I’m in need of some new SPD shoes… think I’ve narrowed it down to either the Shimano ME7 or Northwave Enduro Mid.

Anyone got any experience with either of those?

I normally ride up in the Cairngorms, so I’m looking for:

– A reasonably stiff shoe for the pedalling performance, but not so stiff it’d be uncomfortable for all day epics.

– A grippy sole for the hike-a-bike bits around me (along with good walking comfort)

– I’ve got pretty narrow hooves, so the strap across the front of the ankle is good as it prevents heel lift (blisters)

I’ve not found anything as durable as Shimano, or as comfy…

I have ME3’s, just good balance of weight, stiffness and grippy walking sole.

If you’ve got narrow feet then go for Shimano. As i’ve got feet like a Sasquatch I find them much too narrow to be comfortable, whereas I love the wide fit of Northwaves

I have quite narrow feet and I struggle with Northwave. Had some road Typhoons quite a few years back – the 43 was too tight but the 44 was always a little less snug than I wanted. But they looked so pretty I kept the 44 and used them was years. Replaced wih a 44 Shimano shoe that’s less bling but so much better fitting.

Now got a 44 pair of Northwave mtb xc shoes for commuting in because I won them for £10 off eBay basically never used. Same issue but for the price I’m good with it.

Just thinking about swapping from flats to spds for a bit on the mtb so picked up some xc Shimano shows for £25 in a 50% off sale. I’d have preferred more skater shoe looking things but the price was too good to miss. They fit so well though compared to my Northwaves – both are xc mtb shoes so it’s pretty like for like comparison.

The good thing about the Shimano shoes is that if they suddenly catch fire for no apparent reason the company will automatically send you an unreserved apology…

I’m not sure Northwave have that in-built facility ..😉

Dunno about any difference in durability – my Northwave shoes last forever. They do seem to be a narrower fit than they used to be, so my latest shoes are Shimano and they’re a great fit.

Thanks for the replies folks… Shimano it is then.

Northwave Mid Enduro shoe.

What can I say… Got a pair for my xmas from my wife, had to go up a size from my previous shimano ones that were at least 10yrs old.

They are nice and wide/roomy in the toe area a bit more mesh than I would’ve liked but given I wear seakinz socks quite a lot on the trails  not that much of an issue. They have good stiff grippy sole, which is good as I do like to push  quite a bit uphill #noshameinpushing  They are a comfortable shoe to wear whilst riding.

Now fast forward 6 months I’m on holiday in Switzerland heading to the the Swiss/Italian border for what I was told was a really good descent into Italy then at 2800m up just before the descent the cleat and shoe decide to separate. After many bodging attempts we gave up and I made my way down to Italy not as fast as I’d liked to. Once in the village the others were high fiving and chest bumping as to how wonderful the descent was. having a foot flapping about wasn’t the most enjoyable ride I’d had.

To be fair to Northwave I had a replacement shoe within a week of my return to UK, all is good again. Not so another 6 months or so passes and I start to notice the rubber toe protector starting to delaminate from the shoe. I contacted i-ride uk the importers the declared it fair wear and tear. For a 6 month old shoe I disagreed again they said nope. I contacted Northwave direct and they said they would replace the shoes, they also said the latest shoes “have been further reinforced at the front toe part”

Customer service score  i-ride uk 0 – 1 Northwave

For some reason it took about another 2 months for the new shoes to come to me, as they came direct from Northwave in Italy

This version seem a better shoe that the previous 2, I guess they are product testing on the public.

Overall despite the problems I do like the shoe.

Yeah, Shimano then rugbydick 🙂