heel blocks

[kobblers]

we're getting more and more gents heels with those thin walled plastic heel blocks coming in; mainly on men's fashion shoes

 

how do you lot go about attaching new toppieces as they're a bugger to pin on as the walls are so damn thin that they tend to crack

 

i've been using the birch tek S10 primer and rubber solution and pinning where i can (normally not in the usual places) with what appears to be success so far as we've had no returns as yet

 

hope all men's shoes don't go this way as they're w..k and quite often the walls are already splitting.

 

who stocks a good range of replacement heel blocks these days?

 

rick.

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

Simple answer to a joiner, wooden blocks rough scoured to jam into the heel blocks, then you can nail wherever you like.... glue em on if you dont like nailing. Get a load prepared, dont have to fill the whole block, scour em on an angle on the band or use the table saw for rough size then scour to fit as needed. Bang em tight and scour level.

 

If you had the machine you could of course rivit direct into the centre of the plastic shell wall on an Autosoler with the right edge fitted. (Cinderella or Continental 8, not Comet 10)

[kobblers]

that would be an excellent solution hugh but i suspect the walls, being so thin, wouldn't be able to take the pressure and would probably crack, they're literally 1-2mm thin in some places

i thought about expanding foam as it's lightweight and it would create a very large surface area for adhesives but i'm not sure how well the glues would stick to it.

 

if i get chance this week i'll post a pic of one of these heel blocks then you can see just how crap they are.

 

Rick.

[ironplanet uk900]

Seen em Rick, and your right they are W**k. I glue them on with 50/50 and press them. stick well, no rivets.

 

But if the heel block is damaged I replace them with new ones which I buy from CB and the customer picks up the bill after I've shown them the damage.

[kobblers]

yeah planet, i intend to start replacing the heel blocks, i'm gonna start showing the customer the heel block by removing the top piece in front of them as they're nearly always cracked somewhere, i'd prefer to replace them as it'll be easier for re-repairs in the future plus most of these shoes are fashion shoes that they want to keep so i'm sure they'll pay the money for a proper job, more cash for us too.

 

rick.

[Guest darrenbooth]

i think your talking about the heel blocks that sometimes crack and fall to bits?if you are what we do is if the block is in good condition we would warm it under the lamp to remove old toppiece without causing damage.then reg glue press slightly then 4 extra long staples in the center of heel just to help cement.we have access to american style heels so if the block needs changing we just take everything of and replace with full rubber heel about7/8 thick.hope the warming up helps someone

[ironplanet uk900]

Think we may be on about different heel blocks here Darren, the ones we're talking about are easy to remove without warming the top piece.

As for stapling gents heels on... nothing looks more amature and cheap.

[Iain]

Mark,

 

I've just rand CB to enquire about their heel blocks. They say they don't stock them. You wouldn't happen to have a code I could quote to them would you?

 

Thanks,

Iain

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

I can see Darrens idea, sometimes you pull the heel off and chuncks of plastic come with it especially if they have bbe repaired before. Heating can help in that situation, plus it gives a surface for your glue to bond to as the original glue is still there.

 

with the wood fill any very soft wood will do the trick, just dont use excessive force, can see you may be wary but I never had one crack open as I scoured the angle right for it to fit OK.

 

The idea of expanding foam is a good one rick and could be used to lay an area down in the bottom of the base then place a wood block inside, does not have to be good fir as the foam will hold it once dried. Problems are, drying time, cost of foam though you can get some cheap ones, cleaning the nozzle afterwards. (is it worth it)

These styles were predominant in the late 70s when stilettos went out and wide heels came in, you manage to find a solution that fits the bill.

Oh by the way, you cant apply solvent based adhesive to the foam, thats why it has to be below the surfsce just securing the wood block.

Like Darren we used to have a Rubber block that served as a base and top-piece all in 1 go, brill for time saving.

[ironplanet uk900]

Mark,

 

I've just rand CB to enquire about their heel blocks. They say they don't stock them. You wouldn't happen to have a code I could quote to them would you?

 

Thanks,

Iain

 

 

Iain, What did you ask for, I use Leather heel blocks and buy them in fairly large amounts, I haven't a code with me at the moment, but will get one as soon as I'm in my office.

 

I can see Darrens idea, sometimes you pull the heel off and chuncks of plastic come with it especially if they have bbe repaired before. Heating can help in that situation, plus it gives a surface for your glue to bond to as the original glue is still there.

 

with the wood fill any very soft wood will do the trick, just dont use excessive force, can see you may be wary but I never had one crack open as I scoured the angle right for it to fit OK.

