Reglueing felt soles - best glue to use?

[PoudreCanyon]

I have a pair of Frogg Toggs wading boots with felt soles that I like, but I haven't used them much. They are in very good condition except for the soles which are starting to come away from the main sole.

You guys are the best source of tackle wisdom that I know of, so please tell me how to fix the problem.

[16pmd]

Barge rubber cement is the commonly used glue used by shoe repair shops and works well on felt soles. I've found that Gorilla Glue works very well and has the bonus of needing moisture to set, so works with wet felts and boots. Its only drawbacks are that it's somewhat stiffer than Barge and also foams and expands, so you don't want to use too much.

[SpringCreek]

If you are buying Barge cement, you will want to use the original in the yellow can. This is what the shoe repair shops use.

[BrownBear]

If you are buying Barge cement, you will want to use the original in the yellow can. This is what the shoe repair shops use.

Oh yeah. Back in the late 60's and early 70's before felt soles were commonly available, I worked for an outfit that made its living in waders. One of my jobs (yeah, I was a peon) was to stand at a bench grinder and grind off the lug soles, then glue on indoor/outdoor carpeting. Everything else peeled off in pretty short order, but with yellow-can Barge you'd wear out the carpet before they pulled free.

Best procedure is to apply Barge to the felt and let it dry. Then apply another coat of the Barge right over the top of that, as well as one on the rubber soles. Let both dry to the touch, then press them together.

The final trick is to POUND the felt/carpet onto the sole. I'd put the sole down on the concrete floor, stand a hunk of 2x4 upright in the boot, then bang on it with a large ballpeen hammer, covering all areas I could reach. Couldn't reach the toe area of course, so I cut short pieces of 2x4 to length, tapered one end to toe shape, shove it into the boot and turn the boot upside down. Brace it on top of the work bench with the sole up, and go to pounding with the hammer directly on the sole at the toe. Allow at least 24 hours to cure before use.

Did all that after a tutorial from an old time cobbler in town. Without the pounding, the adherence wasn't nearly so good.

Were I to get off my hiney today and build rather than buy, I'd still use indoor/outdoor carpet rather than felt. Gripped better on slimy rocks and lasted longer than felt. But I'm old and lazy now!

[PoudreCanyon]

Brown bear - I'm old and lazy now too, so I'll have to think about that pounding routine because I only have a few places where the felt is starting to pull away. However, I will definitely take the advice of all you guys and use Barge cement in the yellow can.

By the way, do you think the indoor/outdoor carpeting gives better traction on grassy slopes? My river banks are steep and can be very treacherous for an old guy who can't feel my feet.

Your story about your early job reminds me of a job interview I had at Hodgman Rubber right after high School in '65. The boss guy took me into the plant and showed me around but it reminded me of the Dante's Inferno story we had to read in English class. I thanked him and left and after several other job interviews I decided to join the Army and become a Paratrooper. I've never regretted that decision. I only wish I had a travel flyrod in some of the places I went to.

[bassman]

PC, nothing except deep lugs with spikes works on grassy slopes, especially when leaves start to fall. I agree with BB about the use of good quality in/out carpeting. Many years ago in Michigan salmon runs we could chase salmon through rocky runs a lot of other guys couldn't even walk in carefully without slipping all over. Carpet was the answer for slippery rocks but slid like anything else on steep grass or leaf covered ground.

Nick

[PoudreCanyon]

Nick, Thanks for that warning.

I've got an old pair of wading boots for backup and I'm going to replace the felt with carpet and try that. The Cache La Poudre river where I live is all freestone and I really like felt, but glad to try something better.

The Poudre is running HIGH AND FAST now from snowmelt up high and it looks like mid-July before I'll be back in it.

[bvandeuson]

If I had steep, grassy banks to negotiate I would definitely use studs in addition to the felt or carpet soles. I use aluminum studs anyway because they grip everywhere.

BB

[aged_sage]

A note of interest about Barge Cement. Apparently, every Ford vehicle up to the late '40's that rolled onto a dealer's lot/floor came with a tube of Barge Cement in the trunk. It was an integral part of the inner tube patch kit that came with the vehicle. It was essential for doing a "cold" patch. For the youth among us, we did not always have AAA for road service in case of a flat. You provided your own 'service'.

[BrownBear]

Oh yeah. Patched a whole lot of waders with Barge and a swatch of inner tube, too. We had a dozen guys spending all day every day in waders, doing everything they could to beat them up and give me a little job security!

Huh.... Atsa lotta time sniffing Barge fumes. Might explain a lot about my personality today!