polishing rbk plate shoes

[rth54]

I was thinking about using some parade gloss on my all black reebok plate shoes to spiff them up a bit....good idea or bad idea?

[semper_fi_72]

I was thinking about using some parade gloss on my all black reebok plate shoes to spiff them up a bit....good idea or bad idea?

Use regular black paste polish and buff them up.

My new preferred cleaning is:

Spray with Scrubbing Bubbles and wipe off.

Spray with light coat of Hairspray.

They look plenty good for me and it is hard to teach a Old Marine New Tricks.

[mstaylor]

Hopefully you can just clean and wear them. I have a pair of NB plate shoes that are on their third year and haven't seen polish yet.

[BT_Blue]

Use regular black paste polish and buff them up.

My new preferred cleaning is:

Spray with Scrubbing Bubbles and wipe off.

Spray with light coat of Hairspray.

They look plenty good for me and it is hard to teach a Old Marine New Tricks.

I started doing this after the post from last month. So far has worked great on my NB plate shoes and my Reebok base shoes. Only thing I think I have to start doing is carrying it with me in my car so I can spray down the scrubbing bubbles right after the game and do the hairspray went I get home.

[blue32]

I just keep a container of lysol cleaning wipes in my kit. After cleaning them up, I spray them down with a spray bottle of water and murphy's oil soap, let them sit while I take the rest of my gear off, then wipe them down with a towel. they look like new every time.

[mazzamouth]

Use regular black paste polish and buff them up.

My new preferred cleaning is:

Spray with Scrubbing Bubbles and wipe off.

Spray with light coat of Hairspray.

They look plenty good for me and it is hard to teach a Old Marine New Tricks.

..like the new look huh? told you its easy and they look good...

[semper_fi_72]

..like the new look huh? told you its easy and they look good...

Yes, very easy and they do look good.

Still will put a good coat of paste polish on and buff them up once a month.

[BT_Blue]

..like the new look huh? told you its easy and they look good...

Yes you did.

Mazz, do you carry the spray bottles in your car with you and put it on after the game or do you do it at home?

[semper_fi_72]

Yes you did.

Mazz, do you carry the spray bottles in your car with you and put it on after the game or do you do it at home?

I clean with Scrubbing Bubbles before I leave the field and put them in the trunk to allow them to dry.

I then put on the hairspray the next day or before leaving for the field for my next games.

Time management

I bought a Rubbermaid box that holds Scrubbing Bubbles, Hair Spray, Febreze, scrub brush and rags. It stays in the trunk of the car.

[BT_Blue]

Thats what I needed to know. I just have to put a towel or three in my car to protect the carpet in the trunk.

[Thunderheads]

Guys, ...stupid question, but ....

hairspray - Can you be more specific? In a can? Plastic bottle? Does it matter

Thanks!

[Kevin Finnerty]

Guys, ...stupid question, but ....

hairspray - Can you be more specific? In a can? Plastic bottle? Does it matter

Thanks!

Doesn't matter.

Quality doesn't matter, either. I used Dove pump spray, until I saw White Rain at half the price. Then I used the aerosol can White Rain, and it cut the shoe care time in half. And, it's sweet smelling!

Cleaning the shoes with a Murphy's Oil Soap solution costs about one hundredth as much as Armour All wipes. One $4 bottle of concentrate makes enough shoe care solution for about ten years of umpiring. Spraying the squeaky clean NBs with the also economical White Rain gives them a good seal and shine.

I also save a ton of time and effort. I put the stopwatch on the whole procedure:

Spraying a pair of plate shoes with the Murphy's: 19 seconds

Brushing both shoes clean; top and bottom: 32 seconds

Wiping both shoes off (with a lint-free microfiber towel): 18 seconds

Spraying both shoes with White Rain aerosol: 14 seconds

-OR-

Spraying both shoes with White Rain pump spray: 44 seconds

(That extra 30 seconds that it takes to use the pump spray may not be worth it to the umpire who's always on the go. )

That's right: a pair of plate shoes completely cleaned and shined in less than 90 seconds. I stretched it out once, and it took almost three minutes. But if you want to be by yourself for 40 minutes cleaning and shining your plate shoes the old way, then I fully understand. I've been married for 21 years.

[slo8140]

I was converted to the spray bottle with Murphy's last season and I will never go back to sneaker cleaner or scrubbing bubbles...the Murphy's is so much cheaper and does the job well.

