Re-sole Simms felt boots?

[Jaybinder]

Is it possible to re-sole felt boots? If so where does one get the soles and how much are they? I checked Simms' site and didn't see any info. I've checked with a couple of local cobblers and they had no idea what I was talking about.

Thanks
Jason

[Ralph]

Hodgeman (and undoubtably other companies) sell felt sole replacement. You can rip off your old felts and glue on the replacement but this is messy and delaminates quickly. Take your boots along with the felt kit to a cobbler and ask him to glue AND stitch the new felt on. Doesn't cost much and is WAY better than glue alone.

[Terry Thomas]

We carry the felt and Arden Shoe Repair can put them on.
T.

[Mike McKenzie]

Jay,

If Kiene's doesn't carry any, you can take a look here..

http://www.fishusa.com/Frogg-Toggs-Felt-Sole-Replacement-Kit_p.html

Also you might want to read this ....

http://globalflyfisher.com/fishbetter/feltsoles/

Makes it sound like a lot of work...

Mike

[Jaybinder]

Thanks guys. Next time I'm is Sac I'll pick some up.

[Randy B]

Goodyear Cobbler and Cleaners on 10th Street in downtown Sacramento has re-felted, patched the upper, replaced the tongue, and put new eyelets in a couple different pair of Danner wading boots I've had for many, many years.

Darrel the owner is a fisherman, a bait fisherman, but still a fisherman.

[Terry Imai]

I live in EG and took my previous resole jobs to one of the places mentioned. I wasn't extremely happy with the workmanship and cost of the job. I looked at Yelp and found this cobler on Stockton and south of Fruitridge. Very reasonable charge but call first to get a price quote. BTW, I'm a big believer of getting studs with my felt.

You can attempt to do this job at home but given the overall cost of the replacement felt along with not having the proper equipment to stitch along with the proper glue. A first rate cobbler has everything and will do a signficantly better job than us. Tie a few more bugs to save a few $$....

Just my $.02 for today...

[Jaybinder]

What can I expect to pay a cobbler to glue and stitch new soles?

[Terry Imai]

I believe he charged me around $25-30 dollars but first class job with heavy duty stitching and waterproof glue. Call him first to get a price quote....

[Jaybinder]

Just a quick update. I picked up some new felt soles and went to "Quality Boot Maker" on Meridian in San Jose. They replaced the soles for $40. The turn around was 6 days. So far they are holding up very well.
The entire job including new laces and the felt was under $60. It feels like I have new boots and I saved a lot of money. So if you need to squeeze one more season out of your boots re-sole before you buy new.

Jason

[Terry Imai]

$40.00!!! I guess besides paying higher prices in the bay area home prices is also reflected in your shoe/boot repair businesses charging you more than in the valley...

[amoeba]

They don't stitch on replacement soles. And, the "stitching" you see on the perimeter of the simms soles when they are new is cosmetic only; it isn't attached to the sole. The minimum you should be paying, for the labor, is around $50 these days. It hasn't been $40 in awhile; and hasn't been $25-30 since the 1980's

If someone says they can do it for $25, go somewhere else; the heavier the eastern european accent, the better. Nobody successfully does it "themselves". There are clamps, grinders, other repairs that do involve stitching; and it is best to leave the whole mess up to a shoe repairman to deal with.

I personally go to Arden shoe repair for this, and other shoe, repairs.

[Mike O]

If someone says they can do it for $25, go somewhere else; the heavier the eastern european accent, the better. Nobody successfully does it "themselves".

Yes, because there are surely no eastern europeans who can cobble worth a damn. Jeez...

[goby]

Yes, because there are surely no eastern europeans who can cobble worth a damn. Jeez...

I think he meant that Eastern European accents are good, not bad.

[Paul B.]

If your in the Fairfield area there is a cobbler in the Red Wing store near the shopping mall off Travis blvd. Did mine a few years ago and they held up well.

[goby]

They don't stitch on replacement soles. And, the "stitching" you see on the perimeter of the simms soles when they are new is cosmetic only; it isn't attached to the sole.



BTW, the stitching you see on Simms boots are real. They really are attached to the sole.

After 10 years I replaced the felt. And after 2-3 trips, the felt came off. It appears the secret is to use lots and lots and lots of cement.

I'm going to buy a new pair. The last pair of Simms Freestone boots lasted 10 years.

