My new TC Pros feel like clunkers

After owning Miuras and katana lace ups I was expecting something along that line with the TC pro, but they feel clunky on slabby edgy climbs. Do these shoes break to be more than just a good hand jam shoe?

gotta agree with the original poster. i just wore TC Pros for the first time today and they are not sensitive. i own a pair of mythos and scarpa vapor vS, both of which allow more feel i guess. i will say TCs are the best fitting most comfy shoes i have ever put on. and they did seem to be real solid on edges as advertised. hopefully after some climbing they will develop a bit of sensitivity.

I'm thinking it has to due with how thick the rubber is because my other "stiff" shoes like the Galileo didn't feel nearly as clunky, while being just as comfortable. I also think the rubber on the TC pros doesn't inspire much confidence, although I think it's the same rubber as the Miura.

I believe the TC Pros use the 7mm instead of the 6mm rubber, so that perhaps is part of the difference in feel. Have some patience, they are my favorite shoe I've ever owned, especially because they are the best edging shoe I've ever tried (including Miuras). I'm talking credit card edges.

I felt the same way after buying a new pair but once they broke in they felt great. Just be aware that the break in time takes a little longer than most shoes.

Tom Mulholland wrote:I believe the TC Pros use the 7mm instead of the 6mm rubber, so that perhaps is part of the difference in feel. Have some patience, they are my favorite shoe I've ever owned, especially because they are the best edging shoe I've ever tried (including Miuras). I'm talking credit card edges.

6mm or 7 mm???? I can't find how thick these are, but Evolv shoes claim 4mm in the regular shoes and the thicker is 4.2mm. Whatever the thickness is it is quite thick. Maybe after breaking in these shoes they will be good for sports climbing in the ORG, but the only reason I was climbing in them down there was to break them in for the 'real stuff'.

I also heard that these stretch a lot, which I'm hoping to be true. I wear a 13 or 14 in street shoes, and bought the 46 (largest they make) in hopes that they will stretch a bit. In this size they are a bit more comfy than my 46 miuras. Maybe I should have found a katanan lace up in a 46???

theyre 4mm vibram edge .. same as the miura, katana, etc ...

lasportiva.com/climbing.htm…;L=1&tt_products%5Bproduct%5D=7&cHash=911cf190edc20cc9e84a91b86cd467b6

the rand is extra thick though ...

i never found the tc pros to work personally ... katanas and miuras fit me better for cheaper

its the climber that matters anyways ;)

Mine were stiff and clunky as well when new, kind of wondered if it was the rubber thickness. Anyway once the broke in I felt they improved dramatically in edging. Best all day shoe I've owned.

I guess I just need to get back on some granite!

After flailing on a 10b slab in the ORG yesterday (where I couldn't mentally make a required move because I didn't trust the shoe to stay put on a small slopey glass hold)I did two of the bolted cracks with little problem. Then I got on a 10D arete with my Solutions (one aspect of having big feet=good deals!!!) and I had zero problem on really shitty smears and small divots that I wouldn't trust the TC Pros on.

Hopefully the weather will be good at Little Egypt this weekend!

Different shoes need subtly different footwork

I did some soft 11/12- crack/face in my katana/miura this week ... And then i tried em in my 50 dollah climb x

The foot pressure changes ... A bit more smeary

But its not the shoes thats holding me back

sweagan wrote: 6mm or 7 mm???? I can't find how thick these are, but Evolv shoes claim 4mm in the regular shoes and the thicker is 4.2mm. Whatever the thickness is it is quite thick. Maybe after breaking in these shoes they will be good for sports climbing in the ORG, but the only reason I was climbing in them down there was to break them in for the 'real stuff'. I also heard that these stretch a lot, which I'm hoping to be true. I wear a 13 or 14 in street shoes, and bought the 46 (largest they make) in hopes that they will stretch a bit. In this size they are a bit more comfy than my 46 miuras. Maybe I should have found a katanan lace up in a 46???

Sorry, you're right, that was outrageous. Been a long time since I got them resoled. Last time I got them resoled (Rock & Resole, what's the phone number?), I used the 5mm instead of the 4mm, because I remember the rubber being extra thick when they were brand new. I think it was the right choice.

what is it that makes the pros better on anything over a pair of mythos, moccs, or what-the-heck-ever? they seem like the aces of the 21st century and I hated mine. maybe its the fact that hard cracks always seem to have techy smearing that put me off on hard feel nothing shoes that break in in 2 years.

Benjaminadk wrote:gotta agree with the original poster. i just wore TC Pros for the first time today and they are not sensitive.

What exactly were you and the OP expecting?

I like them for hand-sized to offwidth cracks, they edge okay, out of the box I could stand on a dime edge, but after a while the rubber edge wore down and now I roll off that stuff. they're definately my faves for long days on 5.10's in the Creek though.

shoo wrote: What exactly were you and the OP expecting?

I was expecting a $180 shoe to perform a whole lot better than a beginner shoe, which is also great for hands to offwidth climbing. I think Sportiva may have over designed this shoe just to make a very expensive beginner shoe with a hot-shots name associated with it.

I told a really strong friend about my dislike of this shoe, he said he felt the same way, until he resoled them 2 times, the rands were finally worn enough that they started performing adequately.

I definately can't see pulling these shoes out of my pack for anything that is at my limit, especially if I expect to do a lot of smearing.

Maybe I expect my shoes to do too much climbing for me, but I feel a whole lot more solid in every other shoe I own, and I own a lot. If this was my only shoe (like the typical person!) then maybe I would just get used to it, but when I compare them to Miuras, Katana Lace-ups, galileos, anasazi VCS's, Solutions, Venoms, Vapors, Forces, Mythos, Mocasyms, Pontas Lace-ups, Anasazi Slippers they feel like clunky-poor performing shoes. I do not think they excel (at least not yet) on hand cracks, although they do just fine, but so does every other shoe!!!

I know what you mean, they do feel clunky at first. But... They feel thick but they stick. On really tiny edges on vertical or less, they work like no other. Try some hard thin face up at the Milks in them, or Boy Named Sue up at Rock Creek. Give yourself some time to get used to them, and you too may come to love them.

Tavis Ricksecker wrote:I know what you mean, they do feel clunky at first. But... They feel thick but they stick. On really tiny edges on vertical or less, they work like no other. Try some hard thin face up at the Milks in them, or Boy Named Sue up at Rock Creek. Give yourself some time to get used to them, and you too may come to love them.

Tav,
Would you get on Sheila with these shoes?

Your expectations are hilariously off base. These are stiff, thick, and stiff, and thick shoes. They are supposed to be.

On any given pitch, would I rather be wearing something else? On some pitches, yes. Most, even. On others, they're pretty close to ideal.

Do they do everything perfectly? Hell no.

Do they do everything well? Yes.

They are made for the long haul, to perform nearly as well as anything else on a given pitch, but with the benefit of getting to keep them on for pitch after pitch. That's what they do. And to those that value that kind of performance, they're a good option.

I'm not trying to sound like an a$$, but what did you guys think when you bought a shoe that looks more like a 50 yr old EB, than the Mytho's and Katana's? Oh, that's right you guys thought you were gonna climb just like Tommy...ok, so maybe I am an a$$ :)