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Shoe Covers

Paul Grenier

Paul Grenier

Joined
Sep 2, 2017
Messages
159
Likes
73
Location
Sterling, CT
What do you call and where can I get the shoe covers that cover the ankles and the tops of footwear to prevent wood chips / shavings from getting into my shoes and shoe laces?
 
Spats is what they are called. It took me a few minutes to recall that word as it's been a long time since I've used it.
Years ago when I worked in welding supply, we sold leather spats to keep sparks and spatter off of and out of your work boots.
Search Amazon for welding spats or see your local welding supply store. Should be fairly inexpensive.
 
Donna Banfield said:
I have these, in red. They work great!

https://www.thesandingglove.com/DUST-BEE-GONE-Shoe-Covers.asp
Click to expand...

I have those, and they do work pretty well. The only drawback to the design, is occasionally I step on one with the other foot. It hasn't yet, but I see that as a possible safety issue. (That is a rip-off price.......but, they do seem to last forever.)

Forrest Forschmiedt said:
Spats is what they are called. It took me a few minutes to recall that word as it's been a long time since I've used it.
Years ago when I worked in welding supply, we sold leather spats to keep sparks and spatter off of and out of your work boots.
Search Amazon for welding spats or see your local welding supply store. Should be fairly inexpensive.
Click to expand...

That is a great idea! I found these on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/QeeLink-Leat...ding+spats&qid=1600268637&sr=8-28&tag=mh0b-20
They do look like they might be hot during the summertime. You only really need to cover the laces, and around the ankles......and, this does look like they do. Cheaper than the DBG ones, and better made, it looks like. I may give these a try......next time I have an order that needs to be bumped for free shipping.

---------------------------------------------------

There is another alternative, which I've never tried yet, but it was suggested in another discussion about this: Baby bibs! This is the least expensive option of all:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D6AQQ1C/ref=ewc_pr_img_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&th=1
(I also have these in my cart, waiting for the time I'll need something to get free shipping.)

-----odie-----
 
Another term that might work is "gaiters" although these are more for keeping snow out of your ankle and less about the top of the shoe...
 
I'm with Robo. Bell bottoms are the way to go. I have a set of the sanding glove shoe covers but 99% of the time I forget to put them on. They just sit in a drawer and then I bitch when the sawdust is aggravating my feet and impossible to get out of my socks.
 
Trail runners wear gaiters to keep small rocks from flying into the tops of their shoes. I never thought about using them to keep wood chips out at the lathe. Great idea!
 
I find that my socks are the biggest culprit for tracking wood chips and sawdust into the more civilized living spaces.

So mostly I don't wear socks (or "real" shoes) in the shop. I usually head to the shop barefoot, and have a pair of Crocks at the shop door that I slip on. Not a great fashion statement, but they do shed the chips.
 
There is another alternative, which I've never tried yet, but it was suggested in another discussion about this: Baby bibs! This is the least expensive option of all:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D6AQQ1C/ref=ewc_pr_img_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&th=1
(I also have these in my cart, waiting for the time I'll need something to get free shipping.)

-----odie-----[/QUOTE]
Odie, the material those baby bibs are made of are horrible for woodturning. The fabric on one side is microfiber cloth, and while very absorbent to catch junior's drips, it will also make any wood chip, curl or shaving stick like velcro. It must be picked off - individually - and doesn't come off in the laundry, either. It seems to come out of the washer with even more crap stuck to it. Don't ask me how I know this. Sheesh!!
 
Ah who needs them for some reason my jeans won't stay on my waist So the bottom of the jeans piles up on my shoes and keeps most of the shavings off of my socks. The bell bottoms would also work but they are hard to come by, my older sisters sons wore them but when the little girls came my sister made two dresses out of each pair.
 
Donna Banfield said:
There is another alternative, which I've never tried yet, but it was suggested in another discussion about this: Baby bibs! This is the least expensive option of all:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D6AQQ1C/ref=ewc_pr_img_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&th=1
(I also have these in my cart, waiting for the time I'll need something to get free shipping.)

-----odie-----
Click to expand...
Odie, the material those baby bibs are made of are horrible for woodturning. The fabric on one side is microfiber cloth, and while very absorbent to catch junior's drips, it will also make any wood chip, curl or shaving stick like velcro. It must be picked off - individually - and doesn't come off in the laundry, either. It seems to come out of the washer with even more crap stuck to it. Don't ask me how I know this. Sheesh!![/QUOTE]

Thanks for the tip, Donna :D

I just dropped the baby bibs off the "wish list".......

Think I might give those welder's spats a try, though.

Still using the DBG shoe covers......they do get the job done, with that one small caveat.

Have a good day, lady......:D

-----odie-----
 
Last week the weather turned cooler and I put pants back on. No more shavings in my socks.
 
Well, one year we had below 0 temperatures outside for a few days, and I turned then in long pants and a thermal long sleeved shirt. That shop was cold... I over heat if I am in long pants. I have found that a broom will do a good job of getting most of the shavings out of my socks, and my Merril slip ons, kind of like crocks, have nice arch support, and just tap them and the dust is gone. Well, most of it. There are Tyvek painter's outfits which shed chips very well, but too hot for me. Can't turn bare foot as I wear pressure stockings, though they would shed shavings nicely...

robo hippy
 
My wife sewed these sort-of-gaiters for me. They are just a rectangle of nylon fabric with a stretch of Velcro on the top edge. They do a great job of keeping the chips out of my socks and shoes when I’m turning in shorts. Used a piece of fabric cut from an old discarded windbreaker. The only real cost was the Velcro. CE26FB5D-A133-40AE-88A8-C4B1769B94F2.jpeg5F28F56B-3B2F-41D3-B163-4E952B1207EC.jpeg
 
The Boss seems to know when I'm about to come back into the house. She does a once over and sends me back to the shop if I haven't vacuumed myself clean. For some reason, she blames me for every piece of saw dust she finds! I think the spats may help -- at least they'll remind me to vacuum.
 
