RIVETED SHANK

Why we kept an old construction detail.

Vintage Riveted Shanks: Biltrite half rubber sole (upper), Leather sole (bottom left), Seiberling rubber sole(bottom right)

On the soles of some old American shoes, rivets can be found around the waist.

They are part of an older construction method used to secure the shank. Examples remain on several vintage shoes in our archive, sometimes clearly visible on the sole.

I like these rivets.

There is something compelling about this raw, functional detail — the construction itself left visible rather than hidden away.

Whenever I pick up an old shoe and find those small pieces of metal on the sole, I find myself drawn to them.

For Rustroops Product No.1, I decided to secure the steel shank with rivets as well.

There are more modern ways to secure a shank, and this is not a claim that the old method is inherently superior. It is simply a detail I wanted to preserve.

Product No.1 uses two rivets for each shank, one toward the front and one toward the rear. The rivets pass through the sole construction and the holes in the steel shank before being mechanically secured.

Once the boots are on your feet, you cannot see them.

But they are there.

And somehow, just knowing that makes me happy.

These are the kinds of details I want to preserve in Rustroops.