Vibram Two-Tone Soles Falling Apart

[Son of a Beach]

My current boots are Raichle (old Raichle, not Mammut-owned Raichle). They are about 5 years old, and have had a fair bit of use (although I don't do quite as much walking as some people on these forums). The soles are Vibram, as are the soles on pretty much all decent rugged walking boots these days.

However, these Vibram soles are not one piece, but are made from at least two (possibly more) pieces stuck together. It would appear that the only reason for doing this is to have a pretty two-tone colour scheme in the soles. It sure ain't pretty to me, but I can't think of any other reason they would do it, so I'm assuming it's aesthetically pleasing to some people.

In any case, constructing a sole out of two (or more) pieces, rather than the traditional one piece seems like a step backwards when it comes to strength. What were Vibram thinking? What were the boot manufacturers thinking when they decided this was the way to go?

Anyhow, on my last walk, one of the knobs of the grip on the sole of my left boot came right off. It has clearly separated from the different coloured layer below it and then had only a thin line connecting it to the rest of its own black piece, which of course tore off.

IMG_0321.jpg (69.72 KiB) Viewed 9213 times

When cleaning them after the walk, I noticed that a second knob of the grip on the same boot is also about to tear off. The tear looks to be well in line with a join between the black layer of the sole and the grey layer beneath it.

IMG_0323.jpg (70 KiB) Viewed 9213 times

Has anyone else come across similar problems with Vibram two-tone soles?

This sure seems like a crazy way to make soles, and I'll definitely be looking for single-colour one-piece soles again for my next boots (like I've had on all my boots before this). In the past, the soles on other boots have lasted the longest, merely wearing a little flatter, while the stitching or other components eventually started to break down (after about 10 years). This is what I should expect from soles... wearing... slowly. Not falling apart!

I think I'll be able to get a couple more decent walks out of these boots before the soles disintegrate completely, but it's definitely time to start saving up for another pair. I may finally be able to get the Zamberlans I've wanted for the last 10 years or so.

[tasadam]

Look at all the tread left on those boots! 5 years? Get out there, man!
Really sad that they are falling apart like that after such little tread wear.

[bushrunner]

Regarding the reason for having multiple pieces; my guess would be that the rubbers are of different hardness compounds. I am assuming this would be to aid flex and cushioning in certain parts of the boot. Just a guess.

[Ent]

Um? Spotted much the same thing with casual wear shoes. As pointed out on another thread Vibram is a brand name that is licensed as well as making soles themselves. On the Scarpa it is a single piece and tough as nails so this type of performance has given Vibram a great reputation that they appear to stuffing up when they license the name. Five years is not bad but not on the same page as I would have expected. My precursor to the the SL's are every so slowly wearing down in the tread but boy have the miles racked up under a big person an heavy load. It is a worrying trend as more gear heads towards the fashion rather than the practical side of the marketing equation.

In fact I am a bit dubious over soft soles and multi firmness rubber as the best was with a pair Blunstones I had when the hard rubber completely separated from the softer foam after one wear. Ok I had the boots in a cupboard for five or more years after buying them on special but still they were Blunnies so I felt ripped off. They were rather comfortable boots for light to medium duty wear and a friend has pair along with his son and found them ok but not good on broken pointy ground as they lack support and his arches get tired and the feet get bruised through the soles.

Cheers Brett

[blacksheep]

Regarding the reason for having multiple pieces; my guess would be that the rubbers are of different hardness compounds. I am assuming this would be to aid flex and cushioning in certain parts of the boot. Just a guess.

correct. It is possible to have different durometer rubber on different parts of a boot (some area stiff for durability and rigidity, some softer for grip). Many companies like to feature these areas with colour coding.

I'd be confident Ian and crew will help you out..

[Penguin]

Nik

My similar age Raichle boots also had one layer give up, the midsole is a different material again. My midsole started to disintegrate after one walk. I did walk in brackish water for 7 hours on eday - that may have had something to do with it

Penguin

[Son of a Beach]

It's a reasonable explanation. But I'd rather have something more durable, as I've never had (or seen) such problems on one-piece soles, and never experienced any issues with what I presume were single-rigidigy-durability rubber. So I'll avoid the multi-part soles in future where possible.

[Nuts]

Nik, My Zamberlans have a multilayer sole. Dont know what it is with Vibram soles now but my latest pair wore through the sole at toe... Have had three pairs of the same model and never happened before, they always lasted much longer and eventually cracked through the leather in the forefoot... I have a couple of new pairs, be interesting to see what happens with them. No issues with the laminate parting though.

If you want Zamberlan, I got mine (trek lite?) with a voucher discount from C&C outdoor around $220au delivered..

[wobbly]

Same thing happen to mine last december- but they had done quite a few miles. The most annoying part was that I could not find a Rachile seller in Melbourne. Ended up with Scarpa's which IMO aren't as good.

