# High Tech Boot Repair



## slowp (Nov 15, 2007)

This boot hasn't had much wear, but I managed to rip it up at the heel seam.
Shoe goo wouldn't hold. I took some stuff like sole saver, a large piece of innertube, glued down a piece of innertube with stuff, and then put duck tape over to hold the tube in place. Amazingly, the duct tape held today, and I was in the brush with the rigging crew for 6 hours, and scrambling about figuring out how to straighten corridors. Got a wide one out there now.  But no leakage in the boot.


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## Spotted Owl (Nov 15, 2007)

Nice fix. Purple fits you to a tee, but how does it cordinate with the hat?

Thats is just as good as the screws through the inside of the boot to make corks in a pinch.


Owl


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## Sprig (Nov 15, 2007)

Nice fix slowp!  That 'shoe goo' is junk, esp. leather to rubber, (but in a closed garage makes an interesting drinking partner.... how do I know that ? ), use a good contact cement, smear it on both surfaces evenly and thoroughly without lumpin' it up, make sure everything is nice an' dry an' clean first, give it an hour or more to firm up and then press the surfaces together with vigor (like 50lbs+psi), a mallet works  One of my first jobs was building shoes in Vancouver when I was 17, I do not tell my friends I did this btw, I tell 'em to go buy new shoes :jester: (man I hated that job!)

opcorn: 

Serge


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## slowp (Nov 16, 2007)

Spotted Owl said:


> Nice fix. Purple fits you to a tee, but how does it cordinate with the hat?
> 
> Thats is just as good as the screws through the inside of the boot to make corks in a pinch.
> 
> ...




I think I'm going to town tomorrow and will look for a better color. It doesn't go at all with my orange hat!


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## andrewspens (Nov 16, 2007)

*Better switch, quick!*

You better head to town for a better color of tape pretty soon. The other guys around here will think you were from a bit further south and dislpaced by the fires. We typically favor fluorescent safety gear in this neck of the woods, but some "other" areas have it available in pastels (or so I'm told)


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## Gologit (Nov 18, 2007)

slowp said:


> This boot hasn't had much wear, but I managed to rip it up at the heel seam.
> Shoe goo wouldn't hold. I took some stuff like sole saver, a large piece of innertube, glued down a piece of innertube with stuff, and then put duck tape over to hold the tube in place. Amazingly, the duct tape held today, and I was in the brush with the rigging crew for 6 hours, and scrambling about figuring out how to straighten corridors. Got a wide one out there now.  But no leakage in the boot.



 Good fix.


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## Stihlboy088 (Nov 19, 2007)

Epoxy? I'm sure you could get a tint to mix in it to go with that pink shirt


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## slowp (Nov 19, 2007)

Good ideas. I'll be in the snow today. Don't know how much but the snow is way down and I have to work close to the 4000 ft. elevation. It is good to have boots a color that shows up in the snow. You need to see where your feet are! I found some Barbie stickers for the Twinkle saw.  I'm sure it will bea very pleasant day outdoors today.


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## Spotted Owl (Nov 19, 2007)

slowp said:


> Good ideas. I'll be in the snow today. Don't know how much but the snow is way down and I have to work close to the 4000 ft. elevation. It is good to have boots a color that shows up in the snow. You need to see where your feet are! I found some Barbie stickers for the Twinkle saw.  I'm sure it will bea very pleasant day outdoors today.




Be sure to post up Twinkle with her new look? Daughter will be all giggles again. Just don't tell where you got them, or she'll have them on my saws.

Owl


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## slowp (Nov 19, 2007)

*For Spotted Owl's Daughter*

I found the stickers at the Walmart. They are in the Greeting Card section and are on display at the end of the aisle. The princess ones have sparkles.
I'm thinking your dad would really like some for Christmas.


