Tired of cracked midsoles?

[cementsoldier]

interesting

 

[cementsoldier]

interesting

 

[clong7]

I just did one of my Jordan Retro 4 Mars shoes and it looks great. I put some Vinylex Protectant on the midsole to hopefully prevent or slow down any yellowing.

You chipped off the black paint and left it white? or did I miss something? Regardless, does anyone have a good clear coat/uv protectant to coat it with? Sorry for keeping this old thread alive.

 

[clong7]

I only chipped off the white paint. I was lucky enough that the black paint didn't crack.

I gotcha. Surprising with the quality on the mars, but I like the shoes nonetheless. Hope it held up well.

 

[jayem]

This one of the reason(s) why I can't get myself to buy 3s, 4s & 8s because of the cracking.
Too much of a hassle imo.

 

[air jsarg]

MY current list of fixes in terms of repainting midsoles:

2011 Blk Cemnt 3's
2012 WC 4's
2007 Fire Red 3's

the fire red 3's I understand, but it shouldn't be happening in general

 

[devildog1776]

if we had these problems with JB/NIKE in the 90s these guys would be bankrupt..... cant believe in 2012 people really gotta fix their 170 jordans after a few wears...

i was mad i didnt get the oilves this weekemd but now im not too mad because i know the cracks in the midsole would've made me after a couple wears

 

[rago]

Great job!!! Yours kicks are in such amazing condition,and you have done such an amazing job,that they still look factory finished even without the paint.

However,beware of ALL MOISTURE from here in friend...the paint used on the midsoles is a plasticised acryllic,and goes some way in sealing the pourous polyurethane midsoles from moisture penetration,which ultimately leads to deterioration and crumbling.

Personnally,I do agree that the paint cracking is unacceptable and equally unfortunate,but is ultimately innevitable.Simply due to the nature of the midsole composites.And so I strongly recommend repainting in acryllic.

There is numerous procedures/things you can do to ensure a longer midsole life...not all including a repaint,

1, Purchase and insert a GEL insole (if enough room in your kicks)

I place an extra insole in my kicks to absorb more impact,rather than the midsole taking my complete weight.This really helps prevent cracking!!!

2. The process in which to repaint your midsoles can be as thorough as you want!!

You can simply strip all paint with acetone,and then repaint in Angelus Le\ther Acryllics...or an acryllic of your choice,and job done!!

But I chose a more robust approach.

This is my method for the AIR JORDAN III B.C for e.g,

I. Mask all areas around the white portion of midsole in FROG TAPE (for perfect,uncompromising lines)

II. Strip all white paint from midsole using acetone (applied with cotton balls/pads)

III, Clean midsole with warm soapy water and leave to dry (20mins min)

IV. Using the finest grade sand/glass paper, lightly sand the midsole in order to create a key the acryllic can better adhere to. you should not see any visible change in the surface integrity after sanding...this is a VERY LIGHT sanding only.

V. Remove all fine dust from midsole...you may not see any,but its there I assure you.I use a hairdryer.( may have to re-tape/mask now)

VI. Apply first coat of paint.

(Your weapon of choice depends soley on you.brushes can provide a great finish if applied in enough ultra thin coats..but ultimately an airbrush is less time consuming,and leaves a perfect 'factory finish'.)

VII. Each coat will need approx 20mins to cure at room temp...and amount of coats depends on if your using brushes or an airbrush.

( Brushes approx 5-6 coats, Airbrush 2-3)

VIII. Once happy with the consistency of coverage I strongly urge you to apply 2x coats of Angelus Acrylic Finisher. (This locks and seals the acrylic)

IX. Remove masking tape,and repeat process for the Black portion.

X. Enjoy your kicks!!!!!!!

The confidence in knowing that, whatever may happen I can still have my J's crisp, like straight out the box fresh...is priceless!!! its just going to take a morning of my time to bring them up...and I have like 20+ wears in all mines at least and they holding up neatly.But dont forget that gel insole too....it definately helps in taking majority of the impact away from the midsole.

Hope this helps,,,,,,Good luck

j_rago

 

[rastakickz]

I thought about repainting too but I figured why bother risking the same problem again when the midsole looks fine in it's natural form. Plus like this there's no worries about ever seeing a crack on them.

I discoverd this with my fire red 3 from 06',paint was cracking so I scraped off the white to repaint, an notice how clean they look withouth the paint, so I didn't bother to repaint,the red paint kept cracking,so I eventually got rid of em, but it's really hard to to tell the paint was scaped off but I felt the same way,why paint an chance it cracking again, nice job

 

[SteveSteve72]

http://niketalk.com/t/15471/official-sneaker-care-maintenance-post-its-back