Categories
Barefoot Shoes

Injinji Low Cut “No Show” Lightweight Toe Socks for Toe Shoes Review

Injinji Toe SocksThe new No-Show Performance Lightweight Toesock from Injinji will be available starting in May. Similar socks, previously known as the “Micro Liner”, came in a crew and mini-crew lengths.The TestInjinji sent me a pair and I dec…

Injinji Toe Socks

The new No-Show Performance Lightweight Toesock from Injinji will be available starting in May. Similar socks, previously known as the “Micro Liner“, came in a crew and mini-crew lengths.

The Test

Injinji sent me a pair and I decided to test them on the trails in my Vibram Five Fingers Bikilas. I haven’t run that much on trails in my Bikilas because they get dirt in them and I develop hot spots around my toes after a few miles. So I was excited to see if these toe socks solved that problem.

See my review after the jump!

Liner or Sock?

I think the name change makes sense because it is more of a sock than a liner. They feel as thick as most of the regular wicking socks I run in. So, when I first saw them, I was worried they would be make my Bikilas too tight; mine are already pretty tight without socks.

The Fit

I couldn’t have been more wrong. My Bikilas were MUCH easier to get on with the Injinjis. They slid right in! I tend to have sweaty feet (yuck!), so that may be part of it, but mostly it is the fit. These socks fit my feet snugly with what feels like a slight compression.

Ground Feel

So, impressed with the fit, I took off on my run. The trails around here aren’t too rocky, but have plenty of roots, pebbly creek beds and some gravel trails. Mostly they are just dirt trails with some slight elevation changes and lots of turns. The Bikila’s sole gives great feedback on these trails and I didn’t notice much of a ground feel difference in the Ijinjis compared to being sockless.

No Blisters!

What I did notice is the absence of sweat, grit and dirt rubbing around my toes and feet. I didn’t have even the slightest blister or hotspot after my 4 mile run. This was a pleasure, indeed!

No Bunching

Also, there was no bunching whatsoever. I attribute this to the excellent fit and high end combination of fabrics. The socks formed perfectly to my foot and stayed that way throughout my run.

Wickiness

Speaking of fabrics, the Injinjis are made mostly of CoolMax fabric. The socks have a nice natural texture, though I doubt there is anything natural in them. Just like the CoolMax site shows, the fabric did a great job of wicking and drying my feet; they felt dry throughout my run. At the end of my run I did notice an even layer of sweat on the outside of the socks. Ah, the wonders of modern technology.

Comparison to Other Injinjis

Justin here. Just want to note that I much prefer these thinner Injinjis to my other, older varieties (wool and cotton, low and high-cut). A bit of a disclaimer: I’m not a huge fan of toe socks as the stuck-on feeling on my toes is a bit irritating to me (toe pockets, on the other hand, don’t bother me at all). I’d just prefer to be barefoot while wearing Vibram FiveFingers. That said, I immediately noticed on putting these new Injinjis on that that the “choked toe” feeling I’d grown to expect was significantly reduced if not eliminated entirely. I’d like to echo my surprise at just how easy it was to put on a pair of VFFs while wearing these — KomodoSports and Trek LSs (review to come!) while wearing these. Mind, they aren’t wool, so they might not provide as much warmth, but for general toe sock needs, these are really a great new product from Injinji — thinner means they work better for toe shoes. Back to Britt!

Highly Recommended

There is really nothing bad to say about these socks, and at about $10 retail, every Vibram Five Fingers runner should own a couple of pair. These are some really well engineered socks and I can highly recommend them for Vibram Five Fingers wearers.

By Britt

Hailing from College Station, Texas (Home to Texas A&M!), I grew up running cross country. Believe it or not, I gave Justin the name for this site back in early 2009 but I didn't jump on the toe shoes bandwagon until a year later. I am also really into quadcopters and drones and have a blog called OddCopter.com.

22 replies on “Injinji Low Cut “No Show” Lightweight Toe Socks for Toe Shoes Review”

Why are they called no show when they still show they need to make them lower cut l think personally

@nick

With regular shoes less might show; five fingers are very low cut. Also, I may have pulled them up a bit to get the logo in the pic. But yeah, I hear ya, I have seen lower cut “no shows”.

I have the three pairs of the previous version (Micro liner) and I love them. Just recently ran in KSOs without them, and started developing hot spots due to the inner seams, but had never had anything of the sort the injinjis. I wish I waited to get the newer versions, which have a extra tab to cover more of the achillies (2nd photo), while still being loe profile. The previous version was flat on top and would angle down, causing the anterior edge to be higher than the posterior. My local REI had a bunch of the old style out on display, perhaps they are clearing inventory for the newer version.

Yeah I agree with Nick… They need to make an actual no show sock for V5Fs… Personally, and maybe it’s just on me, but I think the socks sticking out looks weird… though the micros are a bit better, they are only the size of the little cuff shorter than the minis!!! That’s like a quarter or half inch maybe… Not enough!! Haha I want a pair that covers just around the back of the ankle maybe an inch and a half up from the bottom of the foot. Or maybe injinji should work with Vibram and make specialty socks for each style of Vibram?? I bet they’d sell well, charge 5 extra bucks…. Id pay it if they fit just under the top edge of my five fingers!!!

The problem with a total “no show” for VFFs is they are so low if they start to creep down there is no way to pull them up.

I use the Micro versions now and love them. Unless walking in my Classics, I never wear VFFs anymore without Injinji toe socks (Mostly KSO and Treks).

I am about ready to buy a few more pair so will be on the lookout for these.

I’ve been a fan of Injinji toe socks since my first day in VFFs last year. I use them religiously to avoid the dreaded “Swamp Thing” smell that going barefoot in shoes can cause. I’m surprised you didn’t mention this in your otherwise great review, as IMHO, this is the big upside to wearing socks in shoes, well worth the extra expense, cumbersomeness of putting them on and the look compromise. Great site BTW, keep it up!

Have been trying to find a site that ships the Injinji socks to Europe (Sweden in my case) but haven’t found any so far.

Anyone have any tips on where I can find a retailer with international shipping?

“I’d just prefer to be barefoot while wearing Vibram FiveFingers.”

The irony of this perception continues to astound me.

“The irony of this perception continues to astound me.”

There’s nothing ironic about that statement.

This very thin Coolmax fabric slides on easily when new but is almost impossible to slide over the smaller toes after a few cycles of wearing, washing, and hanging to dry. They bind on the wide tips of the toes and leave a pocket of fabric dangling over the ends of the toes. Last August I purchased half a dozen pairs of the higher versions of these socks. I became so frustrated with being unable to get them on over my smaller toes that I stopped wearing them. My favorite Injinji thin socks are the Bamboo liner socks that they no longer make — these slide on without a fight. I’m hoping that they will eventually make a lightweight wool sock.

anatomically, I don’t see the need to have pockets for all five toes in these socks nor the VFFs. Merging last two (smallest) toes into one pocket would be easier, I would think. Often, I have to make an (as small as it may be) extra effort to get those last two toes in correctly. Those two toes flex together any ways and I think on most feet they are close enough together that having them in the same pocket wouldn’t be an issue.

In any event, I’m still getting these socks; as minimalist as they may be, KSOs I still consider to be shoes and my feet get moist enough that having socks for said shoes would be best when at work or what have you.

I bought these socks and wore them with my Komodosports for the first time yesterday. I think they’re great! I am hoping they keep my shoes and feet a little fresher smelling during the sticky summer months.

“Vibram does make a no-show sock which is marketed in England and Germany as the Ghost. It’s about the same height as the FiveFingers Classic, and comes in solid white and in solid black.

http://www.purekit.com/vibram-lizard-socks-x-toes-ghost-socks-prod51153/

http://www.vibram-fivefingers.de/vibram-fivefingers/zehensocken

Ted_S

Those are so so fake. That website is also fake. You need to be more careful about these other vibram ff websites, there seems to be a lot of fakes out there.

Chris

@Christopher Chan,

http://www.vibram-fivefingers.de/vibram-fivefingers/zehensocken

This store doesn’t sell fake VFFs either. They’re the list of official stores in the Vibram Europe website. Besides, I’ve already ordered to them and their VFFs are right. THey also have a physical adress in Munich:

VIBRAM MOTORSPORT
Firma Del Favero
Geretsriederstraße 12 (kein Ladengeschäft)
81379 München
Telefon (+49) 089/1418265
Fax (+49) 089/14338491
eMail: [email protected]

Next time be more careful before condemning without evidence.

I’ve worn VFF’s for ten years now. The first three to four years were always worn my VFF’s without socks. I was introduced to the toe socks at my local REI store. The big difference was the comfort of not feeling the sweat around the soles after a long run in the summer.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *