Quote:Is everyone still seeing the issues with the soles coming off of new boots nowadays? ...Most of the changes over the years has been due to two factors...Manufacturers seldom back up the adhesive with stitching anymore...(my grandfather started out as a boot maker and ran a repair shop until he was 86) and many have switched to newer, lower cost adhesives...
For years, the standard was Barge Cement, backed up with high quality Bees Wax treated thread..When the initially stronger nylon thread was introduced following WW2, it was less expensive to acquire in bulk, the economy and cost cutting efforts of the '70s and '80s pretty much eliminated the stitching, altogether except in the higher quality and more expensive boots...Our 'duty boots' were Rockys back in the '70s and they held up pretty well, the replacements in the '80s were a totally different matter...