Let me first point out that there are two styles, the black wedge and the red. Also, the listing does not say if they come in pairs, or singly, so I ordered two. I ended up with two pairs. Which is fine, as I'll explain later. Make sure you view this video on how to properly fit for the Cluffy wedge. I was apparently clueless.My order inadvertently, and fortunately, ended up being one pair of black wedges, and one pair of red wedges. I ordered small even though I think I need a medium because medium was out of stock. I'm about to start marathon training in three weeks, no time to wait!!!
I applied the black pair and have put about 20 miles on them. They dig into my big toes and have caused my big toe calluses to become inflamed! I have been considering putting the wedges on the bottom of my insole, but was concerned it would affect the rest of my foot. But! After watching the video, I learned the black pair goes on top, and the red on the bottom, so I am completely set! All I have to do is go home and remove the black pair and put the red pair on the bottom and bam! No rubbing!
My big toe pain is very minimal now, it is I'd say about 98% improved, which is fantastic. I would get up in the morning and hobble, and hobble to the printer at work. If you are not a runner and are using these for walking, etc, I'm sure the black top pair would be fine, it's just that when you run any rubbing etc becomes magnified. Even my arch pain that was still a little tweaky has cleared up. I give this product 4 stars instead of 5 because I wish there was more info up front about it. You'd think a little wedge is no big deal, but it really must be applied and sized properly. I wish someone had told me all the stuff that I'd put in this review before I ordered.
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I can't deny, at this point, that the wedge has resulted in improvement--has relieved the pressure I was feeling at the base of one of my big toes. That said, there's a reason I know, and that's the difference between four and five stars.Ideal placement of the wedge is difficult. From experience now, I would advise anyone to attach a temporary adhesive--maybe just a rolled up piece of masking tape--to the bottom of the wedge BEFORE removing the cover which exposes the actual manufacturer's adhesive. Give yourself some freedom to experiment with the right position. In my case, ideal placement on the insert outside of one shoe turned out not to be quite right when returned to the inside of the shoe. I pretty quickly removed the wedge to better position it, and most of the factory adhesive was still attached to the bottom of the wedge, but the damage was already done. The adhesive used with the wedge was not up to the task of being repositioned, and that began a period of regular slippage and repositioning until the adhesive that remained was useless, at which point I stopped using the wedge in that shoe for a few weeks.
Those few weeks without the wedge again were enough to demonstrate the comfort and the benefit lost, which is how I know the wedge is worth using and keeping. That said, even the wedge in the other shoe, which I applied for symmetry and under the assumption that my other foot might also benefit, has slipped slightly with time. I've since applied strips of Loctite Power Grab Mounting Tape, which seems to do fairly well, although there is still some gradual movement and I expect to have to replace the tape again. The tape is also thick enough that the flush fitting of the wedge against the insert is altered, but not too badly.
I will add that the fabric coating on the top side of each wedge was quickly worn away, but also apparently pointless. Having removed it completely now, I feel no difference, so it's apparently cosmetic and not functional.
There's probably all of fifty cents in the material cost of these wedges and, as stated, application isn't flawless, but I do think I've gotten a good return and will very likely purchase another pair at some point for a separate pair of shoes. My hope is that development on the wedge continues and results in a five-star product when I do make that second purchase.
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