In previous issues we learned about material of leather and how to distinguish leather shoes, in this issue we will learn about soles of leather shoes and their differences.
Leather sole
Materials commonly used for leather shoe soles mainly include leather, rubber, tendon soles, PU soles, PVC and other materials.
Leather has already been discussed in previous issues, so I will not repeat myself, just briefly talk about advantages and disadvantages. Leather shoes with leather soles are mainly made of cowhide. The advantages are fit, good elasticity, breathability and moisture absorption.
There are two types of rubber soles: natural rubber and reclaimed rubber. The key point is heavier than genuine leather, and it is not as hard as genuine leather. It has high wear resistance, elastic, not easy to break. However, it should be noted that rubber shoes are not suitable for wearing in places exposed to oil, such as gas stations, otherwise it is easy to damage them.
Rubber sole + microfiber upper
Then there's "beef tendon" which sounds very impressive. When you first heard this name, did you think it was made from boiled beef tendon? Actually it is not. The raw material for "beef tendon" is mostly rubber or plastic, but it is called "beef tendon" because of its color and shape similar to beef tendon. However, "beef tendon sole" shoes have a good anti-skid effect, not only wear-resistant and durable, but also relatively soft, with excellent waterproof performance, and not afraid of wind and rain, so many sports shoes, Martin shoes, leather shoes, sandals soles chose "beef tendon soles".
Beef tendon bottom + microfiber top
PU outsole and PU outsole are same thing, and it is also a kind of man-made material that we most often use as shoe soles. Due to its superior texture and characteristics, it is often used to make high quality leather. shoes, sports shoes, etc. I don't know if you have paid attention to your shoes made of PU. Is it especially durable? Not only does it not easily change color, but it also has strong wear and flex resistance. Obviously, it does not breathe enough. If all shoes are made of polyurethane, in summer it will be stuffy.
Polyurethane bottom
PVC is a relatively inexpensive man-made material. You can also find out from price that it has many shortcomings. In addition to wear resistance, oil resistance and good thermal insulation, it has almost no other advantages. resistance, white edges (whitening phenomenon) easily appear in folds, and poor breathability is also a common problem of artificial materials.
Summarizing, leather is comfortable, elastic and breathable, but easily damaged by improper care, while artificial materials are generally wear-resistant, durable, have good anti-slip and shock-absorbing properties. , but breathability is not enough, and texture will be shifted, heavy.