Perhaps that 2d Mortgage can start up a contract re starting the old Avocet contractor, in Italy or China,
Avocet got other companies to make every thing ..

I think Portland State has a Shoe designer course , State funded training to try io get a Job @ Nike.






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I have a 2009 Pair of Diadoras with Look mounting, so I see I can get the Exustar late production Track cleats or get same type of cleats at yellow jersey in Wisconson, they mount on the 2 back holes of your shoes. Get the angle right and your knees will thank you . As for late production shoes, many Iti shoes still have a pointy toe end that will work nice with the classy steel toe clips. Be sure to get the best anti stretch straps you can get if you want to apply power

A warning about these : I found a new pair in my usual size 9.5, but they fit like size 9. I really do not understand this nonsense, because for shoes all you have to do is label the sizes correctly. I never had this happen in my 59 years, but it also happened at my local New Balance store last year.

I use these with my toe-clip equipped bikes.



A section of the sole is removeable and allows you to put on MTB style cleats if you use those later.

Cheers

Nike Cortez. Low profile shoe with narrow toe box

These are the shoes I use when I ride my hardtail MTB with city tires:

Shoes commonly available that work really well in toeclips are men's dress shoes. Get ones with steel shanks in the soles. Smooth rubber soles. Look at the details of the shoe at the bottom of the laces to see if they are going to take well to the toeclip straps. The cage and strap will make a full mess out of the nice polished surface. If you can find the same shoe in moccasin leather, that will take to the clips looks-wise far better. Treat the leather with SnowSeal or equivalent and just accept these are now bike shoes not dress shoes.

I used the LL Bean Ranger Oxfords for decades while they still had a smooth sole as an option. Eventually the straps would kill the lacing to foot box transition but it took years of fix gear riding with straps pulled tight. (Anyone in the Boston area might know the Goddard Ave climb from Jamaica Pond to Brookline. That used to be my commute home in my no-car days. Gear in the mid 70s. Years later the next pair used to go up 65 St NW in Seattle to Aurora Ave. 42-17; I was getting a little smarter.) The Ranger Oxfords were: comfortable - on bike, standing, walking, working, looked decent and not "bike" indoors and cared little about the weather. Kind to indoor flooring also.

Which brings me to a realization I just had! The new Ranger Oxfords with their lugged (Vibram?) soles. I stopped using the Oxfords when this became the only option. I refused to even think about trying to pick up fix gear pedals with lugged soles. Pure heresy here. Take the brand new shoes, clamp them to my work bench upside down, mount the 36 grit grinding disc for steel, wood, whatever on my angle grinder and make that sole smooth! I used to routinely take the brand new pairs and place them in a pan of water upside down overnight, then wear them around the house as they dried. Great custom fit routine. So this would simply be taking a small sacrilege a big step further.

Loved those shoes. The one shoe that could do anything. I used them with the Leotard platforms. The small ridge for the cleat would wear a slot in the rubber; giving me nearly the grip of a cleat. The only shoe I've ever owned that could do everything short of jacket and tie dress. (Well I couldn't skate in them and boots were a lot warmer after! But they did go out on boats. Had to be careful; I could muck up beautiful yacht finishes but the grip on a non-skid deck - first class.