Are my walking boots dead?

[Time Waster]

Brasher doesn't exist i thought. Bought out by berghaus and later on ii thought the brand name was retired.

The boss and founder lived near my parent's old village. He used to sell off things at the village shop. Socks, inner soles, poles when they were still only developing them for market and the membrane bootie that gets put inside the boots. Not sure how useful they were because normally it's between leather outer and liner. Hardly useable as a lining sock.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Brasher doesn't exist i thought. Bought out by berghaus and later on ii thought the brand name was retired.

The boss and founder lived near my parent's old village. He used to sell off things at the village shop. Socks, inner soles, poles when they were still only developing them for market and the membrane bootie that gets put inside the boots. Not sure how useful they were because normally it's between leather outer and liner. Hardly useable as a lining sock.

It's been brought back for a limited number of lines of boots I believe, but yes, it was deleted by Berghaus - foolishly, but at least they realised.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Buy a new pair! That's what you really want us to say :-)
Keep the old ones for gardening or just lounging around doing outdoor dirty manly stuff....

 

[Kingfisher101]

Sealskin socks.

 

[Accy cyclist]

For the last twenty years a pair of Brasher's have sat in the shed unused, until last weekend when I dragged them out for dog walking duties.

After cleaning them I can see cracks in the leather where they bend at the bottom of the laces, and after a test drive in heavy rain they're leaking a bit there.

Is there anything I can do to repair them or do I need to get some replacements?

The leather will have dried up and rotted, similar to when bike tyres when unused and left to the elements 'decompose'. I tried my dear departed dad's power drill a few years ago after it'd been in his shed for about 13 years. I plugged it in, flicked the switch then it banged and smoked! What shoe size are you by the way?🤔

 

[PaulSB]

I use G-Wax and beeswax to maintain my Meindl boots. Works a treat. The key word here is maintenance. Keep them for gardening and buy new for walking as you won't be able to fix a crack. If you buy quality leather boots understand how to maintain them and they will last you for decades.

 

[Mike Ayling]

We used to use Sno-Seal a product made from bees wax to water proof our hiking and nordic sking boots.

 

[MichaelW2]

It is always a good idea to wax or otherwise treat old boots BEFORE walking in them again. Dried out leather cracks more easily than treated leather.

 

[Time Waster]

Unfortunately no boot lasts forever, the quality isn't there anymore. Soles wear down and good luck finding somewhere to replace the sole. They're not made to be replaced except on a very few brands. It's certainly possible even with glued on soles but you'll get very little life out of them. We have been in a disposable world for too long!

Maintain leather is good advice but don't expect it to keep them going forever. Not if you actually use them a lot.

BTW don't over use whatever you use did waterproofing. Most need heat to melt into leather. Do not leave any on the leather or stitching. It's into the leather the stuff needs to be not on the surface. Most people don't do it properly or as well as needed. BTW excess heat also damages leather. You don't want to over dry the leather.

Anyone try those reproofing machines appearing in shoe shops and outdoor shops? Any good?

 

[MichaelW2]

Unfortunately no boot lasts forever, the quality isn't there anymore. Soles wear down and good luck finding somewhere to replace the sole. They're not made to be replaced except on a very few brands. It's certainly possible even with glued on soles but you'll get very little life out of them. We have been in a disposable world for too long!

Maintain leather is good advice but don't expect it to keep them going forever. Not if you actually use them a lot.

BTW don't over use whatever you use did waterproofing. Most need heat to melt into leather. Do not leave any on the leather or stitching. It's into the leather the stuff needs to be not on the surface. Most people don't do it properly or as well as needed. BTW excess heat also damages leather. You don't want to over dry the leather.

Anyone try those reproofing machines appearing in shoe shops and outdoor shops? Any good?

I used a nanoparticle waterproofing black box on my best suede desert boots. It seems to work OK but I havent used them in a heavy downpour.

 

[welsh dragon]

But some new ones you tight skinflint.

 

[CanucksTraveller]

Most need heat to melt into leather. Do not leave any on the leather or stitching. It's into the leather the stuff needs to be not on the surface.

Agreed, I think when I first got Grangers G Wax I had issues with it leaving waxy residue especially on minor surface cracks where the foot flexes, then I found through researching that most users use a mildly warm (not hot) hairdryer to get the wax into the leather itself. Then a final wipe with a dry cloth to remove any traces of excess liquid wax.

 

[rockyroller]

A shoe deodoriser ?

hehe no I was hoping for a new pair! or maybe a discount coupon

 

[craigwend]

Something to cheer you up...

View: https://youtu.be/pV-iL-1mjf8


And if you only use them every 20 years I wouldn't be to bothered...

 

[stephec]

Thanks everyone, here's a photo of the worst parts now that they're fully dry.

If I replace them it's only for prancing round the local country park and not going up the north face of the Eiger, so something cheap from Wynsors or Go Outdoors will probably do the job.