 

The idea of expanding foam is a good one rick and could be used to lay an area down in the bottom of the base then place a wood block inside, does not have to be good fir as the foam will hold it once dried. Problems are, drying time, cost of foam though you can get some cheap ones, cleaning the nozzle afterwards. (is it worth it)

These styles were predominant in the late 70s when stilettos went out and wide heels came in, you manage to find a solution that fits the bill.

Oh by the way, you cant apply solvent based adhesive to the foam, thats why it has to be below the surfsce just securing the wood block.

Like Darren we used to have a Rubber block that served as a base and top-piece all in 1 go, brill for time saving.

 

If you've been out the game for some years Hugh, you may not be aware how bad these heel blocks are. They are just not worth bothering with if they are damaged.

Replace the heel blocks and save yourself the messing around.

 

planet.

[Iain]

Mark,

 

Sorry, I misunderstood what Rick wanted. I asked for plastic heel blocks and not leather. Serves me right for not reading the post fully.

 

Cheers,

Iain

[ironplanet uk900]

No worries Iain, I thought they did plastic also, but maybe not.

[Guest darrenbooth]

the type of heels i am talking about are very brittle thats why i use long staples in them as nails would crack the blocks.

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

the type of heels i am talking about are very brittle thats why i use long staples in them as nails would crack the blocks.

 

Hammer the point off the nail, it's the point that causes the splitting, we used this method on ladies wooden heel blocks before plastic came out, wooden were notorious for splitting according to grain pattern, all joiners working with hardwoods now use this trick. There are some plastics that will split no matter what you do though, all depends on the mix, in particular the stuff made from rubbish tip re-manufacture.

[ironplanet uk900]

 

Hammer the point off the nail, it's the point that causes the splitting,

 

Surly if you make the nail blunt the effect would be worst. The point is for easy entry.

[Auto Key Wizard]

 

Hammer the point off the nail, it's the point that causes the splitting,

 

Surly if you make the nail blunt the effect would be worst. The point is for easy entry.

I concur.....it wouldn't be a nail if it ain't got a point

 

Hugh...........go see ya GP

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

Oh ye of little faith. Pouring scorn upon something folk know little about is getting quite prevelent innit

Seems some are set in their ways and have blinkered vision, for those there is no hope but to vegetate.

 

www.metacafe.com/watch/1751034/nail_woo ... itting_it/ -

You could of course "you tube it". but sceptics wont believe it anyway.

 

Alternatively you could ask ascap29 for verification.

[Lee]

I have to disagree with you on that one hughby, the original topic here was about the thin walled plastic heel blocks, plastic by its nature & structure will shatter & split if you use a nail that doesn't drive a sharp smooth entry into it.

 

Wood will naturally split similar to chiseling when a sharp point is driven into it. a blunt end allows the fibers of the wood to grain away allowing the nail to enter with out splitting it.

 

Least ways thats how I see it! sharp point for plastic. Blunt end for wood, perhaps Ascap29 could verify this also!

 

Lee

[ironplanet uk900]

Hugh, If I get a pair of these in over the next few days I'll upload a picture so you understand the thread

[kobblers]

haha, i ain't verifying nowt as yet, i'm having too much fun reading this

 

nah, actually you're all correct to a point (no pun intended). ANYTHING with a grain should be avoided by points with a tip as the path of least resistance comes into play with pointed objects that aren't perfectly round (any wide edges on the tip will try to fit the easiest way by chasing the grain direction), especially on brittle or tight grained objects. removing the tip of a nail can usually but not always alleviate this.

rick.

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

So you lot aint seen the plastic with the "Grain", never seen that reclaimed plastic that looks like marbling thats used for platforms and heel combined? (not in reference to the thin walled plastic blocks)

 

A point on some nails has sides, anything with an angle being driven into a substance will take the path of the angle that comes into contact with the hardest part of that substance, plastics are not uniform in structure, what looks like an even surface is totally different looked at with specialist equipment that shows stress factors, SATRA have that information. I am aware of what a "Shell" plastic heel block is having repaired thousands of them. some are thinner than others, some have sockets where the plugs on the top piece fit some designed just to have the top piece cemented on, some have thick walls, some have very thin walls, some have a top piece with an internal rim that locates into the heel block.

Maybe there is a new kind that I aint seen yet!!

[ironplanet uk900]

You probably have seen it.. It aint rocket science, just a case of replacing the heel block.

 

Most materials require a different approach.