UKC

After finally finding a comfortable trail/grass/bit of road shoe (Saucony Peregrine) I find the mesh uppers start disintegrating at the flex points after about 150miles. What's the best option to repair:

Shoe goo or other proprietary brand;

Some silicon/other sealant for exterior use;

Seam seal/tape (tape would be tricky, but the bits of the uppers with a thin plastic decal layer are in pristine condition);

Exterior fabric patch?

Any other ideas?

In reply to Ridge:

I used to try repairing this sort of damage but nothing really worked so now I just ignore it and it doesn't seem to be a problem.

In reply to DaveHK:

Thought that might be the case, just trying to stop it spreading and ruining a perfectly serviceable shoe.

In reply to DaveHK:

As long as they don't disintegrate completely. 150 miles (3 months, of light use) is pretty poor for a shoe. 

In reply to Ridge: I'd agree it's poor, but not unknown for shoes to fail this fast. Off the top of my head Hoka Challenger 2's , Arecteryx Norvan and anything Altra would be top of the offender list for me.  I used to run a lot of offroad miles (50 plus a week for a long time) and killed uppers a long time before mid or outersoles

One thing that might help if you're routinely soaking them in acidic mud is the washing machine, which also helps if gritty mud is killing them.  Rotating two pairs helps as well, tho' buying a second pair fells like rubbing salt in the wound.

Get a pair of shoes that don't have form for this. I've put a lot of muddy km's thro' some Hoka Zinals, or Torrents? 

In reply to wbo2:

I generally wash them by hand rather than machine, but agree it's pretty poor, plenty of miles left in the soles.

Found some flexible roofing sealant in the shed, we'll see how that goes!

In reply to Ridge:

I've given up on Saucony Peregrines after three pairs. Love the feel of them but the uppers disintegrate, as you describe, far too quickly. 

In reply to Ridge:

Out of interest which peregrines do you have? My pair of 11's are in good nick after well over 1000 miles of running round the muddy peak.

In reply to DundeeDave:

This is my second pair, third is on top of the wardrobe. I'll see how the running repairs go, as it's a really nice shoe (and heavily discounted). 

In reply to raussmf:

12s.

In reply to Ridge:

How long have you had them?  I've had lots of Peregrines, they always seemed to be pretty tough and I found the more recent ones have lasted very well indeed.  I currently have a pair of Peregrine 11s that are pretty much knackered (but I'm still thinking another couple of outings before they go in the bin) and according to Garmin they have nearly 1400km on the clock.

Yours seem to have done really badly for any shoe, let alone one that generally has a reputation for being as hard wearing as these.  I'm wondering if the pair you have might actually be defective in some way - no chance of taking them back I suppose?

In reply to deepsoup:

Nope, bought them a while back as standby pair for when the last ones expired.

In reply to Ridge:
 

I always use Polydoh Mouldable plastic to repair holes in the upper, soft fabric of my running shoes.

You put the pellets in a glass of warm water, stir it until the pellets become soft and stick together, then you just form it whatever shape you want it and press it onto the hole. it solidifies in a few minutes and stays glued to the shoe. A bag lasts for years as you only need a teaspoon/ hole.

This extended my shoe’s life by a a few years making the shoe increasing colourful. 
 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/mouldable-colouring-polymorph-plastimake-instamorp...

(I am not a salesman, but it is really good)

edit: clean and dry the spot first.

In reply to TurnipPrincess:

Interesting… I’ve sewn up running shoes in the past with needle and sturdy thread. 

In reply to Wimlands:

Here's an Inov8 Roclite 305 repaired with blue thread, has lasted ages.

In reply to DundeeDave:

Really? I've done over 400km on both of my last pairs in many Pennine conditions. Admittedly, they've been rinsed after every muddy run...so maybe that has helped. 

Hokas...they've been my bain. Constant upper failure (ok, two pairs back to back). Not bothered buying them again. 

In reply to Ridge:

No personal experience but this is recommended by the Green Runners

https://www.pairups.co.uk/

In reply to Ridge:

I daub mine with Stormsure Shoe Glu at the first sign of problems in the upper.  If things are a bit further gone, sometimes some rough stitching and then Glu works too.

Keeping the Shoe Glu in the freezer stops it setting in the tube after you've used a bit.

