How To Guide - Custom Golf Shoes -AJ1 low “Master’s” Pg. 7

[mission_scratch]

I wanted to post this thread because I’ve gotten a lot of responses and questions about the custom Roshe Tour’s I did.. And while I don’t mind replying individually to everyone who’s asked, I decided to post a step by step of what I did with the Roshes to help those who are looking to do a custom pair.. (BTW I got another brand new pair that I’m getting ready to work on and if I have time I will upload a video and post it to YouTube).

 

Also anyone else who’s customized shoes before, please feel free to chime in or add your input on this topic.

 

How to Prep the Leather/uppers –

 

-On The Roshe, Nike used a Synthetic Leather - Any part of the shoe that is this leather it has a factory finish on it that needs to be removed before painting on the shoe. Using Acetone and a cotton round or cotton ball, scrub off the factory finish. You do not need to scrub that hard or that long to get the factory finish off. Next you need to “rough up the leather / synthetic leather by using sandpaper (I used 400 grit, 800, then 1400) in that order. After the sandpaper, I then take a scotch-Brite pad then add acetone and scuff up the leather as well as use the acetone and wipe down the shoe again. Finally I take a damp cloth and wipe down the entire shoe to clean off any debris. Let the shoe air dry 10-15 mins before moving to the next step.

 

Adhesion Promoter -

 

- Before painting on leather / synthetic leather, I use Rust-Oleum Adhesion Promoter -  1-2 light coats and let air dry for 5-10 mins -  I don’t like to wait any longer that that before laying down my first coat of paint!  Make sure the shoe is clean and free from anything on the surface otherwise it will stick to the leather and be noticeable.  

 

 

-Start painting using angelus leather paint, use 5-6 light coats to help avoid brushstrokes. Between each coat use a heatgun to dry/heatset the paint. Then wait 5-10 mins of dry time before applying the next coat. 

-Once all the coats are applied and dried you will need to add a finisher. There are lots of many options but in my option the best one to use is a Liquid Kicks matte finisher or the factory finisher.. It gives it a factory finish look. Angelus has finishers you can buy as well.

-2-3 light coats of the finisher is all you need and will need to use the heatgun the same way as before with the paint (I would do this as a last step once you’re completely done painting)

 

Midsole Prep –

-Just out of habit and to make sure they are clean, I use Acetone and prep this area as well. Since the Midsole is not a leather material, you will need to add “2-Hard” to your paint with a 1 to 1 ratio. (Meaning if you use 1oz of paint you’ll add 1oz of “2-Hard” – This will also be the same for anything that is a plastic / hard material that you want to paint on the shoe.

 

Midsole Paint Speckle –

-Since the midsole on a golf shoe takes lots of wear and tear, its Ideal to use an “Adhesion Promoter” before adding any paint. I would spray 2-4 light coats before applying the paint

-Once the Adhesion Promoter is on, using a toothbrush – dip the end of the bristles in the paint and use your finger in a “Flicking motion” to flick the paint off. Practice on a white poster board to get the hang of it. Many factors will determine the speckles. IE- How much paint is on the brush, how far away you are from the shoe, how hard your flicking. This is not an exactly science and takes a few times to get it to how you desire it to look.

-Once you’ve applied the paint, use a heatgun to heatset the midsole. You need to make sure it heatsets, but be careful not to melt the midsole or the glue holding the midsole together.

 

Sockliner / Shoelaces

-Anytime you want to paint a softer material such as a fabric or in this case a sockliner/shoe laces- you need to add “GAC 900” and you MUST use a heatgun to heatset it. I’ve heard of ppl not using the heatgun, but everytime I’ve ever done a custom without using a heat gun, the material hardens once the paint is set in. The GAC-900 and heat helps this from happening. The ratio for Paint to GAC-900 is 1 to 1.

 

I’ve painted the shoeslaces on the last custom just so the Pearlescent Paint matched, but otherwise I’d suggest finding a pair on “Lace Lab” that matches with what you’re looking for.

 

-Mix the paint with the GAC-900 in a 1 to 1 Ratio. Put the shoe strings in a zip-lock bag.

-Pour the paint mixture in the bag and zip it up so you can spread the paint and cover all the shoes laces (make sure the paint covers all areas of the laces

-take the shoes laces out and use your fingers to rub off the excess paint ( repeat this step several times) it helps to remove the extra paint but also to make sure the entire shoe lace is covered in paint. Heatset with a heatgun for several minutes and make sure the paint is completely dry before putting laces back into the shoes.

