Detailed Review of New Bont Vaypor + shoes (Lots of pictures)
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Detailed Review of New Bont Vaypor + shoes (Lots of pictures)
I wanted to do a review on these Bont Vaypor + shoes because I didn't know anything about Bont until I did some extensive research. To be honest, I simply assumed Bont was affiliated with Bontrager/Trek. I know I'm not the only one who has thought this, but I admit it was a judgmental impression.
Why did I decide to look into Bont shoes:
I dont have narrow feet. I never thought I had WIDE feet, but it turns out that after getting a measurement and fitting, it turns out that I'm right on the fence or standard or Wide. After 5 years of cycling I got tired of my feet becoming uncomfortable and sometimes (Not all the time) going numb. I have specialized Sworks shoes and have loved them for almost 2 years now, but for some reason I never noticed that my little toe stuck out and hung over the sole. I just figured my toes were being pushed together. I would wear my shoes fairly loose to try and accommodate for needing more width. This would allow the upper to spread wider and I was able to ride more comfortably.
This lead me to looking at different options. I looked at and tried on a couple different wide/mega options but found that the fit may have been better in the toes, but was too wide in the mid foot and heel. I came across Bont and that when I learned they had nothing to do with Bontrager/Trek at all, but was its own company.
The completely different shape of Bont became intriguing. The shape is designed to fit the more traditional human foot shape instead of a traditional shoe which can cram toes together unless you are lucky enough to have narrow feet. See diagram
I went to the Bont site to look up local dealers and found 4 in my local area. I called 3 stores and none of them are dealers anymore. The last location was still a dealer, but did not stock any in the store because of such a lack of brand awareness. I went into the shop and we discussed the Bont shoe and why it is such a special shoe. He wore Bont as well and was able to educate me on the brand quit a bit. After he took some measurements, he measured me at a 43w. My specialized S works were a 44 standard, Giro Factors were a 44.5 and in shimano I wore a 44.5 as well. He has years of experience in this and assured me that a 43 Wide would give me 8mm extra length and extra 3mm for width. This would be beneficial to have when my foot started to swell in warm weather or longer rides. The Bont Vaypor is their tradition ratchet and velcro strap, but the new Vaypor + is like the S works Boa system. I ordered a pair and was told it would take 7-8 weeks to get them in since they are made in Australia. The white or black options are their stock color choices. Any other color is considered "Custom" and is an additional fee. I wanted the Super yellow shiny microfiber. $399 for a pair of shoes without trying them on or even holding them in your hand can leave you a little uneasy to say the least!
In the meantime, I found a pair of white 43's on one of my forums for a good deal and figured it would be nice to have a white pair also, so I bought them. Got them in and tried them on. Big bummer, it confirmed my fear that a 43 was too small. My toes were crammed against the toe box. I immediately called the shop and told him. He was very surprised but was able to change the order to a 44 Wide. Was nice that he was able to change it, but still left me a bit concerned that I wasn't assured this would fit me either. I felt that possibly going with a 44.5 Wide would be best since the 43 was SO tight. To my luck, another member had a 44.5 wide in white for the same awesome deal. Was able to sell the 43's, so that was no problem. Got the 44.5 in and...Bummer...too big. So this made me feel that the 44 wide would in fact be just right. Luckily I sold the 44.5 wides quickly as well.
So, fast forward 7 weeks.
Here are my Bont Vaypor + Super Yellow Shiny Microfiber 44 wide shoes.
A very soft liner around the edge of the ankle
Why did I decide to look into Bont shoes:
I dont have narrow feet. I never thought I had WIDE feet, but it turns out that after getting a measurement and fitting, it turns out that I'm right on the fence or standard or Wide. After 5 years of cycling I got tired of my feet becoming uncomfortable and sometimes (Not all the time) going numb. I have specialized Sworks shoes and have loved them for almost 2 years now, but for some reason I never noticed that my little toe stuck out and hung over the sole. I just figured my toes were being pushed together. I would wear my shoes fairly loose to try and accommodate for needing more width. This would allow the upper to spread wider and I was able to ride more comfortably.
This lead me to looking at different options. I looked at and tried on a couple different wide/mega options but found that the fit may have been better in the toes, but was too wide in the mid foot and heel. I came across Bont and that when I learned they had nothing to do with Bontrager/Trek at all, but was its own company.
