for the hobbit footed ( feeted ? ) amongst us, what brand of spd shoes are working nicely with you feet.
and not Lake please.
I bought some basic DHB ones before CRC went under. Cheap and cheerful but I don't know if they've survived as a product. They really lacked arch support but bike fitter built that up with some high density foam and they're pretty comfy. I've one pair that gets warn with thin socks and a size up for winter use.
Crank brothers mallet
giro ventana
Specialized 2fo
Bont double wide asian fit, are the best fitting shoes for my feet a much better fit than lake, but they are costly and a bit overly stiff, good for gravel but not a shoe you would be wanting to walk in.
How wide? I find Shimano shoes too narrow, but current specialized work well for me. Have a vent XC/gravel which is similar to the Recon 3s reviewed this weekend
Sidi mega, tried every other shoe, including lake and the sidi have much better width & volume for really wide feet, that no other bike shoe has. They are also really well made.
I currently wear some muddyfox spd shoes from sports direct. Nice and wide but a little flexible. 
I have a pair of Fizik Terra Atlas that seem as roomy as Lake CX239's (although they're road shoes so not a like for like comparison)
I went through this recently, as have one foot that needs a roomier toe box due past surgeries. I have been an advocate of Specialized shoes for decades and with my Recon 2’s coming to end of their life I replaced with a new pair, the latest model. They are much narrower that the previous generation and didn’t work. I then tried the next model up, the Recon 3, but they were much the same. The lower spec Recon 1 is a lot roomier for same size and does fit well.
i did however settle between Lake 239 and Rapha powerweave for gravel use, though they are silly prices.
why not Lake though ?
On a slightly side note - the recommendations for Sidi and Lake. Is there anywhere in the UK that actually holds a big stock where you can go and try them on or is all of this a matter of ordering multiple shoes in multiple sizes and returning most of them?
I was fortunate in that my local shop was doing a Lake event day, so the rep was in doing free sizing and with a truck full of shoes.
On a slightly side note - the recommendations for Sidi and Lake. Is there anywhere in the UK that actually holds a big stock where you can go and try them on or is all of this a matter of ordering multiple shoes in multiple sizes and returning most of them?
Try RX Custom or Salt Dog if you are East Midlands.
Giro used to do bigger "High Volume" versions of some models, might be a solution
bit the bullet and bought some Lake mx169. we will see.
Giro are wide-ish.
Depends on the material to a large extent. I've got some leather Giro that are painful as they rub on my little toe (I've got very wide 'toes' so my little toes been forced to grow sideways anyway) but the cheaper ones with mesh panels there have been fine as although I can see my toe poking through it, it doesn't put pressure on it. I'm looking for a pair of the knitted empires in my size!
IIRC with SIDI MEGA means a wider sole, but 0.5 sizes denote more upper room. So a 45 and 45.5. are the same sole, but the 45.5 uses the upper from a 46, a bit like other brands HV versions. So it depends where the extra foot is. For me I find I need HV in a lot of shoes as well because I've got high arches as well (or just a lot of foot generally) so on normal 3-strap shoes the center one often has almost an inch of Velcro showing despite the others being tight.
Still don't really understand the objection to Lake
On a slightly side note - the recommendations for Sidi and Lake. Is there anywhere in the UK that actually holds a big stock where you can go and try them on or is all of this a matter of ordering multiple shoes in multiple sizes and returning most of them?
I used the sidi shoe size guide and it was spot on.
sigma sports have plenty of stock of both last time I looked and an easy quick return service, I bought the first sidi mega from there, just to make the potential return easy, but didn’t need it.
Still don't really understand the objection to Lake
no objection here, the lakes weren’t wide enough or with enough volume for me. Made my feet hurt.
the sidi mega shoes on the other hand were a magical fit. If they did the same fit in flats I’d get rid of my five tens.
There are a few faults with the lakes, the toes are still pointy, the ankle hole is too long meaning the foot slides forward into the pointy toe box and making the heel loose, they are a bit on the heavy side which is really noticeable on the bigger sizes and they charge way too much for the single boa models.
they dont look pointy.
That looks like the mx201, great roomy non pointy toebox, thought I was going to love them but they were absolute shite.
I found Lakes to be good for the width on their widest fitting but too loose in the heal. I ended up with Shimano wide fit but had to buy them from Germany - good width but a snug heal that didn't lift
+1 for the Sidi Mega. Nerve damage after wearing some pointy Shimano boots for the last Mountain Mayhem 24 hour race at Eastnor 2013? which involved more walking than riding. Well made too. I have Shimano MW7 winter boots which are a nice wide fit too. Sized up I think.
Still don't really understand the objection to Lake
Lake aren't the solution for everyone. Heck I regret buying my CX239's as they're a bit tight (left foot only, which is slightly bigger than my right), this was after getting my feet properly measured and trying them on before buying (stupidly I thought the slight tightness was just the new shoe feeling and it was still better than my old shoes). I ordered the wide fit version a few weeks later but sent them back as despite Lake's size guide indicating they're about 12mm wider they are actually only marginally so (speaking to Richard @ Saltdog, who's great btw, he explained the 12mm is more the overall last increase so it's spread around the circumference of your foot - the soles are identical and I get pressure on the outside of the foot only).
Waiting for CX242s to come into stock in my size, if they don't work though I'll be looking for non-Lake options to
I have wide feet that don't go pointy at the end. Sidi Mega and Shimano are way too pointy and narrow for me. Specialized just about fit if I size up and put up with them being too long and spend time with shoe stretchers to make them wider. I have Lake shoes too which measure 10mm wider than my specialized shoes. And the Lakes are slightly shorter. I have yet to find anything wider than Lake. They are amazing.
Heck I regret buying my CX239's as they're a bit tight (left foot only, which is slightly bigger than my right), this was after getting my feet properly measured and trying them on before buying (stupidly I thought the slight tightness was just the new shoe feeling and it was still better than my old shoes).
my initial experience was very similar, proper measure, perfect on left, tight on outside of right which is a bit wider. They eased a bit after a few rides, then got properly soaked early on a ride and are now ultra comfy !
