Preserving footware

[George]

I know footwear is important in survival and does not last long in a wet muddy environments. What would be the best way to preserve leather and stitching on footwear. Would candle wax, bees wax, petroleum jelly or a combination be a good solution?

Also if in a situation without the above products would animal fat do the job or would this cause the item to smell or rot?

[Midnitemo]

I've been stockpiling workboots...i put an order in as often as i dare for safety footwear...got seven pairs boots in stock at the mo....unless you really love the particular boots i wouldn't bother there just consumable items and i dont think post shtf unless you have a really huge shoe size there will be to much difficulty replacing footwear for a good long time.

[bigpaul]

unless your a size 11 like me, I get a stock in whenever I can, got 6 pairs of walking boots and replace them every time I wear out a pair.

[SecretPrepper]

you can preserve leather footware by rubbing wax or petroleum jelly after a long time of wearing in wet muddy environments. brush mud off with warm water and a brush then heat the boot and the wax and rub it in deep.
Looking after your foot wear is important.

I wouldn't know about the animal fat. Research into American pioneers or reinactors to find out what they do

[I-K-E]

stock up on dubbin

It consists of natural wax, oil and tallow and dubbin has been used since medieval times to waterproof and soften leather boots.

[George]

Thanks. Have ordered some dubbin. Never heard of it before but from what I have read could have done with the stuff a long time ago.

[Mortblanc]

What did the pioneers of yesteryear do?

They used what they had to treat their footwear. In most cases that was plain old hog lard rubbed into the leather.

My preferred mixture involves beef tallow and beeswax at a 50/50 ratio.

All of is stinks and all of it attracts vermin to your foot wear. Any and every critter will be chewing up your shoes. None are very effective and the pioneers suffered with rheumatism and all other forms of wet and cold induced long term ailments. Many of the pensions for disabling military duty were based on foot ailments due to cold weather service.

The real problem is that all forms of "dubbin" both ancient and modern, only work to a very limited extent. If you are in constant wet your feet are going to soak up enough water to flood your footwear eventually, and that eventually will not usually be very long.

For that reason most professionals and locals in wet areas have decided to skip the leather, skip the treatments that do not work, and go straight to a good quality neoprene footwear with varying amounts of insulation based on the local needs. You will find that farmers world wide have done the same thing for their muck boot needs. Soon after WW1 the militaries of the world did the same thing for wet weather/cold weather service.

I have a pair of low neoprene boots and a pair of knee highs. I also have three pair of "canoe boots", one for each vehicle and one for the house. I do not own a pair of "Mickey Mouse boots" that are good down to -70f, but I should probably pick up a pair, they are not very expensive.

I do have the normal hiking boots but they are for fair weather use.

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http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/31179?pro...8597243377

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http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/sw...x?a=467770

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunny_boots

[SecretPrepper]

(1 November 2013, 16:07)Mortblanc Wrote: What did the pioneers of yesteryear do?

They used what they had to treat their footwear. In most cases that was plain old hog lard rubbed into the leather.

My preferred mixture involves beef tallow and beeswax at a 50/50 ratio.

All of is stinks and all of it attracts vermin to your foot wear. Any and every critter will be chewing up your shoes. None are very effective and the pioneers suffered with rheumatism and all other forms of wet and cold induced long term ailments. Many of the pensions for disabling military duty were based on foot ailments due to cold weather service.

The real problem is that all forms of "dubbin" both ancient and modern, only work to a very limited extent. If you are in constant wet your feet are going to soak up enough water to flood your footwear eventually, and that eventually will not usually be very long.

For that reason most professionals and locals in wet areas have decided to skip the leather, skip the treatments that do not work, and go straight to a good quality neoprene footwear with varying amounts of insulation based on the local needs. You will find that farmers world wide have done the same thing for their muck boot needs. Soon after WW1 the militaries of the world did the same thing for wet weather/cold weather service.

I have a pair of low neoprene boots and a pair of knee highs. I also have three pair of "canoe boots", one for each vehicle and one for the house. I do not own a pair of "Mickey Mouse boots" that are good down to -70f, but I should probably pick up a pair, they are not very expensive.

I do have the normal hiking boots but they are for fair weather use.

---

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/31179?pro...8597243377

---

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/sw...x?a=467770

---

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunny_boots

i Was learning about pioneers the other day. their shoes were pretty crap and they had to fix them every day.

[Highlander]

(1 November 2013, 13:13)I-K-E Wrote: stock up on dubbin

It consists of natural wax, oil and tallow and dubbin has been used since medieval times to waterproof and soften leather boots.

This is as good as it gets, I think,.. a great product, I have used it for as long as I have had boots on my feet,.. [ long time.. ]

[CharlesHarris]

Link with recipe the proportions for making your own dubbin. My grandfather who was a Maine guide used bear grease, beeswax and mink oil, but lard or mutton tallow can be substituted for bear grease and fish oil can also be used instead of mink oil.

http://www.madmadammel.com/2012/01/recip...ubbin.html

Ever since I was a child we always wore in winter the L.L. Bean Maine Hunting Shoe with rubber bottom and leather top, with boiled wool felt liners. Felt-lined, rubber bottomed, leather-topped boots with removable felt insoles are best suited for heavy work in cold since leather is porous, allowing the boots to "breathe" and let perspiration evaporate. Leather boots can be "waterproofed" with products that do not block the pores in the leather. However, if work involves standing in water or slush (e.g., fire fighting, farming), then waterproof boots must be worn. While these protect the feet from getting wet from cold water in the work environment, they also prevent the perspiration to escape. The insulating materials and socks will become wet more quickly than when wearing leather boots and increase the risk for frostbite.

Wear two pairs of socks, an inner sock of silk, wool-nylon blend, or thin wool and a slightly larger, thick outer sock. Liners of polypropylene help keep feet dry and warmer by wicking sweat away from the skin. However, as the outer sock becomes damp, its insulation properties decrease. If conditions permit, have extra socks available to you can dry your feet and change socks during the day. The outer sock must be one size larger size so that the inner sock is not compressed. If socks are too thick, the boots will be "tight," and the socks lose much of their insulating properties when compressed inside the boot. The constriction also reduces blood flow to the feet and increases the risk of frostbite. If the socks are too thin and boots fit loosely, the resulting friction may lead to blisters.