Cheaper shoes for gym that fit like Katana lace?

Searching for some new dedicated gym shoes. For reference, 44 Katanas fit my feet better than any other shoe I've tried - would like something with similar fit but softer sole, maybe velcro closure instead of lace, hopefully a little cheaper to grind down in the gym. I don't climb super hard so comfort is more important to me than all-out steep bouldering performance.  Been wearing a pair of Scarpa Arpias as my gym shoes but have never liked them.

Tried the Skwamas but I just don't think they work w/my feet - top of foot is baggy even with toes painfully scrunched and the hard edge on back of the shoe digs in to my heel. Just don't see them ever being comfortable even with a lot of stretch after break in and not having slack in the top of the shoe. I've seen the women's version recommended as lower volume but I don't think they make them in 44.

yes, I know I could just get another pair of katanas or wear the shoes I already have at the gym. Any other suggestions? not limited to La Sportiva, just started there since I had a reference point that works for me.

Scarpa Veloce, sized way down, maybe 43 or 43.5. 

+1 for scarpa veloces. I do 90% of my outdoor climbing in size 41 Katanas. Just pickedup the women’s veloces in 41.5 yesterday. I haven’t climbed in them yet, but based on my experience with many other shoes, these seem like they will be a good gym shoe. They fit similar enough to katanas, are comfortable and should perform well enough for training purposes 

I have recently branched out on a whim, and bought a pair of La Sportiva Kubo. New shoes that I’ve never seen or heard of, before. They are perfect for the gym. Velcro, comfy, and fit me a touch better than Katanas. 

thanks for the suggestions. 

veloces look good but I'm concerned that they will have the same problems as my arpias - baggy heel, wear quickly, stinky no-stretch synthetic upper.

Kubos look interesting but hard to find much info/reviews. Decisions...

Kataki is great, the model is discontinued but some leftovers still available, I like kataki more than katana, but shoes almost identical, bit cheaper shop.epictv.com/en/climbing…;

I'd look into the Evolv Kira/Kronos. I mostly wear Katanas, but I got the Kiras for my gym shoes recently and I've been really happy with them. They're a little softer than I'd prefer for outdoor climbing, but they're a great comfy gym shoe.

I echo your situation, OP.  I've tried everything under the sun (Evolv, Scarpa, Butora, 5.10, Tenaya...), and only LaSpo can mimic LaSpo.  If you want a cheaper alternative to the Katana, look at the LaSpo line for a less expensive shoe.  Just also be aware that nothing will perform like the Katana.  Scarpa is the only other brand that's close to LaSpo.  Personally, I recommend getting another pair of Katana's and using the old pair as a gym shoe and resoling when needed.

I don’t know if it will be cheap… but I remember seeing in some French publication that they are introducing a slipper built on the same last as the katana lace. I’m hoping that fits the bill, as I too find that last to be magic for me. 

Scarpa vapors fit similarly and can often be found on sale.  I have paid less that 100 for the last two pairs of mine. 

as a follow up for anybody interested, I tried a pair of the LS Kubos. 

They fit great in the same size as my katanas, maybe not quite as "fine tuned" around the top of my foot (since they just have two velcro straps vs laces). Could probably have gone a half size smaller, they are very soft. One major problem though - my feet were greasing off holds on climbs I've done dozens of times. I think it's the difference between the XS-Edge on the Kubos and the XS-Grip on the Scarpas I've been climbing in. Didn't expect such a dramatic difference between rubber types, but I don't have any other explanation.

 Dissapointing, because overall I like the shoes a lot but I don't think they're the solution for a hot, humid gym environment where every hold is slimed with chalk and sweat (non-air conditioned gym in HI - it gets pretty swampy!). Going to give them a few more sessions, maybe the grip improve as they break in? Otherwise, guess it's back to the drawing board, specifically looking for super grippy rubber.

I would recommend the Simond Rock+

https://olympusmountaineering.com/2019/09/29/simond-rock-climbing-shoes-review/

Budget friendly, very comfortable and durable enough.

M Wolf wrote:

as a follow up for anybody interested, I tried a pair of the LS Kubos. 

They fit great in the same size as my katanas, maybe not quite as "fine tuned" around the top of my foot (since they just have two velcro straps vs laces). Could probably have gone a half size smaller, they are very soft. One major problem though - my feet were greasing off holds on climbs I've done dozens of times. I think it's the difference between the XS-Edge on the Kubos and the XS-Grip on the Scarpas I've been climbing in. Didn't expect such a dramatic difference between rubber types, but I don't have any other explanation.

 Dissapointing, because overall I like the shoes a lot but I don't think they're the solution for a hot, humid gym environment where every hold is slimed with chalk and sweat (non-air conditioned gym in HI - it gets pretty swampy!). Going to give them a few more sessions, maybe the grip improve as they break in? Otherwise, guess it's back to the drawing board, specifically looking for super grippy rubber.

Dont disregard the shoe itself when discussing grip. Shoes that knuckle the big toe and put a lot of power through the it feel stickier because there is more contact weight pushing it down. Flat comfy shoes ten to bend and flex rather than put the power down, so they may feel less 'sticky'. BTW, The Veloce rubber is the grippiest I have even used, indoors our out, but I had to size way way down to get power out of them. Like a full size lower than my la sportiva size. 

Doug Chism wrote:

Dont disregard the shoe itself when discussing grip. Shoes that knuckle the big toe and put a lot of power through the it feel stickier because there is more contact weight pushing it down. Flat comfy shoes ten to bend and flex rather than put the power down, so they may feel less 'sticky'. BTW, The Veloce rubber is the grippiest I have even used, indoors our out, but I had to size way way down to get power out of them. Like a full size lower than my la sportiva size. 

thanks - good point. I'm going to try some back-to-back comparisons w/the Kubos (XS-Edge), Katanas (XS-Edge) and my old Scarpa Arpias (XS-Grip) to compare shoe styles/rubber. Will probably try the Veloces next. 

At this point it's just a quest to figure out what works best for me with local gym conditions. After a few rounds of trial and error shoe ordering I'm not saving any $ regardless of what I end up with so might as well invest the effort to get it right

What shoe did you end up using?

Webfoot wrote:

What shoe did you end up using?

I ended up really liking the Scarpa Veloces. 

Very soft, mesh top, super sticky rubber, fairly wide forefoot. Got a half size smaller than my LS outdoor shoes and they are comfortable enough with just a bit of bend in my big toes (way more comfortable than my old Scarpa Arpias in the same size). No death smell like my other Scarpas, but I've been religious about wearing super thin liner socks with them so that probably helps a lot. Heel is a bit baggier on the sides than I would like, but it hasn't caused any problems. 

Checked all the boxes for things I wanted in a gym shoe, although they're not super cheap.