[amoeba]

BTW, the stitching you see on Simms boots are real. They really are attached to the sole.

After 10 years I replaced the felt. And after 2-3 trips, the felt came off. It appears the secret is to use lots and lots and lots of cement.

I'm going to buy a new pair. The last pair of Simms Freestone boots lasted 10 years.

No, mine absolutely are NOT stitched to the sole; I'm talking G3's, in the felt, from 2008-2009 (when they made felt; yes - older shows, including guides and freestones). But not the latest felts (I can't attest to the 2012's); the 2008-9 felt shoes have stitching, which goes in one side of the felt, and ends on the opposite side of the felt. No stitching into the shoe.

I did purchase some of those freestones for work; which lasted something like 2 weeks of extremely rigorous wading before busting through the uppers. As far as I'm concerned, if it's not leather, you couldn't pay me to use them.

There are tricks to re-soling felt wading shoes and I'm not sure what they are (not all cobblers, or even a majority, can do this successfully; the one that has - for me - is Arden shoe repair at Arden/Eastern by that Whole Foods Market).

[aaron]

Simms has told me in the past that the stitching is cosmetic only fwiw.

[Dave Neal]

I've re-soled a few pair of climbing shoes, back in the day, and have re-soled a pair of wading boots. Once. I probably wont tackle that job again... http://www.kiene.com/forums/images/icons/icon7.gif

One good tip: Apply proper cement to both sole and boot... and let it almost completely dry before clamping them together. A heat gun helps speed up the process. A big mistake is to "rush" the job and try and bond the two together too soon.

As mentioned above, a good cobbler will have all the right tools - the right tools make a difference.

But as Jaybinder mentioned, for $60 and new laces etc... that's a pretty good deal for a few more seasons or a back up pair of boots! And you are supporting a craftsman in an ancient trade!

[Jaybinder]

It's been 6 months and about 25 fishing days and the soles are holding up pretty well. I think they'll hold up through the end of the summer then I'll get some new boots. It's deffinently been worth the $60.

Jason

[sixrivers]

unless you have to. If they are comfortable and in decent condition then simply replace the soles - yourself. The process is not that daunting. As mentioned, Kiene's and others carry replacement soles. The replacements are about $25 plus shipping and any good hardware store will carry Barge cement. It will take one tube (3 - 5 oz) for each boot.
Be sure to scrape / sand or cut the old material away. I use a belt sander to make quick work of it. You don't have to get all of the old sole off. In fact, I have left some on at the arch area to maintain a flatter surface for the new glue up. The replacement soles are much larger so it's good to cut them back to a "ballpark" size. I don't think you want to cut them to fit exactly as the Barge Cement is a contact glue that will not easily allow repositioning of the sole after initial contact. In my mind repositioning would compromise adherance.
Now you are ready for the glue. A couple throwaway brushes are handy here. Brush on a layer on both surfaces and let the glue set up. When dry to the touch, apply another layer to the boot bottom and replacement felt and allow them to get tacky. Then stick them together. I use duct tape wrapped around the entire sole and boot to hold them in place. It's really that simple. A couple years ago I started using my sheet metal screw "studs" to help hold them on as well. Now is the important part. LEAVE THEM ALONE for about three days in warm temps. The longer the better. I have never had a pair of felts come off after this process.
Finally, after removing the tape a sharp knife similar to a fillet knife and some patience will trim the excess material back to the edge of the boot sole. It does not have to be pretty. After a couple days of banging around in the river the edges will wear off to a smooth professional look. And you will wonder why you hadn't done this before!
So for less than $30 you get the felts. Another $15 for the glue and everyone has a roll of duct tape around. The money saved can go to a libation while congratulating yourself on a job well done. Or nowadays into your fuel tank to get you to the river sooner.

[goby]

No, mine absolutely are NOT stitched to the sole; I'm talking G3's, in the felt, from 2008-2009 (when they made felt; yes - older shows, including guides and freestones). But not the latest felts (I can't attest to the 2012's); the 2008-9 felt shoes have stitching, which goes in one side of the felt, and ends on the opposite side of the felt. No stitching into the shoe.



Wow, that stinks. Mine were absolutely stitched to the sole. They were the Freestones with felt. Mine were purchased in about 2001. And mine lasted and lasted and lasted. I'm sad that they wore out.