26
votes
Accepted
How to clean and refurbish a Victorinox Swiss Army Knife?
When mine gets too bad I use WD40 to free it up, then clean with soapy water and a brush. Mine also goes through the dishwasher sometimes, with the blades partially open. If it gets gummed up with ...
- 23.2k
26
votes
Can I fix my boots by gluing the soles back on?
Where I live, we just take such shoes to a Cobbler and he stitches the sole with the shoe all the way around within 30 minutes for negligible amount of money.
And the shoes get a new life. Your boots ...
- 429
23
votes
Can I fix my boots by gluing the soles back on?
My experience with gluing boots and shoes is that it never does the job for long. Whilst this may to some extent be down to the glue I've used, I think it is also due to the surfaces having been glued ...
- 391
21
votes
How can I fix joint between shoulder strap and chest strap?
One solution, if you don't need the strap to be adjustable along the piping (vertically), is to remove the plastic clip and sew the chest strap to the shoulder strap, in the right place for you.
Any ...
- 2,594
18
votes
Can I fix my boots by gluing the soles back on?
They were glued when they were originally made, there's no particular reason they shouldn't be reglued now. It's better than having no shoes or the heel flapping about as you walk.
Though the glue ...
- 7,757
15
votes
Accepted
Repair broken plastic buckle in the middle of hiking or alternative way to fix it
Do you have 2 split rings (keyrings) with you? If so, here's how to make a buckle like that (or rather its D-ring predecessor):
Attach both split rings to the upper strap, where the old buckle is/was....
- 23.2k
15
votes
How to clean and refurbish a Victorinox Swiss Army Knife?
The producer offers a page of care instructions on their website (here) (PDF). The gist is:
don't use a dishwasher, that might be too aggressive
open and close the blade multiple times in warm water
...
- 1,451
13
votes
How can I fix joint between shoulder strap and chest strap?
Those clips do come off, and in many designs you'd be able to thread them back on from the end. It is possible to clip them back on though.
The way I've found works is to gently prise open one end ...
- 23.2k
12
votes
Can I fix my boots by gluing the soles back on?
I've had nice boots glued properly - the local shoe-mender took a look and said "this needs three-day glue, come back on Friday" Wasn't particularly expensive either.
Those boots lasted years more,...
- 1,030
10
votes
Accepted
How can I prevent a fiberglass crack in my sailboat from getting worse?
Gelcoat cracking is pretty much a fact of life in boat ownership. The sun and water is a tough environment. However, gelcoat cracking is usually not too concerning as long as it is fixed right away.
...
- 10.6k
10
votes
Can I fix my boots by gluing the soles back on?
My Merrell boots came apart like yours after a few years. I glued the soles back on with Gorilla Glue (original version, amber polyurethane) and they're still holding strong after several more years. ...
- 861
9
votes
Accepted
Repairing down stuff?
There's a product called "Tenacious Tape" which is used for fabric repair. You should be able to find it at your local outdoor store, or search for it online.
- 1,313
9
votes
Accepted
How do you repair a plastic kayak?
The main issue with repairing plastic hulls is that is that most adhesives don't bond very well to the plastic. For temporary repairs duct tape is the way to go. Its quite adhesive and waterproof. If ...
- 7,069
9
votes
How to repair rubber welly boots?
My personal recommendation would be to use Super/Krazy Glue for any small "cracks" in the rubber. I have successfully used it on rubber and it is quite effective!
for the slightly larger holes than ...
- 4,465
9
votes
Accepted
Safety in re-slinging old trad gear
Testing by the QC Lab at Black Diamond suggests there is a lot more design and consideration going into cam/friend sling design than just knot vs bar tack.
Because when the Camalot was loaded ...
- 7,150
9
votes
What happens when fiberglass gets wet?
Often when we say "Fibreglass" we're actually referring to a composite of both fibreglass and resin (usually polyester for glass, epoxy for carbon/kevlar - sometimes glass). This is important, that ...
- 1,425
9
votes
Accepted
In a boat repair, what would cause Gelcoat not to harden?
There are several factors that can inhibit the gelcoat from curing. There is not enough information in the review to identify the specific cause. The only specific cause mentioned is stirring, if we ...
- 30k
8
votes
Accepted
How to repair the broken stitching and seams in my leather boots?
Your best bet for sewing is to use a Speedy Stitcher. The thick gauged thread works really well in boot/shoe repairs and is easy to use. You will be punching holes through the leather which creates ...
- 1,524
8
votes
How to repurpose an old self inflating sleeping pad?
My only thought is to use them as patching material for the other self-inflating pads your kitties will puncture. Cutting them to-size for inside an animal crate or other surface you want to protect.
- 365
7
votes
Repair broken plastic buckle in the middle of hiking or alternative way to fix it
Feed the strap through the remains of the buckle, or the fabric loop it was formerly attached to. Then tie the strap to itself using a rolling hitch. By sliding the rolling hitch up and down the strap,...
- 171
7
votes
How do you repair a plastic kayak?
I've seen people use a soldering iron and a piece kf abs plastic to repair tears in the hull but the best answer is short and simple to use for small holes: epoxy putty.
just follow instructions on ...
- 1,970
7
votes
Accepted
Can a nylon tent flysheet which is delaminating be repaired?
I think you are correct and what you see it is the polyurethane coating chemically breaking down. Warm or damp conditions will accelerate this. An example image is displayed on the Outdoor Gear Lab ...
- 8,358
7
votes
Accepted
How to straighten a bent tent pole
Aluminum has a crystal structure and can be hardened using a process called "work hardening." Long story short, you've hardened your pole by causing dislocation movements in the crystal structure of ...
- 53.1k
7
votes
Accepted
Which glue to use to repair a tent outer?
SilNet Seam Sealer is designed to seal the seams on nylon flysheets and can also be used glue to repair the same. See http://www.terra-nova.co.uk/tents-and-spares/all-tent-accessories/seam-sealer-glue/...
- 5,922
6
votes
What refilling material or glue did you chose to resole your trekking shoes? (What works, what doesn't)
The go to shoe repair glue I've always used is Shoe Goo. I've used it mostly for when my soles started to separate from my uppers, and it's always done the job for me.
As far as resoling your shoes, ...
- 53.1k
6
votes
How do you repair a plastic kayak?
It's quite common to melt in some plastic - but be sure to get the same as the boat is made of. Most are PE so try to get some of that -- avoid ABS. Kits are available (random web example). The ...
- 23.2k
6
votes
Accepted
Repair a GoreTex jacket's zip?
Given the description of the problem, it seems you have to replace the zip entirely.
You can bring it to a tailor, they should be able to do most of it. They may not have the waterproof zipper, ...
- 2,594
6
votes
How to repair the ripped seam in my leather cowboy boots?
I do a lot of my own repair. However, this is one where I instead work on the idea of 'consumer relations'
My attack: Phone the company that made them. Explain the problem, and ask how to get them ...
- 11.8k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible