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Do you add shoe taps to rubber soles?

post #1 of 29
9/18/11 at 9:22am
Thread Starter 
What are the thoughts about adding a shoe tap to rubber soled shoes? Does this help improve the longevity of the sole? Or is it useless?


I walk a little weird and often times by soles have a slant since I walk weighted one side more than the other.
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post #2 of 29
9/18/11 at 9:38am
No: I have never seen a need although if you have an awkward/odd gait then maybe they are a good idea.
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post #3 of 29
9/18/11 at 10:16am
Aren't toe taps usually fixed to the soles with small nails? I have a hard time seeing this construction to work well with rubber soles. I am also not sure if gluing metal to a rubber sole will be very sturdy. So you should first talk to a coppler if this is possible at all.
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post #4 of 29
9/18/11 at 10:24am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexE View Post

Aren't toe taps usually fixed to the soles with small nails? I have a hard time seeing this construction to work well with rubber soles. I am also not sure if gluing metal to a rubber sole will be very sturdy. So you should first talk to a coppler if this is possible at all.

Hmmm from the shoes I have, they are generally nailed, I am wondering though if its a good idea to make this move with my brand new AE rubber soled shoes.
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post #5 of 29
9/18/11 at 10:39am
talk to your cobbler. there cannot go anything wrong, imo.
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post #6 of 29
9/18/11 at 12:34pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fritzl View Post

talk to your cobbler. there cannot go anything wrong, imo.

what do you mean by cobbler?
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post #7 of 29
9/18/11 at 2:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dieselman89 View Post


what do you mean by cobbler?

Cobbler...the person whose business it is to repair, resole, and possibly make shoes.
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post #8 of 29
9/18/11 at 3:24pm
I don't see why you wouldn't if you need them. I wear through the heel of my shoes on all of my shoes on the rear right part. It's cheaper to replace a tap then it is a heel.
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post #9 of 29
9/18/11 at 3:37pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Winston S. View Post

I don't see why you wouldn't if you need them. I wear through the heel of my shoes on all of my shoes on the rear right part. It's cheaper to replace a tap then it is a heel.

What do you generally do with your rubber soled shoes? Sounds like we have the same issue and orthotics are too expensive... Plus I just bought these...
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post #10 of 29
9/19/11 at 11:17am
I have a pair of rubber soled chukkas and had some rubber taps added to the heel of those also. Otherwise I don't have too many other rubber soled shoes. Planning on getting some Dianite dress shoes when I see some and plan on putting rubber taps on those also. I think I draw the line at putting them on my Chuck Taylors though...
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post #11 of 29
9/19/11 at 11:47am
If the sole is solid rubber, a tap can be glued on, but it's likely to come off after repeatedly getting wet.

If it's dainite over leather, a tap can be nailed in. There's a little nail with a corkscrew tip that does the job. The nail grips not the dainite but the leather underneath it. Good-quality dainite soles are made this way. My trickers, C&J, AS, etc., all have dainite over leather. The dainite sole is a kind of double sole in other words, instead of leather over leather, it's dainite over leather.

I wear the dainite-soled shoes a little while. If the wear is uneven, say too heavy on the tip or on the heel, I get the taps banged on. The shoe guy knows exactly where to put them because they are already worn.
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post #12 of 29
9/19/11 at 1:20pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dewey View Post

If the sole is solid rubber, a tap can be glued on, but it's likely to come off after repeatedly getting wet.

If it's dainite over leather, a tap can be nailed in. There's a little nail with a corkscrew tip that does the job. The nail grips not the dainite but the leather underneath it. Good-quality dainite soles are made this way. My trickers, C&J, AS, etc., all have dainite over leather. The dainite sole is a kind of double sole in other words, instead of leather over leather, it's dainite over leather.

I wear the dainite-soled shoes a little while. If the wear is uneven, say too heavy on the tip or on the heel, I get the taps banged on. The shoe guy knows exactly where to put them because they are already worn.

It seems like AE uses dainite style soles with the circles on the soles for a few of their models. Even though they say Goodyear..
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post #13 of 29
9/19/11 at 1:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Agatha Crusty View Post


Cobbler...the person whose business it is to repair, resole, and possibly make shoes.

Cobblers do not make shoes.
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post #14 of 29
9/19/11 at 4:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DWFII View Post


Cobblers do not make shoes.

Yes. I know they are officially 'Cordwainers', but since bespoke shoe/boot-making became a much smaller industry lots of those Cordwainers and apprentices ended up mending more shoes than making them - like the old Turkish man who fixed my father's shoes.

This is why I put "...'possibly' make shoes".
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post #15 of 29
9/19/11 at 4:44pm
i bought a few dozen plastic taps on ebay and put them on everything I can, otherwise I can round a heel edge in a few wearings.

I found that Plumbers Goop works well on clean rubber heels without nails. Never had one fall off. I clean the heel with alcohol or naptha before gluing.

Now I am using Barge contact cement on rubber and combo heels, mainly for dress shoes. I use tacks when I can but the glue alone seems to hold. The taps I have are of the Peel and Stick variety-- "Guard" brand.

Jury is still out on the Barge cement...lets see what cold and wet does this winter. Plumbers Goop is well tested to my satisfaction.
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