Luckyme Posted March 24, 2011 Posted March 24, 2011 I bought a great pair of boots but unfortunately the heels are different lengths. About 5mm difference. This causes one heel to be tilted toward the sole slightly, so when I step with the boot the heel tries to slide toward the sole. Actually both could use some added length. The left about 2mm and the right about 7mm. Which means I need a 12mm tip length I've seen heel tips in all different shapes and sizes as far as diameter. But are there longer heel tips available. I need them in 8 or 9mm diameter an about 12 mm in length. Thanks J
hh&c fan Posted March 25, 2011 Posted March 25, 2011 don't know if you can get that high tips anywhere. I would try to by two normal ones, cut away one tip's 'bolt' (entirely or to make it more stable not entirely+drill a short hole into the other tip). Then use some superglue/cement like expoxy cement that will ensure the two tips will never ever separate again... and there you go. Should be possible if you have some mechanic skills.
shoerepairer Posted March 25, 2011 Posted March 25, 2011 Lucky me, if they are new get them replaced, you might solve the problem in the short term, but the stress on such a height heel which is already dropping into the sole will inevitably cause this problem to come back to haunt you in the future. Repair Reuse Recycle. Cobbler it.
ilikekicks Posted March 26, 2011 Posted March 26, 2011 This is just a thought.. Buy replacement tips. A couple sets. Have someone weld/braze then together. You would have to go with metal tips but.. Once the tips are connected, they could be ground and polished out and powdercoated. REPEATEDLY ARGUMENTATIVE, INSULTING AND RUDE. BANNED FOR LIFE.
P_Tweed Posted March 28, 2011 Posted March 28, 2011 It sounds as if the heels are not very securely attached. I had a similar problem and actually removed the heels and refitted with small buglehead screws. You could try reinforcing the fixing plate by a small screw at each corner (inside the boot heel, peel back insole). This approach was not sucessful with my boots and a heel later completely detached, hence completely fresh refitting. I have extended the same metal heels by 15mm using small hex bits from a screwdriver set. I had to drill the heel for them to fit but there may be thinner bits which would fit a standard heel pin tube. With my heels it has made the heels verical to the axis of the boot but one has a slight sideways set, so learn from my haste & mistake and carefully refit. The new tips are very hard and a mile of walking on rough tarmac hasn`t marked them at all. They are not practical for indoors as they are only 5mm thick and would savage flooring. A vid. of my repaired boots in action is here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xy3oBlsEAw
Walkonit Posted April 18, 2011 Posted April 18, 2011 I have extended the same metal heels by 15mm using small hex bits from a screwdriver set. I had to drill the heel for them to fit but there may be thinner bits which would fit a standard heel pin tube. Interesting modification, and clearly it worked well based on the Youtube vid. However I'm curious to know more about this since I imagine it's very difficult. Drilling out the heel tip from approx 3mm to accomodate a larger diameter pin means you need to drill away the metal tube inside the injection moulded plastic heel. First this would create a lot of heat which could easily melt the plastic around the metal tube and second the remaining plastic would surely be too weak to support the load of the new heel tip. How did you get around these 2 problems ?
Walkonit Posted April 18, 2011 Posted April 18, 2011 Another option may be to cut the heel off above the metal tube drill a hole through the plastic, around 6 mm tap it with a sutable thread size and then add a steel rod of the right length which would screw into the tapped hole. This would also allow multiple heel types to be built and changed easily. Not sure if it could be made to look nice though. Anyone done this ?
Avtomat Posted April 19, 2011 Posted April 19, 2011 I bought a great pair of boots but unfortunately the heels are different lengths. About 5mm difference. This causes one heel to be tilted toward the sole slightly, so when I step with the boot the heel tries to slide toward the sole. Actually both could use some added length. The left about 2mm and the right about 7mm. Which means I need a 12mm tip length I've seen heel tips in all different shapes and sizes as far as diameter. But are there longer heel tips available. I need them in 8 or 9mm diameter an about 12 mm in length. Thanks J Hey mon, feel your pain.... I had a similar problem... I solved it with some wires actually... 1) I pulled out the heel tip and measure the deficit/how much longer the heel should be... 2) I snipped some wires, and wrap them around the heel tip... In my case I used some wire i snipped from a hanger 3) The root of the heel tip was dipped with superglue, and reinserted to the heel. Your weight plus the super glue should be able to keep the heel tip in place. Unless the the deficit is too large, then you might have some problems... here are some photos, you'll figure out what i mean... feel free to ask any questions : )
P_Tweed Posted April 19, 2011 Posted April 19, 2011 From Walkonits post - Drilling out the heel tip from approx 3mm to accomodate a larger diameter pin means you need to drill away the metal tube inside the injection moulded plastic heel. First this would create a lot of heat which could easily melt the plastic around the metal tube and second the remaining plastic would surely be too weak to support the load of the new heel tip. How did you get around these 2 problems ? It was a metal heel, apparently brass or similar alloy. I was concerned that they may have weakened by enlarging the hole but so far no problems. I don`t advocate this for plastic heels, unless the "pin" is the same diameter as the insert metal tube.
Walkonit Posted April 21, 2011 Posted April 21, 2011 I tried another alternative on a cheap pair of stiletto boots. The boots have slim 4" heels which have a 7mm diameter plastic tip. Since thery are size 41 and use a standard size heel the heel is too small for the size 41 boot and needs to be about 15 mm longer so the heel is not kicked out or in. After removing the heel tip with pliers I tapped a M3.5 (mm) thread in the metal heel tube. After that I screwed a 30mm long M3.5 bolt into the hole with a round head on it. To make the heel look normal again I found some plastic tubing of 7mm diameter, cut it to length (about 15mm) and placed it over the bolt before screwing it in to the heel. I was concerned it would be too weak, but so far so good. I have only walked around at home with these heels though. Not sure how well it will tolerate further use. I don't think I'd be willing to try this modification on expense heels though for fear of damaging them permanently. This is a small diameter metal heel tip with a cross head pattern on it which easily damages wooden floors, so care needs to be taken. This modification also means I can easily swap the heel tip.
Walkonit Posted April 23, 2011 Posted April 23, 2011 I was concerned it would be too weak, but so far so good. I have only walked around at home with these heels though. Not sure how well it will tolerate further use. I don't think I'd be willing to try this modification on expense heels though for fear of damaging them permanently. . OK after a bit more outdoor use the 3.5mm bolt started to bend. Need to find a stronger solution.........
Walkonit Posted May 27, 2011 Posted May 27, 2011 Was in Zara today and saw they have a model with a "double heel tip" looks like 2 heel tips glued together. Maybe they decided the heel was kicked in after and production andneed to increase the heel height & fixed it like this. These ones: http://www.zara.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product/no/en/zara-S2011/80001/197640/OPEN%2BWORK%2BPEEP-TOE
benno Posted May 28, 2011 Posted May 28, 2011 Those Zara shoes look like the heels have been touched up in Photoshop.
Walkonit Posted June 2, 2011 Posted June 2, 2011 Those Zara shoes look like the heels have been touched up in Photoshop. I agree, but they look the same for real in the shop.
Walkonit Posted June 3, 2011 Posted June 3, 2011 Another idea to lengthen the heel by about 5 mm is to stack 2 tips on one pin. This only works if the pin length is long enough to re-insert & grip the tube in the heel with the extra tip added. Here's how: Remove the metal tip from the pin on a new standard metal replacement heel tip. Take this metal tip and stack it on the top of a second new heel tip by inserting the pin through the hole in the tip (works better if you invert the extra tip). Re-insert into the heel and tap home with a small hammer.
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