Gaiters... Lots of choices on Amazon. I use them and have found you need to have them under your pant legs to efficiently keep shavings/dust out of your shoes.
 
Put Leather Welding Spats into search box on Ebay and for about 12 bucks leather spats that cover the entire foot. The Crocs I like to wear turning have 13 air holes that collect chips, these spats cover them nicely.
 
Bill Blasic said:
Put Leather Welding Spats into search box on Ebay and for about 12 bucks leather spats that cover the entire foot. The Crocs I like to wear turning have 13 air holes that collect chips, these spats cover them nicely.
Click to expand...
Thanks Bill....eBay was a better place to get them. I bought the $14.99 ones with free shipping from a USA shipper.......

Wish I had these spats at the beginning of summer, when I'm wearing shorts, and minimal shoes.......I'm just starting to wear long athletic pants again, and don't have as much need for them now! :)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Weldas-44-...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

This AAW forum has been a great place for making little discoveries that improve my shop world! :D

-----odie-----
 
Mark Jundanian said:
Odie in spandex! :eek::rolleyes::D
Click to expand...


Ha,ha.....not on your life! My old body just doesn't fashion well these days! :D Those athletic pants I've been using are very loose and comfortable. :)

-----odie-----
 
Hal's comment about having them under your pant leg was a flash back for me. When I did concrete work, you have to wear the high top rubber boots. I always put my pant legs over the top of the boots. If I didn't, I would get concrete, sand, and gravel into my rubber boots, and you don't have time to take them off and empty them when pouring.....

robo hippy
 
Just thinking about open toed shoes in the shop makes me cringe. I'd be in the ER twice a month getting toes stitched up or put back on. You guys must be a lot more careful than I can manage to be.

I wear a pair of high top Redwings and, for 10 months a year anyway, my pants extend over top of them and chips are no problem. The other two months when shorts are a reasonable option I have itchy chips poking me in the ankles. Wearing my spiffy new AAW smock solves the problem of filling my pockets with shavings.
 
I've worn the welding spats several times now, and they are (almost) everything I'd hoped they were. They cover the entire shoe, and do not present a safety issue like my older "dust bee gone shoe covers".

I only wear shoe coverings during the summertime when it's hot, and I'm wearing shorts. The weather is now turning cooler, and I will pretty much be wearing long baggy athletic pants out in the shop.

The only problem I foresee, is they don't breathe very well, and my feet and ankles were a little warmer than I'd have liked......but, not uncomfortably hot.

It's a good purchase, and I'll continue to use them again next year. :D

-----odie-----
s-l500.jpg
 
Donna Banfield said:
I have these, in red. They work great!

https://www.thesandingglove.com/DUST-BEE-GONE-Shoe-Covers.asp
Click to expand...


odie said:
I have those, and they do work pretty well. The only drawback to the design, is occasionally I step on one with the other foot. It hasn't yet, but I see that as a possible safety issue. (That is a rip-off price.......but, they do seem to last forever.)



That is a great idea! I found these on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/QeeLink-Leat...ding+spats&qid=1600268637&sr=8-28&tag=mh0b-20
They do look like they might be hot during the summertime. You only really need to cover the laces, and around the ankles......and, this does look like they do. Cheaper than the DBG ones, and better made, it looks like. I may give these a try......next time I have an order that needs to be bumped for free shipping.



-----odie-----
Click to expand...

In cooler weather, the leather welding spats work great......but, when it gets hot like this, they are uncomfortably hot.

I have gone back to using the DBG bibs, as Donna suggested, but I'm modified them so they're no longer a safety hazard from cross-stepping on them. I'm adding a couple photos, and you can see that I've folded the bibs in several places, and secured the folds with zip ties. The bibs are now a "cupped" shape, and no longer present the cross-stepping hazard that they once did. Wish I'd thought of this long ago...

IMG_0804 (2).JPGIMG_0805 (2).JPG

-----odie-----
 
When I first started turning, I used foot covers. I found them to be a pain to put on and of. In my quest for turning apparel I have found a combo that works well for me.
1. Tee Shirt with no pockets
2. Shorts with a tight knit "Silky finish"
3. A dishwashers apron I can post the one I got which works real well
4 Low cut socks that just peak over the tops of the shoes. Or no socks
5 Old pair of New Balance walking shoes with elastic lases or crocks
Pat
 
My favorite shoe covers:

>Tap the toes on the floor to knock most of the shavings off
> Use the shop vac to remove whats left, as well as anything caught on my hair, shirt, pants. Vac is on the way to the house door.

I dont see an advantage to shoe covers.
 
Look on Amazon or Ebay for “trail gaiters”. $15 +/- for a short (just over the ankle) pair that are made from lightweight neoprene type materials with Velcro closure at the ankle and shoelace clip. Easy on and off, cool, and keeps all the chips and dust out.
 
I have the shoe covers and quit wearing them years ago. However lately the small shaving are getting in my socks and wont come out.
 
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