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Munky

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Thank you, DWF and R. Rider for your usual, helpful, comments on my query about 'never polishing shoes'. I was fairly sure I had read that shoes can be a bit 'dry' straight out of the box. Do either of you use conditioner of any sort before you wear new shoes? I guess that you are the wrong people to ask, as I imagine you only wear shoes you have made yourselves!

Thanks, again.
 

RIDER

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Forgive me for bumping this but the answers I got don't fully answer my question. I know that I can darken my shoes by using darker cream polishes or wax; I have done that before. The problem I had with that method was that after some time the lighter colour shone through in the creases which looked very messy.

So my question remains: Will Juvacuir be adequate or will I need to buy some teinture française?


The Juvacuir should do the trick just fine......I don't think you need to go the dye route. Prep the area's you want to darken first with a little deglazer. Pretty much anything will do....turpentine, mineral spirits, etc. Nothing too harsh.
 

RIDER

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Here is a side-zip boot in what Allen Edmonds calls "polished cobbler": I'm pretty certain they won't take a polish, but is there anything I can do to at least condition them? Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
For leathers like this all that you really need to use is the simple cream self-shine products that can be had at virtually any repair shop or on Amazon. Tarrago, Kiwi, etc. The jars that come with the sponge applicator attached to the lid.
 

jaywhyy

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yeah, I don't polish shoes, just have them cleaned. I don't like that mirror finish thing that people love but if I wore black shoes all the time, I would probably polish them.
What do you use for cleaning? Lexol? I don't like having my shoes polished either.
 

halfnhalfnhalf

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Quote: Depends on what you put on them. Generally speaking, thin, watery conditioners go into the leather better than pastes or creams. If the shoes can get wet, a conditioners such as Lexol will follow/penetrate.

And if the finish is really dense and/or opaque it will begin to break down and come off as the shoe is worn and it creases. So it will be more open to conditioners in those areas...which are usually the areas that most need conditioning anyway.


Polished cobbler is, from my understandment, sanded/split and embossed leather which is quite unpenetrateable for conditioners.


Quote: For leathers like this all that you really need to use is the simple cream self-shine products that can be had at virtually any repair shop or on Amazon. Tarrago, Kiwi, etc. The jars that come with the sponge applicator attached to the lid.

Thanks, all!
 

arglist

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The Juvacuir should do the trick just fine......I don't think you need to go the dye route. Prep the area's you want to darken first with a little deglazer. Pretty much anything will do....turpentine, mineral spirits, etc. Nothing too harsh.

Thank you so much, Ron. I will try this then. I have ordered their leather soap and the HUSSARD spray to prep the shoes.
 

RIDER

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Thank you so much, Ron. I will try this then. I have ordered their leather soap and the HUSSARD spray to prep the shoes.


Sure. But, the spray and the soap won't get the sealer off to allow the Juvacuir to penetrate I'm afraid......you probably will have an easier time of it if you use something around the house (even alcohol) to remove the top coat and open the pores of the leather.
 

arglist

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Sure. But, the spray and the soap won't get the sealer off to allow the Juvacuir to penetrate I'm afraid......you probably will have an easier time of it if you use something around the house (even alcohol) to remove the top coat and open the pores of the leather.

Ah, I see. I have clean petrol or Saphir Renomat. Which would you prefer?

Very grateful for your help!
 

DWFII

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You may find that alcohol doesn't do it...won't remove the top coat. At least not without a lot of scrubbing. Nor would I recommend petrol, turpentine or mineral spirits. A lot of this depends on the type of top coat and what it is comprised of.

I'm not familiar with Renomat in actual usage but I suspect it would be your best bet. And no harm no foul if not entirely successful.

Of course, actual leather deglazer is the sure-fire way to remove finish and top coat although it is wise to recondition after using any highly evaporative product. As an alternative acetone.

And be sure to deglaze out of doors where you're not breathing the fumes.
 

patrickBOOTH

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Renomat is insanely effective at removing layers of polish, more so than pure acetone. I know it has acetone in it, but there is some other chemical in it that separates a bit in the bottle when still that when you shake it and mix it together it creates some sort of reaction that is really remarkable.
 

chogall

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IME, leather deglazer has the strongest striping strength, than renomat, dye preparer, acetone, renovateur, and than rubbing alcohol.

One method to strip is to apply strong solution one or two times, and use only weak solutions to strip away most of the color/dye. Make sure leather is dry or you risk damaging the top grain.
 

Beach Bum

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Do you guys use bare hands/fingers for applying renovateur? I used to then read some stuff here and got scared. So then I tried with latex (doctor) gloves but it's not as easy, so then tried with a cloth which works but still not as easy.

I'm now scared of chemicals in all of the Saphir and Collonil 1909 products I own after the on-going "scientific" debates here. I think from now I'm going to polish shoes while wearing a mask and gloves at all times.
 

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