Topic: Inov-8 F-Lite 305 PK GTX Review

[Kyle Rudolph]

I've gotta say, I'm extremely disappointed.


Fit- I swap these out with my 812's and Ariakes and V2's a bit. However, a few months ago it rained for two weeks straight and these were the only shoes I wore so I got a feel for them. They're comfortable, yes. But they just seem kind of off in a  way to me that you can really only notice when making a shoe preform at its best. 3/5

Flexibility- Eh. It's flexible ok upward, but the sole is pretty thick making it hard to bend downward. 2.5/5

Weight- A little bulky because of the sole, but overall not terrible. 4/5

Grip- Oh my God do I hate this grip. Concrete, awful. Brick when not painted, awful. Painted objects except for brick, awful. It slides on everything everywhere when it's wet. The only thing they seem to have grip on is painted brick and mirrors. Nothing else. I try walls runs or cats, I slip off the wall or ledge. I try to land on something in the wet, I slide like 15 feet after landing. It takes me every ounce of strength in my body to keep myself hanging on a wall for more then 20 seconds. Because if I put my shoes on it and put any weight on them, they just slip off. These shoes are supposed to be made for parkour, hence the PK in the title of the shoe, but it seems to me that Inov-8 just wanted to capitalize on the market without much effort.  1-2/5

Breathability- They're lined with Gor-tex, which makes them absolutely freaking waterproof but I've ran in them and never had hot feet. Breathable and waterproof. 5/5

Cushioning- Fairly good cushioning all around. I think it has a nice balance of it that is well distributed around the shoe but it doesn't feel barefoot at all. There is always room for improvement. 4/5

Durability- I've had them for three months now and I don't wear them everyday due to changing out shoes, the shoe it self is fine but the sole is starting to go. 3/5

Price- 100 bucks. Pricey and not worth it. 2/5


Comments- I can bitch all day, but I'll just leave this by saying that I might buy a different model of their pk line of shoes just to test it out, but I will never buy the 305's again.

Pro's- Great breathability, ok flexibility, and good cushioning. Good weight and they're waterproof.
                 
Cons- Grip. Period.

[EAT]

They do look a bit bulky, but that may be because I've been wearing feiyues the past couple months.

Maybe the urban racer 230 would be better than the 305 due to the different rubber at the bottom.

http://www.inov-8.com/Products-Detail.asp?PG=PG1&P=5050973023&L=27

edit: I don't see why the 305's wouldn't have the "sticky rubber" to add to the whole waterproof thing going on.  The 230's are 0/5 waterproof yet have the "sticky rubber" which is supposed to grip in the rain.  hmm

[Kyle Rudolph]

I don't mind crappy grip. My 812's have bad grip on concrete but it's manageable. But these.. oh my God...

[Steve Zavitz]

Really?  I've had my 305PK GTX's for about a year now, and I think they're great shoes.  I was going to post a review a while ago, but I keep forgetting.  I only had problems with the grip when I first started wearing them.  It took about two or three days of heavy training to break them in, but, after that, the grip was great!  In fact, those shoes are like glue on rails for me.  Maybe the problem is the conditions that you're wearing them in.  These shoes are not designed for use exclusively in the rain.  I don't think any shoe will stand the test when it's pouring out.  The Gore-Tex layer is simply a convenience factor; if you're training in a wet area or if it starts to pour when you're training, you don't have to worry about wet feet.  If you've worn them in sufficiently, the grip should be alright.  I know plenty of guys who actually use Inov-8 shoes exclusively (I think it's one of the teams out of Minnesota, but I can't remember now).  Don't get me wrong, these shoes aren't perfect (for the price, I was expecting something more), but I don't think they're as bad as you make them out to be.  You're entitled to your opinion, though.

[Kyle Rudolph]

Actually, I bought them because I heard you liked them and I thought I'd give them a shot and I've trained with them in not just rain, but completely dry and I dunno. I just have no grip at all with them. I'll maybe see if I can't get some clips up, but they really are just not my cup of tea.

[tippy25]

I just bought a pair of these. Haven't worn them in yet, but since I'm just starting and taking classes at the same time, I haven't really been able to do much. I have noticed, though, that in the rain they do seem to get rather slippery. I've been working on wall runs as seen here. The one surface that I can get practice on when on campus is in a back stairwell and has tile walls. The grip on them seems to be fine. The Gore-Tex cleans up nicely, too. A little bit of water and a nylon brush gets off everything. Mud, grass, blood, you name it, it comes off.

[Digital Ted]

I just bought a pair of these from Amazon. I can summarize my experience in two words.

Epic.

Fail.

The right shoe began "popping" as soon as I put it on. It makes a pop sound with each step. I had them back in the box 5 minutes after opening them.

I contacted Inov-8 customer service to see if there was anything that they could do, and basically was told, "Call Amazon, sorry".

So, for durability, they ear a 0/5 for "already broken out of the box" status.

For customer service, they also earn a 0/5 for "totally useless and didn't even try at all".

I can't even begin to say how utterly disappointed I was with the entire experience.

Back to K Swiss it is. Sorry, Inov-8, but you failed on every count.   

[uberdave]

Thank you for the reviews, I was considering them for a mix of parkour, trailrunning & cycling but for the price and all the problems mentioned I don't think I should purchase these.