how does spiderman stick to buildings if he wears gloves and boots ?

Question

I saw a picture for the film today in which he is on the side of a building but only touching it with his feet, but he is clearly wearing boots with soles. if he was bitten by a spider, then surely any sticky powers would not work if his skin is not in direct contact with the wall / ceiling. Though i would be interested to know if this is ever explained away in the comics.

i know it's not real. Suspend disbelief people. why bother answering if you're just going to be dull

Answer 1

How did Dr Richards explain it again. The super hero outfits are made from a special material he invented. They have unstable molecules that allow the fabric to attune to the powers of the individual(s) wearing them. That way when Giant man enlarges himself, he doesn't rip out of his clothes, and Johnny's outfit isn't burned to a crisp when he flames on.

When Spidey is wearing the symbiote, the costume then is actually a living sentient being

Answer 2

As far as I know, the comic-book explanation is just that he has to wear *really thin* shoes/socks so the sticky-powers can get through them--he can't wear normal rubber-soled sneakers or anything like that. Yeah, I know, it doesn't really work; it makes about as much sense as Superman being able to fly because the sun is yellow. However, Spidey has to wear shoes so his feet don't get cut up, and he has to wear gloves so he won't leave fingerprints all over the place and give away his secret identity. This is one of those things we just have to accept and let the story work itself out.

Answer 3

There are several possible explanations. First, let’s define our terms so we know what we’re discussing.

There is a power (in Champions super hero role playing game mechanics) called ‘clinging’ which enables a hero to stick to walls and climb. It is not explained how it works, that is a matter for the person designing the hero to explain. The overall power is the same, even though the underlying science, magic or force-of-will may be different; as well as the special effects. So I have seen several of these over the years.

One possibility is that there are fine hairs sticking out of Peter’s hands and feet; this is what was shown in the first movie, and it works fine for most purposes. In fact, in most episodes when he had to climb a wall without changing first (usually to FIND a place to change without being seen) Peter would stick his shoes in the back of his belt and climb barefoot (or at least, in his sock feet.) The tiny hairs are what real spiders use, and so it was reasonable to use them for the movie.

The second possibility is that his clinging works on the basis of Van der Waals amplification. The van der Waals forces are real physical forces (named for the Dutch scientist who discovered them) that cause tiny items to stick together (like sand or mud turning to stone at the bottom of the ocean.) Usually, they work only on the microscopic level, and take millions of years. Supposedly Peter can amplify the Van der Waals forces so that he can cling to things. This would allow him to stick to things like glass windows, where the little hairs would not work.

(Another reason that spiders are able to stick to surfaces, is that they are very light. A drop of water probably had enough surface tension to enable a real spider to climb walls. But Peter has put some weight on since his high school days.)

The third possibility is that Peter has an unconscious psionic power, which enables him to cling to things, a sort of limited range telekinesis.

[A similar sort of thins had been used to account for Superman’s ability to pick up an ocean liner in the middle without it breaking in half due to it’s own weight. Marvel’s Spider Woman supposedly clings to walls this way. ]

When coming into contact with the surface, Peter activates some sort of invisible psionic force field that binds his skin and the wall together like telekinesis, except that it cannot be used at range away from his body. It only works on things that he is actually touching.

This is the most powerful version of clinging, which would enable Peter to climb up even a sheer, bare, greased Teflon wall! He would not need to touch the wall with his hands or feet; he could just stick his butt to the wall to leave his hands and feet free for other tasks. (I don’t know whether Marvel has considered the potential uses for this variety of clinging. The image of Pete and Mary Jane, high above the city, um… ‘swinging’… but I digress. )

Many people like the implications of the third variety. This one would work through thick coverings like gloves and boots. (Especially thick protective gloves and boots, like the one son the spider-armor that iron Man gave him during Civil War.)

It suggests that his Spider-powers are actually much more powerful and flexible than he realizes; he just needs more time to learn about his powers and what they can do. Time will tell.

1 APR 07, 0308 hrs, GMT.

Answer 4

The costume that he wears is just a way to disguise his true identity but it still allows his power to be used at the full extent.... his suit is also very tight so when the glove and boots squeezes tightly onto his hand and body it can have a possibility of still having the chance of using the powers

Answer 5

well, spider-man's costume was deigned with his powers in mind. The fabric is thin enough that the hair like projections on his hands and feet can come through, and thus he is able to clicng to walls and ceilings. Being that Peter Parker is possessed of a genuis level intellect, he was able to divise such a fabric that while preserving the functionality of his abilities, is quite durable.

Answer 6

in the comics they said his suit was made of a variation of his web fluid that's why it could stick ,and in the comics he doesn't have soles on his shoes just a thin layer of fabric like his gloves that the hairs can go through

Answer 7

This was explained in several issues of his various books, and In Spider-Girl---Static electricity ! In one issue he was blasted by Electro and the dissipation of the static charge caused Spidey to lose his wall crawling powers for a while

Answer 8

Are you sure his hands are 'sticky'? I thought they had velcro-like micro-hooks on them, in which case they would be able to penetrate the glove fabric whilst still maintaining the outfit's sense of loveable heroicness.

Answer 9

Remember the hair gel scene in 'There's something about Mary'?

Yes?

Need I say more?

Answer 10

The suit becomes apart of him and by the way hes not real! Who cares just a fictional character