Full custom shoe experiences

[kgreene10]

Originally Posted by charliedid

Maybe you need a custom moldable Lake shoe if it's just an issue with heel cup.
https://www.lakecycling.com/collecti...roducts/cx-403

I have been somewhat confused about Lake’s offerings. They seem to have a variety of levels of customization but what what is customizable and how isn’t clear on their site.

I see that these indicate a moldeable heel. Have you tried it? I wonder what part of the heel can be molded and how much. I’m guessing it’s heat moldeable carbon; however, Bont uses this and their heels cannot be molded (they say).

Whatever light you can shed would be helpful.

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by kgreene10

I have been somewhat confused about Lake’s offerings. They seem to have a variety of levels of customization but what what is customizable and how isn’t clear on their site.

I see that these indicate a moldeable heel. Have you tried it? I wonder what part of the heel can be molded and how much. I’m guessing it’s heat moldeable carbon; however, Bont uses this and their heels cannot be molded (they say).

Whatever light you can shed would be helpful.

I've owned and sold Lake but not owned heat moldable. Give them a call or shoot an email 1-888-401-0476

[charliedid]

The video on the website shows how easily it's done but having someone who sells them do it can be helpful but not required.

[bewheels]

I had excellent results with Riivo and highly recommend him (one-man operation).

Best shoes I have ever owned. And I have owned many over the last 40 years.

[bshell]

I've had three pair by Lamson(D2), Riivo, Lake heat moldable, and LUCK non custom.

As djg21 mentioned earlier, Don Lamson's method allows for tweaking via the custom footbed sitting on a flat surface inside the shoe. I think this is the highest chance for success.

Brad H./Riivo seems like a great guy and his shoe is very well made but there's nothing he can do once it's finished -and mine were way off.

Trying Lake and LUCK after the one man operations reminded me how 'right' a shoe can feel and I got rid of both.

My first step would be to visit a medical supply store that makes orthotics onsite because I suspect they'll school you on pieces you can add to the sides of your heel area that *should* prevent lift.

That would be SO much cheaper than custom.

[pdonk]

I have contemplated custom shoes. Have ended up with lake 242. The heel cups are easily molded to be able to pinch in to get a better fit. The segmented fore foot construction and boas allow for lots of adjustment in how they cup your foot.

After 30 years of trying new shoes every 2 to 3 years, these are the best I've tried. The come in a variety of widths so you can likely find one that is close.

Only wish they came with better insoles.

[bigbill]

When I got my Lamsons, I considered the price, compared to a set of Reserve Wheels with DT350 hubs, and concluded that the shoes would work on almost all of my bikes, unlike disc carbon wheels. I am in my upper 50s, not that far from 60, and I decided to get two bolt gravel shoes that I can walk around in and not worry about the sole. I put some nice Look Xtrack pedals on the Open Min.d, and my gravel and MTB have XT SPD pedals. I want to be comfortable for long hours in the saddle.

I still have my Shimano R321 wides with SPD-R cleats for the road bikes with Shimano pedals, but none see more than two hours at a time.

[djg21]

Originally Posted by bigbill

When I got my Lamsons, I considered the price, compared to a set of Reserve Wheels with DT350 hubs, and concluded that the shoes would work on almost all of my bikes, unlike disc carbon wheels. I am in my upper 50s, not that far from 60, and I decided to get two bolt gravel shoes that I can walk around in and not worry about the sole. I put some nice Look Xtrack pedals on the Open Min.d, and my gravel and MTB have XT SPD pedals. I want to be comfortable for long hours in the saddle.

I still have my Shimano R321 wides with SPD-R cleats for the road bikes with Shimano pedals, but none see more than two hours at a time.

I always get a kick out of people who will spend thousands on high-end carbon wheels, and hundreds for the latest Rapha and MAAP clothing, and then complain about the price of good shoes. Shoes are probably one of the most important pieces of kit or equipment you own. They are the contact point through which power is applied to the pedals and drive-train, and a good fit is critical if you are spending hours on a bike.

[kgreene10]

Originally Posted by bshell

I've had three pair by Lamson(D2), Riivo, Lake heat moldable, and LUCK non custom.

