UKH

I just noticed La Sportiva have replaced the TX4 with the TX4 Evo in their latest catalogue.

I emailed La Sportiva who say the last remains the same, but the sole stack is different so the fit is "more technical". I hope this doesn't mean "tighter across the forefoot" like the TX4 mid or the TX5. 

Before I panic buy a pair of the original TX4s, has anyone tried the new version?

Hmmm... May have to stock up on TX4s. The TX5 is a disappointment.

I noticed this too. I hope they're the same but I just panic bought some (https://www.climbers-shop.com/ were the cheapest at the moment), to go along with the 3 pairs I have in reserve for when my resoled pair fall to bits 😂

They're the only shoes I've found that actually fit me though! 

Where did you get them resoled?

The uppers seem to last me ages, well after the soles are long through the Vibram, and deep into EVA... Which is rare: it's usually the uppers that fail, long before the sole gets anywhere near worn out.

I've had a pair resoled at Cheshire Shoe Repairs (Vibram Friction sole)

https://www.cheshireshoe.co.uk/approach-shoe-resoles-repairs/

I'm still wearing my original pair I got in 2020 - new soles, new laces

Just be careful your feet don't change shape - I had this happen to me when I'd bought a lot of a discontinued model before. 

Laces never troubled me; still as good as new on both old pairs. The second pair only recently split at the usual toe-flex point.

I took them to a local cobbler in Perth. Got them to put a harder wearing, more traditional boot type vibram sole on them as opposed to a softer approach shoe sole. Sacrificed a bit of grip for a longer lasting sole and they've lasted even longer than the original soles. 

I go through them pretty quickly as I walk 10-12 miles a day on pavements at work, so after I've worn through the soles on my out of work pair, I get them resoled with the harder rubber and they become my work pair.

I hope this doesn't happen. But if they've f-ed up the new model then there should be a market for the older model should I have to sell them! 

Fit should be the same; the new version just has a revised sole unit that makes it easier to be re-soled.

That was what it looked like. I emailed La Sportiva to check and the reply was that the feel to the foot was different and the fit was more technical. Advice was to try them on. They've confirmed the original is discontinued also. 

I believe the new evo model is the same as the retro model that they brought out last year that I own.

The retro model is a touch stiffer out of the box because of the resole platform but breaks in. 

The fit is basically identical as far as I can feel. 

Cheers Aled, exactly the answer I was looking for. 

I like the TX5 but I've not done anything too technical in them.

The problem is that the fit is different from the TX4. I'd expected it to be the same, but it's not.

And that lacing system is crap compared to the TX4.

Not sure if you've tried the TX4. You might not like them if the TX5 fit you okay...

But I think the TX4 Retro actually (confusingly) has a different last to the original TX4. I just bought a pair of TX4 Retros in a 43 as my original TX4s (in 43) are on their last legs. They feel a bit shorter in length and tighter in the toe. My left foot, which is a half size bigger than my right, is touching the front of the shoe, which it didn't in the original TX4s.

I didn't expect the last to be different, so purchased a pair of barely used second hand Retros (i.e. I didn't try them on for size in a shop), and I think I'll just wear them a bit and hope they stretch and break in a bit. But if I were buying new I'd definitely also have tried on at least a half euro size up. I could comfortably treat my original TX4s as hiking shoes for longer approaches but I'm less confident I could do that with the Retro as I think my toes might get smashed up.

P.s. hi Aled!

Alright Mike ! 

Ah that's weird, mine feel pretty on the money, but maybe mine have always been a bit big so I don't feel a difference? Not sure. I don't think the last is different though maybe the sizing is? Both me and my partner have had the retros and the old ones and we see no change in fit.

I know the TX2 evos felt different from the previous ones but I was lead to believe nothing had changed in the tx4.

That's my main issue with sportiva the sizes are all over the shop. Rockshoes run a half/full size to big, running shoes run a half/full size too small and everything else is a shot in the dark. 

I definitely noticed they felt more stiff out of the box and I doubt they will soften up quite as much as the regular TX4. 

I think the performance on the new sole is phenomenal too, used them in the UK and I've brought them to Morocco for a month and they just seem to be eating up everything I can throw at them !

Hope your well mate!

Aled

Interesting! Mine are pretty old so it's also possible that they've stretched out a bit or my feet have changed a bit in the interim.

The Retros do feel great under foot, I like the stiffness and perhaps a tiny bit of arch support in there.

I agree that if they are smaller then it's 'shorter' than 'tighter' - I don't think the toe-box is appreciably narrower, at least not walking around the house.

To OP - I'd say try both the same size and a half euro size up in the new ones as a point of comparison.

Aled - sounds like a great time in Morocco, all good here too thanks. Have a good one!

Be aware that Sportivas have quite some variation in toebox volume between individual shoes of the same size. My old Boulder X pair was slightly bigger than the newer one, and when I tried another pair and it was closer to my original ones, so I wouldn't necessarily pay too much attention.

It matters to me because I'm silly and downsize approach shoes, it shouldn't matter if they fit right.