Flats – What you people wearing on your plates of meat ?

Going to give flats a try, just wondered what you guys and gals are wearing in the way of shoes

Obviously the spd shoes I have now are not going to give me any grip

5:10 spaz shoes all the way…

5.10s. Just not if it’s even remotely damp 😕

5:10, thread closed. They’re by miles the best shoe if you want the best grip.

Skate shoes do NOT compare.

*devils advocate mode on*

OR…skate shoes will be just fine (vans/duffs/etnies or really old skool airwalks for me)

*devils advocate mode off*

hope this helps 🙂

lister (flat pedal rider since ’93)

I like devils advocate, he’s cheaper 🙂

get down tkmax…you can’t go wrong 🙂

got these:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=20237

not as grippy as 5:10s but do the job fine – and are cheap

5 10 here as well

i wear salomon xa pros there not very good for anything really and are no longer wayerproof cos of the rips in them, the sole is delaminating and there a bit small. if your just “giving them ago” use your trainers.

Just thought i’d share that with you 🙂

vans rowley xlt somthing-or-other on v8’s. Very happy with that and look like ‘normal’ shoes. except muddier.

I use 5.10’s and an old pair of Salomon shoes that eventually had the 5.10 rubber sole added (only after my flats destroyed the original sole)

Rowleys are ace.. i’ve had xlts xl2s xl3s squares and slims, i love rowleys. also rock a variety of other vans, bout 14 pairs in total, on mag v-12s. got some nice vans syndicate bash hi tops at the mo.
LOVE VANS

Some New Balance things I got in Brantano cheap years ago. Nice stiff sole, never slipped off yet and great for walky/carry bits.

Was thinking about a pair of 5-10’s (for when my flatty’s turn up).

Anyone know how accurate the sizing is? (I’m euro size 45, but needed size 47 shimano shoes and even they are on the tight side).

Vans with waffle soles. Loads of grip and half the price of 5:10s

Shimano Mp56 and MP90 here, both ace.

any old pair of trainers I happen to have at hand. At the moment Im wearing Merrell Vibram soles when it’s dryish and an old pair of Nikes for when it’s wet and cold.

I hate to agree with everyone else but 5/10s are the best.

some Etnies i got cheap from a skate shop in Scotland

I wear some Regatta light hiking boots I got cheap from a discount shop. They keep my feet nice and dry and are pretty comfy. Grip is ok, apart from on really bumpy trails.

For ultimate grip, get 5:10 impact shoes, I borrowed my friends and did a run of Innerleithen on my hardtail and my feet didnt come off once, unlike with my Etnies.

For dirtjumping you probably want some less grippy shoes, which is where skate shoes excel over 5:10s

5 10s and skate shoes are worlds apart, there simply is no comparison. 5 10s all the way. I’ve never had a problem with them in the wet either re jimbo’s post.

depends on your riding, I use/used lightweight hiking boots with vibram sole, currently raichle, for winter and most of the summer, then merrels with a vibram sole. Both cheap from TK maxx, I have used trainers and skate shoes found them to soft to pedal for ages, ripped to shreads in a short while so stuck with the above. I am sure 5. 10s are brill but the cost puts me off 😥

Nike Air whistlers, very happy with them, nice balance of stiffness/stickiness, any of the Nike 6.0 ones are pretty good and you can get them pretty cheap at the mo.

Go down TK Maxx, ride the skate shoes you get there until you knacker the soles and then get them resoled in stealth rubber so you end up with a pair of cheaper 5-10s. Maybe.

Some old trainers, of course

Vans with waffle soles may be half the price of 5:10s, but will last less than half as long, and are no way as grippy.

I’ve had my spaz shoes for over 18 months and they look like new, Vans would have been in tatters in that time. 5:10s are the business, especially in really shitey conditions. You have to lift your foot to reposition it if you put it on the pedal in the wrong place they are that sticky, I’ve not seen that with the multitude of other shoes I’ve worn over the years.

Shimano AMs, reasonable price, ankle protection, good vibram or something sole, comfy, grippy, terror pins and these completely transformed my crappy slim jims.

Well guess who bought these in the UK in Stiff over Christmas, but didn’t have room to bring them back home, and then forgot to bring them back a couple of weeks later when back on business despite me even going to The Big Yellow to pick up a couple of other things in storage 🙁

Sorry I should say that these are my second pair of 5 tens and although not that cool and very sticky.

I do feel somewhat mildly vindicated after today’s ride, where Roper asked me yet again if I plan to move to clip ons. I don’t feel I have enough technical ability to feel confident in them. Anyway, our ride today was so claggy with clay, on the way beack he couldn’t even clip in it was that bad.

I am sure it could be different though next weekend if we do the ride with the 20km climb.

i’ve got shimano mp56’s. good in filth as they’ve got a lace-cover. i might try 5.10s in the summer (if we get a summer) but i can’t see them comparing to the shimanos in the wet.

link to shimanos on CRC

theyre a bit stiff at first but they’re loosening up

bomberman, new vibram Shimanos are a lot grippier than the MP56. They are however even stiffer (and the MP90 comes with a extra stiff sole option!).

My MP56 are a bit floppy now, not so good when you put a foot down on a rooted track!

bomberman

i’ve got shimano mp56’s. good in filth as they’ve got a lace-cover. i might try 5.10s in the summer (if we get a summer) but i can’t see them comparing to the shimanos in the wet.

Am I the only one who thinks they look even more “special” than 5 10s? The current generation of 5 10’s are thoroughly waterproof, and the old ones weren’t bad. With sealskinz…fuggedaboutit.

The shimanos dont really compare in terms of grip.

I think the issue with 5.10 shoes is that when wet, it takes till next winter for them to dry out

rockthreegozy
I think the issue with 5.10 shoes is that when wet, it takes till next winter for them to dry out

Not really a problem anymore, even with the older ones it was only a problem when you totally immersed them or were out all day in monsoon conditions.

5 10s

“5 10s and skate shoes are worlds apart, there simply is no comparison. 5 10s all the way. I’ve never had a problem with them in the wet either re jimbo’s post.”

They function fine in the wet, gripping like a…grippy thing. However, they soak up a LOT of water and take a good few days to dry out.
This was in massively wet conditions (i.e. last summer) however. In light rain/staying away from the puddles, they’re sufficient.

Anyone used the AM40s? Quite tempted, if just for a change…

i don’t do staying away from puddles. in Calderdale they’re pretty much unavoidable (and lots of fun!)

I’ve found that any skater style trainers with my Easton Cullys are griper than a grippy thing. However with what everyone says about 5.10’s I’m going to have to give them a blast.

I do have to revert back to clipless in the winter tho with Shimano boots. As there are no flatty shoes that can take the weather in the lakes without getting cold, wet, soggy feet.

So if anyone knows plase let me know!

Don’t be tempted to try Inov8 running shoes with flatties. Grip is superb but managed to ruin two pairs within a month – pins just eat through the sole.