[cha1n]

Anyone have a broken in pair of these yet? My Jet7's are getting thinner and thinner and would like an equivalent replacement. I tried these on last week and thought they seemed a little stiff for my liking but liked all other aspects (amazing at toehooking, decent heel, etc).

I had to ditch the instinct laces because they didn't seem to be softening up but have heard that these are a bit softer, though I thought they seemed similar in stiffness. Thoughts please!

[Richie Crouch]

Worn mine for 5 sessions indoors so far and they have definitely softened a tad and become a lot more comfortable (i.e. not cramping the arch of the foot with the tension). Still, it's hard to tell how they will feel until I get to use them on some rock in anger!

Hopefully they will feel as good as the dragons and teams do on slightly overhanging rock as they are fucking boss in roofs for heel and toe trickery.

[cha1n]

Thanks for the reply.

How you you compare stiffness to your dragons? I know they're nowhere near as soft as teams.

I was sat bending the forefoot with my hands and then a new pair of dragons and they definitely felt stiffer than the dragons. I always thought my Talons were crazy stiff but the instinct vs felt on a par. Might try some on again tomorrow and decide whether to give them a go or not!

[Paul B]

Hopefully they will feel as good as the dragons and teams do on slightly overhanging rock as they are fucking boss in roofs for heel and toe trickery.

Well I'm about 10 sessions in and they haven't softened one bit in my opinion (I didn't have any cramping to begin with).

They're a fantastic fit and a great heel but there's just absolutely zero sensitivity and I find my feet popping off things rather unexpectedly. They're not dragons. I'm repeatedly told they look great, if that's your thing.

[cha1n]

Hmm, that's what I found with my instinct laces, they just stayed too stiff. Have you felt the boosters? They're stiff as boards, I have no idea who'd wear a shoe that stiff - obviously someone who never has to smear!

Well seeing as you guys have already taken the plunge, I'll hold out to see how you two get on. Good luck!

[andybfreeman]

They're a fantastic fit and a great an ok heel but there's just absolutely zero sensitivity and I find my feet popping off things rather unexpectedly

That summed up my booster experience!

Maybe the slippers are a better bet after all?

[thrashhard]

I think the Instict VS won´t get soft enough for people who think the booster is a stiff shoe.
According to the Scarpa US-Site the VS has the same midsole as the Instinct LU and Vapors (which is not the same as the Slipper) and it has XS Edge Rubber instead of the XS Grip2 of the LU.
So it looks like the Instinct VS is (and will stay) stiffer than both other Instincts.
i.e. the combination of the Flexan midsole and XS Edge Rubber is the same as on the Vapor Lace ups and those are stiff as hell. That´s what i love about them since they are the best "tinypocket-35m-route-shoes" i´ve ever had but i can´t see any use for such a stiff bouldering shoe.
Anyway since the new Vapor V´s are nowadays also made of XS Edge instead of Grip2 it looks like Scarpa somehow hates the XS Grip2 rubber and is switching to Xs Edge?

[turnipturned]

There are ace. Used them a lot on rock now. Best boot scarpa have made. They have also sorted out the heel tab with a rand that goes over the back of the boot so the heel doesnt fall to bits like the instinct slippers and laces. I recommend highly!

[T_B]

Hmm, that's what I found with my instinct laces, they just stayed too stiff. Have you felt the boosters? They're stiff as boards, I have no idea who'd wear a shoe that stiff - obviously someone who never has to smear!

I absolutely love the Instincts (on my 3rd pair and have had a pair re-soled by Llanberis Resoles). But I do wonder whether they are a 'big mans' shoe? I am big and heavy and think they're brilliant on slabs 

[abarro81]

I am also bigtall and also love my instinct laces..

[cha1n]

Whoops, typo there. I meant the Boostics were stiff, not the boosters. I didn't mind the boosters, they were just the wrong shape for my feet. Well, they were twisted the wrong way, they twist torsionally towards the outside edge, whereas I prefer shoes which twist towards the inside edge (e.g. dragons).

Regarding the instincts, it may just be my preference. I think that once you get used to a reasonably soft shoe, it's hard to go back to stiffer lasts. I'm not exactly small, 6'1 and nearly 80kg!

[ShortRound]

I'm a short scrawny fucker and I love the instinct lace ups. I use them pretty exclusively for limestone sport.

[thrashhard]

Whoops, typo there. I meant the Boostics were stiff, not the boosters. I didn't mind the boosters, they were just the wrong shape for my feet. Well, they were twisted the wrong way, they twist torsionally towards the outside edge, whereas I prefer shoes which twist towards the inside edge (e.g. dragons).

