Can You Enlarge Footwear?

[Russ W]

Perhaps this has been previously addressed so pardon me if I’m being redundant.

In general, my left foot is about 11.5+, and my right foot is a spot on 12, D width. I like Altra’s and Keens for my foot shape. For the most part, I’ll try for a 12 or size up to a 12.5 if available because I HATE having my right big toe remotely constricted. Going to a 13 and wearing thicker socks isn’t a terribly great option either.

If I could stretch the size by 1/4″ to 1/2″ on the right side, life would be greatly improved. Have any of you had success marginally stretching your footwear?

 

[Russ W]

Sorry. Meant to post in Gear. Can one of the moderators move?

[MJ H]

Just a guess, but I bet the fabric bits won’t let you stretch them the way you could with all leather boots.

[Todd T]

I’m going with a solid “no.”  In my experience, while a few tricks can fine tune a shoe that already fits, nothing can be adjusted on a shoe that doesn’t fit to make it fit.

[Claiborne B]

I’m going to say no as well. Leather is easy to manipulate into another 1/8 to 1/4 inch (with water, saddle soap, and shoe trees) if your fit is snug, but synthetic is less so.

You could look at a European brand shoe, the sizing is a bit different and you might find a closer match to your foot size.

[Vincent Vilcinskas]

Based on my experience a few years ago, I agree with the previous posts.  20 years in the Army didn’t leave my feet in good shape. When I retired and got into hiking I really liked the light weight synthetic hiking boots but couldn’t find a pair that worked. I tried everything imaginable to stretch/manipulate them into being comfortable. After reading many hiking articles/blogs I bought a pair of leather Asolo Fugitives, a good set of boot stretchers and some leather boot oil. It didn’t much time and effort before my feet were finally irritation free and happy. It was well worth the extra weight of leather boots.

[Russ W]

Hey folks, thanks for the responses. I just knew there was a big “easy button” solution. I’m not sure about switching back to full leather…that cure for me would be worse than the problem. I’m glad that works for you Vincent. I actually own a pair of Limmers that I bought in 1983 that have seen almost zero use. I did an AT thru with leather Danners…I shudder the thought of returning to something like that.

Probably the most obvious solution is to fit the right foot for comfort and let the left side be slightly large. Easier where a 12.5 is available. There must not be much in the way of demand because many manufacturers only sell full size increments for feet larger than 12.

Again, thank you all for the input.

[Chad Lorenz]

Bite the bullet and buy both sizes? Use the mismatched, smaller pair for around town, yardwork etc and reserve the proper pair for hiking.

[Russ W]

Oooofff! Chad, I was hoping you had a 12 left foot and an 11.5 right foot and we both want the same thing!

[Ben C]

Have you tried taking the insole out of one of the shoes. I sometimes walk with no insoles and it works fine. It seems you might be able to take one out for a little extra room. Maybe that will make one leg seem longer though. Just a thought. There ought to be a website to match up with other people with mismatched sizes. Maybe try:

OddShoeFinder.com

https://www.zappos.com/e/adaptive/singleshoes

National Odd Shoe Exchange

http://shoewap.com/

[Sam Farrington]

Peter Limmer has a boot stretcher and process that will handle any leather, but not sure about Altra’s and Keen’s that are part artificial and part cloth materials.  You could call him.  It’s Peter Limmer & Son in Intervale NH.  His forebears would only work on Limmer boots; but he has repaired all kinds for me.

 

[Stumphges]

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Socks on, run the shower for 30s, then step in and out. Walk around the bathroom 5-10 steps, then onto two 8×11 printer papers. Wiggle toes then step off. Once dry, trace yo feet and cut em out. Place the cutouts on top of your insoles, with rear of cutouts 1/2 inch forward of rear of insoles. If cutouts are larger than insoles, it may be a lost cause.</p>
ive heard that rubbing alcohol facilitates leather stretch as well as water but dries way faster.

most shoe companies cut their  lasts narrow to make your feet look gracile. Old convention. If you’re a D you might want to try E.

Altra are wide at the toes but nowhere else. Running shoes are lasted for ectomorph feet, as a rule. Neanderthal descendants beware.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

My right big toe seems to be too big for most of my shoes. Some strategies I have used are:

• Cut a hole in my insole for my big toe to sink into
• Cut a little cross in the fabric where my big toe wants to poke out of when I walk
• Both.

[Allen C]

Altra makes most if not all of their men’s shoes in 12.5, although many retailers do not carry 12.5. So you may need to order them from Altra. Keen does not seem to make any 12.5’s though.

Like others have said, stretching may work on leather boots but is unlikely to work on lighter footwear. It’s a lot easier to make room in the width than the length. And it’s nearly always better to have a bit too much room (which you can fill up with thicker socks, insoles etc) than too little room, especially in the length.

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