10/29/15 1:51 PM

The sole of my favorite shoes had started to separate from the body of the shoe (on both). The rest of the shoes are still ok. So I'm thinking I'd like to see if I could glue the soles back on and get a few more seasons out of them.

A quick glance at the glue section of the local supermarket made my head spin, with all kind of glues for different purpose. Though I guess the only thing that really got my attention is the shoe glue. Is it better to use shoe glue instead of the all-purpose crazy glue? What's the difference?

10/29/15 3:32 PM

I used tight bond II from Home Depot to glue my kids soles back on. One was almost completely loose except the heel. I did not even take the cleats off to do it either. ;) Two seasons later still holding. Use wrap pr some kind of elastic bungies or tape them tight for 30 minutes minimum. I did over night clamping with wide pallet shrink warp as tight as I could get it. Put something over before you wrap with duct tape so the tape is not against the shoes upper finish...

10/29/15 4:09 PM

Crazy glue isn't going to flex much without cracking.

A glue for shoe soles needs to be tough and somewhat flexible. Shoe-Goo is made to adhere best to shoe materials and to have some toughness to it.

Shoe Goo does require significant cure time btw, and I would be wary of the fumes.

I'm starting to think that Gorilla Glue can fix anything, but I am over-generalizing.
Mainly with this stuff, the water activation foams the glue and you have to be ready to wipe off what squeezes out for several minutes, followed by several hours of cure time while the surfaces are held stationary. It is particularly nasty to get Gorilla Glue on skin!

Last month I fixed a rider's left Ergolever body by drilling and doweling the brake lever support ear to the main body, and I used a toothpick to apply minimal Gorilla Glue and a bit of water into the holes before pressing together with the 5/64" steel dowel.
The repaired lever assembly feels really solid now, though not in the sense that the levers were glued stationary! The seeping foaming glue in this case was minimal, and was quickly wisked away with the corner of a paper towel for the first few minutes. The steel dowel itself doesn't have to take the braking force so is more than strong/stiff enough to support the broken CFRP ear until the next crash.

10/29/15 4:43 PM

I have had good luck with Shoe Goo, which retains a good deal of flexibility, and sticks well even if the material is bit dirty. One thing that helps is to use lots of it. This is not like other glues that you use by the drop.

An alternative that is more liquid and lasts well is 3M emblem and trim adhesive, which you can get at auto parts stores. It's very similar to Shoe Goo, but does not get so stiff in the tube. It needs a day or two to cure, but it's very tenacious.

Like Shoe Goo, though, it has a powerful solvent, and you should ventilate well, or better yet do the whole job outdoors and lave the shoes on the porch or in the shed or whatever, to dry.

10/29/15 10:21 PM

I've never had good luck with that, now I just take it to a shoe repair shop who glues it for a couple bucks and good as new. Probably doesn't cost much more than buying the glue. It is a good old fashioned shop and it might not be too easy to find one like that. But if you buy decent shoes and keep them a long time finding a shop like that is invaluable.

10/30/15 5:45 AM

I've found Pliobond to be the most durable adhesive for applications where flexibility is important. While Shoe Goo works well enough as an adhesive, it was actually designed to replace worn rubber on soles.

10/30/15 8:46 AM

I remember Pliobond was my go-to adhesive back in the 70's, until a revised (safer or more environmental) version replaced it.

I imagine it has been updated a few times since then!

I think I have an unopened mini-tube of the stuff, still has weight to it so not dried out, which came with some vintage bar grips that I bought on Ebay!
Somebody call the EPA, as I am tempted to open and use it one of these days.

10/30/15 10:59 AM

Another vote for Shoe Goo. I have been using it for years with good results.

10/30/15 2:59 PM

There are also flexible cyanoacrylate superglues available. Loctite 480, for example.