[Son of a Beach]

I could not find a Rachile seller in Melbourne. Ended up with Scarpa's which IMO aren't as good.

Until this problem, I was very happy with my Raichles. However, I've been led to believe by others on these forums that since Raichle was bought out by Mammut a couple of years ago, the quality has plummeted. I've no first hand experience of this, but I do know of at least two people on these forums who've repeatedly taken them back to the shop after just a few uses (generally serious walks, but just a few of them).

This is one of the reasons why I'm looking into another brand.

Besides, I've never had two pairs of the same brand before... why change now? My first pair were 'Armond' and lasted about 10 years. Second pair were Scarpa and lasted about 10 years (unfortunately, because they didn't quite fit right, and were a bit squishy in the toe department for 10 years, but I just couldn't break them! These Raichles have lasted only 5 years which is rather disappointing.

(I know some of you guys goes through boots a lot quicker than me, but I don't do as much walking as some of you blokes - I only get to do a few weekends here and there, and one long walk maybe every two years these days).

[north-north-west]

I've had that problem a lot with shoes. Never boots, 'cause I wreck the uppers a long time before the soles wear out.
Maybe I'm just a bit too 'Brett' with my footwear.

[Ent]

.
Maybe I'm just a bit too 'Brett' with my footwear.

Um? It appears I have been verberal by moving from a proper noun to a verb

[abowen]

SoB you need to do some more walking. Just kidding. My Raichle's only lasted 12 months. The various mouldings delaminated on the South Coast track. Up until then, they were looking good and feeling very comfortable. Like you, I was cleaning them up for the next trip when I noticed some of the black lugs peeling away from the sole. I did managed to get another walk out of them, but took them back to the retailer.
I now own some Zamberlans and so far so good. They are full leather and I found them much easier to break in than the Raichles. I have also noticed that they too have coloured bits in the vibram sole, which am a bit wary about. On closer inspection though it does appear that there is something different about the way the coloured bits are assembled together. It appears that in the moulding process there is some mixing of the colours so that the sole is fully integrated as one. If anyone knows how this done I would be interested in hearing about it.
Cheers
Andrew

[Son of a Beach]

SoB you need to do some more walking. Just kidding.

Don't remind me. It's all too true. It's just very difficult to arrange these days. When single, if I couldn't find anyone to walk with, I'd just go by myself. These days arranging walks is nowhere near as simple, due to other responsibilities.

[north-north-west]

.
Maybe I'm just a bit too 'Brett' with my footwear.

Um? It appears I have been verberal by moving from a proper noun to a verb

You know what I mean. I can distinctly recall Rachel commenting on how your equipment might last a bit longer if you treated it more as a long-term relationship than a one-night-stand,

[stepbystep]

Um? It appears I have been verberal by moving from a proper noun to a verb

I can only think of adjectives !!!

[Ent]

I can distinctly recall Rachel commenting on how your equipment might last a bit longer if you treated it more as a long-term relationship than a one-night-stand,

Hi NNW

Actually it was walking poles and consumer grade electronic devices that were my flings with everything else pretty much heading to make a gem anniversary date in bushwalking gear years. I am deeply committed to my Black Diamond walking poles and given up on the European sex appeal of a slender figure.

Back on boots sole I looked at my many pairs and the AKU Darth Vader model uses grey and black Vibram sole and it appears to be a one piece moulding. Given they are hardly worn due to being too narrow (ok I am a fashion victim) I was surprised how much the front edge has worn. I with rigid leather soled shoes need metal protectors in that part due to my walking style so it is a high wear area but the front leading lug is almost worn away on the AKU Many thousands of kilometres on the Scarpas has seen noticeable wear in that section of the tread but still it is in better shape that the AKU. Something tells me "modern" style boots are more consumer grade than the more traditional style boot.

Cheers Brett

[flatfoot]

This thread is sole-destroying

[north-north-west]

Take some uppers, and you'll feel fine.

[Ent]

Nice to see a thread and posters that are not so straight laced

Cheers Brett

[flatfoot]

Nice to see a thread and posters that are not so straight laced

Cheers Brett

Rather than putting the boot in

Seriously though, I've got a pair of Rossi Eclipse boots with Vibram soles. I'm quite happy with them. These are around 10 years old and haven't had any active use in the last 6 years. It will be interesting to see how durable they remain. They been stored in a dry and clean environment so I think they won't have deteriorated too much.

They are scruffed. The leather on the sides and on the toes is quite badly scratched/scraped in places. Can anyone recommend the best treatment for restoring them to avoid water eventually getting through the scraped leather?

[Ent]

I have found that RM leather conditioner works great at restoring leather and appears to work well with a traditional waterproofing products such as Snowseal or similar. I have read that products like Snowseal do not condition so other posters have recommended alternate with a conditioner such RM and I have found this works well for me.

Cheers Brett