SCARPAInstinct VS Rock Climbing Shoes for Sport Climbing and Bouldering

Previous shoes used:Scarpa magosBoreal kintaroLove this shoe. I was slightly disappointed that the shoe isn't as tight as my magos even though I ordered the same sizeI gave them a chance before I sent them off to get a high size small and I was pleasantly surprised that my performance hadn't dropped. They kept up with my magos despite the tightness difference.My magos had an extremely painful break in period and they still fit tight. I expected the same and prepared myself for the worst with the instincts. When I put them on for the first time, I was surprised that they were more relaxed.They fit very snug without much dead space (only very little dead space on the top of my foot, but none anywhere else). My toes are not curled up like they are in my magos. They pretty much fit my foot perfectly with no pain. I started reading that modern climbing shoes don't have to be painful to get the performance out of them. So far I've been climbing in them indoors only (I have yet to take them out to hueco to see how they perform) and the edging is incredible. They aren't as sticky as my magos but that's ok because I wanted a shoe that edged better. My foot does slip on smearing but I have yet to break the rubber in so I'm not counting it as a bad thing yet.Heel hooking is on another level compared to the magos which had a horrible heel with a lot of dead space.They are easy to slip on and off which I really like to let my feet testthey don't breathe as good as other shoes so I expect climbing when it's hot is gonna cause your feet to retain a lot of sweat. I'll just take them off to let my feet cool off and let the sweat evaporateConstruct seems very solid for now. I haven't put much mileage in them yet so I have yet to see how they hold up but my magos are two years old and doing great (only need a new lace but that it's) so I'm expecting the same from these down the road.I thought the aggressive fit would only allow me to Boulder in them for short periods of time but since they fit so perfectly I already know I'll be using these to sport climb without suffering much if any.Great shoe. Will definitely resole them when the time comes

These are my real first pair of climbing shoes. The first pair of climbing shoes I got were no match for my wide feet, and I ripped the top off on the first day using them. I had done some research, and decided the SCARPA Instinct VS would be a much better fit. I'll review the 3 points I consider most important: fit, design, and durability.FIT:Every one of my friends that have claimed to have "hobbit feet" have been put to shame by my monster feet. They're not particularly large, just quite (un?)naturally wide. Had to push the heel flat and push/wiggle the front of my foot to get it in. Once in, there was no space but my toes were nicely lined up and just slightly curled. Pulled the heel over and my feet were hermetically sealed into the shoe, for a snug, performance fit. Took me 3-4 solid outings to break the shoes in, and they still fit snug but bearable compared with the first few times. I LOVE the SCARPA toe box on these.DESIGN:The shoe is a work of art. The rubber is simply awesome, and the precision of the shoe is out of this world. The heel is sticky, very sensitive, and in my case, zero space. They can be worn loose to warm up with confidence thanks to the Bi-Tension rand. One tightening of the super-sticky velcro strap and your feet turn into mountain goat hooves for serious business. As a bonus, the shoe looks totally sweet.DURABILITY:Have only had them about two months, and climbing outdoors nearly every day with them and they still look just like new, except broken in. Rubber is still great. Shoes don't even smell yet (make sure you have clean feet and wear socks on the approach, and air out your feet before and after putting the Instinct VS on). Will update this as time goes on.Verdict:I've worn a dozen or so climbing shoes of many brands and owned only one other pair before. The SCARPA Instinct VS are superior in every aspect to all the others I've tried (Solutions, Anasazis, Katanas, Tarantulaces, Miuras, Shamans, etc.). I highly recommend this shoe.

I've had these for a little over a year now, and I've learned a lot about them. The guy at the store insisted I was a size 40, but they were so tight I couldn't even put weight on my feet. So I ordered some size 42s from Amazon. Unfortunately, even THOSE were too tight, so I had to return them. Finally, I got some size 44s (my normal shoe size) and... Well, they are very very tight. Fine for bouldering and doing short pitches, but even after a year of use, I have to pull off the heel between routes to let off the pressure. Having said that, I got these specifically for gym bouldering, and I wanted them to be extremely aggressive. That's exactly what I got. My next pair will be 46 though for longer routes.I have slightly odd feet, where my little toes are very curled, thus my big toe is very predominant. With many climbing shoes, that means for the "proper" fit with all of my toes crammed into the toe-box, my big toe is EXTRA crammed. These shoes, however, have more of a point to them, and the toe-box itself is more tailored around the big toe. Plus, they've done some nifty engineering that pulls your toes tight into the toe-box WITHOUT excessive pressure on your achilles tendon and heel. Judging from the unique cramp I tend to get around the arch of my foot, I think it must use the thickness of the forefoot to pull against for toe-box tension. The result is a unique feeling, surprisingly comfortable climbing shoe that is extremely aggressive and precise for dime sized edgy features and over-hung routes. Just a side note, the Edge type rubber they've used here is definitely noticeably less sticky than their regular soft sticky rubber. Grip on smoothed off features or while smearing is adequate, but precarious. I tend to not trust that type of footwork in these as I've unexpectedly come off the wall a number of times.