Regarding the instincts, it may just be my preference. I think that once you get used to a reasonably soft shoe, it's hard to go back to stiffer lasts. I'm not exactly small, 6'1 and nearly 80kg!

yeah that makes more sence than boosters.
I never had the boosters myself. only rockettes and magos since they both have a better fitting heel than the booster.

[cha1n]

Any news on breaking these in? Softened up?

[slackline]

Any news on breaking these in? Softened up?

Review

[Paul B]

Any news on breaking these in? Softened up?

you're pretty keen aren't you?

I used them on routes for the first time this week (i.e. mainly edging) and they seemed a whole world better and the lack of sensitivity on smaller holds seemed less of an issue.

Unfortunately I've also found that the toe-hooking rubber is threatening to start to peel on one shoe.

[abarro81]

Unfortunately I've also found that the toe-hooking rubber is threatening to start to peel on one shoe.

That's a pity, I was kinda hoping these would be better for that than the lace-ups where you get about 3 goes on a big toe hook before the upper section starts to rip off.

[Paul B]

That's a pity, I was kinda hoping these would be better for that than the lace-ups where you get about 3 goes on a big toe hook before the upper section starts to rip off.

We'll see, I'll show you at the wall at some point.

[cha1n]

Haha, yeah pretty keen. Knowing that my Jet 7's are almost wrecked has been niggling at the back of my mind for a while now. I guess I'll give the resole guy a try but the uppers themselves are in poor condition.

Also, I don't need a shoe for routes as I'm pretty happy with my dragons but might give the instinct vs a whirl when my dragons die. When I tried the VS out at the works I thought they toehooked excellently, better than any other shoe I've tried (and I've tried a LOT of shoes).

[abarro81]

I like the sounds of that. I freaking love toe hooks.

[turnipturned]

Any news on breaking these in? Softened up?

I wore them once at the wall and then they felt perfect!

I have had mine for 3/4 weeks now, done a variety different styles of problems in them. Heels feel good and tight with out being mad painful, toe hooking is good, build quality is great a lot better than other scarpa's and five ten's (just to put it into perspective I went through 10 pairs of boots last year and by now these boots would be kinda on the way out, still look brand new). They are not great for smearing or standing on shiny pebbles though!

Heard they are prefect boot for Pilgrimage and kneebar's- true story bro!

[Paul B]

10 pairs of shoes in a year?

[Stubbs]

Turnip is like a walking test-to-destruction laboratory: shoes, clothes, mats, nothing is safe!

[thrashhard]

i have to admit that since all the the italian brands are using those new vibram rubbers i also never had a pair that lasted longer that 1,5 month.
first i thought it´s the poor la sportiva quality but it is the same with scarpas. The new rubbers don´t last as long as the old xs grip
and not half as long as stealth rubber.
thats one more reason for me not to buy any of the instincts. 3mm instead of 4mm rubber shortens the lifespan a lot.
at least the scarpa shoes are built massive enough to get them resoled at least 3 times.

[mrjonathanr]

i have to admit that since all the the italian brands are using those new vibram rubbers i also never had a pair that lasted longer that 1,5 month.

Built-in obsolescence?

[tomtom]

10 pairs of shoes in a year?

Shit - I've got through a pair of Supermoccs and nearly one pair of Anasazi Velcro's in 18 months...

[Marky]

Anybody know how much these stretch and how the sizing compares to Vapour Velcros?

[thrashhard]

They are all Lorica and are covered with rubber everywhere. I wouldn´t expect much stretch.

[Ste]

They fit slightly smaller than the Vapour Velcro. However, I would get them the same size as even after 6 months of hard use mine haven't stretched 1/3 of a shoe size.

We haven't had any of our online orders returned for incorrect sizing so far. We do offer free postage so the only cost to you would be the return postage if they didn't fit.

www.theclimbingdepot.co.uk/shop/product/scarpa-instinct-vs

[benj_d]

Anyone with narrow feet using these? (I usually wear evolv/five ten shoes)

Got a free pair of Scarpa's to claim and these seem like the obvious choice...

[andy_e]

Been winning comps Ben?

[benj_d]

Been winning comps Ben?

Not quite... 

[standard]

I fancy trying a pair of these but no shops around my way stock them.
So I'm internet only and I'm bound to get the sizing wrong.

i wear a 40/40.5 in sportiva's.
Any advice as to what size to punt for?

