How do you evaluate shoes?

[Darren72]

Once every few years I need to re-evaluate my shoe of choice. It's that time again (so long Ubersonic 2s). I can immediately eliminate some shoes because they don't feel quite right. But some shoes need to be broken in. And you need to play in a shoe to know how it responds. But for a variety of reasons I can't go play in three different pairs of shoes before settling on one. If I really can't make a decision, I'll keep two and rotate between them and see if one rises to the top, but then I'm still stuck with the other pair (I'm looking at you K-Swiss ultrashot). So I'm curious what kind of paces everyone puts their shoes through to make a decision of which to keep.

 

[FlamingCheeto]

whichever look the best

 

[srimes]

Shoes shouldn't need breaking in. Only so much evaluating can be done in the store. I order online and stick with a brand/model as long as possible. I've used babalot propulse for years as they're stable and have a 6 month warranty.

 

[SinneGOAT]

Once every few years I need to re-evaluate my shoe of choice. It's that time again (so long Ubersonic 2s). I can immediately eliminate some shoes because they don't feel quite right. But some shoes need to be broken in. And you need to play in a shoe to know how it responds. But for a variety of reasons I can't go play in three different pairs of shoes before settling on one. If I really can't make a decision, I'll keep two and rotate between them and see if one rises to the top, but then I'm still stuck with the other pair (I'm looking at you K-Swiss ultrashot). So I'm curious what kind of paces everyone puts their shoes through to make a decision of which to keep.

Durability, support/stability as I play long hours per day, comfort. Looks don’t matter as long as I have those boxes checked. Asics gel resolution 8, hopefully this new barricade in two months, Nike cage 3 ticked these boxes except maybe comfort once or twice.

 

[Fintft]

Durability, support/stability as I play long hours per day, comfort. Looks don’t matter as long as I have those boxes checked. Asics gel resolution 8, hopefully this new barricade in two months, Nike cage 3 ticked these boxes except maybe comfort once or twice.

Also on clay the Asiscs Gel Resolution 7/8 seem to have the deepest thread which I like...
By comparision Addidas Barricades (I dusted off a pratically new pair) don't! Except that they are wider and they don't give me hammer toes blisters as the narrow Asiscs Gel Resolution do...

So if you have wider feet you may want to keep that in mind.

 

[puppybutts]

Once every few years I need to re-evaluate my shoe of choice. It's that time again (so long Ubersonic 2s). I can immediately eliminate some shoes because they don't feel quite right. But some shoes need to be broken in. And you need to play in a shoe to know how it responds. But for a variety of reasons I can't go play in three different pairs of shoes before settling on one. If I really can't make a decision, I'll keep two and rotate between them and see if one rises to the top, but then I'm still stuck with the other pair (I'm looking at you K-Swiss ultrashot). So I'm curious what kind of paces everyone puts their shoes through to make a decision of which to keep.

I skip shoes that need break in and feel too firm out of the box. Call me picky, and sure it limits my options, but I'm not buying a shoe that's only comfortable for 75-50% of its lifespan when other shoes are comfortable out of the box. On the flip side, if the upper is a too soft cloth-feeling material, I skip that too, because it will break in too much and become too unsupportive, unless there are visible, more rigid structures to hold it in place. that's takes most of the guesswork out of how a new shoe will hold up over time.

not sure which ultrashot you're talking about, but the 2s were too firm out of the box, sent them back right after trying on. the 3s are much more comfortable, but they removed the extra wide flange of the 2s that i liked a lot and made it a less wide fit, no good for me.

 

[socallefty]

I buy a new model, see if they fit well, see if I can play well in them, see how long I can play in them before my knees/ankles start hurting. Only a few shoes pass the test. When I like a model, I play for many years with them and always have several pairs in my closet in case they go out of stock as generally shoes last only about 1 month (60-70 hours) for me on hard courts. Two of my favorites have been the Barricade 7(aka Novak) and Gel Resolution 8 (current pair). For every model that works, there are at leas 3 or 4 other models that don't work out when I try them once.

I stopped buying lightweight shoes many years ago as they last 2 weeks or 30 hours at best before they get too soft and feel unstable or cause soreness for me.