Thanks for tuning in today, at The Sweet
Cyclists we'll be reviewing the FLR F-XX II
shoes. Here we have the FLR F-XX II shoes
in its original packaging, we want to
thank FLR for providing these to be
reviewed. Packaging wise it's a pretty
standard shoe box with a metallic logo,
this is the white version in a men's
euro size 40 for a US size 7.5.
It also comes in a black version, FLR has
limited women's options but if you're a
woman you can get a smaller size mens
shoe. As a cyclists with wider feet is
difficult to find cycling shoes that fit
well, with options for women, even more
limited. One hack I discovered was to
wear a men's cycling shoe and half a
size down. Now let's take a look at the
inside, these are FLR's
top-of-the-line shoes retailing at $249.
They feature dual ATOP dials, not
the BOA dials but very similar in
operation. It has a soft seamless
microfiber upper, the sole here is the
R500 which is their top-of-the-line
carbon sole. You get a ventilation hole
in the bottom and a couple more on the
top. Now let's check the weight of the F-XX II
shoes. Once you go to the premium
shoes market, you'll see a lot of brands
that will sell you on their light weight.
It sounds a bit ridiculous, but it
actually makes a good difference to have
a very light shoe. This can actually be
half the weight of entry-level shoes.
Looking at the left shoe here it's
202g and the right shoe comes in it
about 204g. As you can see the combined
weight of these are barely over 400
grams which is pretty impressive for
$249.
Now let's take a closer look at the FXX
shoes, these were last updated in 2019
to have a lower profile and
making it more sleek. There are a lot of
ventilation holes here,
these are nylon mesh ventilation holes
the four on the front and one on the
outer side of each shoe. The
microfiber upper which is seamless all
the way to the back, it's very flexible
on the top. Like a good pair of
running shoes this will mold to
your feet so if your feet that are more
narrow or wide these will accommodate
you rather than the other way around.
You have the dual ATOP retention system,
to operate these you turn one way
to tighten it and a full turn on the
other way to loosen it. These
are really great compared to the
standard velcro straps or the ratcheting
design. With the dual setup you get
two different zones you can
independently control which means you
can loosen the top and keep the bottom
tight or vice versa to get the best fit.
You can also see their reflective
elements along the length of the shoe as
well as on the back the model of the
shoe is printed on the inside, while the
brand name is on the outer. It's
not full of graphics so if you're
looking for something minimal this is
the one to look for. On the inside you
have a more colorful insole. The insides
are actually nice and smooth so if you
rub your hand against it you won't feel
any rough edges or multiple panels that
might cause chafing. One of the big
things here is the R500 sole which is
the top-of-the-line
carbon fiber sole with the stiffness
index of 14 which means there's almost
no flex so all your power is transferred
to the bike.
This FXX shoes have the standard
3 bolt configuration here with
adjustment indicators that'll help you
position your cleats. There's also a
ventilation hole here and a raised here
to prevent the sole from getting damaged
when you walk on it. Here's a photo of
the lit up FLR F-XX shoes to illustrate
the ventilation better. Everywhere you
see the illumination it indicates
there is more airflow through the shoe,
particularly the front nylon mesh vents
that provides significant air flow. The
perforations and the tongue and the
sides provide additional ventilation. The
one on the bottom allows air to
cool the underside of your feet for
additional comfort. Here's a footage
of a local ride wearing the FLR F-XX II
shoes, comfort wise we found that these
shoes were way lighter than the SIDIs or
Specialized shoes even with the metal SpeedPlay
cleats. The tongue seems longer than
the other shoes so it presses on my foot
during dorsiflexion making it
uncomfortable. The dual does provide easy
adjustability on the road to optimize
fit while riding. Power transfer actually
felt direct with no flex from the carbon
soles so this resulted in direct feel
and allowed us to ride faster.
Now lets compare the FLR F-XX II shoes with some
other shoes. So here's my $270 SIDI Genius
5 Pro in a women's size 40 and my $200
Specialized Expert road shoe in a men's
size 40 along with the $249 FLR F-XX II
men's size 40. Looking at the fit and
finish they all have the same premium
look with the SIDIs being the flashiest. The SIDI shoes
have a mishmash of fabric synthetic
leather and plastic upper panels sewn
together. The specialist is a synthetic
fabric upper combo with a few panels as
well although less than the SIDI.
The FLRs have a microfiber upper, it's just
seamless all the way to the back. Now
lets look at the closure the SIDIs have a
ratcheting strap and a Velcro combo. The
Specialized has a BOA dial with a single
velcro strap. With the FLR you ditch the combo
closure and get a dial set up with a double
dial setup which gives you more
adjustability and better fit. The dial
setup is also lighter and visually
cleaner than the bulky ratchets or
velcro straps.
Looking at the cooling the FLR F-XX II has
more ventilation than the specialized
and SIDI shoes. While all the shoes have
perforated sides and tongue, the FLR has
additional nylon mesh vents in the front.
One other thing to notice is to notice
that unlike the other two shoes the SIDI
doesn't have any vents on the bottom.
Coming to the soles, all three have
carbon or carbon composite soles. We
couldn't find the stiffness index of the
SIDI Millenium soles, however the
Specialized expert has a stiffness index
of 8.5 and the FLR F-XX II has a stiffness
index of 14. Note that the stiffness
index is not standardized measures so
you can't compare these across companies.
However while riding we found that the
FLR had better power transfer than the
other shoes especially during climbs
that requires more effort. Now let's give
the FLR F-XX II a final score based on the
design, closures, comfort and value. In
terms of design we'll give these shoes
A-. These have a sleek and subtle look
with premium details but lack the color
options typically found with high-end
shoes closures. We really like
the dual dial design as it allows you to
fine tune the fit without bulky ratchets
or velcro straps. Comfort is an A-,
the seamless upper is very flexible and
comfortable. However we found the tongue
to be a little long causing pressure on
the ankles. Overall value is an A, with a
retail price of $249 the FLR F-XX II shoes
are a competitively priced for the
features and they are super lightweight.
Also the carbon soles provide excellent
power transfer and stiffness. Thanks for
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Cyclists reminding you to enjoy the ride!
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