In reply to Ridge:

I've been reading this thread with interest, not least because I have pair of Peregrines, but also because I have recently bought my first Hokas.

With 200 miles or so on them the Peregrines still look fine. Another three pairs of Saucony shoes I've had (Kinvara , 2 x Guides) all got to over 700 miles before I binned them. At that point the uppers on the guides still looked OK, but the Kinvaras had had long slits along where the upper joins the sole since about 400 miles. Nevertheless I kept going with them and a couple of other shoes until all had done at least 700 miles. They all looked pretty manky by then, with holes everywhere, but I could still run in them. One of them, the Topos, had had big holes since about 150 miles. 
 

In reply to greg_may_:

Funny enough I had issues with hokas years ago (early version of the challengers which I loved)...2 pairs in a row gone after <200 miles. Almost gave up, but read they'd made improvements and since then every pair of Challengers has gone 400+ miles and the upper is still fine.

This is North and South Downs terrain mostly. It was worth the risk for me as I loved them so much!

In reply to r0b:

I used this method to fix a pair of Brooks Cascadias that developed their first tear after about 500km. I’ve run 1300km in them and they’re still holding up. Same with a pair of Sportiva Mutants - first repaired at about 800km, still going at 1200km.

It cost me less than £10 for a large roll of k-tape and the tube of glue.

In reply to mbh:

I've had numerous models of the Peregrines; 7,8 (x2) 10 & now 12. They are brilliant shoes in terms of grip & fit, with enough padding to make road running quite pleasant.
The older models (7,8,10) wore really quickly on the uppers though, the edges of the reinforced toebox would rub against the rest of the shoe and wear a hole in it after less than 200 miles.  And the foam padding underneath the insole would come away from the shoe after they got wet a few times. All in all a bit crap so I shifted back to wearing Roclites.
I recently bought a pair of 12s in the sale and they seem to be a much improved shoe - they are build on a lower volume last which fits my slim foot better.  The material on the uppers seems to be tougher and they've made the toebox reinforcement continuous so there is less chance of it rubbing.  And no dodgy foam layer inside.

I see that others have had a range of different experiences with the same shoes.  I think ultimately it is hugely personal and comes down to:

• shape of your foot - a slimmer foot may make the fabric ruck up and create wear points.
• gait & weight of the runner - probably the biggest factor.
• running terrain.

To the original question - I've used carpet tape, gaffa tape to fix & reinforce the uppers of my shoes.  Works for a while until they get wet.

      

In reply to r0b:

I bought a pair in/around the time I was reviewing and repeatedly destroying the Scarpa Kima RT and really rated them - more so than the shoes, which fell apart all too easily!!

I managed to do two fairly big repair jobs with them and there's enough for one or two more. Thankfully most of my other shoes are much harder wearing and don't need it, or at least not currently.

There's pics of them in the Kima RT review: https://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/footwear/running_shoes/scarpa_golden_gate_k...

In reply to MarkKP:

thanks, I've got 5 pairs of brooks cascadias with various degrees of splits at the outer toebox join: was saving them for a post like this to fix them! will order some glue now

In reply to Ridge:

This is interesting to me because the Perigrine's have become my trail shoe of choice over the last 2-3 years. I had the 11's which were amazing and lasted forever, still have them as scrapping around shoes, then the 12's but the upper ripped / wore through completely on both shoes in a couple of months of relatively light use. I was certain it wasn't torn on a rock or anything because it was the same on both shoes.

I got in touch with the store and they asked me to send them back and they replaced them with some 13's (amazing service) and they have been brilliant and the upper is a very different material and much more hard wearing.

IMO the 12's material was not fit for purpose from my experience of n=1, but perhaps I just got a dud pair. Either way I wouldn't get a pair of 12's again (won't have chance to anyway now) but am not at all put off Saucony or Peregrine's in general.

In reply to elliot.baker:

Thats interesting to know. I'll see how the repairs to my current 12s go (Still have an unworn pair of 12 STs in the box for after the current 12s die).

How do you find the fit of the 13s compared to the 12s?

In reply to Ridge:

I have found that the forefoot flex point has been a common point of failure on all my trail running shoes.

