How do fix noisy heels to be quiet?

[MelyssaTG]

How do fix noisy heels to be quiet? I have a few cowgirl boots:

Find Wide Selection of Many Western Boot and wide range of Unique Western Boot at ElectriqueBoutique.com

Find Wide Selection of Many Western Boot and wide range of Unique Western Boot at ElectriqueBoutique.com

Find Wide Selection of Many Western Boot and wide range of Unique Western Boot at ElectriqueBoutique.com

That I would like to make quiet. Can a shoe place add a rubber piece or something? They arent a stiletto heel, so maybe thats a plus?

Also I have these: Find Wide Selection of Many PLATFORM SANDAL and wide range of Unique PLATFORM SANDAL at ElectriqueBoutique.com

and these: Find Wide Selection of Many Sneaker-style Pump and wide range of Unique Sneaker-style Pump at ElectriqueBoutique.com

that have a stiletto heel that I would like to "quiet down."

Last, these: Find Wide Selection of Many Sneaker Boots and wide range of Unique Sneaker Boots at ElectriqueBoutique.com

high heel sneaker.

Is it possible to quiet down by taking them somewhere or adding a piece of rubber or something? I see alot of guys complaining about "noisy heels." Does anyone do anything to fix them?

Thanks in advance.

If you want, I'll add links of shoes I plan to buy soon.

Ciao

[MelyssaTG]

I dont know why my shoes didnt show up as links? But you can click on where it says "find wide selection of many..."

[Thighboots2]

Noisy heels - well many flat gents shoes, especially where thay have hard leather heels will click just as loudly a womans shoe, except where they are fitted with a full metal tip. Just stop being concious about the noise. Walk in the street in the daytime where there are lots of other people around and you will nothear your own footsteps. TB2

[MelyssaTG]

I understand what your saying, just dont care, and I really dont care TOO much, however, I am finally happy in life to a point with one of the thing I always wanted to do. I am working in a womans clothing store selling womens clothes, accessories, panties and bras. I just got trained to do "bra fittings". I am allowed to wear womens high heel boots and bootcut jeans or womens dress pants if most of the heel is shown. Grant, I've only worn wedge heels, chunky heels and cowgirl boot heels, no stiletto heels - yet. My appearance is sooooooo metrosexual, borderlining gay. I wear a pair of 1/2" earrings in lower hole in both ears, diamond studs or ball type studs in the hole above my bottom hole. I wear a shiny diamond nose stud in left nostril. Thumb ring on left hand, ring on right index finger, and pinky ring on right hand, bracelet/bracelets on right hand, and Womens sweaters. Light makeup and liptint & gloss. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE to look like a flammer. But, my shoes have that "click" of high heels, not mens heels, There is a definitive sound to womens high heels click. Anyway to quiet them and or add something? I dont want anyone to look at me weird. PS I work in the mal and walk by the food court everyday and tons and tons of people there. Ciao

[micha]

I understand what your saying, just dont care, and I really dont care TOO much, however, I am finally happy in life to a point with one of the thing I always wanted to do. I am working in a womans clothing store selling womens clothes, accessories, panties and bras. I just got trained to do "bra fittings". I am allowed to wear womens high heel boots and bootcut jeans or womens dress pants if most of the heel is shown. Grant, I've only worn wedge heels, chunky heels and cowgirl boot heels, no stiletto heels - yet.

My appearance is sooooooo metrosexual, borderlining gay. I wear a pair of 1/2" earrings in lower hole in both ears, diamond studs or ball type studs in the hole above my bottom hole. I wear a shiny diamond nose stud in left nostril. Thumb ring on left hand, ring on right index finger, and pinky ring on right hand, bracelet/bracelets on right hand, and Womens sweaters. Light makeup and liptint & gloss. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE to look like a flammer.

But, my shoes have that "click" of high heels, not mens heels, There is a definitive sound to womens high heels click.

Anyway to quiet them and or add something? I dont want anyone to look at me weird.

PS I work in the mal and walk by the food court everyday and tons and tons of people there.

