Chuck Taylor All Star Cx Exp2 4.5 Men A07199C vs Men's Speed Strike 2: which is safer?

Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Cx Exp2 4.5 Men A07199C is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Our pick

Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Cx Exp2 4.5 Men A07199C

Converse

Chuck Taylor All Star Cx Exp2 4.5 Men A07199C

PFAS grade

Good 65/100

Overall grade

Good 57/100

Verdict

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Hazard flags

⚑ 2

Material

Canvas upper, rubber sole

Confidence

72%

PossibleAzo dyes in canvas

PossibleFormaldehyde resin finishing on canvas

Merrell Men's Speed Strike 2

Merrell

Men's Speed Strike 2

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 0/100

Verdict

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Hazard flags

⚑ 4

Material

Textile upper with waterproof coating, unspecified

Confidence

35%

PossibleFormaldehyde-based textile resins

PossibleAzo dyes and heavy-metal dye mordants

ReportedWaterproof coating degradation and reapplication toxicity

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Azo dyes in canvas and Formaldehyde resin finishing on canvas on the Converse and not on the Merrell.
  • We flag Formaldehyde-based textile resins, Azo dyes and heavy-metal dye mordants, Waterproof coating degradation and reapplication toxicity and Microplastic shedding from synthetic upper and coating on the Merrell and not on the Converse.
  • The Converse is Canvas upper, rubber sole where the Merrell is Textile upper with waterproof coating, unspecified, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • The gap is 45 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Converse is the one to buy.
  • We are less certain about the Merrell grade, at 35% confidence against 72%, because it discloses less.

Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

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