I received multiple refunds from Hoka as their Challengers always failed here. Speedgoats were better.

Inov8 were not interested in providing any support so I dropped them.

Salomon were OK but the Speedcross designed changed and crippled by achilles.

I have been exclusively using Saucony for the last 5 years. The shoes from 5 years back were a little heavier but I could get 1000+ Km from the shoes which was amazing. They have recently become lighter the durability has suffered. I stick with them I think the quality is as good as anyone else and their sizing is very consistent.

I have used Shoo Goo on the flex point on the Salomon Speedcross in the past. It’s surprisingly effective for a period of time but ultimately trainers are getting to be very disposable.

For reference I run 3,000km+ a year with 80% of that off road.

In reply to Ridge:

Sorry if I'm telling you what you already know, but Peregrines and Peregrine ST's aren't the same shoe - different enough that you're quite likely to find they're not interchangeable.

I have a pair of each and find I need a half size different, perhaps because the STs are more solidly built and a bit less flexible.  I find them great for mud and sloppy stuff, they have a bit more grip and keep some of the water out but they feel a bit clompy on a firmer surface (especially tarmac) compared to the plain Peregrines. 

Both my pairs are 11s though so ymmv - by the sound of it I'm quite glad they've lasted long enough to skip the 12s.

In reply to Ridge:

That's exactly where mine went, just seeing the picture of the material reminds me how different it is. The 13's material is much more of a tough plasticky mesh rather than a cloth-type material. It's much tougher, I've ran further in these now than the 12s and they are showing no signs of wear.

In terms of fit I got the same size and when I put them on my initial thought was they are the most comfortable trail shoes I've ever put on my feet; when running in them they are overall absolutely fine but I sometimes feel that my feet are turning outwards and my ankles bending inwards (I don't know the technical word) more than I would want, almost that my heel is slipping inwards and the outside of my foot rotating upwards - but I could just be completely imagining this and I've never had any issues with them and have done much running over rocks, bogs, woods etc. 

They drain and dry nicely on the run, nice and grippy. Love them. Should buy another pair now before they invent the 14s!

In reply to deepsoup:

Thanks. The STs were cheap (even by current discounted 12 standards). I'll probably be using them exclusively on muddy terrain due to lug height.

In reply to elliot.baker:

That's what I did with the 12's, as I was so chuffed to find a comfy shoe after years of trying.

Thanks for the info re sizing, might have to invest in some 13s!

In reply to TMM:

... shoes from 5 years back were a little heavier but I could get 1000+ Km from the shoes which was amazing. They have recently become lighter the durability has suffered.

Well here's a theme that has relevance to pretty much all outdoor gear. Lightweight, throwaway, expensive, great for sellers not so much the users.

In reply to Siward:

Completely agree. Chasing the lightweight ethic used be a niche activity but it is now the norm. Rucksacks used to be made from Cordura would last for decades, tent with neoprene groundsheets don't need a footprint. Quality leather boots capable of being re-soled can last decades etc...

Marginal gains in weight saving, a huge boost for manufacturers and sellers and terrible for the environment.

In reply to r0b:

Thanks for the link, I'd never seen this before, I've just ordered a repair kit.  That's got to be a better fix than using gaffa tape!

In reply to Ridge:

I'm glad I stumbled across this thread.    

I have also got a pair of the ill-fated Peregrine 12s, which have started to wear through at the point where I have a bunion on my foot; after just 9 months of relatively light use (10-15 km a week of mixed trail and road running).   Shame, as I thought the upper looked tougher than the older versions of the Peregrine, which had a thinner mesh upper.

Anyway, I've got myself a PairUps repair kit and very pleased with the repair job - much better than previous bodged repairs with gaffer tape and superglule.    I'll have to see how it holds out, but I'm confident it will significantly extend the life of the shoes.  And I'm already thinking of other bits of kit I could repair with this stuff.   Whoever thought it up is a genius!

In reply to Ridge:

The Green Runners are big on shoe repair https://thegreenrunners.com/our-pillars/ . You can hand sew a repair for the mesh upper e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duoCmvMY620&ab_channel=RepairWhatYouWea... . Personally I've been wearing a pair of shoes with holes in the mesh uppers for several years and they are still perfectly functional so I haven't yet bothered to repair them.