Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)
  • Overshoes?
  • aroche
    Free Member

    Do they work?
    Getting fed up of getting back to the car with soaking shoes and numb toes.
    Thinking of getting these:
    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/endura-mt500-overshoes/rp-prod80217

    Anyone know if they actually work? Do they tend to be better than sealskinz? which I haven’t managed to get on with.
    I’m using Giro Chamber DH style spd shoes, which are a bit chunky but not quite 5/10 chunky, – so I’m guessing to go a size up.

    I’ve used sealskinz but they fill up with water like a balloon, – I’ve skinny enough ankles and I’m guessing they are slightly too roomy.

    turboferret
    Full Member

    I’ve used the older version Endura neoprene shoe covers and have been very impressed. Don’t necessarily keep your feet totally dry but they will stay toasty. Much better than sealskinz in my experience. The only issue with the overshoes is if you have to do much walking, in which case they bits running under the shoe will wear out quickly. This is most apparent at the toe area if you are climbing muddy banks etc.

    Overall an excellent way of keeping your feet warm and mainly dry.

    Cheers, Rich

    WillH
    Full Member

    If you want dry feet, avoid neoprene ones. Neoprene is what wetsuits are made of. The clue is in the name. They get wet, and use the layer of water trapped between the neoprene and your skin, which is warmed by your body, to keep you warm. So they can do a good job of keeping your feet warm, IF your feet are warm enough to warm up the water first… If you start with cold feet and then they get wet, then they’ll keep your feet nicely refridgerated.

    If you want dry, you’ll need ones with a waterproof (usually rubberised) coating. If you have skinny ankles/calves then you might end up with a leak at the top, though.

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    gren
    Free Member

    Missus is loving her MT500s. Only one off road ride so far mind you but she gets really cold toes and these helped hugely.

    Seem to be sturdily built (huge rubber toecaps) although I guess the soles will be the first to wear if you walk on them for any amount of time.

    I’d go a size up. My missues rides with Shimano WM63 shoes which aren’t that bulky. Hers are size 40 which is right at the bottom end for the MT500 mediums but are still a struggle to get on. They may stretch but I’d not take the risk.

    hilldodger
    Free Member

    Use the Endura Luminite for road and mtb – keep my shoes cleaner and my feet drier and warmer than without.
    Also lets me take them off at door to avoid clumping the mud’n’crud around home/work.
    I’m sure winter boots would be warmer, tougher and possibly drier but I ride better without nearly a kilo of hiking boot on each foot and much prefer overshoes plus a normal bike shoe

    Garry_Lager
    Full Member

    Overshoes are good. They’re easily damaged when mountain biking, though, as turboferret says – even a little walking over the rocks will tear up the base IME. Wouldn’t get an expensive set for this reason.

    RoterStern
    Free Member

    hilldodger
    Free Member

    Hmmm, perforated winter boots – I see an obvious flaw there…

    ….and would you really wear those on a road bike 😮

    flicker
    Free Member

    Set of MT500’s here just starting their fourth winter.

    They stretch nicely (you don’t want them loose or they’ll let water in round your ankle).

    I started using them when winter temperatures were hitting -15 °C, superb. Feet always warm and dry.

    Keep the zips clean and lubricated when you put them away during dry/warm spells, one of mine seized up :(, still works well enough though.

    jeffl
    Full Member

    I have gortex lined shoes for the winter but I also use some cheap planet x neoprene overshoes to stop water sloshing over them. On their last legs now but have worked well over two winters of commuting and general MTBing. As people say they wear out under the sole.

    amedias
    Free Member

    My first set of Endura MTB overshoes weren’t, in so far as they didn’t fit over my shoes, after I swapped them for a size bigger than the size chart recommended they did.

    Had them about a year now, use them on road and offroad, they are warm, they are waterproof for rides up to a few hours, but a proper wet or long ride will see some creeping through.

    The bottoms are torn to shreads now though, I think thats the weak point if you’re going to use them offroad, even occasional walking or hike a bike or even puncture stops cause quite a bit of wear and tear.

    I’ll probably buy another set for next year once these oens are totally trashed.

    medoramas
    Free Member

    I’m a big fan of the MT500 overshoes. They are waterproof, they keep your feet warm and shoes clean (even if some water gets in under some extreme conditions – mud is kept at bay).

    The rubber front adds a lot of strength to them and helps keeping them in place while walking. I remember using BBB overshoes and every time I had to walk even few steps, they fronts were sliding up, leaving you wet and cold. This never happened with Endura’s. Plus they are very durable.

    stumpy01
    Full Member

    WillH – Member
    If you want dry feet, avoid neoprene ones.

    I’m not so sure about this….all of the ones I own are neoprene and keep my feet nice & dry inwet conditions.
    Sometimes when taking them off after several hours, the water is just starting to get through, but only enough to dampen the outside.

    As has already been written – if you ride a lot on rocky trails with the occasional walking section, then they probably won’t last long. But, if you are riding in situations where you don’t really put your feet down, then they can last for ages.
    I think I got about 4 years out of my last set & my current set are 2 years old and showing very little signs of wear – they are the Endura MT500s.

    I got some BBB ones for the road bike and they are also very good; easier to put on than the MT500s, but with no ‘durable’ features so not good for mtb.

    And yes, probably good to go up a size if you have bulky shoes.

    toby1
    Full Member

    Got a set for wet commutes and have used them on occasional off-road rides. Well worth it for the relatively low cost. Not 100% effective, but so much better than anything else I have tried.

    smatkins1
    Free Member

    I saw a guy at Brechfa on Sat roll into the carpark after his ride with two Asda carrier bags wrapped around is shoes. I’m not sure this will catch on…

    Lawmanmx
    Free Member

    anybody use them MT500’s with flat pedals and 5.10’s? if so does it work?

    medoramas
    Free Member

    anybody use them MT500’s with flat pedals and 5.10’s? if so does it work?

    I think it would work. The underside of MT500 is very durable, but I would expect a bit of excessive wear due to the contact with pedals.

    RoterStern
    Free Member

    Hmmm, perforated winter boots – I see an obvious flaw there…
    Well they are Goretex lined so no water gets in through that way.

    ….and would you really wear those on a road bike 
    I do wear them on my road bike (cross bike actually set up for winter use)That way I only need one set of boots for all my riding needs in winter. Simples. Plus I have had years of pain free feet cycling using them.

    medoramas
    Free Member

    I do wear them on my road bike (cross bike actually set up for winter use)That way I only need one set of boots for all my riding needs in winter. Simples. Plus I have had years of pain free feet cycling using them.

    But you can’t! It’s against the rules! 😆

    wilburt
    Free Member

    Threw away some mt500s mid ride last week, they’ve never been waterproof but do offer some splash protection and in the dry keep your feet warm. Once wet though they become waterlogged and heavy.
    In common with much of the Endura stuff I’ve owned the stitching quality was also dreadful, personally I will not buy anything from them again.

    Overshoes in general though do work and I consider them an essential this time year.

    davieg
    Free Member

    anybody use them MT500’s with flat pedals and 5.10’s? if so does it work?

    Hmmmn, the jury is still out on this one. The last two weeks, I have been running a Decathlon overshoe that I picked up for £10 quid in the biggest size they had and put them over my Teva’s. I was thinking about the MT500’s, but thought I would save myself £15 on an experiment.

    As stated it very much depends on what you are riding and how much you are walking. Initially I have had dryer and warmer feet, and they certainly stop the wind from nipping your toes. If you are riding smoother trails, less likely to dab or walk, I have found they work well. I have found them no better on my local swamp like trails where you do walk and dab than my existing seal skinz sock and shoe combo, and the velcro straps underneath the shoes are getting really cut up. So much so, I think I will keep them for the road.

    Inevitably, water ingress will find it is way into your shoe if you are riding in the winter. It is keeping the wind and splashes out that I struggle with. How good are the 5.10 Element’s shoes at limiting this?

    mduncombe
    Free Member

    If you want dry feet, avoid neoprene ones. Neoprene is what wetsuits are made of. The clue is in the name. They get wet, and use the layer of water trapped between the neoprene and your skin, which is warmed by your body, to keep you warm.

    Partially true. Neoprene itself is completely impervious to water but like other waterproof materials the construction is key. Its possible water can get in via the seams if not taped/sealed/glued. However none of this matters as there is likely to be a dirty great big hole in the top where you stick your foot in and a dirty great big hole in the bottom for your cleat.

    Neoprene can be an excellent insulator in its own right as in most cases it has bubbles of nitrogen within it that gives excellent insulation and buoyancy.The thicker the neoprene the more nitrogen bubbles it contains and the warmer it will be. If it was purely about warming the water between the skin and the neoprene then a thicker wetsuit would not provide extra warmth, but it does.

    In a wet suit the water gets in through the holes you stick your arms and neck through mostly and to a lesser degree the seams. Neoprene wetsuits are design to be tight fitting to minimise the amount of water next to the skin, cold water flushing into a loose fitting wetsuit is not nice as it will conduct the heat away from your body but the insulation mainly comes from the nitrogen bubbles in the neoprene. If you are constantly flushing cold water past your skin then the insulating properties of the neoprene are fighting a lost cause.

    Neoprene is therefore an excellent choice of material to for making overshoes, its tough, has some stretch, its warm and the neoprene itself is 100% waterproof.

    BTW, I use neoprene diving boots, neoprene wetsuit and a membrane drysuit sea kayaking all year so have gained a fair amount of experience of being wet and cold.

    amedias
    Free Member

    anybody use them MT500’s with flat pedals and 5.10’s? if so does it work?

    I wouldn’t, they’ll be torn to shreds on the bottom within a month I would think.

    wilburt
    Free Member

    Bought some Altura Etape reasonably priced and better than the mt500 they replaced IMO. Size quite small though so if in doubt go up one.

    hilldodger
    Free Member

    Well this morning I had to put on wet overshoes from forgetting to dry them after last night’s deluge 😡
    However my feet were still warm and dry by the time I got to work – don’t think it would have been the same if I’d had to put on wet boots

    garage-dweller
    Full Member

    Big overshoe fan. 1 pair of mtb shoes does 4 seasons. I still get wet feet but they are kept warm. I think the wet comes from submersion in deep puddles and upcoming spray from the bottom rather than it getting through the top’s.

    PlanetX ones for me, which were part of a winter package a couple of years ago. Nothing special but do the job.

Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)

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