Evolv

Phantom Climbing Shoe

great outdoors

great outdoor shoe, however the lace system is trash

My beloved

Big fan on the Phantoms. Ran my first pair until I had inch wide holes and finally caved to buy another pair. I downsized a half size from my street size 11 to 10.5 and the shoe fits me absolutely perfectly. Toes are turbo locked in. Heel fits my rather knobby kneels just right. Also rocking a pair of zenist pros that I use for compy stuff and smeary slab problems, and using Phantoms (my beloved) for overhang, small chippy problems, and board climbing.

Amazing climbing shoes

These shoes are definitely my favorite so far. I have tried Solutions, Instincts, and dragos. this shoe has so much rubber and after about 2 weeks the shoes will soften up. Super supportive for edges but not the most sensitivity. I would definitely recommend these shoes for someone that toe hooks and heel hooks a lot. The heel is surprisingly padded and was not as sensitive as I would have wanted but is nice when I am bouldering outdoors on sharp holds

Ordered my street shoe size (10) after 4 climbing sessions they stretched about half a size and have a perfect but super snug fit. Only complaint is that the stitching on the back on the inside rubs the back of my foot and hurts if I climb too many days in a row. Otherwise they are great for heel and toe hooks and they are super sticky and give me a-lot of confidence on tiny footholds.

Ridiculously small

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

The sizing is pointless. I wear M 5.5 (W7.5). I went two sizes up and ordered size M 7.5 and couldn’t even fit my foot in the shoe. I went one more size up to 8.5 and still couldn’t fit my tiny foot in there. So I returned both sizes and gave up. I would probably have to go 4 sizes up (from 5.5 to 9.5. I know that the fit should feel snug, but this is like I can’t physically fit my foot in there, it’s painful.

Great shoe!

I bought this shoe a few mounths ago

The Beast!

I came from Zenist Pro (my first pair from EVOLV). I wanted something more curved. Phantoms are different than anything what I tried. Really aggressive but perfectly functional shape. The lace system is exceptional, easy put on and off, crank down on feet like nothing else. They are comfy out of box (actually for me more comfy then ZenPro which are also awesome). Really good precision on toes, heel is super sensitive but less powerful than ZenPro which has more structured heel cup - I prefer Phantoms heel, it fits more precise, and the heel rand is pain free (zenist pro goes tear my achilles after hour) Smearing is for now average but for me good enough. Really special feeling shoe, worth the hype. For me all I need - I will stick with these for while.

Best fitting climbing shoe I've had so far

Previously, my best option was Scarpa Drago LV, and I've grown fond of the soft shoe. However, it had something to improve for me: - Heel (it was a bit baggy) - Centered toebox (my big toes got tired a lot and started to hurt at the end of the sessions) - Enough support on the small/sharp footholds. Phantoms solved all of the above. Heel fits me perfectly, and I've used heelhooks on the holds I've never thought it was possible for me to do so before. Toebox shape is great for my big toes health (considering I have a previously injured one). They don't hurt after long sessions, like they used to. And needless to say a stiffer shoe provides more support. I was going for Zenist Pros first, because I was afraid that Phantoms wouldn't work for smearing. Zenist Pro didn't fit me well (I couldn't squish my feet through the high toe rubber patch), so decided to stick with Phantoms. And to my surprise smearing is great in them. Somehow it works and provides enough sensitivity despite being a very aggressive shoe.

Stiff but Comfortable

Stiff shoes, great for edging. Took a while to break in - but comfortable once done. Would buy again.

Great sport/bouldering shoe

Heel fits perfectly. Not a sensitive shoe, but sticky rubber and aggressive shape.