Cypher Climbing Shoe Review

Time for a review of Cypher Rubik and Cypher Prefix climbing shoes.  The company is fairly new and just started producing climbing shoes this season.  I’ve owned a couple of Cypher slings for a year, and have been happy with them, but there’s not much room for innovation or error when it comes to something so basic.  Shoes on the other hand (foot?) are much more intricate.

Early in the summer, you may remember that I blew out the soles of my all-day shoes.  In anticipation of that event, I’d been trying things on at the shops both locally and on road trips, but could not find a satisfactory pair.  When the blowout occurred, it was necessary to bite the bullet, and order something online.

After much research and comparison, I settled on getting two offerings from Cypher.  The prices were really good, and I figured I’d have to order two of anything just to get the proper size anyway.  By ordering two different models, I hoped might even end up with two usable pairs.  After all, I was primarily looking for a comfortable shoe I could wear all day on easy to moderate routes.  Ideally, I’d also get something that could hold a dime-edge for a couple of specific projects at Munson Lake.

Out of the box:
     Both were ordered about a size and half down from my street shoes.  The Prefix was supple and light.  The forefoot was painfully narrow at first, but thin rands over unlined leather held the promise of a snug and personal fit once broken in.  The crinkle laces hold their tension at each eyelet, so customized cinching is a breeze.

The Cypher Prefix, with it's great laces.

     The Rubik fit perfectly, held it’s shape, and were comfortable with the velcro closure helping to secure them in place.  There is just enough padding under the straps to be comfortable without being bulky.


The Cypher Rubik is a flat lasted velcro climbing shoe.

 Early impressions:
     The Prefix, which is designed as an entry level climbing shoe or rental fleet offering, is actually quite nice. They look like Puma sneakers from the 80’s.  My toes turned red from the constriction, but less so with each use.  The rest of my foot turned a subtle green from the dye leeching out of the unlined leather.

They look like they're from the 80's, and they have a classic performance to match: Not going to win any races, but they're dependable and just feel right.

     The Rubik was still comfortable, but not at all sensitive.  I could not decide if my feet kept slipping (off of granite, limestone, basalt, and schist) because the rubber is slick, or because I couldn’t feel what I was on.  They claim it’s 4.2mm but it seems thicker.  Looking closely, it’s possible to see the deformation and rolling of the edges when trying to stand on a big crystal or dime-edge.  The Enigma HP rubber is supposed to be of higher density specifically to hold small edges.  If it was thinner might this not happen?

Final verdict:
     The Prefix smears beautifully.  The 5mm Enigma rubber is softer than that on the Rubik, but hasn't pitted either.  The fit is now customized so that they are comfortable without being sloppy or loose.  They excel on granite slabs.  With very little rubber away from the toes, these are not a good choice for wide cracks or for heel-hooking, but do ok on thinner stuff (fingers to hand).  They edge well on vertical faces.  This is probably due more to the friction characteristics, and having strong feet in narrow shoes, rather than rubber firmness or shoe stiffness. I will buy them again.
      The Rubik are disappointing, though they are very comfortable and have maintained their size and shape.  I can wear them all day and will do so again provided I’m not getting on anything hard.  I still can’t feel anything underfoot.  They skid off of every rock type I’ve tried to smear.  They don’t edge very well, unless it’s at least 1 cm thick, positive, and highly textured.  They do an ok job heel-hooking and jam pretty good too.  The velcro stays closed (I have yet to open them with my pant leg or on the sides of a crack).  The rubber is pitting. Maybe once I wear through a millimetre of the sole they’ll be more sticky or sensitive.  Maybe they just need really cold temperatures.  I will continue to use them but will not buy another pair.

All show and no go:  They are comfortable and look cool, but leave a lot to be desired in the performance department.

How they can be improved:
     I’d love to try a Prefix built on a downturned last.  The unlined upper fits like a second skin, and shaping it for more pulling power could do wonders.  Coupling this with the soft rubber, particularly if it was trimmed to just 3.5mm thick, should make an excellent climbing shoe for steep granite (where precision, sensitivity and friction are crucial to stabbing then pushing off the crystals and tiny flakes on the underside of boulders.)
     Thinner rubber might fix the Rubik. Softer rubber would definitely do the trick.  In either case, this would not be a high-end shoe (which in fairness to Cypher, is not what they are after with this model) but a decent all-round all-day choice.