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## 2dogs (Nov 21, 2007)

Hhmm. I think I saw your picture from the San Francisco "Logging Conference" they hold every May. You had those boots, a leather midrift hickory shirt, a Prison Blues thong, and a pink Mac-T. Was that you? :greenchainsaw:


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## DarylB (Nov 21, 2007)

Ever used that "Good stuff" for shoe repair? The spray-insulation that you use around copper tubing. Works great on shoes/soles!


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## slowp (Nov 21, 2007)

2dogs said:


> Hhmm. I think I saw your picture from the San Francisco "Logging Conference" they hold every May. You had those boots, a leather midrift hickory shirt, a Prison Blues thong, and a pink Mac-T. Was that you? :greenchainsaw:



Nope. I have a pinkish violet hickory shirt, these boots and in this weather, tin pants which I can't dye. Actually, in our nasty weather, poly pro and fleece are my friends. That other stuff sounds uncomfortable and icky.
I did see a cutter with a middy hickory shirt once. He must've had a toilet paper replacement emergency. His belly was showing and it wasn't very pretty. What were you doing in San Francisco? I've only been to the airport there and running hard to make the transfer to another plane. Didn't see much but the floor and my feets hitting it.The duck tape is still holding so the patch is holding and my feet are happy.


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## 2dogs (Nov 21, 2007)

Like I said I just saw the picture. No the Monty Python guys weren't in it either. You see all types in SFO, some you don't want to remember. Now and then I see something/someone and say "man that has gotta hurt" or "he pierced his what?".


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## 2dogs (Nov 21, 2007)

OK I'm a dumbazz. Duplicate post. Sorry.


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## slowp (Dec 11, 2007)

I blew out the other boot today. I came home and used more innertube and Freesole, but am using ORANGE Duct tape on it. That way I'll know which foot goes with which color. The purple duct tape is still stuck to the other boot. 
Purple = right
Orange = left. :bang: 
Will the orange duct tape be as strong as the purple? Stay tuned.


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## 2dogs (Dec 13, 2007)

I'm old enough to remember when duck tape was only made in silver or od green. Now I keep a roll of red and a roll of green in the tool box. You're lucky you need to wear rubber boots, it is so dry here it's scary. I think we have had about 1" of rain in the last month.


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## slowp (Dec 13, 2007)

2dogs said:


> I'm old enough to remember when duck tape was only made in silver or od green. Now I keep a roll of red and a roll of green in the tool box. You're lucky you need to wear rubber boots, it is so dry here it's scary. I think we have had about 1" of rain in the last month.



I have good friends who live inland there. They gloat about picking their tomatoes in November, while I'm whining about the shape of produce in our little store. We're now in our pasty white complexions here.


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## 2dogs (Dec 13, 2007)

The lady who owns the house next door to me, my babysitter when I was a kid, now lives in Barrow Alaska. While today things are a lttle easier to get, back in the seventies little things like lettuce were flown in to the one store about once per month and cost several dollars a head. Ice cream was ten dollars a half gallon and a hamburger was five bucks. On the positive side the store did and still does sell harpoon guns. The fuel is delivered once a year by barge and IIRC there are about 20 miles of roads. My friend lives near the dump and she can see polar bears many days from her front porch. Whales are butchered on main street.

The point is I guess its all relative. You rain and our sunshine in the winter. Your summer sun our summer fog. Your logging industry and our new logging ban. Yeah, a ban on all logging on parcels less than 40 acres becomes law in January. Many property owners have lost their nest egg and of course their property tax doesn't decrease. The vote was 3 to 2. Three men have caused the loss of millions of dollars that would have benefitted our county.

Anyway...sorry for the ramble ma'am. Boots report?


