Which flat pedal shoes? £75 budget

lofty102

Hi,
Any info on which flat pedal shoes for £75 or less I should buy would be great.
I'm just getting back into mtbing after a few years off so I'm a bit out of touch with whats decent and what's not.
I'll be mainly riding trail centres, Hamsterley, Dalby or glentress and I've got DMR V12 pedals.

Thanks!

Rigga

Personally i wouldn't bother with the expensive mtb specific shoes as they are overrated Imo. I've had some karrimor walking shoes from sports direct for the last two years and they have been immense, they were about £25. I know a lot of their stuff is cheap tat but those shoes are bang on.
I've also got some mountain warehouse walking shoes with waterproof membrane which are about £35 and came recommended to me by a doctor. Again excellent shoes and perfect for mtbing.

Danieljephcott

Even tho a decent pair of skater shoes are good the grip, comfort and quality of mtb shoes are amazing.

Five ten free riders all the way

cooldad

Walking shoes are rubbish for riding. You want flat stiff soles, with soft rubber. Walking shoes have knobby soles, exactly what you don't want.
CRC have 5 10s on sale, if you can find your size.

wmorgs

Gotta say i got old version of these and have been brill:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... prod138002

or if right size:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... -prod55371

I use with a £12 set of aldi waterproof socks.

neilvx

I have just fitted some Wellgo MG-1 and they work great with my vans, plus the pedals only cost £28 :-)

JGTR

I have 5:10s - they are far superior to skate shoes, the grip is amazing, really does feel like you are clipped in but.......I ride with my right foot at an angle so chewed through my sole in about 3 months as the soles are so soft - not good for a £120 pair of shoes. I'd look at the Shimano shoes, in budget and the soles seem a lot harder wearing than the 5:10s.

The_Wicker_Man

Five Ten Elements are good (have a waterproof membrane). On CRC for £77

lofty102

Thanks for the replies.
How is the sizing on 5 10's and shimano shoes is it a case of order your normal shoes size or do you need to order the next size up / down?

lofty102

Any thoughts on O'neal trigger 2 shoes?

JGTR

Think Shimano is one EU size bigger, if you Google it there's more info online

The_Wicker_Man

lofty102 wrote:

Thanks for the replies.
How is the sizing on 5 10's and shimano shoes is it a case of order your normal shoes size or do you need to order the next size up / down?

I would go half a size up for the 5 10's. I'm usually an EU44.5 (44 for casual trainers).

stuart_c-2

A question, why is the knobbly sole of a walking shoe a bad thing? Will the knobbles not "engage" with the pedal and pins anyway? Totally get the stiff sole bit, just how stiff are 5-10's however?

Looking at getting something for flat pedals (currently an SPD user) but £70-80 for a pair of shoes that will get less than normal use is just a tad too far. Was looking at the previously mentioned Karrimor shoes, would describe the sole as "semi stiff", better than trainers but worse than current clipless shoes.

lofty102

Obviously I'm no expert, but I'd expect that shoes like 5 10s or shimano am7 which are designed specifically for flat pedal use have a tread pattern designed solely for 'engaging' with the pins, to provide maximum grip. The soles will also be made with a much softer compound of rubber than a hard wearing walking shoes sole, again to maximise grip.

kinioo

Rigga wrote:

Personally i wouldn't bother with the expensive mtb specific shoes as they are overrated Imo. I've had some karrimor walking shoes from sports direct for the last two years and they have been immense, they were about £25. I know a lot of their stuff is cheap tat but those shoes are bang on.
I've also got some mountain warehouse walking shoes with waterproof membrane which are about £35 and came recommended to me by a doctor. Again excellent shoes and perfect for mtbing.

I second this.

I use my old and trusted karrimors (paid £18 about 6 years back) + Sealskins.
They had been well used hiking, now I have been using them for MTB; however, if the conditions get really rough (i.e. muddy, wet, snowy etc.) I do put MTB overshoes just to keep the cr*p off.

kinioo

lofty102 wrote:

Obviously I'm no expert, but I'd expect that shoes like 5 10s or shimano am7 which are designed specifically for flat pedal use have a tread pattern designed solely for 'engaging' with the pins, to provide maximum grip. The soles will also be made with a much softer compound of rubber than a hard wearing walking shoes sole, again to maximise grip.