Ciao

Hi MaleHHwearer,

you need not to exaggerate for every price. For me it's sufficient if people are accepting my style on the street. Usually pointy stiletto boots with 11 cm high heels under flared jeans (as kneehighs style) or boots with rounded toe boxes and 10 cm wedges over skinny jeans. I'm wearing both styles. Sometimes I have the same courage as ThighBootGuy: I'm wearing my white 8868 overknees at broad daylight over tight jeans on the street - ignoring simply all those stupid turkish macho comments. I'm sure that a male heels wearer will earn the same macho comments in the USA from latin immigrants.

I don't care anymore about the clicks of my heels. That's a normal noise if you are wearing metal heels (*g*).

micha

.

[dr1819]

I know what you mean, MaleHHWearer - I don't like clicking heels, either. For block heels, I found that a thin (1/8" to 1/4") film of Shoe Goo works well, particularly if it's thicker at the trailing edge of the heel. It's tricky to apply so you might want to practice using older pair before trying it with a new pair. For narrower heels, you might be able to have a cobbler replace your heel tip with a quieter one, but most heel tips are made for duration, and there's so much pressure on a stiletto that anything other than very hard rubber, certain types of plastic, and metal, will simply wear out too quickly.

[Dawn HH]

When I started to streetheeI I had the same problem, heel noise. I had rubber tips put on all of my heels. Since then, I have come to not give a darn about the noise and just wear my boots out in public right out of the box, noise or no noise. Cheers--- Dawn HH

[jmc]

A trick that works on a wider heel is to glue a piece of inner-tube rubber to the heel. Cut the rubber to the shape of the heel and glue it on with "contact cement" (DAP Weldwood or Pliobond). Coat the heel and the rubber piece with cement and let both dry until they are no longer tacky to the touch. Then apply a thin film of cement to one of the pieces and join them. Get them aligned properly the first time because you will not get a second chance -- the bond forms instantly. The rubber acts as a shock absorber and makes for a quieter walk. There is not much hope (or reason) to quiet a stiletto heel -- they are supposed to make that delicious sound! And any attempt to quiet them will involve attaching some softer material that will wear out quickly.

[Guy N. Heels]

A trick that works on a wider heel is to glue a piece of inner-tube rubber to the heel. Cut the rubber to the shape of the heel and glue it on with "contact cement" (DAP Weldwood or Pliobond). Coat the heel and the rubber piece with cement and let both dry until they are no longer tacky to the touch. Then apply a thin film of cement to one of the pieces and join them. Get them aligned properly the first time because you will not get a second chance -- the bond forms instantly. The rubber acts as a shock absorber and makes for a quieter walk.

There is not much hope (or reason) to quiet a stiletto heel -- they are supposed to make that delicious sound! And any attempt to quiet them will involve attaching some softer material that will wear out quickly.

Well, to my mind, this thread really belongs over in the Repair/Modify forum.

But, let's think it through. All noise comes from vibration and, usually, the harder the materials the more pronounced the noise will be. So the obvious answer is to use some not-so-hard materials to deaden the noise. But first we ought to consider another possibility - a hollow heel will also generate a lot of noise as well. So it might be smart to check out those thicker heels and try to determine if some shrewd manufacturer was trying to cut a few corners by putting on hollow heels. If so, you are probably going to have to replace the heels.

If not, then the use of some kind of durable rubber for a "lift" ought to bring the noise down. But I don't recommend an innertube. They are expensive and/or hard to find, and that won't last very long either. A fairly thick piece of neoprene or nylon will make a better choice, but unless you are an expert at such things, you'll be better off taking the shoes to a cobbler and have rubber or neoprene lifts installed professionally. Also, don't hesitate to ask what kind of warranty he has to offer. Even a 30 day warranty could save you some money if the job fails.

As for the stilettoes, there are lift kits that are available for different sized stilettoes that come in various materials, i.e. plastic, neoprene, etc, that should do the job. Just select the appropriate sized lift in a material that suites you, put it over the heel tip and hammer it down. (Some shoes require a lift that is actually nailed into the heel, but they have those as well.) Usually one or two whacks on a hard surface will do, but I have had to actually put on the shoes and stamp 1 or 2 on some unusually recalcitrant shoes. Now they will wear out, but then you simply repeat the process and the kit usually will have one or two pairs of spares left over for you. But unless you do something that no stilettoe was ever intended to do, you will always have a little noise from the heels - but this can be greatly reduced. Metal lifts or tips is generally not a good idea (they are unholy hell on carpets and hardwood floors) and if you have shoes with them I strongly recommend you find a heel lift kit and get some plastic covers over them right away.

