UKH

My son, who is 17, has very broad feet - size 9-and-a-half. so not outrageously big, but broad, almost square across the toes, and the wee lad is really driven up the wall by his climbing shoes squashing his toes. He is a good climber but is not interested in shoes that hurt.

Could anyone recommend any particular brand of shoe for that shape of foot?

In reply to BusyLizzie:

Dunno about square feet but I have broad feet and I've found Scarpa fit me the best.

In reply to BusyLizzie:

Try these Red Chili Sausalito Rock Climbing Shoe

In reply to MonkeyPuzzle:

Agree with Scarpas in general. Katana Laces are also fairly wide fitting and not too acute an angle across the toes.

In reply to BusyLizzie:

Scarpas or try 5.10 moccs. They mould nicely.

In reply to BusyLizzie:

If you can get to a shop with rock shoes then head over there turn the shoes upside down and try and match the shape of the shoe to the shape of your foot.

Square toes are hard to find a fit for, if you can find a shoe with laces all the way to the toe then this gives the ability to open up the toes more. However these type of shoe are not designed with the volume to have toes crunched up, the toes should be flat.

Things that might work include evolv royale, 5.10 anasazi guides, red chili sausalito or durango. Scarpa is wide too but further back towards the ball of the foot rather than across the toes.

However, it is best to try and find a good independent climbing shop where the staff are actual climbers, you can get lucky at larger chains but it's a bit pot luck!

In reply to BusyLizzie:

I have a similar problem and didn't get in with my first pair - Red Chilli Sausalito.
Agree with the suggestion of gong somewhere big and trying them all on.
I made do with some cheapie climbx ones from Go Outdoors for a bit, because my they were soft enough for my feet to stretch them.
I ended up with some Boreal Silex from Outside in Hathersage (who are patient and helpful) - the lacing gave me enough adjustability and the toe was in the right place.
Agree that Scarpa are worth a look. They seem to use a wider last, and I've a few pairs of walking boots / approach shoes / trainers from them.

In reply to BusyLizzie:
I have the same kind of feet - my little toe is amost as far forwards as my big toe.

I would ignore anything by Five Ten or Evolv. Scarpa is usually your goal but some of their shoes are narrower e.g. Booster, drago e.t.c.

Consider and try on;

Miura VS (not lace)
Speedster
Stix V2
Instinct VS/VSR/Lace
Vapour VS (not lace)
Force VS
Ocun Ozone Plus.

Second bit is that generally softer shoes are more comfortable - as your little toe is going to squish over the rand on the outside of the foot, if you stick it in a larger sized but more rigid/firm randed shoe (e.g. scarpa techno X) you'll be in a lot of discomfort.

HtH.

In reply to BusyLizzie:

To put it bluntly, you are looking for something that doesn't exist, there are no shoes that fit that shape of foot well enough for really precise and delicate footwork.

Take him into a climbing shop to try on different shoes on until he finds some that are comfortable, there is no point crushing and damaging his feet in shoes that don't fit well.

The only real alternative is to modify a pair of shoes that are wide enough but too long

http://www.websterart.com/html/wide_rock_climbing_shoe.html

In reply to BusyLizzie:

Despite what all the reviews say, I have found Tenayas very comfy for my wide feet (although maybe not square toes). However my Iatis are looking pretty beat up after just a few months (splitting in the rand) and the smell can get horrendous pretty quick. Still the 2nd comfiest performance shoe I've ever worn though! (first being Tarifas, which were an even better fit, but I didn't want laces)

The Ocun Ozone Plus is pretty wide and square. I found it too square and I get a pocket of air above my middle 3 toes.

In the past Scarpa has worked for me, but even then buying leather shoes, spending a couple of weeks in pain until they stretch out around my little toe, then getting annoyed they've over-stretched further down the line! Maybe a wide sportiva (muira v, testarossa)? My solutions haven't stretched much lengthways but lots of give (after a pretty intense break in) widthways. They hardly look like the original shoe anymore. Presumably the P3 jargon actually working? I will be getting them resoled once my Iatis bite the dust.

In reply to MonkeyPuzzle:

Yep. I've got size 7.5 feet but have to buy size 10 to get the width. I find Scarpa lace ups fit well, and I got on well with 5.10's.

In reply to BusyLizzie:

Lots of good advice here, thank you all.

I am amazed by the link to the guy cutting down longer shoes... looks a bit alarming...

In reply to BusyLizzie:

Generally agree with the advice to try on as much as you can.

My feet are wide at the ball of the foot so not quite the same. As a general rule, I find that lace-ups offer more adjustability, however velcros tend to be higher volume. I tend to end up with velcros. Anasazi VCS are my go-to shoes - they usually pinch a bit when new but settle down after a couple of weeks. Currently using Katana velcros as I couldn't find the Anasazis in my tiny size this time - these are slightly wider at the toe, possibly a little too wide for me. I think the velcro version of these has been discontinued though.