**The Official Shoe Care Thread: Tutorials, Photos, etc.**

[leetpuma]

I assume you're talking about MdO wax, but since you speak of drops you may be talking about cream. The final result doesn't change.

As DWFII said, try to think about leather as skin. Touch it, look at it: it feels dry? Then strip out the wax and condition it. It feels still supple? Leave it as it is.

Also don't overuse products on cordovan, the fatness of the leather itself is enough to give it a shine, if you rub it with a clean cloth.

I was talking about the crème MDO http://www.hangerproject.com/shoe-care/brand/saphir/saphir-renovateur.html Sorry about being ambigious.

So I guess Ill need to ge an leather cleaner and make sure that the leather does not look dry.

Do you know if Lexol Leather Cleaner is comparable to Reno'mat?
http://www.amazon.com/Lexol-1108-Leather-Cleaner-236mL/dp/B000QFN36M
http://www.hangerproject.com/saphir-reno-mat-cleaner.html

 

[konda]

^ Hold your horses leet. You can use a simple antiseptic solution that has alcohol in it to clean your shoes. It is just as effective as Renomat and you can wipe your shoes clean of all color with it if you so wish.

For basic conditioning you can use either Renovateur or MDO cremes. They both contain the same stuff. Personally I condition dry leather with Renovateur and apply MDO pate as I think pate gives a better shine compared to MDO cremes.

Then again cremes have more pigments so if you want to change the color of you shoes, cremes are a good place to start.

Personally I only use cremes on full grain / pebble grain shoes.

 

[MoneyWellSpent]

I just exchanged emails with AE about the leather on my Chesters. They call their shiny leather Polished Cobbler and when I asked if it means corrected grain or top grain, the answer to both questions was no. So go figure!

Corrected grain has certainly been drilled into everyone's head as being "the devil's shoe leather."

However, it isn't always that way. Sometimes it is deliberately chosen with no pretense for deceiving the consumer, because of some "desirable" property it may contain. Is it as high quality as full grain leather? No. But that may not be the point in some cases. I wouldn't be surprised if the knee jerk reaction by some less informed customer service representatives (the fact that they are less informed is a separate issue) is to answer no to such a question. AE does use some corrected grain leather, and their Polished Cobbler is one of them. They also use a "brush-off" leather that is corrected grain.

The leather didn't come that way straight from the animal. I've never seen a species of cow that has a shiny, smooth, poreless, plastic looking hide.

 

[anrobit]

Corrected grain has certainly been drilled into everyone's head as being "the devil's shoe leather."

However, it isn't always that way. Sometimes it is deliberately chosen with no pretense for deceiving the consumer, because of some "desirable" property it may contain. Is it as high quality as full grain leather? No. But that may not be the point in some cases. I wouldn't be surprised if the knee jerk reaction by some less informed customer service representatives (the fact that they are less informed is a separate issue) is to answer no to such a question. AE does use some corrected grain leather, and their Polished Cobbler is one of them. They also use a "brush-off" leather that is corrected grain.

The leather didn't come that way straight from the animal. I've never seen a species of cow that has a shiny, smooth, poreless, plastic looking hide.

I absolutely agree with this assessment. For example, all country grain, pebble grain, and nearly all scotch grain on the market today is corrected. It's done so for a reason.

It's certainly possible to still have a good corrected grain leather

 

[kentyman]

I just exchanged emails with AE about the leather on my Chesters. They call their shiny leather Polished Cobbler and when I asked if it means corrected grain or top grain, the answer to both questions was no. So go figure!

I wouldn't be surprised if the knee jerk reaction by some less informed customer service representatives (the fact that they are less informed is a separate issue) is to answer no to such a question. AE does use some corrected grain leather, and their Polished Cobbler is one of them. They also use a "brush-off" leather that is corrected grain.

Yeah, I think this CSR misinformed you.

 

[snchz]

Hi, I have a pair of Red Wing cooper Yuma boots and after months of intensive use I think is time to condition them. They are light brown and I would like to mantain the colour as much as possible. What conditioner should I use?

http://unionmadegoods.com/product/red-wing-6-inch-round-toe-in-copper-yuma-leather-2963/


I suppose than Mustang paste, Mink oil and this kind of conditioners will darken the colous a lot.

