UKC

How long do your climbing shoes last before they either have a hole in the toe, or are at the point when climbing any more in them would create a hole?

I'm asking because I seem to go through shoes fast. I've been climbing about a year and a half and I have had at least 6 pairs of shoes (that's around £500!) and all have gone through in the toes.

Four of those six pair have been Anasazi VCS and they have gone through on the toes and subsequently the rand after about 3 months. I recently bought a pair of Miuras, which I think are great, but the toe on them has worn down even more quickly, in about 2 months, to the point where if I climb in them any longer the rand will suffer and so I am now considering getting them re-soled.

I realise that a major factor in the life of a shoe being short is poor footwork. My footwork isn't great but it isn't terrible - I avoid scraping my feet and try to be constantly precise. However, after going through six pairs of shoes, it seems that it must be me that's weak link in the chain. So, I'd like to know:

How long do your shoes last before at least warranting a resole? More than 2-3 months?

In reply to theomoore:

My muiras are coming up to a year of indoor and outdoor use and there is very little wear.
Might be worth getting a cheep cheep pair for indoor training and working on your foot work.

In reply to theomoore:

My Jokers lasted a year of climbing 1-2 times a week along with a reasonable amount of multi-pitch trad.

2-3 months is very short... perhaps you're dragging your toes up on the wall a little too much?

In reply to theomoore:

I seem to go through a pair of shoes every six months, but...
a) I normally climb Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and some Sundays, plus weekend if the weather stops being a never-ending stream of misery and disappointment, and
b) I usually climb at the Quay (Exeter) which has those particularly abrasive Entreprises wall panels, which will destroy shoes if your footwork is bad.

So far I have put holes in the side of the two in two pairs of Defys and now a hole in the tip of the toe in my Bandits SC (the velcro ones). New pair of Bandits probably coming up... (might get the laced ones since I don't take them off between climbs anyway!)

In reply to theomoore:

Thanks. To add: I climb on average 3 times a week, almost exclusively on plastic and gritstone.

In reply to theomoore:

Climbing indoors wears them quicker (you'll find you climb more agressively on a wall).

I'm going through La Sportiva Katanas at 6 months a pop at the moment.

That's wall twice a week and climbing every 2nd weekend (max).

In reply to theomoore:

Your weight probably affects wear alot also - fat people with sloppy footwork probably wear shoes quicker than skinny girls with prescision etc.

In reply to theomoore:

I'm climbing about 4 times a week, I've had the Scarpa Force for 14 months. Very rounded toe though not worn through yet. Sounds like the toe is rubbing too much of the wall. Maybe keeping the footwork clean is the issue.

In reply to theomoore:

Cut your toenails?

In reply to theomoore:

Resoling is cheaper than buying a new pair every time...

In reply to timmeehhhh:

But is it really worth it for a £60-£70 pair of shoes?

In reply to andrewmcleod:

I think so, they're already worn in well too. Fit feels a a little different to new but they're still great for indoors at the least.

In reply to theomoore:

The youngest pair of shoes I've resoled (that i knew the age of anyway) was a 5 week old pair of Katanas. The oldest were a pair of original aces from the late '80s (it was their first resole).

Somewhere between those two is the norm.

I think around the 6 months if you are climbing a lot and indoors is pretty average and 3 months is not unusual. If its just outdoors it'll be considerably longer.

The shape of your foot/toes inside the shoe can have a huge affect on how fast they wear, it can be nothing to do with bad footwork (although obviously it can be everything to do with bad footwork).

In reply to theomoore:

I dont think your unusually different from the normal cycle of shoe wear in a newish climber, I went through slightly less over a longer period but wore them down quicker than I should have and as others have said as footwork improves wear will slow.

I seem to get 9 months out of a pair before resoling at the moment with dragons.

In reply to andrewmcleod:

Also, depending on how sensitive you like your shoes, you could go for a double thickness toe cap (just on the tope/end). I have gone for this as I have aweful footwork and manage to shred my shoes whenever I go inside. I've also gone for having dedicated indoor and outdoor shoes as I value outdoor much more, and therefore keep my 'nice' shoes for this and use trashier ones indoors.