Are Butterfly shoes worth the high price?

[ericd937]

So far, the best table tennis shoes I've had were the Donic Walder Flex III. I had some Stiga shoes that fell apart after about 3 sessions. I'm size 47, but most of the brands top out at size 46. It's quite hard to find shoes in my size. I did find some Butterfly Lezoline Mach Table Tennis Shoes in my size, but they are £109.99. Are they worth more than double the price of the Donic shoes?

 

[NDH]

So far, the best table tennis shoes I've had were the Donic Walder Flex III. I had some Stiga shoes that fell apart after about 3 sessions. I'm size 47, but most of the brands top out at size 46. It's quite hard to find shoes in my size. I did find some Butterfly Lezoline Mach Table Tennis Shoes in my size, but they are £109.99. Are they worth more than double the price of the Donic shoes?

In a word. No.

Are you UK based (I noticed the £ symbol in your post).

If so, I think you'll find Mizuno (Bribar usually have a decent range) will be the best bet.

I'm a UK12 in most shoes, but found a UK11 to be perfect in Mizuno - They seem to come up really big.

 

[Wrighty67]

So far, the best table tennis shoes I've had were the Donic Walder Flex III. I had some Stiga shoes that fell apart after about 3 sessions. I'm size 47, but most of the brands top out at size 46. It's quite hard to find shoes in my size. I did find some Butterfly Lezoline Mach Table Tennis Shoes in my size, but they are £109.99. Are they worth more than double the price of the Donic shoes?

Limited experience my side - I have had a decent pair of Asics court shoes and now have a pair of Butterfly Lezoline rifone (top of the range) and they are superb in every way - a massive improvement and I struggle to fault them.

Are they worth £120 - to me, and in comparison to decent running shoes I have paid a similar amount for, yes.

 

[ericd937]

In a word. No.

Are you UK based (I noticed the £ symbol in your post).

If so, I think you'll find Mizuno (Bribar usually have a decent range) will be the best bet.

I'm a UK12 in most shoes, but found a UK11 to be perfect in Mizuno - They seem to come up really big.

I'm based in Vietnam, but I'm from the US. There are no table tennis, badminton, or other court shoes available here in my size. My only option is ordering from someplace like Tabletennis11.com or Dandoy.

 

[NDH]

I'm based in Vietnam, but I'm from the US. There are no table tennis, badminton, or other court shoes available here in my size. My only option is ordering from someplace like Tabletennis11.com or Dandoy.

Gotcha.

OK, well I think both myself and @Wrighty67 cover all sides of the conversation here.

The biggest question regarding shoes should be..... How comfortable do you find them (assuming we are talking specifically about table tennis shoes).

Whether that means you pay an extra £40 to get Butterfly shoes that you find amazingly comfortable, or you go down the Mizuno route, it doesn't matter - Comfort is absolute king here, and the price difference isn't worth questioning (in my opinion).

These are shoes you'll have for 2 years at least (usually), which works out to be around £0.38 per week extra (and if that means you are more comfortable, it's massively worth it).

It's always difficult to advise with shoes, as it's a very personal thing.

If you prefer the look of the Butterfly ones, get them and don't think about it (the new Butterfly shoes look great in all fairness).

But if you don't mind the Mizuno look, I think you'll be able to save a bit of money, and get something that is regarded as one of the top TT shoes on the market.

 

[matt243385]

So far, the best table tennis shoes I've had were the Donic Walder Flex III. I had some Stiga shoes that fell apart after about 3 sessions. I'm size 47, but most of the brands top out at size 46. It's quite hard to find shoes in my size. I did find some Butterfly Lezoline Mach Table Tennis Shoes in my size, but they are £109.99. Are they worth more than double the price of the Donic shoes?

nah, buy mizunos

 

[z0uLess]

I wish there were more minimalist shoes because I have very strong feet and I like the feel of 170'ish grams like my running shoes

 

[piligrim]

By the way what is difference between Butterfly shoes? They all looks same, Reiss, Mach, Vilight, Rifones, Sal

 

[turbozed]

I'm based in Vietnam, but I'm from the US. There are no table tennis, badminton, or other court shoes available here in my size. My only option is ordering from someplace like Tabletennis11.com or Dandoy.

I think TT-Japan will ship to Vietnam. The biggest size they have is Japan 28.5 which is around a 10.5 is US sizing.

Edit: Didn't realize OP needed a much larger size. Keeping this up hopefully someone finds it useful.

 

[P1ngP0ng3r]

In a word. No.

Are you UK based (I noticed the £ symbol in your post).

If so, I think you'll find Mizuno (Bribar usually have a decent range) will be the best bet.

I'm a UK12 in most shoes, but found a UK11 to be perfect in Mizuno - They seem to come up really big.

In order to provide the best advice, it's useful to actually mention the model of Mizuno.
I'm a big Mizuno fan as well, but only because of the Wave Medal series. Wave Drive does not provide enough support for me, but if you are looking for a light weight shoe, Wave Drive is the one. If you are looking for good support, I suggest go with the Wave Medal. I would not choose any other model than Medal or Drive.

 

[piligrim]

I think TT-Japan will ship to Vietnam. The biggest size they have is Japan 28.5 which is around a 10.5 is US sizing.

He said he need size 47. Its 13 in US

 

[Zwill]

So far, the best table tennis shoes I've had were the Donic Walder Flex III. I had some Stiga shoes that fell apart after about 3 sessions. I'm size 47, but most of the brands top out at size 46. It's quite hard to find shoes in my size. I did find some Butterfly Lezoline Mach Table Tennis Shoes in my size, but they are £109.99. Are they worth more than double the price of the Donic shoes?

Yes, they are worth it but I wouldn't buy the Mach anymore if I were you.
If you can order from taobao or lazada or shopee (not sure what is available in Vietnam) just get the Lezoline 9. It has the same sole as the Mach and the Rifones and it costs half. On taobao one can get it around 250RMB and for that price I don't think there's any competition.

 

[BobFL]

I use either basketball or handball shoes. Mizuno (handball) or Under Armour (basketball) In my experience, they are of better quality than Bty sneakers. Better support, better durability...

 

[kingkimchi]

Yes, they are worth it but I wouldn't buy the Mach anymore if I were you.
If you can order from taobao or lazada or shopee (not sure what is available in Vietnam) just get the Lezoline 9. It has the same sole as the Mach and the Rifones and it costs half. On taobao one can get it around 250RMB and for that price I don't think there's any competition.

View attachment 25155

I'm actually wearing those currently! They feel quite good, but the breathability is a bit lacking.

 

[FrenchFrog33]

nah, buy mizunos

Where in the USA can I find Mizuno shoes?

 

[dingyibvs]

Worth the price? Probably not. But then again I paid $200 for a pair of Li-Nings because they say Ma Long on them

 

[Stella]

Worth the price? Probably not. But then again I paid $200 for a pair of Li-Nings because they say Ma Long on them

Very good choice, I also chose this sneaker, it provides very good protection and does not interfere with the running speed.

 

[Tony's Table Tennis]

Worth the price? Probably not. But then again I paid $200 for a pair of Li-Nings because they say Ma Long on them

if it gives you more confidence, then why not.
haha