Rubber vs. leather sole shoes

[bond]

Ok here's my two cents worth. I prefer rubber Vibram type soles on all of my shoes as I pound the pavement a lot and I like the extra cushion that a good rubber sole provides. Leather soles are nice but if your doing a lot of outside walking they just aren't as comfortable as a good rubber sole like vibram.
I have a nice pair of Florsheim veblens with a leather sole that I would seriously like to have fitted with a vibram sole but won't do it as I think it would take away from their beauty,so now they live in a box unworn .
Good luck

 

[Deleted member 16736]

All the shoes I like come with a leather sole from the factory. I'll probably just have them re-soled with Dainite when they're re-crafted/re-soled. I heard AE will put on a Dainite sole even though it isn't available as a factory option for some reason.

 

[LoveMyHats2]

True, there are options available for soles on shoes or boots. In part, no matter what the bottom of a boot or shoe is made of "sole wise", quality is of issue, and if made well, that is what makes a difference to some degree. Also taking care of the shoe or boot. I have found that for some rubber products, more so on a crepe sole, you can apply the same clear silicone spray made for automotive use, (black magic product) that was originally designed for rubber and black plastic trim on a car, to preserve and aid in keeping the soles of a shoe supple, if made from non leather. I don't think this would be a positive product for a leather sole at all, just a rubber product. And after allowing it to soak in, you have to spend some time with a clothe rag to wipe off any surface excess or you will be slipping and sliding on any smooth hard surface!

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Ok here's my two cents worth. I prefer rubber Vibram type soles on all of my shoes as I pound the pavement a lot and I like the extra cushion that a good rubber sole provides. Leather soles are nice but if your doing a lot of outside walking they just aren't as comfortable as a good rubber sole like vibram.
I have a nice pair of Florsheim veblens with a leather sole that I would seriously like to have fitted with a vibram sole but won't do it as I think it would take away from their beauty,so now they live in a box unworn .
Good luck

Dang Bond, you can wear those rascals, if you want to keep the leather from wear, you can look around on eBay or other sources that supply shoe care products, there is some sort of clear film that is self adhesive for the bottoms of dress shoes, it is some sort of flexible plastic and self adhesive. They sell sheets of it, you have to make a template from your shoes, trace transfer to the plastic, cut it out and then apply it. I would even purchase some barge cement and use a tool made from a wooden ice cream stick to apply it super thin, and then apply the plastic sheet of protection on the leather. If later you elected to remove everything, you could use some solvent made for preparation of leather before application of a dye, it would be strong enough to get any glue back off. Then if you wanted to "spruce up" the smooth leather sole, soak in some conditioner let it dry, apply some neutral shoe polish, and buff them like a mad man! Note: I did this to one pair of my shoes, a pair I still have today, it added a many years worth of wearing without even scuffing the bottom of the leather soles, just a few indentations from stones etc. It was some work to get the barge off the sole after the clear plastic protection sheet wore through, but it took a lot of walking on black asphalt to wear them to a point of no return.