:::OFFICIAL SNEAKER CARE/MAINTENANCE POST::: (It's back!)

Johnandrew thanks for the link and the feedback.  My only worry is that watching the video he seems to be applying the Retr0brite to the soles only.  The part I'm worried about seems to be some form of patent leather. 

Does anyone else have any feedback? 

^^ So the patent leather yellowing? At this point there isnt' a fix for that issue at all. Not sure if there will be in the future, but nothing currently.

Don't know if its been posted but I just started to use magic eraser for my white polyurethane midsoles (Forces and Dunks mostly) but it worked really well

Guys can anything bad happen if i leave my toe box stuffed for a while like a few months? it isnt super packed just packed enough to even it out
the shoes are 2011 3's if that matters

@optimusp517 There was a video from restoremysneakers about the patent leather being restored from the Columbias using retr0brite. The results were practically day/night.

Originally Posted by khadafi252

i have these 2001 III's that i'd like to restore.  i want to restore the white midsole where the paint is fading and the white paint on the nike air.  what would you guys recommend?

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I got you! I did mine over the summer and they are still flawless after about 10 wears! The only problem I have now is that he heel tabs, above "Nike" where the ribbed horizontal lines are, are about 3cm away from snapping off. Won't be wearing until I find a remedy for that. Anyway, on to my process. Rather easy but it does take time. I would say, in order to do the job right the first time...I would set aside a few days. You should be able to do prep and one or two coats of paint in one day, but you'll really want to allow the time for the paint to dry so that the paint will set and there are no cracks.  The supplies that you'll want can be purchased from http://www.turtlefeathers.../text/angelus/paint.html That's where I got my paints from. You'll want the following paints;
Acrylic Leather Paint; Color-Bone...This will be for your base coat.
Acrylic Leather Paint; Color-White...Obviously your outsole color. (I just purchased the 1 oz size for each.)
Acrylic Matte Finisher...I got the 4 oz bottle on this. MORE than enough!
Aside from the paint, you'll want some Acetone to get the paint off of the mid-sole that is already there.

Let's start there actually...Acetone: Be careful with the stuff. Some people will tell you it will destroy the foam mid-sole, but I've never had this issue. You WILL, however, want to tape off the upper from the mid-sole as well as the black portion of the mid-sole on the heel. Acetone WILL DESTROY THE LEATHER FINISH!!!!! So tape off all along the upper of the shoe including the front mud guard...I'll tell you why in a second...
-When applying the acetone, you'll want a LOT of q-tips. The best method I found was taking 2 q-tips, holding them side-by-side, dipping the tips into the acetone and rub moderately -hard in circles on the mid-sole. It looks like your white paint has worn off so this step may not be as tedious for you, but MAKE SURE you get all of the paint off. There will be some cracks and crevases that will require a slightly different motion; Underneath the black paint on the back heel, there is a small lip/indention of the mid-sole that the large end of the q-tip will not fit into the groove that is there. So, in order to ensure that you'll get all of the paint off in that area, strip the ends of fresh q-tips so that there is almost no cotton on the tips and the cardboard cylinder is almost visible. Dip that into the acetone and scrape the paint out of the groove. (If you don't get it now, you'll understand when you start the process. 

Now, on to why you want to tape off the front mud guard: I found that my '01's were very dingy along the front rubber toe cap. Therefore, I took some cotton balls and acetone & scrubbed along the toe cap and it knocked out the dinginess!

One other tip--For the tape, I actually taped mine off with electrical tape. It does a really good job of sealing off the surfaces that you don't want paint on. I even taped off the actual outsole to help me stay inside the lines on the top and bottom of the mid-sole. One note though....Be careful with it on the black back heel portion when you're peeling it off. That black paint may be less likely to crack but it's still fragile and can peel off. So just be sure to remove it slowly.

Now that all of that is done, you're ready to paint. Start with the Bone color. When you paint a layer of the base coat, be sure to let it dry for at least 30 minutes before applying another coat. And the more coats you add, allow more time for that fresh coat to dry because the more paint there is, the more thick and it is and takes longer to dry. I wouldn't suggest putting more than 2 coats of the Bone on because it is just the base. Just make sure it's applied evenly and dries properly.
Next, start painting the white on. Same principles apply...Paint evenly and allow it to dry between each application. For the white, you can apply more coats but you shouldn't need more than 3-4.

