I have a pair of Zamberlain boots that I bought 5 years ago. I fully intended to own these until I die and just keep resoling them. I diligently maintained the leather, cleaned and applied sno-seal waterproofer throughout the winter. After 5 years of daily wear I finally needed to get them re-soled. I sent them out to David Page in Seattle who is the factory recommended cobbler and was told they can not be resold because of the waterproofing applied. His response to one of my emails:

"Sno-Seal will not come out of dry-tanned leather.  There are number of older waterproofings, while good products, that cannot be gotten out of modern leather."

So if you have boots you'd like to be resoled in the future, his suggestion is to use Nikwax.

Just an FYI for those who like to hold on to their stuff.

Why would waterproofing the uppers prevent them from being resoled?

My question too. I've had boots (RedWings) resoled in the past at an Amish shoe shop in Holmes county OH that I had used Sno-Seal on.

IIRC, the beeswax totally permeates the leather, and prevents the contact adhesive used to adhere the new sole, from sticking to the mid-sole. I've tried it, and there is no way to remove the beeswax. The application process applies good amounts of Sno-seal to the welt, which then wicks into the mid-sole.



Cost me a good pair of boots, too.





 

Did you get a Vibram sole that was glued on, or a different type of sole that was stitched (sewn) to the Goodyear welt?



 

Pretty much what I was told also.

I'll be ordering another pair of these Zamberlains but my snoseal will be going in the trash

Yes, this was a vibram glued sole, not a welted one.

I don't have those boots any longer but I think they were stitched.

resold or resoled?


Sno-seal does exactly what it claims to do, and very well.  If the sole is just glued on and not sown, it doesn't sound like the boots are too rebuildable.

I think Redwings maybe used to be stitched , but now mostly aren't.  But, they have a bunch of different boots, so who knows

Yeah, I've heard the same thing about glued soles, which is why my Zamberlan boots are stitch-welted.  I much prefer the Sno-Seal specifically for the reason of permeating and penetrating the leather.  I really don't care for water-barrier boot liners (ala Gore-Tex) because if they get soaked, they're going to stay wet for a long time.  Sno-Seal has proven to be a great waterproofing and protection for the leather on my boots.  Still, it's good advice to know the difference and how to treat them.  Glued soles are perfectly fine and last a long time, it would suck to lose a favorite pair of boots because of the wrong material used to maintain them...big kick in the nuts.

ROCK6

I am a huge fan of sno-seal as well.  Used it for years on all my leather boots that need to be waterproof.  But for me those boots are not every day wear.  Hunting or hiking only for the most part.  But that doesn't discount the amount of miles I put on them...  These boots probably have 500 woods miles on them:





I have had great luck with all my danner boots.   I know others that have not had the same luck but I also think it boils down to how you care for them.  The above danner pronghorns have been used hard...  But never "put away wet."  Every leather boot I own has had multiple coats of sno-seal.

The danners pictured above probably have 2 dozen good coats of snow seal and are still going strong.  I think they are 7 years old give or take?  They are not rebuild-able boots though.  IMO any boot not having a 100% sewn in sole, or one that relies on glue only to hold it together is not truly rebuild-able.  That's just my opinion of course.  Nicks boots comes to mind when I think rebuild-able.  Whites boots area also a big name.  

It is good information to know, but for me I don't have the need to spend huge money on something rebuild-able.  I buy good boots and they will last me for years on end.  I don't work in said boost though.

I've had great luck with Danner over the years as well, taking care of them is key. I like the idea of stitched boots that can be re-soled, but modern, quality boots will last a long time if cared for properly.  Often for the price (and sometimes on sale), two pair will last decades if cared for properly but it does depend on the use.  What kills boots isn't hard use, it's exactly that, "putting them away wet" (literally), and allowing sand and dirt to abrade stitches or allowing lengthy exposure to the elements without treating with a leather conditioner.  UV, heat and moisture exposure will delaminate a lot of the sole adhesives.  The same exposure will destroy the best Norwegian-double welted boots just the same; good footwear deserves good care.

My Zamberlan's are pretty much my mountain boots where they work well with crampons and gaiters.  They provide more stability for uneven terrain with a heavy load and although I don't wear them as much, I do wear them a little during the winter and on a few day hikes every year just to make sure I'm maintaining them.

ROCK6

ROCK6

FWIW, I've had Vasques with glued soles resoled. I've got one pair of Breezes that have been resoled 3 times. You just need to find a good cobbler.

Az

It's not the fact that these were glued soled that these can't be resoled. It is the SNO-seal I used to waterproof the boots soaks into the leather and the wax prevents the adhesive from sticking and they can not be resoled. This was from the factory authorized cobbler

I think he is saying that if they were a stitched sole, the sno-seal wouldn't have prevented them from being resoled.  Since they are glued, the sno-seal prevented them from being repaired.

I've been OK with Sno Seal for most leather uses.  I do suppose it could inhibit gluing replacement treads back on.

SnoSeal goes on all my boots, slings, holsters and sheaths which seem to want it.  I'm happy with it.

My Danner Acadia's have been resoled and had copious amounts of Sno-Seal applied before, during, and after.