Tuesday 20 November 2012

Leaking boots: beeswax doesn't work, either.

After my researches into Dubbin appeared to say that it did not do anything to help waterproofing, I read a suggestion that Beeswax would do the trick.

So I took out my newest pair of work boots, still quite dry and clean, and applied two coats of beeswax, rubbing it in well,  and buffing to a slight shine on each coat.

All seemed to be going well, so I went out and spent the morning on longish wet grass.

Result:


Oh dear, somewhat less than successful.  The right-hand boot (on the left in the picture) has a broad stripe of non-soaked leather across the top, but the rest of the toe area is quite damp.

It is clear from the photo below that the problem is worst where the boot bends.


I have to say, they were lovely and soft, considering that they are virtually brand new.  But I am disappointed in the lack of waterproofing.

Just in case I didn't apply the beeswax sufficiently diligently, I left them to dry, then applied another coat or two: however, same result, wet socks after just a couple of hours.

Very disappointing!

So the score so far is:

Dubbin: rubbish, does not work.
Beeswax: lovely soft leather, does not work.
Vaseline: doesn't work, but makes boots very supple and at least is very cheap.
Nikwax: utterly useless, both the "leather" one and the "nubuck" one.

If anyone has any further suggestions, I would love to hear from you...

4 comments:

  1. Comments removed as they were spam!! How dare you, Jennifer and Mark - go away, and never bother my blog again. *brandishes imaginary spam-hammer*

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
    2. Dear Richard S, Milian,

      There is really no need for that sort of language - I'm sorry you have so much hatred in your heart, you are a poor specimen of humanity.

      Your comment, and that of Jennifer, were removed because they contained unsolicited links, which my spam filter determined might lead to malicious sites seeking to upload a virus to anyone unware enough to click on your link.

      Your comment above has been removed due to the foul language it contained.

      Now please go away.

      Delete
    3. PS, you do realise that I have your IP address (27.147.178.7) your location (Dhaka, bangledesh), your service provider (Link3 Technologies Ltd) and so on, don't you? I know where you are.... I can even tell you that you are running Windows, version 8.1, on Firefox. Your screen resolution is 1366x768. What else would you like me to tell the world about you?

      Trolls, sheesh.

      Delete

Comments take 2 days to appear: please be patient. Please note that I do not allow any comments containing links: this is not me being controlling, or suppression of free speech: it is purely to prevent SPAM - I get a continual stream of fake comments with links to horrible things. Trust me, you don't want to read them....