canam73

Do I want one?

Been looking at new shoes. My old ones have velcro only and I have no complaints. I tend to not fuss with my shoes much when I am riding. Is there any reason that I want or need a buckle?

dbh

Huge improvement over velcro. You get the perfect amount of snugness on your foot, and they are more secure than velcro.

James1:17

I don't know if you'll want a buckle after all this, but you certainly don't need one. /.02

hao

If by huge you mean miniscule then correct.

Shimagnolo

+1
And you can reach down and snug them up while riding.

hhnngg1

Buckle definitely not necessary.

I've been using tri-shoes (one big velcro strap, no buckle, for quick transitions) and roadie shoes interchangeably (both Shimano, similar pricepoint $100ish) for the past 3 years, and honestly, they ride exactly equally, and in fact, I prefer the tri-shoes to the roadie shoe with the buckle. The single big velcro strap works amazingly well, and is very comfortable, whereas the buckle can be a hassle to dial in.

I used them for long training rides of 60-100 miles on a weekly basis, so they work for distance as well.

mpath

It's for roadies who need to hear the click-click-click of the buckles to gauge snugness. Velcro is so 90's.

JK. I have both, depending on my ride and bike I choose. Both work fine, but the industry seems to want you to think that buckles are "better", hence are on the higher end models, with exceptions, eg. the Specialized S-Works comes with dials instead of buckles.

hao

Who doesn't have the handling skill to coast for a bit and tighten a velcro strap?

lwrncc

Get some BOA shoes!

I just bought these https://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/3...e-For-Men.html

Waiting on new pedals to try them.

carpediemracing 

I think buckles have a functional advantage, especially when dealing with a shoe that has a few levels of straps. The key is "repeatability".

Buckles allow you to replicate a "setting" in a way that you cannot do with velcro. This is especially the case when wearing booties, gloves, etc, anything that takes away from some of the "feel" you have when grasping the velcro with bare fingers.

So, for example, I know I have 4-5 notches showing when I first put on my shoes. I know that after 20-30 minutes I want to do 1-2 clicks to snug up. After an hour I may snug it up another 1 click. If really depleted (long rides), I end up with 0-1 notch showing on the strap.

I also snug up my shoes while they're under booties. Since I race/ride with little/no warmup (15 seconds to 10 minutes typically), I'll do my 1-2 clicks after 15-20 min, then the odd click or two for the next hour or so.

I also tend to overtighten the lower two straps (based on what I see/hear, so does everyone else, at least at first). With a full buckle system (I have two more buckles for the two smaller "straps"), I can incrementally tighten my shoe on the forward part of my foot. I know exactly how much I tightened it, I can undo it, etc.

In the summer a strap setup is fine, although sometimes the strap slips through my fingers (with the long finger gloves on that I virtually always use).

My primary shoes have 3 buckles (well, they're ratcheting in some way). My back ups have one buckle, two straps. My back up back ups have 3 straps.

grwoolf

+1 on the boa system. Specialized is now using them on some of their mid-line shoes.

calamarichris

True, you don't need buckles, but IMO they last longer than velcro, can be replaced more easily than velcro, and are infinitely easier to adjust precisely on-the-fly.
Just push the little button on the buckle once and it loosens your shoes, or click the ratcheting thing once or twice before your sprint.
And the little spinner-buttons with the fishing-line work well and last too.
I've had velcro wear get tired and lose it's grip when there was still plenty of life left in the shoes.

Shuke

I like the infinite microadjustability of velcro.

jwill87ta

+2 on BOA.

They adjust in finer increments than a traditional buckle does which is nice. I got them because in order for me to get the buckles tight enough the mounting area was putting pressure on the side of my foot.

The downside that I've found to BOA is that once they have been tightened there is no way to "let them off" a little without releasing all of the tension and re-tightening them.

grwoolf

The boa's on the new s-works shoe allow micro-adjustment in either direction. I got the Expert model and that is a limitation, but it's pretty easy to do even when riding. I can back mine off a little in just a second or 2 by releasing and re-tensioning.

