The Lone Peaks have been my do-everything trail shoes for almost a decade. Backpacking, trail running, daily hikes with the dog.. If I'm on dirt, the lone peaks are on. I was hoping that I could make my 9s last until the 10s released but the upper finally tore so I bit the bullet on a pair of 9+. I would estimate that I have 700+ miles on the 9s, time to see if the 9+ Vibrams hold up better!
I've been using Zowie GSR pads for about a decade and QCK pads before that. I always assumed glass pads would be too unstable for micro adjustments and too fast for me but I've been seeing more talk recently about glass control pads which gets me curious because having something that will look good for years and consistently feel the same sounds great on paper, if I can get used to the feel.
There are two pads I'm looking at right now, the SuperGlide V3 and Wallhack CR005. I see a lot of people saying that Wallhack has QC issues and that speed/control properties can vary significantly on their pads, including the CR005 which makes me lean towards the SG3. I also see people saying that the SG3 is slightly faster than the CR005 but slower than previous SG pads, and this kind of makes me lean towards the CR005 because ultimately I want something that feels as close to a GSR as possible. But then I saw people mentioning an issue with the CR005 where downward pressure slows the glide significantly which technically is the case on control cloth pads like the GSR as well so I wasn't sure if that's a pro/con without feeling it in person.
I really like how thin the SG3 is but also really like the edge design on the CR005, as well as the slightly larger L/W dimensions of the CR005 (510x440 vs 490x420). I think I'm leaning towards the SG3 overall because of the Wallhack QC issues I've seen mentioned.
Does anyone have experience going from a pad like the GSR to a control glass pad? Do you have any recommendations based on the above? Are there any other pads I should look into?
One thing to note, I don't see myself ever using a sleeve. I've read that many of the glass control pads are less sticky to your skin and, worst case, I can always wear a long sleeved shirt (do control glass pads chew through clothing as fast as PTFE skates?). But I would prefer not to because the feeling of a loose sleeve near my wrist is really distracting to me. Can you get away with not using sleeves on a glass pad in a room with AC and no sweat concerns?
Edit: Just ordered an SG3 with some X-raypad Obsidian Pro Air and U9 Air dot skates to see what glass pads are all about, thanks for the input everyone! If I don't hate it, I might pick up a Polarity when they become available again