New Vapor S

Has anyone tried out the new Scarpa Vapor S? They are not available yet in the US, but customer service told me they would be in early April. I need to replace a pair Vapor Vs that I had resoled with XS Grip rubber. I use it mostly as a gym shoe, but it has a very comfy fit for me so it also gets used as a trad/multi-pitch shoe sometimes. I like having the softer rubber on it after resoling since it definitely sees more time inside than out so I was thinking about getting the new vapor S instead of the V. Curious if anyone has had a chance to try them out yet and can provide a review. The other shoe I was considering replacing with is the Skwama, but I haven't had a chance to try it on yet so that will be fit dependent.

Following! I love the Vapor V as an all around shoe. Gets very few mentions on MP but if it fits your foot, it's the perfect combination of comfort and performance

new video came out today on the new strap system. Not sure how I feel about it youtube.com/watch?v=4ASHlm2…

I just got a pair off of https://www.oliunid.com/ shipped to the US. I've tried lots of Scarpas in search of something that fits the same as the old green/grey Vapor V's, like John said great combo of comfort and performance, and I think these are the closest I've found. The heel is a little deeper, kinda like the Instinct VS/VSR's, but with a less aggressive and more comfortable toe box.

Joey Henderson wrote:

I just got a pair off of https://www.oliunid.com/ shipped to the US. I've tried lots of Scarpas in search of something that fits the same as the old green/grey Vapor V's, like John said great combo of comfort and performance, and I think these are the closest I've found. The heel is a little deeper, kinda like the Instinct VS/VSR's, but with a less aggressive and more comfortable toe box.

Thanks Joey. Is the slipper much softer than the Vs? And how is the nano strap, is it actually effective? And do you see this as more of an indoor shoe or something you'd wear outdoors?

Daniel Navarro wrote:

Thanks Joey. Is the slipper much softer than the Vs? And how is the nano strap, is it actually effective? And do you see this as more of an indoor shoe or something you'd wear outdoors?

Yeah, I'd say a little bit softer for sure. I'm planning to use them just for gym climbing but I think they'd do fine outdoors too. As for the strap, I was considering just taking it off completely but it does help make the slippers feel more secure. I could see it being maybe less necessary if you sized them down a lot, but I hate popping my shoes off/on at the gym so I went more for comfort sizing.

I love this shoe! I went up a half size from my VSRs (which aren't super downsized) which felt nice and snug, and was fine without the strap. The heel is amazing.

I have my Vapor S 1/2 EU size smaller than my Instinct VSR (which are a non-painful performance fit), to make sure it was a snug slipper fit. The Achilles tendon area feels a little tight, but it doesn’t bother me when I’m climbing, and I bought them for the gym anyway so I take them off between climbs. They definitely feel softer than the Instinct VSR, so in that regard a slightly tighter fit makes more sense to retain some edging ability.

I had to add a figure 8 in the strap to make it shorter, but I think generally it’s worth using. Doesn’t make the shoe feel any tighter, just creates a barrier to having the heel slip-off.

I hope the heel breaks in a little since it’s kinda narrow for my foot, but the toe box feels pretty nice. I have medium-wide feet and my toe box is shaped like the Scarpa “Classic” shape.

I’m very curious how they are breaking in for everyone. I ordered a pair in the same size as my Vapor V which is sized very comfortably and a half size (EU) up from my instinct VS which is snug but comfortable, not aggressively sized. The Vapor S feels much tighter than either of my other shoes. I haven’t climbed in them yet and I’m on the fence about returning and upsizing a half size, but if it stretches a bit during break in they could wind up being the sweet spot of snug yet comfy.

My initial impression of the shoe other than feeling much tighter is that it is significantly softer than the vapor v. The material on the inside is very comfortable. I really like the heel. It really sucks your heel in more than the V. My only concern is that if you really use this shoe for crack climbing like they are advertising it for, the whole nano strap system could get destroyed

My straps broke shockingly quickly. I've probably done 4 gym sessions and 10-15 pitches outside in them. The anchor point for the straps that is in the velcro area broke so now there is no way to use the strap with the shoe. Of course the shoe is meant to be a slipper and I knew they looked flimsy, but that is very quick for a piece of the shoe to break that I really did not abuse. Especially since these are billed as a crack climbing shoe and you'd expect them to hold up to jamming in cracks. FWIW I probably only did a total of 10 foot jams and the rest has just been face climbing where the straps should not be affected and I was not even tightening them really, just pulling it until it reached the velcro.