Looigi

I haven't ever worn out the Velcro on a pair shoes before tossing them for new ones despite a lot of use, riding in mud and rain, etc.. I have a pair I've used quite a bit over the past 6 years or so and the Velcro is still fine. I recently got Specialized shoes with buckles after having used Velcro for many years. I thought I wanted them, and yes, I can click the buckles tighter or loosen them a bit more easily when riding etc.. but shoe covers, knee/leg warmers, etc get hung up on the buckles. With all that, I found that I prefer the simplicity and reliability and unbreakability of Velcro. Given the choice between two identical shoes priced the same and differing only in having a buckle or just Velcro, I'd choose the Velcro. Note that there are some high end shoes come in Velcro versions and some pros have gone back to it as well.

Get some shoes with buckles and decide for yourself. You might like them, or perhaps not.

RT

No offense intended dbh, but my experience is exactly the opposite on all counts. For some reason the buckle has been a hot topic lately. For me, the buckle does not tune as finely as velcro, therefore it is either slightly too loose, or slightly too tight. IF too tight, the buckle can put undue pressure on the foot. As mentioned in other buckle threads, you have to be extra careful to get the right size to avoid this problem, but I tried three sizes and had the same experience with all three. for those of us with narrow feet, adjustment is really moot as you have to cinch the buckle all the way down to its max to make it tight enough, so the plastic strap almost touches the ground when fastened (depending on brand of course - mine are Shimano).

Don't get me wrong, pros and scrubs alike ride with these without issue, but blanket statements like buckles are more secure than velcro (see current thread regarding high speed wreck from the buckle coming off the shoe) are just not right. As I mentioned in that thread, a buckle or a velcro strap are only as strong as what holds them to the shoe. I just don't get how when you need a little snug you get one click with the buckle, and with velcro you can fine tune just by lifting and pressing.

Try on different pairs and go with what fits your foot.

calamarichris

Another thing to consider is that not all buckles are created equal. I can't imagine anyone having a problem with Sidi Ergo 2's being either too loose or too tight. (Too pimp perhaps, but never too loose or tight.)

chadteck

I went from buckle to velcro and I would say it comes down to personal preference, but I prefer velcro.

It is easier to get it tightened perfectly, it is lighter, more aero and is not noisy (my old buckles developed a tick).

chadteck

I know those Ergo 2's are popular, but I don't understand why they had to go with 3 different strapping methods. Go velcro or Boa for the bottom 2, not both.

Excelsius

There can be a $50 or more difference between a buckle and a velcro. My $35 Diadoras with velcros have been working just fine. I am too busy cycling when I am on my bike to worry about whether my shoes have a buckle or not. There have always been great athletes, even without the presence of $300 shoe and $30 bar tape "technology." Nowadays it seems we're trying to pay large sums of money on material improvements, if they are improvements at all, instead of improving ourselves. It's like traveling to India to learn meditation and learn to live a different way of life and then paying some of the locals to do your tasks for you.

calamarichris

IMO, the velcro at the bottom is seldom adjusted. Set it & forget it. As long as you don't frequently remove & restore velcro, it will hold forever. Ergo2's also have some little plastic strip with interlocking notches to reinforce the velcro.

The buckle up at the top is the primary load-bearing fastener. It's sturdier and has easy adjustability, but it is not as light or aero as the Boa or velcro. A boa up there wouldn't be as strong, nor have the micro-adjustability.

And the boa in the middle is basically to provide uniform pressure across the top of the tongue, so the buckle and velcro strap don't feel tight by comparison. A buckle in the middle would be overkill, but since it gets used regularly, velcro would eventually wear and cease to work.

All this and replaceable parts.


But of course we all convince ourselves what works best for us; and I'm no different.

phee

+1 I love the look of the Ergo 2's but it just seems silly. Or maybe schizophrenic. I have a couple of pairs of Lakes and really like them. The newest pair has the boa system and it works very well.

canam73

Thanks for the replies. As I said originally, my old shoes with velcro worked fine. I'm only looking for new ones because the insides are breaking down, the velcro is still good. When I bought them there weren't so many buckle options like now. Lake shoes tend to fit me well, and I will probably go with them again. But they are velcro or boa, and I was just wondering if I was missing out on something huge. I actually don't care for the boa so much, but all the Lake models other than the base have it which is the other reason I'm asking about other systems.