<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>I paused in writing this long enough to run to my closet and relace all of my footwear. I took the laces out of one of each of my pairs of shoes & boots and laced it into the already laced matching shoe or boot. It works. With all of the footwear I own, I can thread the holes or eyelets with two laces of the same kind as I am using in them now. I have casual leather shoes, work boots, hiking boots, combat boots, running shoes and dress shoes... each with a different kind of lace (round or flat, thick or thin, leather strips or spun material of some sort, waxed or not). It's a variety, and they all worked.<p><hr></blockquote><p>I wanted to follow up on this a bit.<br><br>I read somewhere, perhaps on this forum, perhaps elsewhere, that flat shoelaces & bootlaces held a knot better than round ones. My recent experiences with a number of different types & lengths of laces certainly bears this out. I feel the knots are much more secure with flat laces than round ones. In fact, I have found that flat ones are easier to work with in every way (loosening, unloosening, tying, untying, keeping laces even with each other & keeping lace ends even with themselves) than round ones. This is true in every piece of footwear I own, yet replacing the round laces in my combat boots with flat ones seems... well, wrong, somehow (just from an emotional standpoint ).<br><br>Question: Does anyone know if round laces are stronger than flat ones? Is there a reason why round laces are used at times instead of flat ones? Is it just because they look nice and dressy? Or is there something more practical... something that might bear on the choice of which lace to select for possible use as emergency cordage?<br><br>Any knowledge or ideas at all would be appreciated.