[Richie Crouch]

41.5-42 I reckon

[rosmat]

I fancy trying a pair of these but no shops around my way stock them.
So I'm internet only and I'm bound to get the sizing wrong.

i wear a 40/40.5 in sportiva's.
Any advice as to what size to punt for?

There is a good review plus advice on sizing from Dave Mac here:
http://onlineclimbingcoach.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/review-scarpa-instinct-vs.html?spref=tw

Basically he reckons 1 size below your street shoe size for training or 1.5 sizes below for hard redpoints / boulders.

[standard]

cheers both.

[tim palmer]

Anyone with narrow feet using these? (I usually wear evolv/five ten shoes)

Got a free pair of Scarpa's to claim and these seem like the obvious choice...

they are quite wide, very similar in width to the boosters

[turnipturned]

Had them Four months and they are finally fooked (with my track record thats like Monty Panesar scoring a century in a test match) ...wall boot time! Been brillaint and would buy a new pair without a doubt. None of the rubber on the top came off and the build quality is a lot better than any other boot I have had over the last 2-3 years. My advice, get them as tight as you can (plastic bag on your foot style). They do bag out a tiny bit but I found that after 4/5 session wearing them they won't stretch beyond that. They dont really take any time to wear in either maybe 2 times at the wall. VERDICT= SWEET!

[thrashhard]

They are finally on the market in the rest of europe and they are even € 11 more than the boostic which is already overprized as hell.
Whats the difference in building the VS to another scarpa shoe that makes them € 40 more than a vapour? Glueing some rubber on top of the toes can´t be that difficult.

[tomtom]

A bump and my tuppence worth..

Bought a pair of these last week - mainly as I had a problem I had been working for ages that needed a really really good toe hook and these looked the business for that (and they seemed good for other things too).

Well I did the problem without a toehook (typical) but have used these in two sessions on sandstone so far. My normal shoe is a anasazi velcro..

I agree with the previous reviews that at first they feel a bit clunky and stiff - but they are softening and they feel like brand new Anasazi Velcro's at the moment. Heel is uber snug - but quite wide (I like the narrow heel on Dragons that can be placed very accurately). Interesting reading advice about fitting - I went for the smallest I could get on with a placcy bag - and ended up with 41's (I think these are UK7's - which sounds unusual reading the above posts as I'm a street 9 and 71/2 in the anasazi's... when you try them on its reall important to shove your feet as far forward into the toe box as possible - as they are really tight and they dont always do that.. Anyway, quietly impressed so far - rubber seems to be sticking me better to things than the Anasazi's (at the moment) - see how they go. Not cheap though...

[cha1n]

Thanks for the updates.

I eventually went for a (blue) blackwing and Teams combination. The teams were excellent out of the box but I do struggle on long limestone routes with small edges as they are very soft. I can put up with it on short boulder problems though, well I prefer the sensitivity actually when bouldering.

The (blue)blackwings fit superbly, much better than my dragons or Jet 7's ever did! I didn't get on well with them to begin with though (too stiff), but I've persevered and I must say that they are an excellent all-rounder. I use them for mostly everything now and save my teams for roofs that require heel-toe trickery (don't trust that 2mm rubber, so I'm saving them for when necessary!). So my wrecked Jet 7's and Dragons have officially been binned!

I honestly don't think I'd bother with the Instinct VS now... Might have a squint at the new stix when they come out mind!

[nathanie1]

I’ve finally got round to making the switch from my favourite shoe, the instinct laces, to the VS’s. Lengthwise my VS’s fit perfectly, but I have remarkably wide feet and they are pretty damn painful on the side of my feet just below my little toes.

Obviously, the VS’s are synthetic and so I don’t expect them to stretch much, but I was just wondering whether there are any other wide feet folk out there that have braved the breaking in stage with success?

[tomtom]

Mine have stretched about 1/2 size... gone from being "Oh fuck" after 30 seconds to agony taking 15 min...

[Sasquatch]

Yes, they stretch wonderfully to my wide feet

[nathanie1]

cheers guys, that's all I wanted to hear

[JackAus]

Same here. I've got 2 pairs, same size, one is brand new, the other probably over a year old and in need of a resole. I really struggle to put on the new ones,only worn them on rock once so far. Old ones are still tight to put on but now have space inside.

[mrjonathanr]

VS is slightly tighter than laces but only slightly. Gives but more reluctantly than laces as more rubber and no leather though laces have Lorica toes too don't forget, and give a fair bit in the end.

I bet your laces hurt when you first had them too. I would buy same size in both. Actually I have the same size in both. Both excellent  shoes but VS is better of the two.