Mountain Masters

The Reason I Bought Mountain Masters
I bought these mostly for the days with a moderate to long approach to 3rd, 4th, or light 5th class climbing, with a mix of trail time and cross country. They are reasonably light, well padded, and fairly comfortable.

How Well Do They Fit?
I found these shoes to be very comfortable for hiking, both on trail and off. They do seem to be designed for wide feet (mine are narrow), I had some side-to-side movement, but not overly much. The toe box has plenty of volume, and the lenths seemed to be standard. The cushioning around the ankle sealed well, keeping out most (but not all) debris. Heel lift was not an issue. The lacing system does allow a little bit of fit customization.

How Well Do They Climb?
Five Ten has some of the best climbing rubber out there, and these shoes reflect that in the fact that they smear well and inspire confidence on friction moves. They are fairly stiff laterally, but the edging power is limited by the rounded sole-to-side transitions, and in my case by the fact that the shoes are too wide for my feet, making for a sloppy fit side to side.

Due to the ample padding in the shoe, sensitivity is limited. They work very well in fist-to-4" or so cracks, as the lateral stiffness works to your advantage in these situations, making for solid, pain-free jams. Forget about thin cracks unless they're low-angle enough for smearing.

Overall, these shoes are solid climbers, good for up to 5.9 friction stuff or 5.7 to 5.8 all around routes. Your skill level will determine how well these shoes work for you, the quantifications listed above are from my own experience and skill level.

How Well Do They Hold Up? How Durable Are They?
Durability has always been the weak point of Five Ten products in the past, but I haven't used these enough to see if they will deteriorate prematurely. So far, they are holding up well.

MIscellaneous Notes:
My last use of these shoes was on a warm day (around 70 F), and my feet were quite warm (OK, they were hot). These shoes don't have a lot of breathability or ventilation, and your feet will get hot.

Although billed as an approach shoe, they aren't that great for alpine approaches, at least if there's any snow involved (glacier or snowfield crossing, etc.). They aren't the least bit waterproof, and being low tops, I had a difficult time getting gaiters to stay sealed. The snow doesn't actually get inside the shoe, but it collects between the padding and your ankle and achilles, and then sits there and melts.

Overall Impression:
The Mountain Masters hike well, climb well, and aside from the deficiencies listed above are good approach/scrambling shoes. It is to your advantage to have wide feet for these shoes.

I will find out in the near future if the durability issues have been addressed, but I will be surprised if they have. I have owned many pairs of Five Ten products in the past, and not one of them lasted nearly as long as I thought it should.

I have the female version of these. They felt very tight initially but fitted well after a few weeks. The rubber is great for rock scrambling and easy climbs or bouldering. My major gripe is with durability. The shoes began to wear rapidly. The toe rand detached early on both shoes and now can catch when climbing. The stitching around the tongue gave way within a few weeks of wear. I would not buy another pair.

My favorite shoes! A little tight at first but great now. Ive climbed many a sporty warm-up with these. These have been up & down two 14ers this year. Also climbed Gayley from Temple in these, part of a 19hr car to car nightmare. I do find these weak in the edging department, and the snow crossing was the scarest! But for the hiking, scrambling, & jumping from one moving rock to the next, these are the best! Another great thing about these shoes is the 5.10 rubber!!!!