i've actively climbed in this shoe for 10 months (but owned for almost 2 years...). this shoe is pretty nice. but no matter what the manufacturer says, synthetic will still stretch a little. if you're ok with a little more room (or not), be prepared for it. my shoes now lace up to the minimum possible size, which is just right.one of the things i do not like about this shoe is that it's hard to get the smell out. i dont have particularly stinky feet at all. but it is pretty gross. ive washed it out a couple times and it's bad. baking soda works ok.the second thing i dont like is that the heel doesnt hug as well as i want. the scarpa techno's have a little tightening mechanism to allow a more snug heel. but those shoes cost a little more.the rubber, like the reviewer before, is sticky. i like them! and although the heel ridges look awesome, they only provide a slight advantage. dont rely too much on it.they're a comfortable all-day shoe. and what i love is that there is very little variability in sizing from the time that i bought them months ago and now (i go anywhere between 1-3 times indoor each week... i very rarely miss a week). few times outdoors at castle rock.laces are a bit long, but you can always shorten them and seal the ends with shrink electrical tubing (from radio shack).these are great for either bouldering for beginners (since they're relatively forgiving) or top ropping. but i've heard la sportiva's are the most comfortable. eh whatever.since i primarily boulder (actually, almost exclusively), i've since switched to the scarpa feroce, which is more aggressive but not severely down-turned to hurt.btw i wear a 9.5 in all shoes (addidas and skate shoes) and have a 42.5 / 9.5 in this shoe. pretty true to size. got these guys from REI since they were my first and had to size them on my feet instead of guestimate online.

Excellence.. These shoes were designed for climbers with "Morton's Toe" ... a condition where your 2nd metatarsal (index toe) is longer than your first (big toe), so as we Mortons toe climbers know that in our normal size asymmetrical toe boxes cause overly extreme pain on the toes.. even the normal symmetrical toe boxes can be pretty annoying during a climb.

Enter the Evolv Demorto: These shoes do a fantastic job at solving the problem. The symmetrical toe box is a little longer where the second metatarsal fits, and the result is a custom fit for any climber that wants a tad bit more un-cramped room in the toe box. These shoes fit pretty true to size... My size 13 street shoe = 13 climbing shoe.

1. The rubber on these is pretty sticky. I have no problem smearing on the Sandstone at Castle Rock, or the Fakestone at indoor climbing gyms.
2. The rubber outsole design is semi-functional but definitely more useful than nothing. i.e. the heel would work well with/without the heel ridges pattern. (I tend to think a smooth rubber heel would be better for heel hooking surface area, but it does ad cushion and I assume that Evolv did their research).
3. The rubber overlap on the top and sides of the toebox is generous which makes for good underhooks and painless toejamming.
4. The lacing is norm, the dual finger loops/pulltabs are norm.

Weird: These shoes have a pretty flat but generous heel area so it makes a weird noise that tells me there is an air pocket with only half the contact. This is because MY heel sticks out more as opposed to a straight line from my calf to the bottom of my foot perhaps.

I noticed: My feet are somewhat wide on the outside middle section of my feet, and I am slightly flat footed so the leather bulges just a bit which probably leads to air leaks.

Overall, these shoes are great to climb in and so far I would buy them over and over. The only thing is, the Olive Green is kinda weird.. the Slate Grey looked way better.. Blue or orange would be awesome.