Questions?
We’ve got answers!
Unlike running shoes, which inevitably break down with mileage, you extend the life of your rock shoes by resoling them. Resoling means you can stick with the shoes you know, love, and trust for longer. In addition, by replacing the rubber, rather than the whole shoe, you’re making the more environmentally-friendly choice. And you get to support a small business and dying trade — cobbling — by working with us!
The best time to resole your rock shoes is when you see the soles of the shoes starting to wear down. If you notice thinning or holes in the bottom of your shoes, it’s time to bring them in. If the rubber along the top/toe is thinning or developing holes, all the more reason to bring them in. The rubber along the toe is called the rand, and when the rand breaks down, there’s danger of damaging the fabric underneath, creating holes all the way through to your toes. If your shoes do have holes through the fabric, we sadly cannot properly repair them and will likely turn them away; the new rand rubber would merely cover the hole, resulting in air pockets and poor performance. At Rock Shoe Revival (and practically all resolers), there is an upcharge for rand repair, since it requires a more complicated and time-consuming repair.
No problem! When dropping off your shoes, select the type of repair you think you need (half sole versus half sole + rands), and we’ll give them an inspection. If we think your shoes require something different than what you selected, we’ll give you a call and discuss pricing and options. Kind of like dropping your car off at the mechanic — your car may need one thing, but the auto shop may find other problems.
We offer two types of Vibram rubber: grip and edge. Grip is a stickier, more flexible rubber that is more ideal for bouldering. Edge, on the other hand, is stiffer and longer-lasting, ideal for sport and trad climbing.
Yes! However, please keep in mind that we don’t recommend resoling only one shoe. The reason is that you generally want your shoes at the same level of repair. If one shoe has blown, chances are that the other one is soon to follow suit. Seeing us twice means extending the time you’re without a fully functioning pair of shoes.
Unless there are extenuating circumstances, we aim to have your shoes back to you within 2 weeks of us picking them up [as of October 14, 2025].
If you have holes that not only go through the toe rubber (rand) of your shoe, but through the underlying fabric, we have no way to repair your shoes. Since we cannot repair the hole in the fabric, placing rubber over it will just result in an air pocket in your shoe. The shoe will break down quickly again and simply not perform well. It’s best to get your shoes to us when the half sole is wearing down, but before any holes have formed. If the rand develops a hole, stop climbing in the shoes immediately and get them to us!
We are very hopeful to resole neutral shoes (e.g. moccasins, TC Pros, crack shoes) by the new year. Due to tariffs and backorders, we do not have the neutral lasts (molds) necessary to properly repair them. Putting the currents aggressive lasts we have in neutral shoes will warp the shape of the shoes and create air pockets.