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Old Forum Chinese "Chucks" - Feiyue shoes

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Kyrinov

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This is in response to the news regarding the redesign of the Chuck Taylor. As a die hard footwear minimalist I feel your pain. However, there is a great alternative out there that I have not seen mentioned here - that is the Feiyue. It is the Chinese equivalent to the Chuck. I have owned both and I consider the Feiyue to be vastly superior to the Chuck on a number of parameters. Better grip, a rounded sole allows better lateral force transfer and the lack of a separate sole makes them more durable (I find Chucks sole becomes separated from the rest of the shoe.) The feiyue are also much wider, are somewhat water resistant owing to a very large flexible toe cap and have a great oldschool look to them. They are about as old as the Chuck, having been around since the early 20th century as the shoe of choice in many of China's kung fu schools. I had one of the worst days of my life on the day when I got my first Feiyue in the mail and putting those shoes on almost made everything okay they were so comfortable and gave me such great ground connection. I just love these shoes. Best part is, they are cheap. If you buy them from ICNbuys they cost 25 bucks a pop and if your order is over 100 bucks there is free shipping (normally shipping is 20 bucks a pair so HUGE savings by ordering multiple pairs.) Their longevity is somewhat compromised by their choice of very soft rubber soles but thats pretty much the way all minimalist shoes are in my experience, Chucks included. Amazing shoes. Highly recommended. Best I've ever owned.
 
Charles, absolutely......price and quality Feiyue beat all competition. My vivos, I like, but they fall apart pretty quickly. I've had Feiyues for 4 years or so, still wear them training when not barefoot and used to run in them, not good on trails. I bought another pair but haven't had the need to wear them as the others are still intact. Order 1/2 size bigger though, I'd say. Shop around too, they can be pricier now with the parkour community wearing them, they've become 'trendy. Some celebs have been spotted wearing them too, always a worry. I bought my first pair 30 years ago, imports from China in an ad from a martial arts magazine and didn't know they made them still. Great cheap, quality, minimal shoe.....unmatched in terms of price/quality, apart from barefeet.
 
I need a extra wide shoe, how is the toe box on these?

Very few shoes I have found provide adequate room with a thin flexible sole.

I am willing to spend up to $300 on a pair of shoes if they meet these two requirements.

Do these or any other shoe you know of match my needs?
 
Vivobarefoot are wide as are merrell minimal shoes - a lot of their range aren't wide. How wide is wide? Feiyue are wide but they don't look particularly wide - they have a rubber bendy wrap around coating on the front and it is very forgiving. Like you I've always really struggled with buying shoes throughout my life having shovels at the end of my ankles, squeezing into stupid shaped torpedos have wrecked my big toes. I'm wider again now with minimalism and barefoot as often as poss, which is limited to my house, to be fair, lacking the suitable climatic conditions in Scotland that I do. So the rise of minimalism has been a god send to me, more choice. I detest wearing my office type black normal shoes for functions or when I can't get away with being scruffy and always feel my gait change into a constipated drunken shuffle, which largely goes unnoticed in Scotland. Try the Feiyues, cheap as chips. Splash your money on some vivos.
 
Thanks Alistar, it is good to hear from someone with a similar problem.

I just looked up Vivobarefoots, I'm thinking of ordering the Motus style.
And I'll grab a pair of Feiyues just in case they work.

I appreciate the insight! This was exactly what I was looking for.
 
My Vivobarefoots came, they are awesome. The Motus are shaped like a foot and are wide enough for my foot (minus a little space by the pinky toe). This is exactly what I wanted.

Alastair, thank you again for sharing your knowledge.
I would never have bought them sight unseen without a recommendation like yours.

Again, thank you!
 
Alistair, is there a specific model of Feiyues that you recommend? There are so many!
 
Pats....no idea.....I went for the cheap and black ones. Orange/red on white are trendier and then more expensive. Try to source from a martial arts shop/dealer, where the choice are black with white design, or white with black design. That's it. Direct from china via ebay they are $15, here in uk. Really, yes $15. A tenner a pop. Mindblowing. If they were crap and didn't last long it still would be a good buy. As they are as tough as old boots, robust, flat, zero drop, wide and comfortable, they represent off the scale quality and value for money.

Jon....glad you've got your new shoes on.
 
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