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## joesawer (Dec 13, 2007)

2dogs said:


> The lady who owns the house next door to me, my babysitter when I was a kid, now lives in Barrow Alaska. While today things are a lttle easier to get, back in the seventies little things like lettuce were flown in to the one store about once per month and cost several dollars a head. Ice cream was ten dollars a half gallon and a hamburger was five bucks. On the positive side the store did and still does sell harpoon guns. The fuel is delivered once a year by barge and IIRC there are about 20 miles of roads. My friend lives near the dump and she can see polar bears many days from her front porch. Whales are butchered on main street.
> 
> The point is I guess its all relative. You rain and our sunshine in the winter. Your summer sun our summer fog. Your logging industry and our new logging ban. Yeah, a ban on all logging on parcels less than 40 acres becomes law in January. Many property owners have lost their nest egg and of course their property tax doesn't decrease. The vote was 3 to 2. Three men have caused the loss of millions of dollars that would have benefitted our county.
> 
> Anyway...sorry for the ramble ma'am. Boots report?




It is amazing what people can not do with their own property. I can't help wondering what our founding fathers would think of the way things are now.


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## slowp (Dec 14, 2007)

Well, since the logging/lumber picture is a bit depressing right now, I did write LEFT and an arrow on the back of the orange patch for a little humor. Things are slowing down here drastically so it might not be a good testing time.


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## Gologit (Dec 14, 2007)

slowp said:


> Well, since the logging/lumber picture is a bit depressing right now, I did write LEFT and an arrow on the back of the orange patch for a little humor. Things are slowing down here drastically so it might not be a good testing time.



True.


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## ak4195 (Dec 15, 2007)

2dogs said:


> back in the seventies little things like lettuce were flown in to the one store about once per month and cost several dollars a head. Ice cream was ten dollars a half gallon and a hamburger was five bucks..


 Back in the '70s growing up in Valdez,AK,our news reels were flown in one week behind,Im talkin TV.course Barrow was probably lucky if at all to have reception.The big joke was,if the world ended,its would be a week before we found out.Veggies were pretty substandard then,now we have all the box stores,least in the bigger cities.
Slowp,its amazing how many people dont do the poly/fleece thing,I live in them for a good chunk of the year,todays temp range was 3 degs @0800 to 'teens by mid day,why would anybody want to suffer through cotton?

ak


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## slowp (Feb 5, 2008)

*Update*

Today, I felt a bit of dampness on my heel. The purple boot has failed. The duck tape is shredded and the innertube is coming off. Next attempt will be using gorilla glue and maybe the gorilla tape that smells like sewage. Then it might be time to look for some of those orange boots.


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## Sprig (Feb 5, 2008)

slowp said:


> Today, I felt a bit of dampness on my heel. The purple boot has failed. The duck tape is shredded and the innertube is coming off. Next attempt will be using gorilla glue and maybe the gorilla tape that smells like sewage. Then it might be time to look for some of those orange boots.


GAH! Gorilla glue is supposed to be awesome, haven't used it but know others that swear by it. My suggestion was going to be 'PL200', the stuff you use for glueing floors to joists, I still have a pair of pants with that goo on 'em, like 15 years later, my bud down the road rebuilt his fenders and stuck the rubber back on his truck with it, not moving anywhere, and, the best part, its cheap for the 8" tube (about 4$ up here), clean up the heel of your boot with some ISO and schmear that bear-poo on with a spatula or stick and let it sit for the weekend. Since its not on a part that needs to flex it should work fine...... Just a wee thought fer ya! (hey we all can relate to 'favorite comphy boots' I thinks)  



Serge


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## slowp (Feb 5, 2008)

And living 60 miles from where they sell boots! It hasn't been good driving weather lately.


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## hammerlogging (Feb 5, 2008)

I've had amazingly good luck with shoe goo. With or without patches. But it'll hold the soles on my Wescos for months at a time. Worth a try.


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## Gologit (Feb 5, 2008)

hammerlogging said:


> I've had amazingly good luck with shoe goo. With or without patches. But it'll hold the soles on my Wescos for months at a time. Worth a try.



I'm glad to hear that somebody had good luck with that damn stuff. Maybe the send a different formulation to your part of the country. Out here everybody has a partially used can of shoe-goo mouldering away on a back shelf in the shop.