[Thighboots2]

GNH,

Are you talking about the heel covers that ballroom dancers use?

Freed of London - Shoemaker to the World of Dance

TB2

[BobHH]

Hmm. News to me. I've never seen those heel tips before.

[MelyssaTG]

I want to thank all of those who have replied. I didnt realize there was a modified forum here. I only chk out a few of the forums here and ignore the rest. Anyway, The innertube idea sounds pretty good. I think I'll try that. Courtney

[Guy N. Heels]

GNH,

Are you talking about the heel covers that ballroom dancers use?

Freed of London - Shoemaker to the World of Dance

TB2

Well, ballroom dancers aren't the only ones, but yes, that is exactly what I had in mind. Until I got my first kit, it had never dawned on me that stilettoes came in such a wide variety of sizes. The kit I bought had lifts (covers) for about 3 different sized heels. As for metal heels, these are absolutely de' riguer unless you enjoy replacing your flooring about every 6 months.

As for that inner tube repair - bad idea. I guarantee that it won't last 6 months unless you put 'em in the closet.

[dr1819]

Ok, Guy N. Heels - any links to where I might find some of these silicone quieters/floor protectors? I do have a few pair of stilettos, and if I could walk down the street at anything less than 100 decibels, I just might do so! Any observations/experience on how long they'd last?

[Guy N. Heels]

Ok, Guy N. Heels - any links to where I might find some of these silicone quieters/floor protectors?

I do have a few pair of stilettos, and if I could walk down the street at anything less than 100 decibels, I just might do so!

Any observations/experience on how long they'd last?

I don't remember exactly where I found mine - either a shoe store or a cobbler's shop. But I think Thighboots2 may have some links that you'll need in Europe. I seem to vaguely recall a German site.

They are not extremely durable. The clear plastic ones seem to last better than the black plastic ones, but you obviously would not want to put the clear ones on a black heel unless you absolutely had to. They seem to do fairly well indoors (where stilettoes were really meant to be worn) but keep a pair in yer pocket if yer going outside - especially on rough pavement.

Having never been to Europe, I don't really know what the shops are like, but I always make it a point to look around any store I'm in for those accessories that may be related to the products the store is actually selling. For example, most shoe stores are not really selling shoe laces, but if you look around a bit you might find some tucked away on a self somewhere. Then, if you can't seem to find them you could always ask a store clerk, but it might be helpful if you had an example (or a picture) to show them.

[MelyssaTG]

I do have a few pair of stilettos, and if I could walk down the street at anything less than 100 decibels, I just might do so!

OH MY GOD THATS TOO FUNNY !!! I absoulutely hear ya on that !

The "noise" of stilletoes is the ONLY reason I dont wear them outside. Well, in straight-ville. Here in what I call "gay land" section of DAllas where I live, I wear them all day long and dont give a shhhhhh.

[jwhite44]

Well, to my mind, this thread really belongs over in the Repair/Modify forum.

...- a hollow heel will also generate a lot of noise as well. ...

If not, then the use of some kind of durable rubber for a "lift" ought to bring the noise down. But I don't recommend an innertube. They are expensive and/or hard to find, and that won't last very long either. A fairly thick piece of neoprene or nylon will make a better choice, but unless you are an expert at such things, you'll be better off taking the shoes to a cobbler and have rubber or neoprene lifts installed professionally....

I have a similar problem with a pair of ankle boots I bought. It's (to me) ridiculously loud when I walk, something I really don't want (much rather walk quietly in stealth mode). I bought a regular innertube (about $4, easy to find), and as a test, laid it over one heel, and hit it with the other heel. While it was quieter, I'm not sure it made a huge difference (and this is with a double layer of rubber, since I didn't cut the tube yet to create just a single layer).

Then I remembered the post from above, about hollow heels, and I think that might be the main source of the noise. The heel is about 1.5" x 1.5" x 2" high. I was wondering if I drilled a small hole in the bottom of the sole, and was able to inject that expanding insulation, if it might eliminate a lot of the noise and resonance from the empty cavity. An alternative would be to add something that has a bit more mass to it, but I'm not sure I want to make the boot much heavier.

