Are TC Pros THAT Good?

I've never owned a pair of TC Pros, I see them everywhere and they're an insanely popular shoe. People wear TC Pros on grades from 5.4-5.14. Partially I feel like lots of people own them because Tommy and Alex wear them all the time.

For context I own Katana Laces, Miura Laces and recently got a pair of Boostic Rs (I'm a fan of stiff shoes). Is there anything the TC Pro does better than those shoes that I'm missing out on? I don't climb many offwidths, so I don't think the ankle protection is a game changer. I mostly do single pitch climbing, and there aren't many big multipitches where I live that would require the TC for all day comfort.

That said I am curious to know how the TC Pros perform, and what makes you like or dislike them. Thanks.

If you don’t need the ankle protection then they would not be better than the shoes you have. The original concept for the TC Pro was essentially a high-top Miura. If you go back and look at the old photos of Tommy freeing El Cap routes, he’s got Miuras on.

i would say they're an awesome (somewhat trad oriented) pair of shoes.  i'm currently rotating through three pairs of (original) tc pros, one pair of mantras (butora), and three pairs of katakis, which is my favorite 'performance' shoe.  the times where i'll reach for my tc pros 10/10 times is on pure slab (in the traditional sense of the word, not those 90deg 'slabs' that kids talk about these days) and most of the time on long alpine/multi-pitch stuff.  the ankle protection does matter when you're doing med/fat cracks.

most people think they're a really stiff shoes, but they're actually more on the medium side of things.  i actually have a pair that's been stiffened up.

they just seem to do most things very well and few things not so well (steep sport). 

on the tommy/alex notion: i started with generations of predecessors - megas (awesome for the time), kaukulators (not a big fan), to tc pros.  buying something because some famous climber advertises it is imho ill advised.  get your stuff because it 'works' ;-) 

No

Bryce Dahlgrenwrote:

I've never owned a pair of TC Pros, I see them everywhere and they're an insanely popular shoe. People wear TC Pros on grades from 5.4-5.14. Partially I feel like lots of people own them because Tommy and Alex wear them all the time.

For context I own Katana Laces, Miura Laces and recently got a pair of Boostic Rs (I'm a fan of stiff shoes). Is there anything the TC Pro does better than those shoes that I'm missing out on? I don't climb many offwidths, so I don't think the ankle protection is a game changer. I mostly do single pitch climbing, and there aren't many big multipitches where I live that would require the TC for all day comfort.

That said I am curious to know how the TC Pros perform, and what makes you like or dislike them. Thanks.

What do you use the Miura for?  I was told they work as an all purpose show where I climb.  Granite,  cracks ,.slab and sport.

Have never worn it yet on long multi

RWPTwrote:

What do you use the Miura for?  I was told they work as an all purpose show where I climb.  Granite,  cracks ,.slab and sport.

Have never worn it yet on long multi

Pretty much the same stuff as my Katanas, granite climbing and cracks, although I feel the Miura smear better than the Katanas but don’t edge on tiny stuff as well.

James -wrote:

If you don’t need the ankle protection then they would not be better than the shoes you have. The original concept for the TC Pro was essentially a high-top Miura. If you go back and look at the old photos of Tommy freeing El Cap routes, he’s got Miuras on.

Interesting I didn’t realize that. Looking at the specs TCs are less asymmetrical and have a whole length midsole vs the Miuras half length. But I guess they climb similarly enough?

TC's shine with how well they climb for how comfy they are, for single pitches there is a better shoe in every aspect just in sportivas's lineup. I actually have no idea why Tommy wore them for the dawn wall and super downsized, I think it's telling ondra bought up katana laces and solutions. Alex and Tommy both downsize probably tighter than all of us for TC's, maybe they know something we don't, they definitely have a legendary pain tolerance. 

I do really like mine though, must be on the 6th pair with multiple resoles out of each pair. 

Mostly they’re just super comfy and also give you performance edging and smearing and crack climbing. Way comfier than miuras or katanas or any of the other toe box traps. I basically stopped buying other shoes; I can climb 12 trad or sport in them and my feet aren’t barking at the end of the day.