The completely different shape of Bont became intriguing. The shape is designed to fit the more traditional human foot shape instead of a traditional shoe which can cram toes together unless you are lucky enough to have narrow feet. See diagram
I went to the Bont site to look up local dealers and found 4 in my local area. I called 3 stores and none of them are dealers anymore. The last location was still a dealer, but did not stock any in the store because of such a lack of brand awareness. I went into the shop and we discussed the Bont shoe and why it is such a special shoe. He wore Bont as well and was able to educate me on the brand quit a bit. After he took some measurements, he measured me at a 43w. My specialized S works were a 44 standard, Giro Factors were a 44.5 and in shimano I wore a 44.5 as well. He has years of experience in this and assured me that a 43 Wide would give me 8mm extra length and extra 3mm for width. This would be beneficial to have when my foot started to swell in warm weather or longer rides. The Bont Vaypor is their tradition ratchet and velcro strap, but the new Vaypor + is like the S works Boa system. I ordered a pair and was told it would take 7-8 weeks to get them in since they are made in Australia. The white or black options are their stock color choices. Any other color is considered "Custom" and is an additional fee. I wanted the Super yellow shiny microfiber. $399 for a pair of shoes without trying them on or even holding them in your hand can leave you a little uneasy to say the least!
In the meantime, I found a pair of white 43's on one of my forums for a good deal and figured it would be nice to have a white pair also, so I bought them. Got them in and tried them on. Big bummer, it confirmed my fear that a 43 was too small. My toes were crammed against the toe box. I immediately called the shop and told him. He was very surprised but was able to change the order to a 44 Wide. Was nice that he was able to change it, but still left me a bit concerned that I wasn't assured this would fit me either. I felt that possibly going with a 44.5 Wide would be best since the 43 was SO tight. To my luck, another member had a 44.5 wide in white for the same awesome deal. Was able to sell the 43's, so that was no problem. Got the 44.5 in and...Bummer...too big. So this made me feel that the 44 wide would in fact be just right. Luckily I sold the 44.5 wides quickly as well.
So, fast forward 7 weeks.
Here are my Bont Vaypor + Super Yellow Shiny Microfiber 44 wide shoes.
A very soft liner around the edge of the ankle
Last edited by bianchi10; 07-21-14 at 11:07 PM.
#2
King Hoternot
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Vent in the arch of the sole
Vents in the toe
Comparison shape to my 2012 S works shoes
So after a quick 15 mile ride here are some Pro's and Cons about the shoe:
Pro's:
-Very comfortable. The shape and width is extremely nice to have my toes spread out and not feel crammed together.
-The tongue is nicely padded and is very comfortable even when tightened down.
-Shoe can be heat molded AS MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT. (Just be sure to take cleats off and insole out)
-Shoe looks awesome (IMO anyway).
-The stiffest shoe I have ever put on my foot. Felt great putting that power into the pedal.
-material appears as if it will be very easy to keep clean.
-The venting was alright, but not as good as the S works.
-Nice even distribution of the boa system
-Inside of the shoe feels nice and soft
-I like the low height of the tongue. This means the tongue doesn't hit my foot and irritate my foot. I found the Giro Factors were bad with this
Cons
-Unlike the S works, to loosen the Boa you can't twist the knob just a click or two. You have to lift the knob which releases the entire system and you have to find that sweet spot again.
-If you look at the 5th picture down, you can see some rippling of the material across my toes. I dont know if that is because my foot was on the fence of being standard or wide and my foot doesnt take up the entire width of the shoe?? Either way, I dont like that.
-The insole is extremely minimal and could be more comfortable IMO. I put the S works insole in and it was better. Might look into getting different insoles
-Dont know if its because I'm just used to the S works, but i dont like the lower Boa Knob being low. I'd rather see it in the middle like the S works.
-I'm not able to place the cleat as far forward as I'd like or in the same place as the S works. I feel as if I'm about 2-3mm off, but I'm still getting that cleat dialed into the right placement.
-Took WAY too long to get these in my hands. My friend ordered a 2015 BMW the same week I ordered my shoes and he got his car built from scratch, shipped from Europe to US and then trucked to Oregon 3 weeks before I got my shoes.
I'll keep updating if anyone is interested with more rides. Hope this helps anyone else that might be in the same situation I found myself in.
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Did you heat mold them to your feet yet...pretty sure that's why the insole is so minimalist. I had to mold mine twice before I was truly happy with the fit.
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The shoes are awesome but this may be a biggie. Have you been professionally fitted? 2-3mm difference can make a difference specially if your cleats are that far forward.
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If you don't like the cleat position, you can drill new holes on the sole and put in a second set of t-nuts. The grid makes it easy. I didn't because I like the position of my cleats.
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When I ordered mine, I used the sizing wizard on Bont's website.
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Dont tempt me right now lol
we measured and used the sizing wizard on their site. In fact we used both of theirs. They have an older chart and a newer chart and by the numbers, I did in fact measure up to be a 43, but that didn't work out. The 44's fit me perfectly, so if anyone would ask me, I would say they fit like specialized in length from my recent experience.