My other question, in terms of just the heel, is whether I should attempt to modify it myself, or let a shoe repair store do it. I have the innertube and Shoe Goo. If it's as simple as glueing and trimming, I'd do it myself. On the other other, if that's really not a good solution, and I need to have a professional modify it, I'd rather bring them a 'virgin' shoe with no attempted changes.

Could a shoe repair store do anything to make the heel quieter other than then a replacement heel? I don't want to pay a ton of money to get them rebuilt, but I'm sure I would enjoy them much more if I could knock down the noise.

[Pumpfan]

I prefer stilettos, preferably metal, why would I want to make them quiet?

[jwhite44]

I prefer stilettos, preferably metal, why would I want to make them quiet?

Right now I want to be discreet, and don't want all the extra attention the heeling clicking will draw. If I change one day, I can always buy another pair of (likely loud) shoes.

[shoerepairer]

Could a shoe repair store do anything to make the heel quieter other than then a replacement heel? I don't want to pay a ton of money to get them rebuilt, but I'm sure I would enjoy them much more if I could knock down the noise.

Heel blocks of this nature usually have a plastic heel which is moulded with plugs & literally plugs into the heel block.

if this is a hollow heel block then it's acoustic like a guitar. your local repair store should be able to help in two ways.

• They should be able to fill the hollow with a liquid corking, making them less acoustic
• They will replace the hard plastic heel with a rubber one. which will instantly make them quieter.

Rubber comes in various mixtures having different rubber contents & properties. Nurses who work night shifts often have their heels replaced with a different rubber, to make them quieter & this shouldn't compromise wear.

Lee

[jwhite44]

I found a local shoe repair store I'm going to bring them to tomorrow. Not sure what it will be like, when I called the store the person sounded sort of like a redneck (no offense intended), not a typical accent for where I live. I'm hoping he'll be professional enough not to be offended if I need to tell him the heels are for me. Two other places I called had accents so strong, they could barely understand me asking their shop hours. I'd hate to think me trying to explain to them I'd like a heel quieted.

[jwhite44]

I took my boots in today, the man behind the counter was an older man, judging from the store it looked like it could have been there 30 years. If he's the only one who works there, he probably knows his stuff. He kept saying that rubber heels would quiet the shoe, he didn't seem to interested in my suggestion of "could you put anything in the hollow heel?" Hopefully just the new heels will provide the noise reduction I'm looking for. Cost was $9.

If I think the hollow heel is still a problem, I'm thinking about drilling a small hole in the new heel, injecting it with this http://greatstuff.dow.com/greatstuff/diy/products/wd.htm and then using some Shoe Goo to seal up the hole. It has a small tip and looks to be a very low expansion foam, I think ideal.

I was tempted to bring in my other boots to have him replace those heels as well, but I figured I'd wait to see how this first one goes. I should pick them up in a few days, so maybe I'll get a chance to try them out over the weekend.

[yozz]

I prefer stilettos, preferably metal, why would I want to make them quiet?

If you live in an apartment (like most city people) and you have a beautiful but hard

floor, you may not want to bother the neighbors too much.

Y.

[Guy N. Heels]

Heel blocks of this nature usually have a plastic heel which is moulded with plugs & literally plugs into the heel block.

if this is a hollow heel block then it's acoustic like a guitar. your local repair store should be able to help in two ways.

• They should be able to fill the hollow with a liquid corking, making them less acoustic
• They will replace the hard plastic heel with a rubber one. which will instantly make them quieter.

Rubber comes in various mixtures having different rubber contents & properties. Nurses who work night shifts often have their heels replaced with a different rubber, to make them quieter & this shouldn't compromise wear.

Lee

BRAVO!

Sensible advice for the "stealt" people out there. Actually, the liquid corking sounds (no pun intended) even better than my notion of using some sort of RTV or expanding glue.

But since folks are still doing dirt to their inner-tubes, I guess I'd better hit that nail again and say: DON'T! They don't work or last well on shoes. I thought we'd laid that one to rest sometime back, but I suppose bad ideas die hard. So put the 'tubes back in yer tires (or is it tyres?) and let's try something that actually works on the heels. Shoerepairer seems to have something that works, so let's give his suggestion a go. At least you aren't cutting-up a poor innertube just find out the sad truth that we told you already.