 

There are some really good videos on YouTube that will give you details on a lot of aspects of Shoe customizing.

 

Angelusdirect is where I get the paint as well as most of my supplies, also Lace Lab, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby.

Edited March 14, 2022 by mission_scratch

[justbringit5151]

You the man!

Thanks for sharing

Even though i would never try...

 

[DFW Snowman]

I know there are YouTube videos that explain this, but it's nice to be able to read through the steps in the process to see if this would be something I'd want to attempt.

 

So thank you for sharing!

[trazy]

Great post. Thanks for all the detail!

 

I just ordered some supplies so I can try to paint the swoosh on my black AM1's white. We'll see how it goes...

[cjaxun]

Not a thread Jack but my most recent before and after...tape job is the most important.

 

 

[cjaxun]

By the way @mission, great job

[mission_scratch]

^^ Nice work. Yes Taping up the shoe is the critical.. Most of the time spent doing customs is taping up the shoe. Do it right and everything will look crisp and nice..

[cvhookem63]

Those look sharp. The speckles are a nice touch!

[A_G Golf]

Man this is awesome!!! Thanks for starting this thread, been trying to get into custom footwear but I've been lost haha. Good place to start!

[The General]

Is this how Nomad Customs does it?

[mission_scratch]

^^ I can't speak for Nomad, but you can watch some Really Talented / Good Customizers on YouTube.. Some of them do customs for Pro Golfers/ NFL & NBA players..

 

And this is pretty much the method they all used. This is how I learned to do customs myself.

[2th Dr]

Angelus.com is my go to for shoe dye and paint.

[saunders2307]

The AM1's have a synthetic Upper. Will the Leather Paint still work on that?

[The General]

so when there are shoes out there that have crazy color ways, are they always just painted up to look different? Are these designers ever stitching in new material or replacing shoe components to get the desired look?.

 

Some of those Rickie shoes were/are done by Nomad and they are super sick!!!!

[mission_scratch]

The AM1's have a synthetic Upper. Will the Leather Paint still work on that?

 

will need to prep them, but yes it will.

[Geaux Gators]

Maurice Allen (long drive champ) uses a buddy of mine. Funky fresh footwear out of tallehassee. He is who did mine. I would highly recommend him. I would also tell anyone that is going to do this to understand that any painted shoe has a downside. The paint WILL crack on the creases.

[Number2]

Anyone know a good tape for these projects? Even with 2 years of experience with housepaint and tools, I still get paint bleeding under the border and I can't find the fix.

[mission_scratch]

Red vinal tape is the best to use.

 

I used regular masking tape on the Roshe’s but only because I was out of red vinal tape.

[Number2]

Red vinal tape is the best to use.

 

I used regular masking tape on the Roshe’s but only because I was out of red vinal tape.

Thank you!

[Geaux Gators]

because I was a dill weed and didn't post pictures

[greenj20]

Nice Job. These look really nice! I paid $$$ to have some customs built. Not sure i would have the guts to do this...

[Geaux Gators]

Mine were not that expensive... was right at $100. took a while but they are killer looking,

[3puttforebogey]

Is there a way to paint/dye the boost material in Adidas?

[mission_scratch]

Is there a way to paint/dye the boost material in Adidas?

 

There is a guy who does it oftern and post vids on Youtube. I almost want to say he just uses paint makers but I could be wrong.

[mission_scratch]

Quick test run (no touch up work yet) Testing out some colors that I may want to go with.

[JLew]

Did my first experiment with customizing golf shoes... started with the White version of the Lunar Control Vapor. I'm a fan of Volt :)

 

 

[mission_scratch]

Those look good!

[Adamholc]

Great post. Thank you for sharing!

[sdcfan18]

Aaaaaawesome. Well done.

[shaneyank]

This is an awesome DIY thread. @mission_scratch, have you customized Nike Tour Premieres?

 

I'd like to touch up my stock all white TPs. The metallic silver paint on the swoosh is cracking/flaking off due to normal wear and flexing. The swoosh is a clear plastic underneath the silver paint. Would you recommend stripping the whole swoosh with Acetone and then refinish it? Or is Acetone too harsh for the plastic?