Questions & Answers

Luna DIY kit

Hello All

I just purchased a DIY kit the 6mm Vibram Trail nubby, copper suede top and the half inch equus laces.

No problems making the sandals just a suggestion or two and a question from a total novice maker and wearer of these type of sandals.

Firstly the suggestions. I was slightly concerned that from being a long time commercial sandal wearer (Birkenstocks) to a barefoot type that I would need the thicker sole so I went for the 6mm. I wish that I had gone for the 4mm to get a more barefoot feel. The 6mm feels quite thick. not much more different to the Birkenstocks.

Another suggestion is that there should be more detailed instructions on where to place and punch the toe hole on the sites instruction section. The hole in my opinion needs to be right at the base where your toes join, not like I placed it about 1/4 inch up from the base. This may seem straight forward for someone who's made these before but it wasn't for me and consequently my feet slip forward in them right to the front edge of the sole. Not a massive problem but I'd rather have got them right first time and not feel the edge of the sole under my toes.

The question - I've never worn thong type sandals before - how long does it take to get used to having something as big as the 1/2 inch Equus laces betwen your toes. I've had them on for the best part of three days and they still feel uncomforatable, getting better, but not comfortable.

I do love the product and hope the company goes from strength to strength, hope to hear from some other uses soon.

Cheers

John

4

Answers and Replies

28

It takes time for the 1st inter-space to get used to 1/2 leather, my guess would be a couple a weeks. As the skin toughens/calluses and leather softens it will get more tolerable.

As you use the 6mm soling it will compress roughly 2mm from the repeated pounding

Myself I didn't like thong feel and came up with a different lacing option. More like a Teva sandal. Maybe I do a demo on how to string the soling material...

4

You should do a demo, I'm interested to see alternative ways to tie them up.

I have to say that I'm amazed at how quickly it's been from being in quite a bit of pain to really none at all.

In fact when I'm not wearing them I miss the sensation of having the laces between my toes.

Still wish I had the thinner sole though.

19

I haven't yet tried the 6mm but I do have some DIY 4mm ones. I actually wish I had gotten the 6mm. The 4mm is very floppy and doesn't really conform to my feet at all. the part under the toes going away from the big toe kinda hangs down in midair. once I caught it on a step and tore off the front of a toenail, ouch. just a thought for you.

I bought the DIY kit too from Luna Sandals to save some cash and my feet are pretty wide so this way I get a custom fit. I went with the 6mm Vibrum Neoprene Soling Material, the black suede Footbed and traditional leather laces (I figured why not go native style).

John's right, instructions are pretty skimpy even though they have videos and other instructions online. I too drilled my toe-hole too far forward and I ended up just drilling a second hole about 1/2 inch farther back and it's fine now. Doesn't matter that there's an extra hole as the footbed seems pretty tough.

Back to the DIY Kit. It was a mistake to buy the Black Suede footbed instead of the Copper Brown for two reasons: 1. The black shows every speck of lint, errant glue (that you use to glue to footbed to the sole together), etc so it kind of looks dirty. 2. Just about impossible to trace your foot pattern onto the footbed since it's black. You just can't see any markings for cutting or making the holes. Trust me, get the Copper Brown footbed.

Glueing the two pieces together was the easiest part. Spread the glue on both parts, sandwich together. I put a bathroom scale I have which has a glass top upside-down on the glued pieces which was on a flat tile floor, then put a weight on it. I let it cure for two days.

Cutting was a bit of a hassle using a box cutter as it's tough to cut. Afterwards I was playing with some scrap pieces and discovered that you can actually cut it with a scissors. After cutting I saw a little place on the edge that wasn't glued, maybe had an air pocket so I tucked some glue in it and used a clothespin to let that dry.

I drilled the holes since I didn't want to buy a punch. Drill both sides. Work the drill around a little from the bottom side to finish the top hole nicely. I didn't make a slot for the side holes since I've got traditional laces.

Lace it up. I destroyed the knot on one lace hitting it flat with a hammer like their video shows…though I was hitting the knot on concrete. I had to make a new knot which wasn't a problem.

Wearing: Toes were too far forward, I moved the toe hole back as I said earlier. Right foot was about perfect in position, left foot was off-center and my small toe was either close or just hanging over the edge. After my first walk in them I figured-out if I tighten-up that side of the lace it pushes the foot onto the center of the sandal, problem solved. If your foot is going off on one side you probably need to tighten that side lace.

Got blisters on both feet below the V of my big and second toe since the knot of the leather laces was a big buldge pushing up. According to their website it will work it's way into the sole.

Overall it wasn't that hard to make but you just get worried about the position of the holes and overall cut of the sole. Looks a bit hippy with the traditional laces but I don't care. Very lightweight, feet stay cool since there's no shoe. Only real downside is that leather knot on the bottom, other than that I'd do it again.

Post an Answer or Reply