.

Ahhh I see that now. It looked like the laces were threaded through the suede material- I see it’s lace on lace now..

blowing out laces like that is a big PITA 

I'm a big fan of the Boulder X. I've never had problems with the laces blowing out on walls. But I have found they only survive a few walls before needing to be replaced after blowing out on the toe. I started using mad amounts of seam sealer, but nothing helped. 

Scarpa's Crux shoes are very similar in style to the Boulder X, but without the weird 14ft long lace system. I can't get mine to die.

PatMas wrote: Scarpa's Crux shoes are very similar in style to the Boulder X, but without the weird 14ft long lace system. I can't get mine to die.

Love these shoes, too; but I found them painful in aiders.

Nate A wrote:

I bought this shoe and wore holes in the front of the rubber after about 6 days of wearing them, including 2 aid pitches. Not sure if I had a bad pair but they didn’t impress me. 

Ditto, the toe construction features hard plastic under a paper thin layer of a rubber. They don’t stand a chance with the rubbber pinched between plastic and rock. Luckily the plastic doesn’t wear easily so your toes won’t be popping out but still not a good shoe for aid. Bummer because they’re so stiff and comfy

PatMas wrote: Scarpa's Crux shoes are very similar in style to the Boulder X, but without the weird 14ft long lace system. I can't get mine to die.

Crux's are a terrible shoe for a wall. too soft.

The Scarpa Zens would be a better option imo.

jcs

Definitely the TX3 or 4 are the best! The old guide tennies just don’t cut it anymore! 

Unless you’re doing 100% aid, I emphatically recommend wearing climbing shoes. Although I don’t call myself an experienced waller, I have done a fair amount of clean aid.  On the Nose, I wished I was wearing climbing shoes, instead of clunky approach hikers, when I was mixing the aid and free on a number of pitches, including while pushing my single tipped-out #4 Camalot up the Stove Legs in the middle of the night. On many aid routes, I’ve been able to use my feet on the rock in order to reach placements. And when it’s time to step out of the ladders and go free, you can more safely and enjoyably go free. I like using a relatively stiff high-top crack shoe. The stiff sole helps keep the stirrups from digging into the arches, and I wear stiffer shoes anyway. Because the toes on the fronts of the shoes will wear out more quickly, I like to wear old shoes that have been resoled along with replaced toe caps.
To add: Getting in and out of the stirrups is easier when wearing climbing shoes instead of wider, welted, treaded approach shoes. 

Gotta agree with Harder. For lots of aid and the occasional free move my Robbins boots are still best.

We were in touch before he passed. I wish I'd told him. Aid is largely a dying art.

Boreal wall boots are kinda like the Robbins. Closest one still made, anyways