End of life report - Ecco GoreTex boots

[AeroFan_07]

An unusual thread for FL - a complete failure of a product has occurred. However in this case the product is 16 years old. These Ecco hiking boots - Model unknown, tags have long since fallen out and are gone - I purchased new at the end of 2005. At the time they were around $165, so a pretty reasonable sum of money for the time.

These leather boots are not dressy, or all the "vintage" of style, instead these are workhorse boots that I used for daily usage in the fall, winter and spring. They have seen many miles of slushy, icy, snowy usage in all types of weather. My feet have always stayed dry & comfortable wearing them. They were oiled, but probably only 1 -2 times per year on average. My only other "issue" was a broken rear pull strap at least 5 years back, which I never had repaired.

This pair of boots came with matched insoles - so they had at least a moderate amount of arch support in them. The failure mode, as evidenced by the photos appears to be the adhesive attaching the soles to the boots, however the "foam" used in the construction appears to be in poor shape too.

Anyone else have any issues similar to this with Ecco products? I think that ~16 years is a good long life for these, just curious if anyone else has had a similar failure?

 

[Turnip]

The only boots I have seen a similar damage have been a pair of Dr.Martens so far.
On a pair Engelbert Strauss in-house branded boots I wore at work for years and reconstructing my house, some main triple sewn seams popped open one sunny day. But these saw a bit of grease once a year and took loads of cement dust, broken bricks and gravel.

I would think that a 16 year of real work performance is a very decent life for such boots, especially considering they would have to be (and been) replaced after one year when supplied as part of PPE here.

 

[Boyo]

looks like the material just failed.. the "rent" on these works out to about $10.30 per year. Drink a toast to their memory and toss them in the bin.

 

[AeroFan_07]

looks like the material just failed.. the "rent" on these works out to about $10.30 per year. Drink a toast to their memory and toss them in the bin.

Tis the plan Boyo! I'll let our local cobbler have a quick look, but since they are not "Vibram" sole or Goodyear welted, at a minimum, I doubt there is anything that can be done.

Thanks for replies. It was actually nice to have something completely "fail" that I bought new. Seems rare around here.

 

[Turnip]

Maybe a little dash of permanent elastic installation foam might be worth a try, in case your cobbler doesn’t see a way.

 

[nick123]

I have the same pair of boots. I believe they’re called the Track or Track II. What size do you wear? If same I’ll send you mine.

I remember reading about 10 years ago that the soles corroding was a common issue.

 

[Harris HTM]

he failure mode, as evidenced by the photos appears to be the adhesive attaching the soles to the boots

yes, this is a cemented construction. The sole is glued to the shoe by chemical compounds, as opposed to welting (as goodyear, blake, hand, etc) where a the sole is stitched either to the welt or the midsole. 16 years for a cemented pair is really long, the issue is that when the sole fails then this usually means the end of the shoe.
I own a similar pair from Clarks, gore-tex and fake shearling (polyester) / felt lining, cemented construction, already 8 years old and worn exclusively at snowy and down-pouring days. Never had an issue with wet feet.

 

[Ernest P Shackleton]

This isn't the only, or possibly best, remedy, but I've fixed old running shoes with similar foam breakdown with Gorilla Glue. It is activated with water, so it can seep into all the foam as it expands and begins bonding.

 

[nick123]

Here are some pics of my pair Randy. If they fit they’re yours.

 

[robrinay]

I bought a pair of these when they first came on the market in the 80’s or maybe ‘90’s? They had to be replaced within a few months of light daily wear. The part of the sole that wraps the toe came away. After three free sets of replacements and a loud argument in the shop to obtain the last pair they sent the damaged pair back to the factory for testing and later admitted they’d all had a manufacturing fault when ‘welding’ the sole to the toe of the boot. I’ve had a couple of pairs since with no problems.