I swear my new shoes have shrunk.

Might have had something to do with leaving them in a hot car.  Can anybody confirm or comment on this?  I bought a pair of skwamas on the comfortable side and now they're too tight.  Just wondering if others have had similar experience. 

Your foot swelled. Happens all the time. 

I think the main concern with a hot car is softening the glues that hold it all together...

I have personally experience the foot swelling issue, though. And of course, it tends to happen on climbing trips when we climb for multiple days in hot weather, with strenuous approaches.

Your foot has probably swollen. This can especially happen if you purchased the shoe in a colder place and are wearing them in a hotter place. 

hyperplastic saskwatchia= rare foot disease where your feet grow  abnormally large and hairy

Beyond the hot/cold swelling your feet are also like half a size smaller when you wake up, so if you try on shoes in the morning, especially on a cold morning, then try to put them on during a hot afternoon... double whammy

rocknice2 wrote:

Your foot swelled. Happens all the time. 

Yup, especially when it's warmer. Converse it true also, I've been doing a lot of climbing in 40-50 degree weather and found my katanas which were snug in the summer are almost sloppy. Almost bouldering fit skwamas have been the go to in the mornings for sport routes.

I did try them on and purchase them at the end of the day. Took them to the gym right after and they climbed fine and comfortable. This isn't a half size I'm talking here, it's a full size or more. I bought them big so my toes would stay flat and now they're bunched and in pain. Take em off, put on my go to shoes and they're fine. Not saying my feet are impervious to swelling, but I really don't think that's the case here. 

Sure leather could shrink if they were wet with sweat and then got tossed in the toasty oven of your car. IME they will stretch back out.

What make and model shoe are they?

Well every shoe is not meant for every foot. You may just want to try a different shoes altogether. 

If the leather has shrunk the fastest and possibly risky method to re-hydrate them would be to get them wet, put them on  (you should feel them loosen up) and wear them until they are dry. Option 2 slower and more painful version is wear them until they stretch back out. 

Never leave children, pets or $150 climbing shoes in a hot car ;) JB

Inconsistency of fit is a known issue with leather shoes. I've had similar experiences many LS models. Foot swelling is also a possibility which you seem to be aware of. 

John Barritt wrote:

If the leather has shrunk the fastest and possibly risky method to re-hydrate them would be to get them wet, put them on  (you should feel them loosen up) and wear them until they are dry. Option 2 slower and more painful version is wear them until they stretch back out. 

Never leave children, pets or $150 climbing shoes in a hot car ;) JB

+1.  Soak them in warm water till the leather is saturated (there is no risk doing this, I have broken in all my shoes for the past 15 years). Dry off extra water with a towel.  Wear them and bend your feet around trying to get them mold to yoir feet.  Wear them climbing if you can, this will work the best.  Once you have worn yhem like this for at least 30min then they should have molded well to your feet.  Next time you wear them they should fit perfect.  If they are still too small then you got them too small or your feet swell a lot. Try decreasing your salt intake.  

rockklimber wrote:

"+1.  Soak them in warm water till the leather is saturated (there is no risk doing this..."

Except that some LS shoes have issues of early delam and as stated above exposure to heat has a (poorly understood) effect on glue. 

rockklimber wrote:

+1.  Soak them in warm water till the leather is saturated (there is no risk doing this, I have broken in all my shoes for the past 15 years).   

The reason I said possibly risky is due to the fact that La Sportiva tends to use a mix of materials in their shoes, leather, leather substitutes,  leather-like substances, plastics, rubber etc. without knowing how all the materials in the shoe will respond to water (or interact with each other) take my advice with a grain of salt. While water will swell and relax the leather it could actually shrink something else. It looks like that shoe has leather (suede) in the forward portion of the shoe, wet that first with a sponge. Anything you aren't sure of can be avoided or spot tested. My .02

JB

Don Ferris wrote:

I bought them big so my toes would stay flat and now they're bunched and in pain. 

Toe box of the skwama wants your toes to knuckle up because of how the sole comes up below your big toe (like the evolv "luv bump). Since there is good rand tension, even size to have bunch of dead space in the heel your toes will be pushed into that shape the shoe wants. If you want a flatter toe I think you're just SOL in that shoe. 

John Barritt wrote:

Never leave children, pets or $150 climbing shoes in a hot car ;) JB

I'm guilty of this... well, the climbing shoes, anyway. I work .75 mile from my climbing gym, so I tend to leave my gear in the car, so I always have the option to stop in for some climbing after work. I haven't had any ill effects yet, but I've only been working here since October, so they haven't been out there for any truly hot weather up to this point.

Has anyone ever had shoes delaminate from being in a hot car? I may have to start dragging my gear in and leaving it in my office during the day.

depends on the difference in coefficients of thermal expansion of:

1. your feet

2. your shoes

what's your delta T? ;-)
I've got so much T it's not even delta

Andrew Krajnik wrote:

I'm guilty of this... well, the climbing shoes, anyway. I work .75 mile from my climbing gym, so I tend to leave my gear in the car, so I always have the option to stop in for some climbing after work. I haven't had any ill effects yet, but I've only been working here since October, so they haven't been out there for any truly hot weather up to this point.

Has anyone ever had shoes delaminate from being in a hot car? I may have to start dragging my gear in and leaving it in my office during the day.

The biggest problem of keeping climbing shoes in the car is noone will want to ride in your car. (can be an upside)

Nathanael wrote:

The biggest problem of keeping climbing shoes in the car is noone will want to ride in your car. (can be an upside)

Fair enough! I take mine off between pitches, clip them on the outside of my pack to air out, and spray them with foot/sneaker spray after every climbing session, so my shoes have never gotten particularly ripe...