Two of the top adhesives on the market are Gorilla Glue and Shoe Goo. Both use formulas that bind surfaces together through chemical reactions. Gorilla Glue is a multipurpose tool that can handle repairs both inside and outside the home, while Shoe Goo is specifically designed to repair shoes.
What are the most important things to know about each formula, and what are the differences between them?
Feature | Dissimilar Surfaces | Waterproof | Hole Patching |
---|---|---|---|
#1. Gorilla Glue Our Best Pick Check Price | Yes | Yes | No |
#2. Shoe Goo Check Price | No | Yes | Yes |
#1. Gorilla Glue
Gorilla Glue is the leading manufacturer of superglue in the world. The glue formula bonds different surfaces together in less than one minute, causing a chemical reaction that seals leaks and patches.
Gorilla Glue is completely waterproof, so you don’t have to worry about the weather or spills making it less effective. In addition, it’s also resistant to temperature issues, so you can use it even on surfaces that tend to get extremely hot or extremely cold.
This glue is most famous because it works for almost any material, and you can use it as part of your hardware toolkit for both indoor and outdoor projects. One note is that applying the glue can sometimes be tricky, because it expands to three times the size when it dries. It’s important to be careful about leaks or spills, and you should never touch the glue, as it will bind skin just as easily as other surfaces.
When you’re working with home construction projects, Gorilla Glue can be used to bind nearly any hard surface together. It works well for dissimilar surfaces. In some cases, Gorilla Glue can even be used to patch fabrics or air mattresses. If you’re working with shoes, Gorilla Glue is most effective at repairing rigid shoe surfaces like the shoe’s sole. By comparison, Shoe Goo tends to be better for the softer parts of the shoe, and it’s easier to apply.
You can use Gorilla Glue to fix the heel of a shoe if need be. It’s rare for a shoe heel to become cracked or damaged, as it tends to be one of the sturdiest portions of the shoe. When you’re fixing a heel, Gorilla Glue is an ideal option because it’s made to handle pressure and stress without giving way. It also works very well on hard surfaces. Gorilla Glue tends to dry rigidly and reduce the flexibility of the bound material, but heels don’t require much flexibility in the first place.
Gorilla Glue is available in a few different formula variations. The majority of them are clear glue that sets hard and dries without flexibility. There are some rarer specific formulas that become more flexible and rubbery when they dry, but even these tend to harden over time.
Gorilla Glue shouldn’t generally be used on porous surfaces. These materials may absorb the glue without letting it stay on the surface. Not only does this keep the binding from being effective, but it also increases the danger of someone accidentally touching wet glue and getting stuck.
If you’re gluing two hard pieces of a shoe together, Gorilla Glue is the place to go. The glue is also good for creating strength and firmness for boots. For those who wear boots in humid temperatures, Gorilla Glue tends to hold up fairly well.
#2. Shoe Goo
Shoe Goo is specifically designed to help repair problems with shoes. As such, it doesn’t have the same versatile performance as Gorilla Glue. However, it does tend to be easier to apply to shoes, and it’s designed to offer high quality shoe repair options.
While Gorilla Glue is superior in repairing the hard surfaces of shoes, it struggles to adapt properly to the softer surfaces. If you need to repair damage to a soft portion of the shoe, including the body, the toe, the rest of the upper, the inside, or the tongue, then you’ll likely have better results by using Shoe Goo.
The biggest thing to note is that Shoe Goo is designed to dry flexibly. It allows the bonded surfaces a greater degree of movement and overall flexibility than Gorilla Glue, which means that you’ll retain the comfort and ease of the shoe fabric. Since Shoe Goo does have this layer of flexibility, it’s best for protectively coating a shoe’s heel or filling in a hole in the heel rather than sticking broken heel pieces together.
Since Shoe Goo is rubbery and flexible when it dries, but it holds just as well as Gorilla Glue, it’s an ideal option if you need to stick a sole to the shoe. It’s also good for repairing a shoe box, which is the soft portion of the shoe that often suffers damage first. Shoe Goo stays on the surface of this box thanks to the gel-like formula, rather than sinking into the fabric like Gorilla Glue. It’s easy to perform patches to the shoe box with Shoe Goo.
If you need to fill in holes or fix a dent in a pair of shoes, Shoe Goo is also the best option. Gorilla Glue only works if two surfaces are being stuck together. Shoe Goo can function as a patch by itself.
Final Thoughts
Both Gorilla Glue and Shoe Goo are strong adhesives that have similar holding power. They’re both waterproof, able to stand humid conditions, and able to withstand a number of extreme temperatures.
Shoe Goo is made specifically for patching and repairing shoes. It works much better if you need to patch problems with fabric or holes. On the other hand, Gorilla Glue is excellent if you need to stick two surfaces together and require a rigid fit.
Shoe Goo dries rubbery and flexible, while Gorilla Glue dries rigid and immobile.