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climbing shoe
Black Diamond

Method S

Category
Climbing shoe
Type
—
Key specs
BlackLabel Fuse rubber; moderate downturn
Material
Engineered knit tongue
Weight
460 g

What climbers keep saying · from 10 reviews

needs break-in4durable3comfortable2painful2great heel hooks1great toe hooks1great value1sensitive1

In street size the Method S is uncomfortable but not painful, good for 2-3 Moonboard problems at a time; a flat, soft-ish shoe that's just OK and worth it only on sale, and the sole delaminated not long into use.

mixedcomfortable

Rates the Method S 2 out of 5: the fuse rubber isn't very grippy, sensitivity is lacking for its claimed thinness, and the upper feels cheap with poor, inconsistent stitching.

negative

Prefers the Method S over the Red Chili Fusion 2 by a huge margin: narrower, lower-volume fit for narrow feet, better rubber, a much tighter heel for easier heel and toe hooks; the knit upper has held up well through a first resole, though it's less comfortable than the Red Chili.

positivegreat heel hooksgreat toe hooksdurable

Bought the Method S as a step up after five months; tight and hard to break in, managing about five problems before swapping, but grippier than their old Tarantulas and they're almost happy with them.

mixedneeds break-in

Their Method S was way too tight in street size so they went half a size up; tight and uncomfortable at first, then really good and snug, and their old pair definitely stretched over a year.

positiveneeds break-in

Enjoying the Method S for indoor bouldering, especially slab: softer than almost any shoe they've tried, even Dragos, smears really well and can edge with strong feet.

positivesensitive

Bought the women's Method S, which felt near perfect in store, but wearing them at home cut off circulation and the pain lasted hours, so they returned them for a different shoe.

negativepainful

Ordered the Method S in near street size; big toes were extremely painful for the first few tries, wearable 10-15 minutes, and there's some room at the heel.

mixedpainfulneeds break-in

Used their Method S until it needed a resole; happy with it for gym and some outdoor bouldering, with good friction and edging, easily good enough at around 7A, good value and a bit more rubber for longevity.

positivegreat valuedurable

Climbs up to V5/11c in the Method S: synthetic with very little stretch, so breaking in was painful; decent sticky rubber that will last, and a deep heel for heel hooks; now prefers it to the Aspect for edging, but probably wouldn't buy again.

mixedneeds break-indurable

Loves the Method S: comfortable, smears great on bad volumes and more reliable than Vibram rubber; the moderate downturn makes comp slab edging harder, but if the big heel fits it's an amazing all-rounder; stretched about a quarter size.

positivecomfortablesticky rubber