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I've got a pair of shimano mx81 boots. They're great and my feet are now not cold during wintery rides, but how do i keep them in good condition?
They are all straps and velcro and bits so the shoe polish approach won't work! What do you guys do?
the next ride ?
honestly havent washed mine ever and they are about 8 years old - but i ride often so arent really left to fester covered in mud.
I wash mine off when cleaning the bike... get the worst of the mud off, let them dry over a radiator or in the airing cupboard then brush pretty vigorously under the straps and round the cleats with a brush. Seems to work pretty well.
Wash and dry. Take out the insoles to dry as well.
sorry your right - i occasionally put them infront of the fire to dry out save em smelling
I've got some Lake ones which are predominately leather so if I'm not riding again the next day I give them a good clean and use dubbin; the same as walking boots.
3 years in and until very recently wore them on every ride. Just stick them on top the radiator to dry out. ( very occasional wash with hose pipe while washing bike)
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under the mud they are still in great shape, and if they ever wear out I would replace them straight away.
Heat's not a great idea with leather. Can dry it out and encourage cracking. Not good for bonded soles either. Depending on the boots and their construction, I'd rinse off excess mud after riding, allow to dry naturally away from direct heat with insoles removed, brush off any remaining dirt when dry, treat with an appropriate conditioner/proofer.
In reality I just dry them between rides and then use them again... Don't Shimano use some sort of plasticised leather? In which case you just need to keep em clean and dry.
Ps: dry and brush works well in the Peak. The gritty stuff just falls off when dry.Newspaper to dry the insides.
Wash them off with the hose and then use a set of ski boot driers to dry them out if they're really wet.
Or just leave them and use again which seems fine too.