I use micro spikes most of them time when wading. The wife and I were in western MT a short time ago and I made the stupid mistake of setting my boots ( and spikes) on a wood pile to drain in the afternoon sun.
For those who are unaware, it gets a wee bit hotter in NW MT than it does in NW WA
and I came back later to find the bands on both sets of spikes had ripped apart.
Kahtoola micro spikes aren’t cheap so I got to thinking about how to mend them. An old resourceful guy I met in Libby suggested an old bike inner tube but I didn’t have one so I opted for some surplus 1” webbing and an awl.
I picked one up a couple years ago after Tom B shared a post about how handy they were. I’ve used it on boots and other stuff a handful of times but wasn’t sure if stitching rubber was a smart move.
Turns out it works just fine….was able to don and doff the spikes as usual and they held up perfectly today. We’ll see how well it holds up over time.
So consider picking up an awl adding it to your tool kit. They’re not spendy and are pretty easy to use.
For those who are unaware, it gets a wee bit hotter in NW MT than it does in NW WA
and I came back later to find the bands on both sets of spikes had ripped apart.
Kahtoola micro spikes aren’t cheap so I got to thinking about how to mend them. An old resourceful guy I met in Libby suggested an old bike inner tube but I didn’t have one so I opted for some surplus 1” webbing and an awl.
I picked one up a couple years ago after Tom B shared a post about how handy they were. I’ve used it on boots and other stuff a handful of times but wasn’t sure if stitching rubber was a smart move.
Turns out it works just fine….was able to don and doff the spikes as usual and they held up perfectly today. We’ll see how well it holds up over time.
So consider picking up an awl adding it to your tool kit. They’re not spendy and are pretty easy to use.
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