The Keep, Resole or Replace Kit

Buy the pair that fits, price every pair per wear, and know when a resole beats a new pair

SoleCare's calculators each answer one shoe question well, and the answers stop short of the decision. The Resole Cost Estimator prices a full rubber resole at $55 and stops: it never says whether the quote beats a new pair. And while writing this kit we fixed two of our own tools: the Width & Fit Guide asked for a tape wrapped around the foot on a scale built for a width measured straight across, so it called nearly every foot EEE, and the Shoe Size Converter rounded a foot length to the nearest half size, putting a 26.2 cm foot in a shoe made for 26.0 cm. This kit is the arithmetic that joins them, in seven steps. Fit comes first: size from the longer foot and round up, measure width straight across, convert your size and convert it back to see what a whole EU size loses, and set the break-in against the return window. Then price every pair per wear: a $300 pair worn 6 times because it pinched cost $50.00 a wear. A $55 resole beats a new $90 pair only if the upper has 96 more wears in it, and a $300 resoleable pair needs 6 resoles before it truly costs less per wear than a $90 one bought again. Every figure is computed from the site's own calculators; the worked numbers are examples, and sizes follow one stated standard, with brands varying. It makes no claim that any shoe fixes foot pain, and sends pain, numbness and diabetes-related foot concerns to a doctor or podiatrist. Included: 24 printable pages with a foot card, a try-on and return log, a pair ledger, a resole or replace worksheet, reference tables and a quickstart, plus a personalised sheet worked from the numbers you enter in our calculators.

Look inside

Two full pages from the kit, exactly as printed. Click either to read it at full size before you decide.

What is in it

• The Size Up Rule: both feet measured, the size taken from the longer one and rounded up to the next half size
• The Straight Across Rule: width marked on paper and divided by length, with the centimeters for every letter
• The Round Trip Rule: your size converted and converted back, to see what a whole EU size cannot hold
• The Return Window Rule: the break-in set against the return window, decided indoors and in time
• The Per Wear Rule: every pair priced per wear from a sole life you count from your own records
• The Upper Outlives Rule: the upper wears a resole quote needs to beat the replacement you would buy
• The Break-Even Resole Rule: the resoles a dearer pair needs before it costs less per wear than a cheaper one
• Printable working pages: a foot card, a try-on and return log, a pair ledger and a resole or replace worksheet
• Reference tables for men's and women's sizes, width by letter and care intervals, and a quickstart
• A personalised sheet worked from the numbers you enter in our calculators

The kit picks up where the free Resole Cost Estimator leaves off. It prices the repair and stops; the kit prices the pair per wear and tells you whether the quote beats a new pair, from how many wears the upper has left and what the replacement would cost for the same wears. It also counts the resoles a dearer pair needs before it is really cheaper than buying a cheaper one again. Fit comes first: size from the longer foot and round up with the Shoe Size Converter, measure width straight across for the Width & Fit Guide, check what a whole EU size loses against the Shoe Size & Width Reference, and set the Shoe Break-In Estimatoragainst the return window. Sizes follow one stated standard, and brands vary, so a brand's own chart comes first. The kit makes no claim that any shoe fixes foot pain: pain, numbness or a sore that will not heal is for a doctor or podiatrist. The worked figures are examples; your feet, prices and wears are yours to fill in.