Laces from paracord are durable and lend style to an otherwise shabby pair of boots. (Photo by Jess Mancini)

You’re tying your shoes and that last tug breaks the lace.

When it happens to me, I utter something likely to spoil the breakfast cloth, but no more.

I have a pair of Wolverine work boots that have honored me for about 20 years, maybe longer. They still look good. Laces have not stood the test of time.

Tougher shoe laces are on the market. Your humble scribe, however, is not going to spend from $12-$14 for Kevlar-braided laces or something like that. And I don’t like leather laces for some reason.

Without empirical data, I believe shoelaces break because of manufacturing defects, or substandard materials or the usual exposure to the elements and usage over time. Perhaps a child needing a project for the science fair can demonstrate how much force or abrasion is needed to break different brands of shoelaces.

The nylon filament in the paracord gives it strength. It is removed in this application. (Photo by Jess Mancini)

My solution was to find a material that will remain strong over time and not break the bank. I’ve never liked leather laces, so I came up with paracord and, like usual, found others had the same idea. It’s strong, inexpensive, available almost everywhere. Survivalists use it for who knows what, and I have some from an earlier project.

Less than $5 can supply enough paracord to make numerous pairs of shoelaces for about the same price as a pair from the store. I think I bought mine at Harbor Freight.

The first step is to use the old laces to measure the length of the paracord. I made mine about 3 inches longer than the original using the thinnest paracord I could find. The ends were fused with a lighter, then covered with heat-shrink tubing heated by the flame of the lighter. The tubing makes it easier to thread the lace through the eyelets of the shoe and prevents frayed ends.

I used them for several weeks, during which time I found the laces were awkward to tie and sometimes came untied. Maybe I don’t tie them the way they should. I don’t know if there’s a wrong way or a right way. I started double knotting and that solved the loosening issue, but the thickness problem remained.

“No big,” I said,

Note the difference in thickness. The cord without the filament is thinner and easier to tie. (Photo by Jess Mancini)

I cut off the ends of the shoelaces to remove the nylon filament, leaving the outer shell for the laces. The bulk was greatly reduced. The filament gives paracord much of its strength, but for the purposes of a shoelace, the outer shell should be more than enough.

I again fused the ends of the disemboweled paracord, then sealed them with heat-shrink tubing. The new laces are far superior.

I have had no problems, the laces still look good, and I’m not spoiling the breakfast cloth.

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Unless you think this column wasn’t enough of a waste of time, send ideas for “Wastin’ Time with Jess Mancini” to Jess Mancini at jmancini@newsandsentinel.com.