Well, therefore the sole should be completely flat - there is 1000s of different flat pedals out there with different pin location/configuration ?!

lofty102

Well, therefore the sole should be completely flat - there is 1000s of different flat pedals out there with different pin location/configuration ?!

Not necessarily, you would still need some tread for the pins on the flat pedals to 'engage' with. A completely flat tread would need extremely soft compound for the pins to grip and then soles would last no time at all.

swod1

I'd suggest some shimano am7s I've got the older am41s and are well worn but still grip my pedals. I'm buying the am7s as replacement pretty soon.

Be aware that pedals with sharp pins will wear the shoes quicker, the hollow pins on my hope f20s are flat but grip really well.

JGTR

kinioo wrote:

lofty102 wrote:

Obviously I'm no expert, but I'd expect that shoes like 5 10s or shimano am7 which are designed specifically for flat pedal use have a tread pattern designed solely for 'engaging' with the pins, to provide maximum grip. The soles will also be made with a much softer compound of rubber than a hard wearing walking shoes sole, again to maximise grip.

Well, therefore the sole should be completely flat - there is 1000s of different flat pedals out there with different pin location/configuration ?!

Exactly, but you need a slight pattern to be able to walk in the without slipping over.

My 5:10 Impacts have a very flat sole with minimal grip and a super soft compound....so soft that they only lasted 5 months!!!

cdb

I ride Shimano Saint flat pedals. Started out wearing Merrell trail shoes. Thought they were OK, but found my feet slipping off when trails got rugged and found myself adjusting my footing more than I thought I should be.

Read a few forums like this and everyone recommended proper MTB shoes. I thought: it can't make that much difference can it? Bought myself some Five Tens. Unbelievable difference. Massively improved my footing. Also improved the ride overall as you're so planted you don't need to worry about whether your feet are properly sited so can concentrate on other aspects of your technique.

If you're going to buy any MTB-focused clothing, make it the shoes.

mattyfez

Standard karrimore walking shoes here, about £30.
Light, comfy, stiff soles, quite deep tread but dont come unstuck on my superstar nano pedals.

Briggo

cooldad wrote:

Walking shoes are rubbish for riding. You want flat stiff soles, with soft rubber. Walking shoes have knobby soles, exactly what you don't want.
CRC have 5 10s on sale, if you can find your size.

This a million times, I've tried various walking/running shoes and they dont work.

If you're actually riding technical trails and pushing yourself they don't stand up to the job anywhere near Five Tens or Shimano AM's do.

Pottering around and taking it easy, anything will do.

Hiltaldo

I wear walking shoes MTBing as I need the grip on the bits I end up pushing the bike up! Flat soles and mud don't mix! :P

hsiaolc

lofty102 wrote:

Hi,
Any info on which flat pedal shoes for £75 or less I should buy would be great.
I'm just getting back into mtbing after a few years off so I'm a bit out of touch with whats decent and what's not.
I'll be mainly riding trail centres, Hamsterley, Dalby or glentress and I've got DMR V12 pedals.

Thanks!

Five Ten for sure.

Definitely not just any shoe.

If you tried running shoes the pedals will eat those shoes for breakfast.

Briggo

Walking shoes just do not work, unless you ride in an area which is fairly subdued in terms of ruggedness.

Tried and tested many a time in an effort to save some cash. Proper flat sole shoes are the only way to go.

vulva65

pink shiny ones work best.

Crazyjenkins01

FiveTen Impacts and Nano-X pedals for me. Great combo.
Stiff soled but not so much you cant walk in them, feet stay pretty planted almost all the time. Was using running shoes when i started out and these are worlds apart.
next ones will be FiveTens again, or maybe try a Shimano but will definitely be MTB specific.

swod1

As were on the subject of flat pedal shoes my shimano am41s are looking very worn and I'm looking at purchasing the new am7s. I am wondering is the size and fit still the same as the old shoes? I bought eu46 last time so hoping to just get the same again.

Rauer

Five ten free rider , I have the elements for winter, grip is insane

Danieljephcott

Five ten free riders get my vote. Get the canvas or elements.

I've gone from shimano am5 which are really grippy but I know have five ten free riders which are insanely grippy, comfy and they look good.