If you're a trad climber and they fit your foot, they're a solid all around shoe. I found that they were plenty for me until I started getting into upper 10s. Now I reach for Skwamas for the really thin stiff I'm working on but TCs are always in my bag and tend to get used at least once each weekend. 

There are plenty of alternatives. It's not the shoe after all. Footwork is everything

I used the original TC's (and liked them), and now wear the new green TC's........i was afraid I would not like the new ones as much but now like them better than the originals.

I am an older climber (age 65) and enjoy multipitch moderate trad climbing.......that said, I wear these shoes (the new version) exclusively for all my climbing, including gym climbing.

What I like about them is comfort without sacrificing much performance.....they are a little stiffer than Katanas so they edge better for me, the new version has a beefier rand that i feel adds to the stiffness/edging factor. At my age, my toe strength is not as great, so the little bit of being stiffer helps me edge...........They are great crack jamming shoes......I've climbed in Yosemite and Tuolumne several times in the past 2 years. They might suffer being a little less sensitive to feel the rock nuances, but that doesn't seem to bother me.

I can wear them all day without much discomfort. I have 2 sizes 43 1/2 for all day routes, and 43 for shorter climbs.

.....that's my personal opinion/experience with these , FWIW,!

I wear them because I like granite multipitches and cracks. For the climbing I'm doing, shoes that hurt seem unnecessary. I appreciate the ankle protection for wide climbing. The only times I wear other shoes are for indoor climbing, steep boulders or limestone.

Most major shoe companies have some kind of shoe that is geared toward multipitch trad… generally comfy, flattish, relatively stiff, with a high-top for ankle protection during crack climbing. This type of climbing shoe predates Tommy Caldwell.  TC’s are on the stiffer end compared to others like the Scarpa generator.

I think part of why they seem more popular is simply because they’re widely available - odds are any given store selling climbing shoes carries La Sportiva, but there’s a decent chance they don’t carry Five Ten, Tenaya, etc.

Are they that good? Depends on your foot shape & what you’re climbing. If Katanas work for you, odds are tc’s will too since they use the exact same last.

J Rockwrote:

. This type of climbing shoe predates Tommy Caldwell.  

Kaukulaters or whatever were a proto-Tommy. Hats off to Tommy, I hope he is making a fortune.

I wear them because I climb in the Gunks, and when I signed up for my season pass they issued them to me the same way they issue you your combat boots at basic training so I didnt ask any questions. /s

Just for fun, a visual comparison of recent Katana Lace and TC Pro, and a Kaukulator from like 25 years ago. Note how similar the toe point is between Katana and TC Pro, compared to round toe on Kaukulator.

Chris Szabowrote:

I wear them because I climb in the Gunks, and when I signed up for my season pass they issued them to me the same way they issue you your combat boots at basic training so I didnt ask any questions. /s

Pardon my ignorance since I’ve only climbed there once, but are TCs actually that useful/common at the Gunks? It seemed like there was very little in the way of vertical crack climbing, but a lot of steep roofs and jugs. I can see wanting comfy shoes though since there are a lot of the classics were 3 pitch moderates.

Kevin Yinwrote:

Pardon my ignorance since I’ve only climbed there once, but are TCs actually that useful/common at the Gunks? It seemed like there was very little in the way of vertical crack climbing, but a lot of steep roofs and jugs. I can see wanting comfy shoes though since there are a lot of the classics were 3 pitch moderates.

I was on a ledge recently and there were a number of other parties all hanging out waiting their turn. We counted 8 pairs of TCs laying in the dirt while all 8 of us rested our feet.  It’s almost comical that probably 85% of climbers here have TCs the other 10% have Katanas, and the remaining 5% have some 35 year old unidentifiable boots held together with tape.

I feel like for me, the stiffness (compared to my sqwamas) is a huge benefit, along with the all day comfort, and they just feel secure, stable, and stick to the rock really well for me personally…