Finally, apply the matte finisher once the white has dried properly.

Oh...And as for the "Nike Air" on back...I took the exact same steps on that as well. Be sure to tape off that rear mud guard as well so that there is no run off of old white paint onto that mud guard nubuck.

Then rock and Enjoy!!!!

@snowman626, and everyone else withpatent leather scuffs . I highly recomend FTL SUEDE AND NUBUCK ERASER KIT. This works great imo. And the kit is $5.99 or 2for$10... Check it out and let me know how it goes/pass on the tip.

Also. It works well for yellowing on the heel tab of retro 3s .

Originally Posted by MidwestHalla

@snowman626, and everyone else withpatent leather scuffs . I highly recomend FTL SUEDE AND NUBUCK ERASER KIT. This works great imo. And the kit is $5.99 or 2for$10... Check it out and let me know how it goes/pass on the tip.

Also. It works well for yellowing on the heel tab of retro 3s .

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word... any pics vids?



if i spray some acrylic finisher on my mid sole can that prevent/slow it down from cracking? they're 2011 3's if that matters
any help is appreciated

@WaitWut; I never really thought about that, but yeah, it probably wouldn't hurt and is worth the attempt! The finisher dries clear so you should be good. The only think I'd be concerned with is a bad reaction to the JB/Factory paint. I'm not sure that the paint they use is the same as the Angelus paint that is used on my restored pair. So I would try a small area at first just to make sure that the finisher doesn't dry unclear but this sounds like a good idea to me!

Dose anyone know how to clean the nylon on the max orange Aj1s? Thanks.

Originally Posted by WaitWut

Originally Posted by MidwestHalla

@snowman626, and everyone else withpatent leather scuffs . I highly recomend FTL SUEDE AND NUBUCK ERASER KIT. This works great imo. And the kit is $5.99 or 2for$10... Check it out and let me know how it goes/pass on the tip.

Also. It works well for yellowing on the heel tab of retro 3s .

Click to expand...

word... any pics vids?



if i spray some acrylic finisher on my mid sole can that prevent/slow it down from cracking? they're 2011 3's if that matters
any help is appreciated

Click to expand...

X2 Where exactly would you get this "Kit" at??? Tried google and ebay with no luck.

WIll seaglow work on the yellowed midsoles of the white cement 3s?
I'm also having a tough time cleaning the stitching and tongue of the Beijing  olympic 6's, any tips on what I should use? I'm pretty inexperienced when it comes to restoring kicks.

Any advice/products to use on a ripped mesh on tongue?

Anyone know how I can fix this?

sand it down with really high grit sand paper, then use angelus leather paint from turtlefeathers.net

Originally Posted by Glockwork3

sand it down with really high grit sand paper, then use angelus leather paint from turtlefeathers.net

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Thanks. Can you be a little more detailed about the sand paper part though please?

I have some XI's where the sole is separating from the shoes. I want to be able to wear these and people say Shoe Goo will do the job. Is this the consensus best shoe glue to use for soles? I've tried Gorilla Glue but didn't like it much.


Any thoughts?

Is the red footlocker nubuck cleaner good for 2007 Metallic V's or will it leave blotches?

How to keep the mesh on the concords clean or protect against dye from my jeans

^ page 1. I need to know how can I seaglow my shoes in these winter months with limited hours of sunlight . Is there a house setup? Regular lights, uv lamp. Point me In the rite direction..

is it really effective if i take out all the papers inside the box?i just got my concords and a fellow sneakerhead told me to remove them,im actually thinking of doing it in all my shoes.TIA

Originally Posted by kephalek

is it really effective if i take out all the papers inside the box?i just got my concords and a fellow sneakerhead told me to remove them,im actually thinking of doing it in all my shoes.TIA

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Another note on concords, one silica gel pack inside box, or will outside/near the box suffice?

For you seaglowers Cardboard and Heat is not a good mix  DO NOT use cardboard boxes .

best way to store 11s ? pulled ot my cool greys and not liking the yellowing

The laces on my Bred XIII's are snapping off at the tip, does anyone know where I can get laces that are pretty much the same. I am siding with either oval or round laces but if anyone has had theirs replaced before let me know which ones you bought.