Does clay dissolve glue between soles and leather?

[Jakke]

In the beginning of May I was near Riolobos on the VdlP. We had to use a path with lots of wet clay and our shoes gathered a lot of extra weight. I cleaned them with running water once that was possible. Soon I noticed that the leather-and-Goretex hiking boots (I don't want to mention names here as this may not be the result of bad quality) were not watertight anymore. On every side, the "rim" of the sole was several milimeters loose from the leather! The kind hospitaliero tried glueing and using duct tape (see the photo). I had to repeat that soon after, but then I had no options left. Fortunately I still had my sandals. Using the boots only when it was raining, I made it to Salamanca and bought new boots there.

My boots were not new, but I had only used them to walk a daily 10 km a few weeks before the camino and on top of that I walked a few days in Lapland. In Finland and before Riolobos the boots were perfect and showed no signs of bad construction. They are from a well-known firm.

My Question:
Do you have a similar experience? Is there something in the clay that might do this?

 

[SYates]

I walked many muddy/clay caminos but never had that happened to me, at least not with with reasonably new boots. Buen Camino, SY

PS Love the second picture ;-)

 

[onwayhome]

Oh dear, it's not great having boots fall apart on the Camino.

I'm wondering if the leather shrank and deformed as it dried out, putting a strain on the seams. I had something similar happen to a pair of mine, (though due to paddling in sea water ). Maybe it was something like that rather than the actual clay?

Glad you've got some new boots now.

 

[Peter Fransiscus]

It can happen with old boots with dried out leather.
Wish you well,Peter.

 

[Jakke]

It can happen with old boots with dried out leather.
Wish you well,Peter.

I thought of that, Peter and Onwayhome, as the shoes have been in (dry) storage several months. However, I would have expected this to happen when I walked in Lapland or at home if dried out leather was the cause. The leather also did not deform in any way and the shoes still fit my feet. Still, it was very hard to force the soles' rims back against the leather for some reason.

 

[J F Gregory]

If I am not using my boots for a while I treat them with a lanolin oil so they won't go bad.

 

[Jakke]

If I am not using my boots for a while I treat them with a lanolin oil so they won't go bad.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[MinaKamina]

This reminds me of a pair of walking shoes that were left on top of the radiator to dry. Heater was on, this happened in the cooler season.
Soles came undone on the sides. We always thought that happened because of the heat and not so much because of the water.
But maybe it was the combination. A lot of engineering goes into shoemaking that one is blissfully unaware of.

I'd say, mention your experience to the company who made them. It will be interesting to hear what they have to say.

 

[JabbaPapa]

Not clay no -- heat can however melt bad quality glue.

 

[Jakke]

This reminds me of a pair of walking shoes that were left on top of the radiator to dry. Heater was on, this happened in the cooler season.
Soles came undone on the sides. We always thought that happened because of the heat and not so much because of the water.
But maybe it was the combination. A lot of engineering goes into shoemaking that one is blissfully unaware of.

I'd say, mention your experience to the company who made them. It will be interesting to hear what they have to say.

Thanks! And you are right. I already asked the company. My shoes were not dried by heating. I just let them stand .

There is a process called PU hydrolysis but I don't know, obviously, whether this fits your situation. Plenty of information through Google. Here is a detailed explanation by Hanwag, a well-known (excellent in my opinion) hiking boot maker: http://bergpost.hanwag.de/?p=468&lang=en but you find a similar explanation on websites of other well-known producers. The problem is aggravated by prolonged storage.

Thanks! I'll have a look.

 

[jerbear]

I agree with the heat and age of the boot usually in code on the inside top of tongue. I take a picture of mine when new in case of a situation I have reference. I buy new boots every year and they get the business after 10 weeks of trekking. BC

 

[Bogong]

This has been of great interest to me for quite a number of years now.

Back around the time Noah put the pintles on the ark, I found that the soles never parted from the uppers, but after some years the phenomenon started to occur even in the most expensive boots we used to use for bushwalking. I was told that it was due to the fact that the old glues were regarded as carcinogenic, hence a move to new compounds which didn't stick nearly as well. Incidentally, this may not accord with the "spin" that manufacturers may put on the issue.

Some boots/runners appear to have an inner sole made of cardboard type material, and getting these wet seems to hasten the process. But then the mega expensive runners I've tried seem to separate just as quickly.

The Camino is hardly demanding on boots from this perspective (although I wore through the soles of two pairs of new boots on my walk) and generally I wouldn't expect the treatment meted out to a newish pair to separate. But if you want boots for really tough stuff try to get those with a sewn on sole. The trade-off is that they may be heavier.

When my runners/shoes separate, I glue them together with Sikaflex 260 which generally gives me a few extra months of use. After all, if you pay 12 bucks for a set of runners ($4.99 for my most recent) you have to get your money's worth. I should add that I once bought the very most expensive model of a reputedly top brand, rated Running shoe of the year by a US running magazine, and the soles collapsed within a fortnight. Some time later I made the mistake of buying the same brand only this time it was the soles parting from the uppers in less than a week. Hence my move to el cheapos!

De colores

Bogong

 

[Jakke]

I agree with the heat and age of the boot usually in code on the inside top of tongue. I take a picture of mine when new in case of a situation I have reference. I buy new boots every year and they get the business after 10 weeks of trekking. BC

Good idea!

 

[Jeff Crawley]

I wonder if human sweat has anything to do with it?

(Not suggesting you have sweaty feet).

 

[Jakke]

I wonder if human sweat has anything to do with it?

(Not suggesting you have sweaty feet).

The factory would have to answer that one. I doubt it, though. In that case, we'd see a lot of severed soles because I don't have very sweaty feet and like to use fresh and dry socks.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

this may not accord with the "spin" that manufacturers may put on the issue.

Are you implying that businesses are more interested in sales than they are honesty?

 

[Jeff Crawley]

The factory would have to answer that one. I doubt it, though. In that case, we'd see a lot of severed soles because I don't have very sweaty feet and like to use fresh and dry socks.

So near and yet still so far to go - taken just west of Melide last September:



What interested me was the fact that, while being a pair of boots (one left and one right) they are not from the same pair.
At least the laces got recycled!

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I'm thinking of two things that might have been at work maybe at the same time. Some clays can suck moisture out of leather and other materials. This could have the same effect on your boots as if they were sitting dry for a long time. The other thing is that walking in the clay is causing a suction, i.e., the clay is holding the soles down to the ground while your foot is lifting the uppers up and the stitching can't take the strain.