To be thorough and provide some info I would have wanted to know about the shoe, I really liked the way it climbed. It's much much softer than the vapor v, but very comfortable. Out of the box it felt much tighter but it broke in really quickly and in hindsight I might even go half size down from my Vapor V unless you want it pretty comfy. It's extremely sensitive which is awesome. I was definitely getting a calf burn on some longer trad routes, but I thought they climbed great on shorter sport routes. Unfortunately, I think the nanostrap design is a failure and even if you go without the strap you have an awkward piece of exposed velcro, which isn't a huge deal, but weird.. I'm a huge scarpa and vapor fan, but not sure I'd recommend this one unless you really want to go pure slipper and don't mind some extra unused velcro and strap loops

I find the Vapor S to be just slightly stiffer than the Instinct S, but still very flexible for bouldering. The Vapor S has the same XS Grip 2 rubber that on both the Instinct S and the Dragos, so the rubber is very soft and mallable.

I was able to get one of the first pairs of Vapor S when they became avaliable on Epic TV, and surprisingly the rubber on top of the toe of the left foot has delaminated... Not sure if it's because of this being one of the first pairs and the QA was still being fine tuned, but this is the first pair of Scarpa that I've owned that has delamination issue. 

Lastly, though the Vapor S has the strap vs the Instinct S slipper, I was able to get a more secure fit in the Instinct S, which surprised me a little.

For those in this thread who own both the Vapor S and Instincts, what would be your use case for each shoe?

I find the Vapor S and Instinct S to be of similar performance. Could just be I'm not climbing hard enough to tell the difference, and I tend to avoid overhang problems due to bad shoulder.

For new boulder project, I break out the tight fit Drago LV.

ShuShu Y wrote:

I find the Vapor S and Instinct S to be of similar performance. Could just be I'm not climbing hard enough to tell the difference, and I tend to avoid overhang problems due to bad shoulder.

For new boulder project, I break out the tight fit Drago LV.

What’s been your experience with their edging performance? I’m looking at these as an all-rounder option for traveling, but I’m concerned that they’re not going to be a great option for face climbs.

Ended up scooping up a pair due to poor impulse control. Sized them the same as my Drago LV for a  comfy-yet-high-performance fit. I’m a huge fan. They edge well and yet are soft enough to smear on marginal angles. The heel is skintight, especially with the strap adjusted well. I tossed a figure eight on it to get it to cinch nicely. The toe sneaks into thin cracks and twists in painlessly. Insofar as the shoe has weaknesses, its toe hooking leaves a bit to be desired, though is very solid for a trad shoe, and its not aggressive enough to be a great choice on overhangs. I haven’t worn the Vapor Vs, so I can’t draw a comparison, but I find them to fit and perform like a less downturned Drago. 

Prav C wrote:

For those in this thread who own both the Vapor S and Instincts, what would be your use case for each shoe?

I got the Vapor S when I needed to send my Instict VSRs off for resoling - between those two shoes, the Vapor S is definitely softer and more yielding, even with the full sole. It’s nice for moderate angles and friction-y moves (smears). I do the think the instincts are more precise and better at locking onto small edges though, as well as claw better in the overhang.

Don’t have the Instinct slipper though if that’s the comparison your were seeking.

Looks like REI is selling them now.

https://www.rei.com/product/219440/scarpa-vapor-s-climbing-shoes-mens

https://www.rei.com/product/219442/scarpa-vapor-s-climbing-shoes-womens

Michael Casper wrote:

Don’t have the Instinct slipper though if that’s the comparison your were seeking.

I haven't tried the Vapor S yet, but have used various versions of the Instinct S as my primary sport climbing shoes for years. They're amazing, but I wouldn't even consider crack climbing in them. The toe box is much too compressed and low volume, which helps the soft shoe edge surprisingly well, but would be a nightmare in cracks. Vapor S seems much more reasonable for cracks, if versatility is the goal. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcaDHA9swz0 compares the instinct s and vapor s a bit at the end

Would anyone care to comment on sizing compared to the TC’s? This shoe looks like the thin desert crack shoe i’ve been searching for… street 42.5 TC’s 42. Thinking about going and trying some V’s and going based on that fit. Thx.

Kyle MacKrell wrote:

Would anyone care to comment on sizing compared to the TC’s? This shoe looks like the thin desert crack shoe i’ve been searching for… street 42.5 TC’s 42. Thinking about going and trying some V’s and going based on that fit. Thx.

I tried on a few TC-pros recently and found the 41.5 EU fit me well for that style of shoe (slight performance fit, not uncomfortable). My Scarpa Vapor S are 43 EU and would not want any smaller - slightly uncomfortable just standing around in them, but no pain at all when climbing; Good indoors gym fit. Both sockless.