Arkansas Canoe Club Forums

On our Grand Canyon trip, my only footwear was a pair of Chaco sandals purchased in May of this year. Since my last pair lasted for over a decade, I thought my chances of needing "spares" was near zero.

I was wrong. By about day 3 the shoes had delaminated and on one, the vibram sole was about 1/3 detached from the sandal, making it completely unusable until repaired. Two or three others on the trip were also seeing delamination on their Chacos; including one pair that had been purchased only a week before the trip.

So here’s the good news: When I contacted Chaco, they freely admitted that they had discovered some of their sandals were produced using a “bad batch of glue” that is not holding up. So in addition to promising to repair my sandals at no charge, Chaco offered to reglue a second pair purchased about the same time that has not yet shown the problem. They are even covering the shipping costs!

If you think you may have the same problem, then I would encourage you to call Chaco Customer service. They asked me a few questions about when I thought the sandals were purchased, what color the straps were, etc, to determine whether or not my pair was part of the problem production run, but they did NOT ask me to produce a receipt, which is good because both pairs were gifts and I didn’t have a receipt.

Bottom line is, while I’m disappointed that this problem ever occurred, my faith in Chaco’s is restored and I’m happy that this is a GOOD company that is willing to stand behind their product. If you have a pair of recently purchased Chacos, examine the soles. If you see evidence of a possible problem, call Chaco Customer Service at 970-527-4990 to discuss it with them. It is very clear to me that they want to do right by their customers, and I applaud them for it!

Chacos are made in western Colorado

I have a pair of size 10's I purchased in 1991 or thereabouts that show little wear

I recently found a deal on the new style chacos and purchased same. They are, believe it or not, more comfortable than the "old design". Maybe the fact that I got a size 11 helped the comfort factor go up.

anyone wanting a pair of old style chacos with prolly another decade of use left in them, PM me and they are yours.

I concure. I have had several pairs of chacos, and had several issues. The first pair, I just didn't take care of properly.

( by moving the straps back on forth thru the sole, it "flosses: sand and muck from this area. if this is not done, the sand and grime just act as an abrasive, and cut your straps.)

the next pair, I wore for several years, and just wore them out. the soles.
I sent them in for repair, and chose to go ahead and have new webbing, and new soles added.

If i remeber, the bill was 36.00 plus shipping.
This pair de-laminated on me, soon, i sent them back, and they re-glued the soles, sent me a t-shirt, and a hat, and paid for the shipping.

they are a class act for sure, and wound recommend CHACO' s to anyone!

I've not had delamination, but my current pair has started splitting across the bottom along the ball of the foot where it flexes. I've seen this on a friends pair as well.

zach, what sole is on them? does your friends pair have the same sole? how old are they?

I would guess that they would replace those soles for free.

I had a relatively new pair of Chacos’ that had a de-lamination event, oddly enough, on a Grand Canyon trip also. I noted to Chaco that the straps didn’t look too good either. They put on new soles and straps AND they paid for the shipping. After Pentax, dealing with Chaco was a pleasure.

RIORESIDENT wrote:zach, what sole is on them? does your friends pair have the same sole? how old are they?

I would guess that they would replace those soles for free.

I got mine at cost about 7yrs ago from a girlfriend that worked at a paddling store.

My buddy got his about 8yrs ago when someone left them at his house (he never figured out who), he is onto a second pair now.

So neither of us are very good candidates for warranty service at this point.