With this thread I decided to give the hairspray trick a try I had always used the liquid polish...with an occasional real polish...that most ump suppliers sell. I can say that my first go with hairspray on my rbk mid cut plates and mid cut base shoes look great. I will wear them on the field shiny for the first time this year. Since they were both new for this season I have not been polishing them so far, just using the murphy's and they look like I took them out of the box yesterday.

I found an aerosol can of white rain for $1 at Wal-Mart yesterday...can't beat that.

[Kevin Finnerty]

I was converted to the spray bottle with Murphy's last season and I will never go back to sneaker cleaner or scrubbing bubbles...the Murphy's is so much cheaper and does the job well.

With this thread I decided to give the hairspray trick a try I had always used the liquid polish...with an occasional real polish...that most ump suppliers sell. I can say that my first go with hairspray on my rbk mid cut plates and mid cut base shoes look great. I will wear them on the field shiny for the first time this year. Since they were both new for this season I have not been polishing them so far, just using the murphy's and they look like I took them out of the box yesterday.

I found an aerosol can of white rain for $1 at Wal-Mart yesterday...can't beat that.

Reading your message is like hearing my favorite song.

Enjoy saving all that time and money, brother.

[zm1283]

I was converted to the spray bottle with Murphy's last season and I will never go back to sneaker cleaner or scrubbing bubbles...the Murphy's is so much cheaper and does the job well.

With this thread I decided to give the hairspray trick a try I had always used the liquid polish...with an occasional real polish...that most ump suppliers sell. I can say that my first go with hairspray on my rbk mid cut plates and mid cut base shoes look great. I will wear them on the field shiny for the first time this year. Since they were both new for this season I have not been polishing them so far, just using the murphy's and they look like I took them out of the box yesterday.

I found an aerosol can of white rain for $1 at Wal-Mart yesterday...can't beat that.

+1

Murphy's is super quick and easy, and cleans your shoes well.

[ukce1861]

..like the new look huh? told you its easy and they look good...

I've been using the scrubbing bubbles this season too. Love it! I've been using pledge instead of hair spray; might try that when my can runs out.

Only problem I've had is cleaning my NB 995 base shoes. If the ground is the least bit wet, they pick up a ton of dirt in the sole, which I can't seem to brush out. Then when I wipe them down, it tends to spread a little to the top of the shoe... So I end up having to wipe them down again the next day. Anybody else have this problem?

[mstaylor]

Copious amounts of water and a stiff brush to clear the cleats, then follow your usual routine.

[kwiggie]

I might have missed it but, what would you guys suggest for a first coat on a new pair of plate shoes (rbk mids 09') to help sealprotect prior to their first use?

[mstaylor]

Nothing, they should be fine. I don't polish my NBs at all, just clean and wear.

[gatoremt]

I put Leather Luster on my RBK plate shoes and base shoes and they look great.

[jkumpire]

Thanks for the posts guys!

I have had a problem with my shoes, NB 450 plates, and 350 low cut base shoes.

The shoes lost the shine in them after a while, and usually I would use Pledge wipes to take the dirt off after games. but the shoes started looking duller and duller. So I started putting on a coat of good polish on the shoes, and they looked great.

But when I clean them after the game with Pledge or Scrubbing Bubbles, the dirt and the polish comes off, and that means another polish job before i go back on the field. Are there any suggestions for a cleaning product that does not take the polish off after games?

[kwiggie]

I (after reading this thread) use water to clean my shoes after the game and a cheap bottle of hairspray to polish them up about every other game... this works great. The hairspray seems to build up in layers just like my wife's hair back in the 80's when she sported "Cobra Hair".

[Big Red]

I remember those days...like this?????

[kylejt]

Ya know, the coaches don't really care how shiny our shoes are. Nor do the players or the fans. We're just dressing up of other umpires. I'm finding that odder and odder the longer I do this.

Me, I'll keep everything pressed and clean. I'll leave the polishing, sewn in seams, patent leather, creased hats and short sleeved jackets to the rest of you. Oh, I still dress better, and look sharper than < 95% of the umpires out there. It's just that I'm not that obsessive about it any more. No need for it, at this point.

[yawetag]

Oh, I still dress better, and look sharper than < 95% of the umpires out there.

Less than 95%? Maybe 94%?