[Himark]

A year or two ago I bought a pair of boots from Avenue (in the USA), with a blocky heel about 2.5 in high, and they turned out to be the loudest shoes/boots I've ever seen or heard. Walking normally on pavement made sounds like pistol shots! No exaggeration - people a block away turned to look! I think the heels were deliberately designed to be as loud as possible! I had a shoe repair shop put rubber lifts on the bottom and that helped. They were still loud, but not incredibly so. I never thought about filling the hollow space inside. There's an expanding foam insulation material you can get in a dispenser can. I wonder if that would do the trick?

[jwhite44]

Ugh-oh, they might be the same boots I bought. Mine are the Julie Ankle Boots, about a 2 7/8" block heel. I'm not optimistic just replacement heels will quiet them up as much as I want. I'll know in a day or two when I pick them up and get a chance to wear them. I'm tempted to try to try the insulation installation if they aren't as quiet as I'd like.

[Guy N. Heels]

A year or two ago I bought a pair of boots from Avenue (in the USA), with a blocky heel about 2.5 in high, and they turned out to be the loudest shoes/boots I've ever seen or heard. Walking normally on pavement made sounds like pistol shots! No exaggeration - people a block away turned to look! I think the heels were deliberately designed to be as loud as possible!

I had a shoe repair shop put rubber lifts on the bottom and that helped. They were still loud, but not incredibly so. I never thought about filling the hollow space inside. There's an expanding foam insulation material you can get in a dispenser can. I wonder if that would do the trick?

When you stop and think about it, those hollow heels have got to be sounding off! Just look at the huge array of musical instruments that have some sort of hollow sound box to help amplify the sounds they produce. Practically all of the stringed instruments fit in this category, including harps and even some lyres. So what would you expect out of hollow heels where you're putting far more force on them than you could hope to put on a musical instrument? Fill up that hollow space and add some rubber lifts and I'll guarantee things quieten down. But until you do something about that hollow space in those heels yer still subject to charges of disturbing the peace. (Well, that last pun was rather "tongue-in-cheek".)

[jwhite44]

I picked my boots with the new rubber (I guess) heels. I'm not impressed. There might be a hair less high freqency noise, but the overall loudness is still there. Onto Plan B. I picked up a can of that spray insulation I mentioned in my previous post. In a test with a plastic cup & lid, I was originally impressed that I could drill such a small hole (5/32) and get the foam out without needing a much larger hole. However, it didn't seem to work so well on the heel. What I realized (after drilling up 2 sizes larger) is it needed a 2nd hole to vent the air the foam was replacing. Once I did that (with a very small bit), it went it fine, and I filled the cavity until it started to flow out the 'overflow' hole. Of course since it's expanding foam (minimally expanding, thank god), it kept coming out. I'm still waiting for it to completely stop and set up. One good thing is since my holes were so small, I think the foam will provide enough sealant by itself (when I thought I'd need to make a much bigger hole, my plan was to use Shoe Goo). The bottom of the heel is sort of a mess, I didn't do much to keep the foam from getting all over it, but I figure it will just wear away as I walk, plus I'm not too concerned with how the bottom of it looks. I'm waiting for the one boot to finish so I can do a before and after comparison, and see what differences it provides. Whether it's positive or not, I think I'll have to do the same on the other heel, just to make them balanced. I'll post again when I have some results.

[Ruby John]

This is what I did. Pulled the old heel cap off. Then filled heel with foam and leveled it off with knife after it dried. I bought some new soles for Burkinstock Sandels and cut a new cap from them. Or buy a pair of used soft sole shoes from Goodwill and cut them up. Glued them on and trimmed to size. Click noise was gone. Good Luck Ruby

[jwhite44]

Well I wore my boots out this morning, same places I went last week with them. The bad news is they aren't as quiet as I was hoping for, though to be honest, I don't know if an almost-silent set of heels is really possible. The good news is that they do seem to be a decent amount quieter. During 'normal' walking, I thought they were quieter, and when I really focused on walking (perhaps not landing as much on the heel), they were very quiet. I don't know if the low-expansion foam has the best acoustical-deadening properties, but it was readily available (Home Depot) and easy to install. Overall, I guess I'm happy. It was $9 for the new soles, $7 for the foam, $16 total (on a $19 pair of boots!).