Since I haven't posted a meaningless rant that goes pages yet, I thought I'd start one today.

Shoelaces. Yep, they're way too long on any pair of shoes or boots nowadays.
What the heck are you supposed to do with them? Wrapping them around the top to come back up short. You have 3 1/2" of tag ends to tie them off. You're now down to a square knot . That's OK till they are iced up and cold fumbly fingered.
Haaarrrummpphhh!

Yeah, I know just cut them off? But I like the ends (eglets. thanks RWE) the factory puts on 'em.
Picky ain't I?

Let the hog pile begin!

Get some small shrink wrap that matches your outfit.

Bam!

Color coordinated shoestrings with almost factory ends

No hog pile from me.. I agree with you 100%..

Which reminds me - tonight I'm cutting off about 2 feet so I can make these damn things fit right..

What the aglet are you talking about?

Eggzactly!

Funny I'd never heard the term before?
See, my day's all better. I learnicated a new word.
I also made one up.

Neologisms can be a lot of fun.

... oh, btw, I haven't noticed the shoelace problem, maybe because I buy new shoelaces regularly for my shoes, and I buy the right size for them. Hmmm.

Whoa now!?

They come in different lengths?

Let's not tell the OP. He's already wound up...

Mmmhhmmm, Red Wing Pecos wellingtons. Very nice boot. I wore out a number of them. Those and the lace up Irish Setters. Then I took a job in a wood products mill, and the steel toe requirement put an end to those.
I also liked how those crepe soles would turn them into skis when you stepped on wet leaves, snow or mud.
Funny thing is, I was going to put a disclaimer that my rant was only about footwear with laces. Fine job sir.

Tony Lama Bark Badger.

My contribution to the pages-long rant.

For about 15 years, I've cussed the extra-long laces on a pair of walking shoes. (Yes, I'm that easy on shoes.) The tied loops were large enough to give a jackrabbit ear envy. I finally bought replacement laces - but couldn't find boot laces short enough. Ended up using the thickest pair of dress laces I could find. Still not ideal.

So I think maybe I'll try the shrinkwrap tubing idea, or just dip the cut ends of the old laces in some epoxy.

The He!! you say! Laces come in different lengths?
What new wizardry is this?!

So are these different length laces only available aftermarket?
I could understand if the manufacturers had only a couple of lengths to choose from.

I've searched for eglets-R-us.com, and egletsdirect, and......

Nothing. Nada. It must be an Islamo/Jewish Cabal conspiracy.

aglets, you wannabe yooper.

Aglets...

Just trying to help.....I hate seeing you so upset over such a small issue......

PS.....Leather laces can be cut to any length you desire.....

Not good for bracing yourself in saddle stirrups.

If I claim that I was hungry and I was thinking about eggs, that I can get a pass on that one? Eh? Eh.

Actually, I knew a girl from Grayling whose last name was Eglen.

Thought maybe....

Nah.

With the exception of flat laces for dress shoes I haven't bought boot laces in years. A length of paracord and some shrink wrap tubing and you can make laces to length and far cheaper than buying.

didn't think they allowed laces in the nursing homes

more like some 3-strap velcro pumas or etonics

I used to hate those long laces too, but twice in the last two years I had to cut some off each lace to tie tags on deer when I forgot my wire ties.

Run out of coffee?

..."wannabe yooper"... that's a first!

Mark-

buy nylon laces, cut to desired length, fuse the cut end.

Or, leather laces - no aglets or melting needed.

Every hunter knows them extra long laces are for attaching your tag to the critter. Tom

I'm trying to boost the post count in the thread.

It's working.

Besides, trolls dream of being a yooper, eh?

Neologism: A newly coined word or expression.
Thanks Doc for helping to improve our vocabulary, but I didn't know you were vocabulist. Cheers NC

Not quite, but it'd be better to be a yooper 'den a cheesehead.

I've heard it said that he's a cunning linguist.

Mike, Mike, Mike.
Stop being so logical. That's no fun.

But tell me more about these nylon laces, are they wizardry? Or common stuff?

Along the same lines, why are there not replacement laces made that match the length of the ones that came with the boots/shoes?

[/quote]

If I claim that I was hungry and I was thinking about eggs, that I can get a pass on that one? Eh? Eh. [/quote]

..."wannabe yooper"... that's a first! [/quote]

I'm trying to boost the post count in the thread.

It's working.

Besides, trolls dream of being a yooper, eh? [/quote]

Not quite, but it'd be better to be a yooper 'den a cheesehead. [/quote]

Never!

I measure, then go and procure the corresponding length. Works every time.

I can never find any to match the length exactly.

Sorry I blew up!

I got some extra coffee...

