Can you crazy-glue Wellies??

[The Weekenders]

I was working in the yard last weekend and managed to step onto some upright pointing nails, which penetrated my favorite mudpoots. The nail went through a cleat on the sole then right up against my skin.

I'm okay, but I was wondering if crazy glue would stop up the breach? Any of you muck-dwellin' Chiffsters ever try that??? I hate throwing them out, they are a good pair. It's hard to even find the hole because it kind of closed up after nail removal...

[djm]

I have never had any success with cyanoacrylate on rubber or leather, especially shoes. You would have more lasting success with contact rubber cement.

She would even dance unless she had her wellie on
But when she had it on she could dance as well as anyone

djm

[Bloomfield]

There is stuff called shoe goo, I think, that might do the trick.

[Doug_Tipple]

Superglue dries hard, so it isn't much good for rubber. I think that silicone sealant would do the trick. You probably have this around the house in a small tube or a larger tube for cauling windows, etc. It should flow into the hole and then cure as silicone rubber.

[The Weekenders]

Thanks for tips. Yes, I have 100% silicone caulk, so I'll try that!

[mutepointe]

how about one of those plugs that they use to fix a flat tire. that might work too.

[emmline]

There is stuff called shoe goo, I think, that might do the trick.

There is also something called Shoe Goop, which you also might find packaged as Household Goop, Marine Goop, Plumbing Goop, and All Purpose Goop among other things--all the same, different package.
Supposed to be good.

I don't know though. I find that once the integrity of a surface has been breached, you might buy time with a fix, but in general the patch is never quite satisfactory long term. (With the possible exception of wood glue where the bond is said to be stronger than the wood itself.)

[swizzlestick]

Why not try a standard tire patch? You apply glue to a rubber plug and force it through the hole. Let it dry completely and then cut off the excess.

You should be able to get a cheap kit from an auto parts store.

[Jerry Freeman]

It's hard to even find the hole because it kind of closed up after nail removal...

Are you sure it leaks?

Tires leak when they're punctured because there's a pressure differential between the air inside the tire and the outside, so the air leaks out.

If the hole's closed up and the rubber's fairly thick there, there might not be anything to cause water to get inside the boot.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[fel bautista]

shoe goop should work; also think about a vinyl patch made for beach balls or bicycle tires. There is even a self stick patch for bicycle ties that may work as well

[I.D.10-t]

No shoe repair shops in your neck of the woods?

I don't know if the bike patches would be the best bet, they are relatively thin and will would be walked off rather quickly (normally they are protected from this by the bike tire). Tire puncture kits actually plug the hole, you would have to trim the inside, but it seems like it would be a permanent repair. I would think that it would be easier to get into the hole and last longer than caulk.


Um, what swizzlestick and mute said.

[s1m0n]

I have never had any success with cyanoacrylate on rubber or leather, especially shoes. You would have more lasting success with contact rubber cement.

I concur. Crazy glue isn't a good solution for anything that needs to bend.

Go down to the bike shop and get yourself a puncture kit--that's what we did when I was a young'un, and I doubt much has changed.

[Lambchop]

No shoe repair shops in your neck of the woods?

I don't know if the bike patches would be the best bet, they are relatively thin and will would be walked off rather quickly (normally they are protected from this by the bike tire). Tire puncture kits actually plug the hole, you would have to trim the inside, but it seems like it would be a permanent repair. I would think that it would be easier to get into the hole and last longer than caulk.


Um, what swizzlestick and mute said.

I think tire hole-pluggers work because they are held in place by the constrictive forces of the relatively thick tire surface. Your average Wellie isn't quite as thick. It's more on the line of a bike tire. Attempting to shove something into the hole may split the rubber, enlarging it to hopeless dimensions.

How about putting the bike patch on the inside?

Here's the recommendation from eHow:

For rubber boots, small holes can be covered with a silicon-based glue such as Shoe Goo. Locate the hole and rough up the area with sandpaper. Place a small dab of the sealant over the hole. Let the boots dry for 24 hours.

[swizzlestick]

I think tire hole-pluggers work because they are held in place by the constrictive forces of the relatively thick tire surface. Your average Wellie isn't quite as thick. It's more on the line of a bike tire. Attempting to shove something into the hole may split the rubber, enlarging it to hopeless dimensions.

How about putting the bike patch on the inside?

I have patched the sides of rubber boots with bike tyre patches. Seemed to work OK. However, I thought this was a hole in the lug of the sole. That's why I thought the hole-plug method might work better.

[Lambchop]

I think tire hole-pluggers work because they are held in place by the constrictive forces of the relatively thick tire surface. Your average Wellie isn't quite as thick. It's more on the line of a bike tire. Attempting to shove something into the hole may split the rubber, enlarging it to hopeless dimensions.

How about putting the bike patch on the inside?

I have patched the sides of rubber boots with bike tyre patches. Seemed to work OK. However, I thought this was a hole in the lug of the sole. That's why I thought the hole-plug method might work better.

Oh, you're right! My apologies! It does say it went through a thickish portion.

I was distracted by "mudpoots," finding it squelchingly onomatopoeic . . . on several counts . . . and failed to read the next bit carefully.

The tire plug it is, then!