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

[MarioImpemba]

straight from the horse's mouth (so to speak), do not use Lexol on shell cordovan (just use it on calf/cow leather):

http://horween.com/products/brownout/#comment-462

"No Lexol! The Venetian is worth waiting for, and shell doesn’t need much in the way of products. A good horsehair brush and a soft, damp cloth will take care of them the majority of the time."

I have and still call bullshit on this. Nick gave absolutely no substantiation on to why Lexol would be bad, and it was just a passing remark. Also, DFWII is an advocate, from what I remember searching this exhaustively in the past, and dude seems highly knowledgeable.

I use Lexol on all my shell without issue. Some people also are against wax on shell, or advise sparingly. I use that, too. Maybe I'm just coo-coo. I also sno-sealed shell, and there's not really any reason to do that, lol. Maybe some detriment will show itself over time, but I have shell going on a year now that is a-OK.

I recommend people experiment and draw their own conclusions.

 

[MarioImpemba]

Is it just me, or does pebble-grain leather take a shine damn well?

 

[Numbernine]



Thank you for that run-on sentence that confused me for a few minutes.


The question was, is it really the best choice, or just the easiest? Or does it even really matter?

Thank you very much . Missing puncuation, lack of capitalization and indecipherable erudition are all areas that I particularly excell in . It is always a pleasure when someone takes note and is complementary.
What I intended to convey was the idea that unfinished shoe trees, while being not only the cheapest and most available , are also the best type for the job.
As to whether it matters or not depends on how quickly one wishes to put the shoe trees in after removing their shoes .
On the other hand, if the question of whether it matters or not was intended to be existential ,that is another matter entirely and I apologize for my clumsy attempt to answer a query meant to be rhetorical.

 

[Numbernine]



I have and still call bullshit on this. Nick gave absolutely no substantiation on to why Lexol would be bad, and it was just a passing remark. Also, DFWII is an advocate, from what I remember searching this exhaustively in the past, and dude seems highly knowledgeable. I use Lexol on all my shell without issue. Some people also are against wax on shell, or advise sparingly. I use that, too. Maybe I'm just coo-coo. I also sno-sealed shell, and there's not really any reason to do that, lol. Maybe some detriment will show itself over time, but I have shell going on a year now that is a-OK. I recommend people experiment and draw their own conclusions.

I know snoseal will darken shell considerably . How would you describe the effect of lexol in regards to appearance? I have an old pair of beater color 8 ptbs that I perform Dr Frankenstien experiments on regularly . It is amazing how durable this stuff really is . While calf is relativly easily " ruined" shell is pretty impervious imo to anything short of mechanical damage. I also would love to hear from anyone having first hand experince harming shell in some way through some misguided attempt to condition them . I personally dont use wax but not because i fear it will harm the leather . I just prefer the type of patina that develops on unwaxed shell

 

[OzzyJones]



Thank you very much . Missing puncuation, lack of capitalization and indecipherable erudition are all areas that I particularly excell in . It is always a pleasure when someone takes note and is complementary.
What I intended to convey was the idea that unfinished shoe trees, while being not only the cheapest and most available , are also the best type for the job.
As to whether it matters or not depends on how quickly one wishes to put the shoe trees in after removing their shoes .
On the other hand, if the question of whether it matters or not was intended to be existential ,that is another matter entirely and I apologize for my clumsy attempt to answer a query meant to be rhetorical.

^^^^chuckles^^^^

 

[mediahound]

I have and still call bullshit on this. Nick gave absolutely no substantiation on to why Lexol would be bad, and it was just a passing remark. Also, DFWII is an advocate, from what I remember searching this exhaustively in the past, and dude seems highly knowledgeable.

I use Lexol on all my shell without issue. Some people also are against wax on shell, or advise sparingly. I use that, too. Maybe I'm just coo-coo. I also sno-sealed shell, and there's not really any reason to do that, lol. Maybe some detriment will show itself over time, but I have shell going on a year now that is a-OK.

I recommend people experiment and draw their own conclusions.

while you are free to experiment all you want, i would tend to believe what Horween says since they know more than probably anyone else in the world about their own shell cordovan and caring for it.

