DrIsotope

My everyday-wear pair of shoes are Giro Code Techlace. Love 'em. Even more so because no one bought the purple ones, so they were 50% off.

mrblue

This is interesting. I was looking at picture of the Trans E70 shoes on Amazon and the ratchet buckle is a bit different than what I have on mine. Although the strap looks the same. In the description, on Amazon (for what it's worth), says the buckle is an N-1 while the strap is an N-2. This is very confusing because when I do a Google search for "Giro N-1" I get a ton of hits with pics that look like the buckle I have.

https://www.amazon.com/Giro-Trans-Ro...00NDJPSO8?th=1

I guess Giro changed something along the way.

Who knows? It's time for laces

Marcus_Ti

Giro's top shoes have been coming with laces for a while--like the Empire and Empire VR90

LAJ

You're right. I went by memory, because I ordered a set of N-1 for my Trans shoes, and they were incorrect. I think it may be MR-1, after doing some looking. I ordered them from Performance, and of course, all my history is gone, so I can't verify.

Aubergine 

mrblue

I have a pair of Sidi Genius 7's and a pair of Dominator 7's. Hands down the fit of the Sidi's is far better than my Giro's. However, and maybe the case is different on the higher end Sid's, but I found the materials on both the Genius and the Dominator to be pretty cheap. The velcro on the Donimators has started to fray after less then a year. Then again, I do use them daily, for my commuter bike, so I do take them on/off a couple of times a day.

Having said that, someday, when I have lots of $$$ I'd like to try some higher end Sidi's.

Seattle Forrest

I don't like laces on any kind of shoe, which is a bummer because they're the obvious best solution. You can make part of the shoe tighter and part looser to fit perfectly. And like you said, they're cheap and ubiquitous. And yet part of the reason I chose the ski boots and walking shoes I have is no laces.

Marcus_Ti

https://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/

Specifically:

https://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/ianknot.htm

CliffordK

Go back to your retailer (in this case, Merlin).

You may have to pay for 2-way shipping.

mrblue

Giro's headquarters is in Santa Cruz. About an hour drive from my house. If it were me, I'd skip the middle man and throw the shoes at Giro's front door myself.

Marcus_Ti

You dodge official retail channels to save a buck...this is what you get. Just about all manufacturers everywhere say to seek RMA through your retailer.

Athens80

Google says others have struggles with stuck buckles on Giros -- and on Sidis.

Someone offered this solution: "Like a Chinese Finger Trap, the trick is to actually push it in farther first. Then you should be able to depress the release lever normally."

I've had stubborn buckles on Shimanos. I didn't think to apply a screwdriver or knife or pliers. After working with them some, maybe pushing the strap in farther and then pushing on the buckle release, they let loose, and I'm still using those shoes years later.

mrblue

Absolutely. With mine, I tried pushing, pulling, pressing, everything you could think of. But the way the strap and buckle were designed there was no room to push or pull anything. That is why I needed to resort to pliers.

CliffordK

I can get most of my shoes off of my feet without unlacing... except some boots. Perhaps those were cinched down tighter than I normally would do, but too tight, and they would be quite uncomfortable.

Those shoes appear to have a soft upper, so I'm surprised they wouldn't slip off.

79pmooney

So Giro's most expensive shoes have laces. My all-time most comfortable shoes have all been laced. The Pumas I raced 40 years ago and the Velcro'd Lakes I paid ~$90 bucks for at Performance. From the first time on the fit was like "ahhh!" but I started having real issues from the straps. (Riding serious hills every day on a fix gear.) I got tired of the doctor's visits so I bought $15 worth of laces, grommets and a tool. Spent an afternoon installing the laces. Those shoes are now super comfortable all-day shoes. Did the same to another pair of identical Lakes with different cleats. Same outcome.

Bugs me that the shoe companies reserve this very cheap fastening system for their $300 shoes. Now that I have the tool, it costs me $5 plus laces per pair.

Ben

sooni

I read this when the shoe was stuck on my foot. Did not work on the Giro's buyt has worked with my Sidis. I am guessing the issue was corrected at some point or this would be more prevalent on forums like this.

sooni

This is the left shoe, also locked when trying to solve the puzzle.

DrIsotope

Grind the head off of the larger rivet with a Dremel. Replace rivet with nut and bolt. I mean, that's what I'd do if the other shoe weren't already destroyed.

noodle soup

I'd replace the buckle altogether, but that's just me,

What I wouldn't do is cut the shoe off (like the OP did).

Spoonrobot 

It's not the buckle that's the issue. It's the strap - specifically the ratchet section of the strap extends too far. It needs to end sooner so that once maximum tightness is achieved there is still room to push the strap further in then back to kick up the release buckle on the un-geared section. The picture I posted on the first page shows the section - I believe the teeth extend further on the smaller sizes.

I hate throwing away defective products that the company refuses to warranty so I'll go pretty far to save. In this case the thing to do seems to be using a soldering iron to melt the head of the ratchet strap so that the tongue will release, then replace strap with a newer(?) model that won't have the same issue.

I've also been scorned by Giro customer service for low-use but older items outside the warranty period. I won't buy Giros and I won't buy shoes online ever again.

LAJ

Snip off the angled portion of the tab that's to be pressed down, so it clears the elevated part of the strap. I can't tell by that picture where it's mounted, but there are also two positions on the shoe the buckle can be installed. All this is easy to say, outside looking in, but it also helps being familiar with that shoe.

noodle soup

If you dismantle the buckle, the strap is released.. Reassemble or replace the buckle, and you're good to go.

No way would I have destroyed the shoe, Sounds like the OP panicked.

woodcraft

Here's the same on an older shoe, which works fine.

I've had some trouble with Sidi buckles but maybe that's operator error.

Spoonrobot 

Do you have access to the Giro shoe closure system? If he replaces the buckle he's going to run into the same issue again - the ratchet section of the strap allows tightening past release point. He could replace the rivet with a screw as suggested but that's not a good fix.

He needs a replacement strap, the strap design changed at some point to decrease the length of the ratchet section by ~1/4". You can see it here comparing this set of shoes from mid 2015 production to the same style but 2016 production. I suspect they used the same ratchet section distance as the prior version of the interface - oversight during design refresh is a common issue but should have been addressed properly.



@sooni - do you have a year printed on the sole under the insole?

sooni

That is a different buckle.