I've always been able to find something within an inch or two.

Once you tie the knot....put some Marine-Tex at the knot and just use them as 'step-ins'....like they do at 'Mo Town'!!

Cut them off.

That actually can be a problem......which brings us back to good ol leather laces.....

I cut mine twice..still too short.

Yes,

and for those religiously inclined.


I think Jesus had leather laces on his sandals.

You'll be following the example of the Master.

G

PS, barefoot works too, when the weather is nice, unless youve got this friggen' plantar fasciaitis like I do now!

Tie them back together with a big knot.

Put the knot right in the middle of the tongue, over your instep.

Tie shoes really really tight.

Every time you take a step you will learn a lesson about cutting laces!

Geno

PS, you'll thank me for this later.

PPS, send cash.

And then there are those damned round laces which will never, ever, under any circumstances, stay tied.

I'm hearin ya now! Never had that problem back in the day with my Chuck Taylors. They came with those fat-wide flat laces!

I don't know what Shoes you buy.... but my complaint is the exact opposite...

Last couple of pairs of shoes I bought the darn laces are too short and also crap laces at that... Keens...

so I buy a decent set to replace them with, and long enough to tie the darn things with, and not have to skip a hole just to have enough length to tie them.. they came with 54 inches and I replaced them with 60 inchers...

Better now?

i think the 3 year old chinese kid who put them together outta be punished severely.

Mark-
Did your mom make you wear penny loafers in jr high?

Might explain the lace problem.

Pretty near everything you could want to know about shoelace lengths here: http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/shoelacelengths.htm

Yup....

its an accounting thing... Some Accountant somewhere is in enough position to think... If we have the laces this length, vs this length... times this many pairs of shoes sold, we'll save this much meaning this much more profit for the product line...

Working in a MASH unit in the Army, we had to constantly break down and set up a field hospital... that's plenty of stuff to be packed and unpacked...

exact same instant.... even secure strap we had JUST barely fit...

Was all based on some GSA accountant when the stuff was ordered...

saw the same thing in the corporate world....save a penny times a million... yet these are the same types that will spend a dollar counting a dime....and see nothing wrong with it..

Eggzaktly!! No other way!

They last a lot longer too when yer not messin' with them.

Unless welding slag gets to them.

In an effort to help to get you to page 3 I'll note that I like longer laces on all of my boots as I double knot them - however, it does take considerable skill to do so.

Width my fatazz feet I have no clue with what you speak. My laces are always short.

If you will note, my post of "better now?" was directed to RWE. it was part of a private conversation we were holding in the middle of Mark's thread. Thank you.

Alright, point noted....thank you...

No, actually I normally wore hiking boots or
a pair of Hush Puppy lace ups.
Man I loved them Hush Puppy's.



Is there something wrong with me for that?

Long shoelaces accommodate old fat farts who can't bend over that far - while giving them one more thing to complain about.

What the aglet is going on here?


where's my coffee?

The last pair of laces I bought were for my work boots, when I was still working.

They were made of Kevlar, the same stuff bullet proof vests are made of.

Ten years later, They're STILL in these boots, although I don't wear them much anymore.

I cut them to length and melted the ends to prevent fraying, Which gave them a solid end for easy lacing.

Virgil B.

An alternative to laces. All my shoes and hiking boots have these.

http://www.locklaces.com

Speaking of boot laces.

Over a year ago, I purchased a pair of Cabelas upland game 9 inch lace up kangaroo & goretex boots. I wear them 12 hr/day five days/week.

The laces are a bit smaller in diameter than the typical brown and gold nylon lace. They have never come untied on me and after more than a year, they still look brand new.

I have wondered if they are kevlar?

Leather shoelaces? Those two words should never be used in the same sentence.

I bought a pair once. They broke the first day. Thought maybe it was a defefective pair, so replaced them. The next morning they broke when pulling tight to tie.

Momma messed up and brought a pair of leather laces home a few years later, about two days.

Pass the nylon........please. I can reknot the loops, been doing so since JFK died.

Used to cut 'em to length and make my own aglets by rubbing in a dab of model airplane glue and rolling with my fingers until it stiffened up. Or did the gov-ment finally outlaw the glue, I know they were trying. It's for the children, don't ya know. Funny us older (not admitting to old yet) farts survived without all this government intervention.

Suppose super glue would work if you had plastic wrap between your fingers and the glue.

Cut off the excess and make a paracord bracelet--

Most boot laces that come with normal boots are crap anyway....most boot stores Cary dif size laces...I use leather or Kevlar since I do a lot of welding...

The Kevlar laces are coated with a waxy substance (beeswax?), which helps them stay tied.

This should work with nylon also.


Virgil B.