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## Gologit (Feb 5, 2008)

slowp said:


> Today, I felt a bit of dampness on my heel. The purple boot has failed. The duck tape is shredded and the innertube is coming off. Next attempt will be using gorilla glue and maybe the gorilla tape that smells like sewage. Then it might be time to look for some of those orange boots.



Anybody want to start a pool on when Slowp finally breaks down and buys a new pair of boots? The winner gets a framed copy of all of Slowp's posts on how to haywire the old boots together.


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## farmer (Feb 5, 2008)

I have patched shoes with the pl adhesives but i used the premium [ not the 200] number whatever it is. It worked great and cheap.


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## Dok (Feb 5, 2008)

Keep this thread going, I just sliced my snow boots open on the bucket of the tractor today and I'm not buying new boots either.  
Dok


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## LarryTheCableGuy (Feb 6, 2008)

Sprig said:


> GAH! Gorilla glue is supposed to be awesome, haven't used it but know others that swear by it.



Yup, use it sparingly 'cuz it foams-n-oozes in a bad way if you get too, um, liberal wit it.

I just salvaged two pairs of gloves with gorilla tape. I didn't know that they made a sewage scented variety.


.


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## slowp (Feb 6, 2008)

I bough the tape at an "after the flood sale". It was $3.00 and works good, just smells bad. Gorrilla tape is also working well on my pants. I'll put some tape or something on the inside, in case it does ooze and, I learned this trick, you put a full water bottle inside the leg of the boot when you repair the back seam. It helps to keep the proper shape while the glue cures.


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## slowp (Feb 9, 2008)

Before Gorilla Glue.
http://www.arboristsite.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=64627&stc=1&d=1202590972






After Gorilla Glue.
http://www.arboristsite.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=64628&stc=1&d=1202591410





Not too crazy about orange but now I have a matching ensemble.


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## Dok (Feb 9, 2008)

:jawdrop: That Gorilla Glue is amazing stuff! 
Dok


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## Kneejerk Bombas (Feb 9, 2008)

Sprig said:


> Nice fix slowp!  That 'shoe goo' is junk, esp. leather to rubber, (but in a closed garage makes an interesting drinking partner.... how do I know that ? ), use a good contact cement, smear it on both surfaces evenly and thoroughly without lumpin' it up, make sure everything is nice an' dry an' clean first, give it an hour or more to firm up and then press the surfaces together with vigor (like 50lbs+psi), a mallet works  One of my first jobs was building shoes in Vancouver when I was 17, I do not tell my friends I did this btw, I tell 'em to go buy new shoes :jester: (man I hated that job!)
> 
> opcorn:
> 
> Serge


 Why do you let the contact cement dry so long? The instructions always say 5 or 10 minutes until it just drys to the touch.

And how about several coats of contact cement?


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## Sprig (Feb 10, 2008)

Kneejerk Bombas said:


> Why do you let the contact cement dry so long? The instructions always say 5 or 10 minutes until it just drys to the touch.
> 
> And how about several coats of contact cement?


Yea, dry to the touch, my times are out, just seemed longer I guess  (esp. after breathing that :censored: in for hours, not good). It will bond for a fair while after applying, I've stuck together parts of my pants before (throwing them in a pile, DOH!)
As for multiple coats, hm, you want it to saturate the material and still have a coating on the surface, I do not think a thicker glue layer would be stronger and considering how rubbery that stuff is may even make a weaker bond, dunno, never experimented with it. Don't hesitate to roughen up the surfaces when you prep them too.



Serge


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## Kneejerk Bombas (Feb 10, 2008)

Thanks. 
I do repairs on my diving stuff, it's always challenging. 
I got my hands on some industrial contact cement that is 2 part, you add a hardener. That stuff is strong, but I am still getting mixed results.

I think on the porous material, you need multiple coats, on the nonporous stuff you need to aggressively rough it up. 
Then it helps to put a glue on the edges after the two pieces are cemented together.
I know what you mean about the smell.


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