Could be Saphir renovateur a solution?




Thanks!

 

[anrobit]

Hi, I have a pair of Red Wing cooper Yuma boots and after months of intensive use I think is time to condition them. They are light brown and I would like to mantain the colour as much as possible. What conditioner should I use?

http://unionmadegoods.com/product/red-wing-6-inch-round-toe-in-copper-yuma-leather-2963/


I suppose than Mustang paste, Mink oil and this kind of conditioners will darken the colous a lot.

Could be Saphir renovateur a solution?




Thanks!

I don't find saphir renovateur to be a good condition, although it is a good polish renewer.

For your case, I would recommend something like a light application of coconut oil, which I use as my general conditioner. Some of the other heavier conditioners will also do well, but I would not recommend mink oil at all. Whatever you apply, use a light hand.

 

[Munky]

Expecting shoemakers/retailers/factories to be honest about the leathers they're using is absolutely hopeless. Many won't even disclose where/who makes their shoes.

If you are right, Anrobit - and I am sure you are - how is anyone expected to make an informed decision about what shoes to buy?There will be people on here who recognise, at a glance, different types of leather. I would imagine, though, that the vast majority of the shoe buying public wouldn't be able to do that. It seems to me that the issue isn't just about price, either.

 

[Munky]

There is no fool like an old fool. I e-mailed the company that made my 'sale' shoes to ask them about the leather that they were made of. In a standard, 'we have received your message' was a 'FAQ' that went as follows. I couldn't and didn't make it up:

Q. My shoes leak in very wet weather.

A. [name of company] shoes are a Goodyear Welted construction; there is no way to ensure that they will be completely waterproof. The sole is stiched to the upper leather, the stiching will never completely plug the hole it is channelled through. If you do feel that it is excessive, please feel free to return the shoes for our Quality Control Manager to inspect them.

'Excessive?'

We live in interesting times.

 

[anrobit]

There is no fool like an old fool. I e-mailed the company that made my 'sale' shoes to ask them about the leather that they were made of. In a standard, 'we have received your message' was a 'FAQ' that went as follows. I couldn't and didn't make it up:

Q. My shoes leak in very wet weather.

A. [name of company] shoes are a Goodyear Welted construction; there is no way to ensure that they will be completely waterproof. The sole is stiched to the upper leather, the stiching will never completely plug the hole it is channelled through. If you do feel that it is excessive, please feel free to return the shoes for our Quality Control Manager to inspect them.

'Excessive?'

We live in interesting times.

I'm not sure what you mean. GYW construction isn't waterproof and will never be waterproof.

"Excessive" was likely just misuse of a word.

 

[PCK1]

I don't think that excessive is a misuse.

They are just trying to say that if you think the shoe is defective beyond what can be expected of a goodyear welted shoe in rain then you can return it to be inspected.

 

[Munky]

Ok, thank you guys. It was just a misunderstanding on my part. I thought that Goodyear welting would be waterproof. Thanks for your help on this issue. Munky.

 

[CalzolaiFeF]

The only real waterproof constructions are Veldtschoen and Norvegese, since there is no free space between upper and sole.

 

[Munky]

Just to be clear on this; I asked them about the leather they used in making their shoes. Their 'automatic response' contained the information, above, as a series of FAQ's in their reply. I didn't ask them whether or not their shoes were waterproof, they offered this info. as part of their automatic response. They haven't got back to me about the leather they use.

I suppose that part of me is still slightly surprised by the idea that GW is not waterproof. What would people recommend we use it wet weather? We have a lot of it in the UK!

 

[anrobit]

Just to be clear on this; I asked them about the leather they used in making their shoes. Their 'automatic response' contained the information, above, as a series of FAQ's in their reply. I didn't ask them whether or not their shoes were waterproof, they offered this info. as part of their automatic response. They haven't got back to me about the leather they use.

I suppose that part of me is still slightly surprised by the idea that GW is not waterproof. What would people recommend we use it wet weather? We have a lot of it in the UK!

It's pretty water resistant, and for most cases does fine in wet weather. However, it isn't truly waterproof. From what I know of UK weather, it's usually fine. I've completely submerged GY welted shoes in water before without getting my feet wet.