As djg21 mentioned earlier, Don Lamson's method allows for tweaking via the custom footbed sitting on a flat surface inside the shoe. I think this is the highest chance for success.

Brad H./Riivo seems like a great guy and his shoe is very well made but there's nothing he can do once it's finished -and mine were way off.

Trying Lake and LUCK after the one man operations reminded me how 'right' a shoe can feel and I got rid of both.

My first step would be to visit a medical supply store that makes orthotics onsite because I suspect they'll school you on pieces you can add to the sides of your heel area that *should* prevent lift.

That would be SO much cheaper than custom.

Thanks for this helpful info. Regarding the Lake and Luck shoes, are you saying that those felt “right” or just be ones from custom one-man shops felt right?

[kgreene10]

Originally Posted by pdonk

I have contemplated custom shoes. Have ended up with lake 242. The heel cups are easily molded to be able to pinch in to get a better fit. The segmented fore foot construction and boas allow for lots of adjustment in how they cup your foot.

After 30 years of trying new shoes every 2 to 3 years, these are the best I've tried. The come in a variety of widths so you can likely find one that is close.

Only wish they came with better insoles.

Excellent to know about the heel cup. Thanks!

[Wakatel_Luum]

Originally Posted by kgreene10

I’m considering fully custom shoes so that I can fit my pointy heel well. I’m talking custom last and the whole nine yards, not custom style.

I’m curious about your experience with Rivo and Bont (again, their full custom option). Rocket 7 is far too pricey for me and I’m already familiar with D2 / Don Lamson. Did I miss any options?

My intended use is for road training and racing year round in Austin TX. My best fitting prior shoe was a Specialized SWorks 6. Subsequent iterations, including the newest Torch, have a wider heel that slips a lot for me.

Going full custom would be a large cost for me, so I’m quite tentative about it.

What other off the shelf shoes have you tried?

I had some custom then went back to Sidi as the heel area is quite narrow and can be adjusted on their newer shoes?

[bshell]

Originally Posted by kgreene10

Thanks for this helpful info. Regarding the Lake and Luck shoes, are you saying that those felt “right” or just be ones from custom one-man shops felt right?

Sorry that wasn't clear. Custom was much better if they got the build right.

I crashed some D2 shoes beyond repair and when I went to order again I learned that Don had sold everything to Hakob(?) and started anew elsewhere.

Without the old customer data he said I'd have to go through the crush box/measuring again --the risky part. That's when I decided to try Lake and LUCK to save money. I wasn't fond of either so I returned them and tried Riivo based on Paceline recommendations. Those shoes were made too tight, bye bye $1500.

Since then I've continued to use some older D2 road and MTB pairs but I also tried some SWORKS Recon mtb and SWORKS 7 road. They've been quite good with some alterations. Even better, they were popping up dirt cheap online and they're what I use almost exclusively now. I think retail was @$425 and I was finding them for $200 -even in the fairly popular 44.5 size. Despite my considering them disposable at either price, they're much less delicate than the Lamson/Riivo customs (at a fraction) so I never worry about them.

[BdaGhisallo]

I have had custom shoes from five different makers over the last 25 years. Some have been great but most were terrible - for various reasons.

I started with a pair of Lamsons in 1998. I did the fit kit by myself and didn't go a very good job of it. Those shoes didn't fit well and never got worn.

I tried Bart Sheldrake's LUST shoes in 2003. Neither shoe fit and each shoe had a different curvature on the cleat mounting area, neither of which matched the curvature of any cleat then on the market!

I decided to give Don Lamson another try in 2012 and combined a trip to NY with a visit to a guy in NJ that did fittings for him. This turned out to be the most successful effort to that point. The shoes fit pretty well, though I did have to send them back a few times to Don to get the toeline adjusted. I have a very wonky shaped foot and, with Don guesstimating the 3 dimensional shape of the foot, that took a few attempts. In 2014, I flew out to Eagle Co to have Don fit me in person to see if I could get a better outcome.

The process was hit or miss, though. Don made me 7 pairs of shoes over a three year period as I searched for a comfortable fit - two of which I was able to use. My first pair seemed wrong the moment I put them on as my toes were so crushed into the toe box that I couldn't keep them on for more than 5 mins much less consider riding in them.

