Exustar Stelvio shoe - review

[Graham]

I have just returned from a 500 mile tour wearing the Stelvios.
I like them. They were comfortable from the start. They are fairly water-resistant, as expected for a shoe with a leather upper. They can be worn off-bike pretty much anytime because they don't scream "look! these are cycling shoes".


Exustar Stelvios - fitted for Time ATAC pedals


Stelvios - note the "chunky lump" soles

Notice that I am using Time ATAC pedals on the bike - formerly fitted with shimano SPD pedals.
I tried fitting shimano SPD cleats to the shoes first but found that they were proud of the sole.
The Time cleats are significantly lower and sit below the level of the sole.


Stelvios - Time ATAC cleats below sole level

This is a tail-wagging-the-dog situation. i.e. the limitations of the soles of the shoe determined the pedals fitted.
To Exustar I would request that could improve the situation by having deeper soles AND by providing a solid bar alongside the cleat position, instead of the MTB-style chunky lumps. This would improve shimano SPD compatability AND increase the life of the sole.

The later suggestion is how Carnac do it. . . . pretty much the best that can be done within the constraints. See below. . . . Carnac WITH Shimano SPD


Carnac touring shoes - fitted for Shimano SPDs


Carnac touring shoes - solid bars of rubber alongside the cleats


Carnac Touring shoes - SPD cleats below sole level

Summary : I really like these Exustar Stelvios. However, with the limitations of the soles I will give them 8/10.
Go on Exustar - you can get 10/10 by improving the soles as suggested! A de facto, standard for a touring shoe is within your grasp! You can do it.

PS. It is likely that I will bodge my stelvios with some stick-on-sole handywork - to improve the wear-rate of those chunky rubber lumps.


Stick-on-sole bodgery with some Shimano shoes

Edit 1 : Pedals are Time ATAC not Alium . . . I dunno where that came from.
Edit 2 : Having looked a bit more closely, the pedals have Alium marked on them.

[PW]

I'm using Exustar Stelvios for work, fitted with Wellgo SPD cleats - no bother at all. I also have a pair of Carnac Passy touring shoes cleated for ATAC Carbons - those side bars to the soles wear quite quickly, I trashed a pair of cleats on the coast to coast ride, mainly pushing the camping gear up Hardknott The Passys are more comfortable for extended mileages, though the type of pedal with the bigger contact platform probably helps. The Exustars are comfortable for normal all day work & commuting wear, more watertight than the Passys & don't look "odd". Horses for courses methinks. If we get more floods I recommend the Northwave Celsius boots with their Goretex lining.

[Bob H]

I have tried a loan pair and find them rather tight for my broad foot. With your experience, do they stretch and break in? I am resisting buying because of that but have to agree they appear to be a super shoe.

[Graham]

Hi Bob,

I too have wide feet. I dared not risk buying them mail order, so went along to Bikeplus www.bikeplus.co.uk to try sizes 7.5, 8, 8.5 . . . . ended up with size 8 ( my normal size ).

I'm pretty sure the leather will mould to foot shape. No guarantees though. You know how it is with feet and shoes.

PS. It is my replacement Carnacs that are giving me trouble. Same model - same size, just 10 years later. The new ones seem to be constructed from thicker/tougher materials are taking many, many hours & miles to break in. I never had to suffer this with the predecessors when new.

[Bob H]

Thanks Graham, I'm a bit closer to buying now. Agree with you; I wouldn't buy shoes on line.

[PW]

Graham, I was under the impression that the Carnacs were out of production, are yours a recent buy? Mine are probably my favourite riding shoes - in dry conditions.

Oh and Aliums are the bottom end of the ATAC range.

[Graham]

Hi PW,

Yep, I bought those Carnacs last autumn, deliberately because I knew they were an end-of-line. A good move, despite the breaking-in problem.

Aliums . . . bottom of the line !! . . . . oh my god, I hope the neighbours don't notice
Thanks for this confirmation. I thought I was hallucinating (again), but later went and read the pedals. . . . . and when I get really bored I eat loads of beetroot.

