How much does it cost to put rubber sole protectors on your shoe?

[LabelKing]

I always hesitate a little before scuffing a nice new leather sole.

 

[kolecho]

Recrafting a pair of C&J costs UKP90 plus shipping. That is about half the cost of a pair of C&J handgrades from Plal! On the other hand, recrafting a pair of EG Dover at UKP150 (as suggested by Whoopee) is not all bad since a new pair is UKP450 after VAT is taken off.

I agree with Whoopee that recrafting is much more than replacing the sole. The effect of putting the shoe on the last it was made in restores the shape of the shoe. Recrafting also involves replacement of the lining and sock. In the end, you almost get a new pair of shoes.

I personally don't mind sticking Topy on some of my shoes, but have only done so on the less expensive ones. The additional grip is much appreciated. It's just that they looks a little "off" when I look at them.

 

[josepidal]

Kolecho: Consider many here purchase their EGs at half price.

Seriously, in the EG/Lobb owners' experience, how long do a brand new pair of heels and soles last before they need to be replaced?

 

[kolecho]

How much one is willing to pay for recrafting is largely how much I like the shoes in question. If someone gave me a pair of free EG Dover, and I cherished them for its style, fit and comfort, I would not have no hesitation paying UKP150 for the job.

How long sole and heel last depends on many factors. I have not had the need to send any of my dress shoes for resoling, and I don't have a huge collection. Re-heeling - yes. That is straightforward.

 

[billiebob]

In NYC, I do a lot of walking, block after block of pavement pounding between the apt,subway,etc. The toes of shoes would start to round off within 1 or 2 days of wear, walking only a mile or two a day!

Since I have too many shoes to pay $30 per to topy them, I bought topy rubber in 3 foot by 3 foot sheets (2.5 mm Vibram), a tub of Barge cement, and a dremel. I cut out a 2 square inch toe piece and heel piece, glue them on, trim and grind them flush. This cost me 15 minutes and 50 cents a shoe. I did one shoe with full sole and heel, and it took around 40 minutes.

The rest of the sole and heel I leave natural leather. This has cut down on nearly all of my shoe wear. Whenever a toe or heel cap wears through to the leather, I will rip it off and replace it. It has been months, and I haven't had to re-glue or replace anything.

I think this is a nice compromise between resoling and re-heeling every few months and having metal taps installed, which are noisy and slick! I still have to watch out for rainy and slushy days, however, where my leather soles (especially Aldens) get soft and just burn through.

 

[epa]

Originally Posted by whoopee

If I wanted to preserve my soles and stay dry in nasty weather I'd prefer rubber soles over Topys.
I think that rubber soles normally provide for a less "stable" shoe than leather soles. Thus, I prefer leather soles, I think that they are better for my feet. But I always put rubber protectors on them, the first thing I do. It not only protects the leather sole from wear, it also provides for a better "grip". It may affect the soles capacity of "breathing", but I do not think that the difference will be noticeable.

 

[kabert]

Regarding breathablilty of the sole, unless we're talking about thin slippers or loafers with thin, glued-on soles, I can't imagine there's much breathing going by the sole leather in a regular business shoe as sole leather is very dense and there are typically multiple layers of it (at least 2). It the sole protector is installed properly, I wouldn't worry about rot or such things. By the way, I've got two pairs of shoes with topy's installed and have never noticed any difference in cold/warm/dry, etc. comfort compared to my non-topied shoes.

 

[NYLaw]

I've had my shoemaker (in NYC) put a very thin but strong, durable layer of Virbam rubber on the bottom of a pair of Cole Haan Collection cap toes; three Allen Edmond lace-ups; and a pair of Gucci horse-bit loafers with the two-part leather bottom...

It's not detectable at all from the front or sides on any of these shoes, and it's only increased the life of all of them... I can't imagine how it could possible damage the shoes: the bottom line is that it makes the soles last longer (and remain unscuffed and unworn). Without the rubber layer, I have no doubt I'd have had to replace at least one or two of the soles.

