Taps

[Queue]

Taps?

My apologies if a thread on this topic already exists but I couldn't find one with the (horrific...) search.

Does anyone have or know anything about taps on shoes? I'm not talking about tap shoes but a little bit a cobbler would but on the underside of the toe to help protect the sole. I remember reading something about them a while ago and I recall my dad telling me that his dad always had them. Any information would be much appreciated.

 

[Tomasso]

Any cobbler will install heel and toe taps for around $5.00.

 

[Max Flash]

As Tomasso says, any cobbler can put metal pieces on the heel and toe to protect them. I would highly recommend getting this done on all leather-soled shoes.

In the case of the heel, one can also get a "quarter-iron", where the metal piece is built into the back part of the heel (the part that wears down quickest). I usually get this done as I find it does not wear as quickly and not prone to accidentally being kicked off if one scuffs one's heel on the pavement.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Warning!

Metal taps are hell on wooden floors. If the wearer tends to drag his feet, the wood floor will get scratched.

.

 

[cufflinkmaniac]

I use PVC (or whatever material they are made from) heel taps, which are silent and don't mark floors. Not necessarily a classic touch, but much better than wearing down the heel. Of course, I'm sure everyone already knows about this and I just wasted a minute or two typing.

Warning!

Metal taps are hell on wooden floors. If the wearer tends to drag his feet, the wood floor will get scratched.

.

 

[Ghostsoldier]

My dad wore 'em in the 50's on all his shoes...he was the quintessential hood in Ohio...he said the sound of the clicking heels of your spades echoing down school hallways, and the feeling it gave you as a teen, is something you never forget...
Rob

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Where's our friend gone? He was funny.

I really do want to know about his Centrifugal Clothesdryers

bk

 

[Carlisle Blues]

Absolute must!!! No metal - creepy sound and destructive Unless, of course, if you are like me dancing on the street corner for my dinner

 

[cufflinkmaniac]

Where's our friend gone? He was funny.

I really do want to know about his Centrifugal Clothesdryers

bk

Ha ha.

 

[MrBern]

Hale

Metal on your heels makes a lot of noise, ruins woodenfloors & sends shock thru your ankles.
PVC taps wear out in a couple weeks.

Try Polyurethane "No-Noise" Taps. They last for months. Ive got them on all my Allen Edmonds.

http://haleheel.murphylinks.com/shoesavertaps.html


One day I will try the heel rims
http://haleheel.murphylinks.com/heelrims.html

 

[South]

Are they to quieten down the steps? Are they to offset uneven heel wear brought on by pronation? (I always wear down the outside rear portion of my heels.)

Thanks.

 

[bburtner@moran]

rubber taps

They cut down wear,heel or toe...

 

[cptjeff]

They don't really cut down wear, but they're much cheaper and easier to replace then a full heel, so they put them in high wear areas.

 

[sproily]

They really are much more hard wearing.

 

[cptjeff]

If you say so. But looking at the rubber heels on my loafers, I would shudder to think of what they would be like if they had a less hard wearing material.

It probably depends what surfaces you're wearing them on, but in my experience rubber is not a particularly long lasting material. The soles on those shoes are just fine. Admittedly, they need to be restitched, but the leather itself in pretty good shape.

 

[Sam Craig]

safety first

I may be all wet, but I believe the rubber inserts were added because all leather soles and heals slip badly, especially on slick commercial floors and even on slick concrete.

It was a safety measure.

 

[sproily]

And not to mention ice!

Yikes, leather equals skates on ice!

 

[Tomasso]

Humphrey O'Sullivan

Rubber Heel Shoes



O'Sullivan was an Irish immigrant to the United States who received the first patent for a rubber heel for shoes on January 24, 1899.


He was working in a print shop, standing on the hard floor all day long. His feet were killing him by the time he got home so he started standing on a small rubber mat. It was such a good idea that his coworkers started stealing it!


Then he had an idea! Attach that rubber to the soles of his shoes and no one would steal them again!


It was such a success that he got a patent for it and opened his own company! O'Sullivan Corporation is still in existence, manufacturing and distributing plastics for the automotive and manufacturing industries.

 

[South]

Here are a couple of examples of what I'm referring to:

 

[Bruce Wayne]

If you say so. But looking at the rubber heels on my loafers, I would shudder to think of what they would be like if they had a less hard wearing material. QUOTE]

It also depends on how long lasting the rubber is. The harder the rubber, the longer it lasts.