 

[mrjester]

Thank you very much . Missing puncuation, lack of capitalization and indecipherable erudition are all areas that I particularly excell in . It is always a pleasure when someone takes note and is complementary.
What I intended to convey was the idea that unfinished shoe trees, while being not only the cheapest and most available , are also the best type for the job.
As to whether it matters or not depends on how quickly one wishes to put the shoe trees in after removing their shoes .
On the other hand, if the question of whether it matters or not was intended to be existential ,that is another matter entirely and I apologize for my clumsy attempt to answer a query meant to be rhetorical.

Well done good sir. I tip my hat to you.

The question is more like, why are unfinished shoe trees considered to be the best for the job if the reason to have them unfinished is to wick up moisture, and that obviously is not happening? Would it be better to have a shoe tree that has more ventilation so the moisture can evaporate instead of having one that covers the most surface area with unfinished wood to attempt soaking up the moisture? I'm a fan of putting them in right after since that's probably the best time to maintain the shape of the shoe so I hate to leave them out for 15-30 minutes while the shoe dries. Maybe those cheapy plastic shoe trees are theoretically better.

This is really just playing devils advocate. I love my Epic shoe trees and will continue to slightly overpay for them from THP.

 

[MarioImpemba]

How would you describe the effect of lexol in regards to appearance?
I personally dont use wax but not because i fear it will harm the leather . I just prefer the type of patina that develops on unwaxed shell

Lexol has no effect on appearance, other than when combined with ample brushing will restore a clean sheen to your shoes.

Also agree with your comment regarding wax; letting the shell do the work, not products, is best IMO.

while you are free to experiment all you want, i would tend to believe what Horween says since they know more than probably anyone else in the world about their own shell cordovan and caring for it.

I would prefer more extrapolation of the science behind why lexol would be bad, or at least empirical evidence, of which neither were provided; kinda hard for me to swallow given their attachment to venitian creme.

 

[patrickBOOTH]



Is it just me, or does pebble-grain leather take a shine damn well?

Because pebble grain is a form of "correction" to leather

 

[patrickBOOTH]



Lexol has no effect on appearance, other than when combined with ample brushing will restore a clean sheen to your shoes.

Also agree with your comment regarding wax; letting the shell do the work, not products, is best IMO.


I would prefer more extrapolation of the science behind why lexol would be bad, or at least empirical evidence, of which neither were provided; kinda hard for me to swallow given their attachment to venitian creme.

Venetian is ****, IMO. Nothing more than a neutral polish

 

[mediahound]

Venetian is ****, IMO. Nothing more than a neutral polish

i like it a lot for shell although shell hardly needs any product. not sure how good it is on calf leather tho.

i've used the AE leather conditioner/cleaner on regular leather and it seems to do a good job. when it runs out, i think i'll try the bick 4 stuff on calif.

 

[Numbernine]



Venetian is ****, IMO. Nothing more than a neutral polish

+ 1 I find that it does the@ same thing renovateur does only not nearly as well. The only reason I can see for using it is to save a couple bucks. Also I spent years working around organic solvents and toxic chemicals in industrial applications and I def get that vibe off the stuff . I still dont understand why we , in the construction industry, are required to provide msds ( material safety data sheets)
on every chemical compound brought onto a jobsite, regardless of its hazard potential,yet I cannot find out the chemical makeup of stuff I wear on my feet every day all day long .Whats up wit dat ????

 

[Numbernine]



i like it a lot for shell although shell hardly needs any product.  not sure how good it is on calf leather tho. 

i've used the AE leather conditioner/cleaner on regular leather and it seems to do a good job. when it runs out, i think i'll try the bick 4 stuff on calif. 

I live in calif. and you keep that bick4 stuff away from me !!!

 

[mediahound]

+ 1 I find that it does the@ same thing renovateur does only not nearly as well. The only reason I can see for using it is to save a couple bucks. Also I spent years working around organic solvents and toxic chemicals in industrial applications and I def get that vibe off the stuff . I still dont understand why we , in the construction industry, are required to provide msds ( material safety data sheets)
on every chemical compound brought onto a jobsite, regardless of its hazard potential,yet I cannot find out the chemical makeup of stuff I wear on my feet every day all day long .Whats up wit dat ????

venetian shines better on shell ime, it seems to have more wax than renovateur. if you're not putting wax over it, venetian seems better. it's also made in usa so that's another difference.

 

[MarioImpemba]

Adding fuel to the fire...

http://imgur.com/a/EC8gN




Never used it myself, so no idea what to think.