Allen Edmond resoles (and "restores&quot for like $60... Gucci doesn't do it at all, and I have no idea whether Cole Haan does it, but by the time I'd need a new sole, I think the fragile leather of the Collection line would look like crap.

My shoemaker charges somewhere between $25-$40, if memory serves.

 

[norcaltransplant]

Please excuse the New York-centric replies that populate this thread, but NYC is probably the best place to assess heel and sole durability, given the average mileage a person walks any given day. I have to reheel my Allen Edmond beaters about every nine months with moderate wear. I have yet to resole a shoe, though I added a rubber topy to both an AE and Mantellassi chukka boot for rainy weather ($25-35). Toe taps and rubber inserts are definitely advisable if you tend to wear the tips of your shoes. Aesthetically, I dont think I'm losing much from the reheelings and taps.

 

[Kid609]

Who pays 300 bucks to resole a shoe?

Around here, any independent cobbler will reheel and resole for between thirty and fifty dollars.

 

[kolecho]

Originally Posted by billiebob

In NYC, I do a lot of walking, block after block of pavement pounding between the apt,subway,etc. The toes of shoes would start to round off within 1 or 2 days of wear, walking only a mile or two a day!

Since I have too many shoes to pay $30 per to topy them, I bought topy rubber in 3 foot by 3 foot sheets (2.5 mm Vibram), a tub of Barge cement, and a dremel. I cut out a 2 square inch toe piece and heel piece, glue them on, trim and grind them flush. This cost me 15 minutes and 50 cents a shoe. I did one shoe with full sole and heel, and it took around 40 minutes.

The rest of the sole and heel I leave natural leather. This has cut down on nearly all of my shoe wear. Whenever a toe or heel cap wears through to the leather, I will rip it off and replace it. It has been months, and I haven't had to re-glue or replace anything.

I think this is a nice compromise between resoling and re-heeling every few months and having metal taps installed, which are noisy and slick! I still have to watch out for rainy and slushy days, however, where my leather soles (especially Aldens) get soft and just burn through.

While I may not stick Topy to the heels, I might ask my cobbler to stick a small piece to protect the toe area. I tend to wear the toe area out rather quickly.

 

[retronotmetro]

Originally Posted by Kid609

Who pays 300 bucks to resole a shoe?

People who spend 2 or 3 times that much per pair.

Originally Posted by Kid609

Around here, any independent cobbler will reheel and resole for between thirty and fifty dollars.

The guy across the street from my office charges something like that. I wouldn't in a million years give him a pair of EGs except to nail on some toe taps.

 

[Leaveitothexperts]

The guy across the street from my office charges something like that. I wouldn't in a million years give him a pair of EGs except to nail on some toe taps.[/quote]

I agree. The charge should be one of your lesser concerns, especially if you are talking of "expensive" shoes. There are too many cobblers who will claim they have immense experience, but unless you can get some good references from SF, I would be very hesitant to giving them to just anyone.

I recently gave a pair to one for the thin vibram soles, the workmanship was fine, but there is a slight squeak in one shoe, it feels like either there is too much glue or not enough in that spot. If I take it back, they will have to remove it and sand the sole further before applying a new rubber sole, and there is no guarantee that his "10+ years' experince" will get rid of the problem.

Be extremely skeptical . . .

 

[NYLaw]

My guy doesn't sand down the leather, so there is a slight, very slight lip under the shoe where the rubber begins. But he DOES sand down the edge of the rubber, so it's a gradual lip... Also, I notice that on a one-piece sole, the rubber ends under the part of the shoe that doesn't touch the ground (because of the heel) so there is no sensation while standing or walking.

On the only two-piece soled shoe that I have (the Gucci guccissima loafer) the rubber covers the entire front piece (that's underneath the ball of the foot)...

 

[josepidal]

So how much would sole and heel protectors cost? It seems Felix would charge at least $70, which is rather steep.