Slick Shoes - No More : Retread Your Old Kicks

I recently began googling for DIY ways to fix my slick soled 1+ year old Keens (out of warranty), which have become very worn down.  After reading up on possible retread methods like gluing actual tread from automobile tires, I decided to see if there was a simpler way to go about giving my Keens their edge once again.  I wanted more than the sandpaper or a glue method since I would find myself on river rocks soon and didn't want to find myself cussing out the 100 grit paper. or shoe goo.  With Dremel in hand,  I laid claim my Keen's tread once again and would like to share with you my pursuit of the perfect retread.

Step 1: Before

As you can see here,  my shoes are quite miserable.  If they were automobile tires and a police officer was checking them out,  I'd surely get a ticket. 

Comments

[Dusk Shadows]

wow this is really cool

[Shawn Stanford]

You could avoid the mess and do this quicker and easier with a tire groover. You can pick one up on eBay for under $50. Depending on how expensive your shoes are and how much additional life you get out of them using this trick, it should pay for itself in a couple of pairs.

[synthescape]

Thanks Shawn, I didn't know a tire groover existed. Where were you 24 hours ago ? lol. ......
Sweet moves ! I just googled for a "tire groover" and see what you are talking about. Could come in handy for any rubber meets the road device. Many thanks for your comment Shawn.