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Another quick update. Went for another ride and the shoes are great, the insoles....SUCK. I did some research and it appears as if most people who own them also agree. I put my specialized S works insoles in them, went back out and they were the cherry on the sundae. Perfect combo. Only thing is that I'm planning on selling my S works shoes, so I will have to purchase some insoles. Will probably go with Specialized BG insoles of some sort, but have never looked into them so I'll have to do a bit of reading up. I know superfeet have a good reputation but have heard they are very thick.
Anyone have feedback on insoles?
Anyone have feedback on insoles?
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Beat me to it.... I'm thinking the yellow and pink really clash
B10, thanks for taking the time to write this up. It's enough to convince me these aren't my cup of tea, but I'm glad they pretty much work for you.
If you're happy with the Specialized insoles, I'd say just buy you another set. I didn't care much for superfeet. I have another brand of heat-molded insoles I got with my Retul fit, but you don't need both heat-molded shoes and insoles, I'd guess.
B10, thanks for taking the time to write this up. It's enough to convince me these aren't my cup of tea, but I'm glad they pretty much work for you.
If you're happy with the Specialized insoles, I'd say just buy you another set. I didn't care much for superfeet. I have another brand of heat-molded insoles I got with my Retul fit, but you don't need both heat-molded shoes and insoles, I'd guess.
Last edited by gc3; 07-23-14 at 09:07 PM.
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Beat me to it.... I'm thinking the yellow and pink really clash
B10, thanks for taking the time to write this up. It's enough to convince me these aren't my cup of tea, but I'm glad they pretty much work for you.
If you're happy with the Specialized insoles, I'd say just buy you another set. I didn't care much for superfeet. I have another brand of heat-molded insoles I got with my Retul fit, but you don't need both heat-molded shoes and insoles, I'd guess.
B10, thanks for taking the time to write this up. It's enough to convince me these aren't my cup of tea, but I'm glad they pretty much work for you.
If you're happy with the Specialized insoles, I'd say just buy you another set. I didn't care much for superfeet. I have another brand of heat-molded insoles I got with my Retul fit, but you don't need both heat-molded shoes and insoles, I'd guess.
I bought a pair of sidis from a buddy and he gave me the super feet insoles that he had in there. They were super thick and had too much arch. Possibly another model would work.
Thanks
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You might want to look at yoursole.com thinsport insoles
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I'm off the wide scale on Bonts by about 10mm and the wide is just fine. I just put a blunt object while baking it. Took me about 5 tries.
Only thing with Bonts is that you're going to have to lower your seat post a bit because of the very low stack height. I switched to Bont from Sidi and had to lower it a bit. As for stiffness I personally would like to wear composite soled shoes on 4+hour rides. These are just too stiff. Racing is a non-issue since you don't really think about pain while racing
Enjoy the shoes. They look very nice.
Only thing with Bonts is that you're going to have to lower your seat post a bit because of the very low stack height. I switched to Bont from Sidi and had to lower it a bit. As for stiffness I personally would like to wear composite soled shoes on 4+hour rides. These are just too stiff. Racing is a non-issue since you don't really think about pain while racing
Enjoy the shoes. They look very nice.
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Thanks! Did you swap out the insoles to your Bonts? I already lowered the seat post to accommodate.
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I was curious as well. Does your left shoe tighten by twisting up instead of down? I don't feel as if it is as easy to tighten the left shoe because of having to twist it up instead of down.
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I'm not sure I quite understand what you mean. My left shoe tightens exactly like my right, though.
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Both sides on your Bonts tighten toward the toe in a clockwise fashion. They also both tighten toward the heel in a clockwise fashion. You could take the arrows from the right shoe and put them in the same position on the left, and vice versa. Your S-works must have tightened anti-clockwise on the left.
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Both sides on your Bonts tighten toward the toe in a clockwise fashion. They also both tighten toward the heel in a clockwise fashion. You could take the arrows from the right shoe and put them in the same position on the left, and vice versa. Your S-works must have tightened anti-clockwise on the left.
Exactly, thats what I mean. So I'm assuming yours are the same? I just wanted to make sure mine weren't put together wrong or something.
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Yea, same here. Mine are a bit big...my 44 Vaypor's rubbed my second toe quite a bit so I went up to a 44.5. It feels a bit bigger than I expected, though.On yours, does the tongue bunch out from between the sides and the laces a bit when you tighten them down or does it lie flat? I'm just trying to figure out how "too big" these really are.
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Not really. Mine seem to be fine. I had 44.5w in the regular vaypor but was too large. Like you, I felt like then.5 was more like a full size difference.