The resulting shoes weren't perfect, but they were the best result I'd achieved, and I ended up using a single pair of Powerwires for 11 years. They were the fourth pair out of the seven that he made.

In 2017 I tried a pair of David Simmons' carbon shoes. I again did the fitting and though they were a good fitting shoe, they were way too tight to use for daily use. I could barely get them on and off - they were that snug. I guess that's great for the British track cycling team he was making lots of shoes for, but not so much for everyday riding.

After using my D2 shoes for 11 years, I worried about something happening to them and being up the creek. I had glued them back together and repaired the straps too many times. They were very loose and sloppy and they needed replacement, so last spring I made a trek to see Brad Harper in TX to have him fit me for some new shoes. My wife and I had both wanted to visit NOLA and my wife had wanted to check out Austin so we combined all three.

I am about to take delivery of my third pair of Riivos. Finally, after 25 years and more than a few thousands of dollars spent, I have cycling shoes that are actually shaped the same as my foot! The fit of these shoes is fantastic. After riding my old and sloppy D2's for so long, the snugger fit of the Riivos took some getting used to. I even had to change my sock wardrobe. I realized that the relatively thick Swiftwick Aspire socks I'd been using had been acting as a gasket of sorts to improve the fit and take up space. That wasn't needed for the Riivos so I ended up trying some Defeet EVO and Silca socks, both of which were much thinner, and they both work a treat.

Brad's fitting was the first time I'd had a proper 3D casting of my foot done and it makes all the difference. I think it's the only way to get a truly custom product.

For anyone looking for custom shoes - truly custom and not just shoes modified to try and suit your feet - seek out a maker than does 3D molding of your feet and have them do the molding. That's the only way you'll get the best result.

[djg21]

Originally Posted by bshell

Sorry that wasn't clear. Custom was much better if they got the build right.

I crashed some D2 shoes beyond repair and when I went to order again I learned that Don had sold everything to Hakob(?) and started anew elsewhere.

Without the old customer data he said I'd have to go through the crush box/measuring again --the risky part. That's when I decided to try Lake and LUCK to save money. I wasn't fond of either so I returned them and tried Riivo based on Paceline recommendations. Those shoes were made too tight, bye bye $1500.

Since then I've continued to use some older D2 road and MTB pairs but I also tried some SWORKS Recon mtb and SWORKS 7 road. They've been quite good with some alterations. Even better, they were popping up dirt cheap online and they're what I use almost exclusively now. I think retail was @$425 and I was finding them for $200 -even in the fairly popular 44.5 size. Despite my considering them disposable at either price, they're much less delicate than the Lamson/Riivo customs (at a fraction) so I never worry about them.

The crush box isn’t difficult. You need to study the directions in advance and watch the YouTube video (link is on Lamson website). Don also can participate by Skype and make sure everything is done correctly. Ask him about this. It is really helpful.

I don’t know about “delicate.” I have sets of Don’s road and gravel/mtb shoes in my closet that have to be 20 years old.

[John H.]

I have had multiple custom shoes and none of them worked out long term.

Originally had Rocket 7 back in the 90's- They were never even close to fitting properly and Rocket 7 could not make the proper adjustments.

Had a couple pairs of D2- Same Experience. On 2nd set I even went to Don for casting.

Here are the problems that I see.
1.) There is a difference in translation from casting of your foot to actual shoe. Might be the shoe maker, might be the casting- But it does not always translate.
2.) Free adjustments it get it right are all well and good, but if you don't live close to the shoe maker it becomes expensive and time consuming. Think $50 and 2 weeks for each adjustment.
It is easy to become frustrated with the process and give up. That was always my experience.
None of this is to throw shade on Don. He would have kept chaining/modifying as long as I had patience. It was me that ran out of steam on this.

For me, the most practical solution was a good pair of custom insoles and a shoe that is close to my foot shape. I have ridden Bont for many years. But their actual sizing and shape changed with the Vapor S and they no longer worked as well for me. I was actually better with the older Buckle/Velcro models. Currently on newest version of Specialized S-Works Torch and Recon. Toe box is generous. The only thing that I have found is that I need a different custom insole to properly fit the inner shape of the shoe. It is very different from Bont.