[LondonCommuter]

Any particular ideas on what material makes good "stick on sole bodgery". I've just bought some Stelvios and after one commute am very happy with them. My trusty Northwave Kaimans are wearing out and the right sole (which I release and ground when stopping) has worn such that the cleat grounds and will no doubt wear quickly now, so any suggestions on what sort of gunk I should use would be welcome.

[rogerzilla]

Agree about the problem of SPD cleats touching the ground. Ironically I got the Stelvios to replace a pair of Sidi Dominators which had worn so that...the cleats were touching the ground

CJ - what pedal system do you use, since you seem to be the Stelvios' biggest fan?

[Graham]

. . . so any suggestions on what sort of gunk I should use would be welcome.

I had some bog-standard stick-on-soles in the back of a cupboard. . . . sole & adhesive & rasp-like tool .

I had to do a lot of destructive cutting & trimming of the stick-on-soles to get the right shapes to fit alongside the cleats.
The (old) soles needed a lot of preparation ( cleaning & roughening ) to prepare for the adhesive.
Such bodgery is destined to last for a limited time, as you can see in the photos above.

[fatboy]

I'm using Exustar Stelvios for work, fitted with Wellgo SPD cleats - no bother at all.

I have the same experience, less clunky than my old Shimano SPD shoes. It has taken me a little while to get used to the shoes especially the stiff as a board laces but now they are really comfy and I did my first 100k Audax in them and they were great (I actually road 17 mile round trip to get to/from the start of the course).

Pros: Comfy, subtle in non cycling cloths, water resistant (not tried them in heavy rain yet), breathable (however I only got them in October so perhaps a bit early to tell!), can walk on wooden floors with out the cleat causing a problem (but don't tell the wife) and I will only need one pair of shoes for touring in future.

Cons: Bit on the narrow side for my wide feet so I'm riding in a bigger size than I might otherwise need, look a bit odd when in cycling clobber, they don't have a lace loop (double knotting works fine), they can be a bit of a pain to get on and I hated the fact that I had to take a knife to a brand new pair of shoes to get the cleats on.

After CJs fanfair I guess I was a little dissapointed however once I've got to use them I would give them 8/10 but at £50 from Spa a bit of a bargain.

[Greybeard]

I hated the fact that I had to take a knife to a brand new pair of shoes to get the cleats on.

I bought a pair of Stelvios a while back - the later version with the less chunky sole. I must say that I've been really impressed with how comfortable they are, though I've used them only on the vintage bikes with non-cleated pedals so far. Like fatboy, I really am putting off the day when I have to cut into the sole to fit the cleats that I need in order to use them on the more modern bikes If only they had been made with a pull out section - like the instructions appear to suggest they are

Perhaps tonight will be the night

Steve

[fatboy]

Yesterday was my first wet ride. Actually wet doesn't begin to cover it, I only saw one other cyclist over 20miles and everything got wet (roads were flooded in several places but I manfully/stupidly soldiered on!). Now I started off with the shoes on their own, then after around 8 miles realised that maybe my overshoes would help. Now it is worth noting that my overshoes have a ruddy great bit hole where your leg goes in so my shoes filled up with water a treat. Snag was that the water didn't have anywhere much to go so it got a bit squelcy. However when I got home it was only really the in-sole that was wet so with a bit of an air I was able to put them away much quicker than other cycling shoes and they didn't take on the swampy smell that my previous pair were won't to adopt.

So all in all quite pleased. Just need to sort out stopping the water getting in the tops of my overshoes..... might try the rubber glove idea suggested in another post.

[asterix]

That there are now 2 versions is a bit confusing!

Spa Cycles had both when I visited and one version has a less chunky sole. I assume it replaces the chunky one as it was £70 to the other's £50. Anyway I tried on both types and now have to wait until Christmas to use it:( Their appeal is their off-bike appearance in town.

Meanwhile my Lidl shoes soldier on, one pair having done a 10 day (2 of them exceedingly wet) Raid Pyrenean without any noticeable effect.