Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[CWOyaji]

Before deciding not to buy a pair with issues, I consider factors like price, intended use and underlying quality. Last week these Alden 983s showed up in a saved search I have on Ebay. The Van last is perfect for me and they fill a hole in my collection. Too bad about the Bond villain scratch on the vamp.

Some work with 400 grit sandpaper and Saphir #30 Bronzed Brown magic and I'm happy to wear them with jeans for everyday purposes. Maybe not to a wedding or fancy event, but since the defect doesn't affect usability I'm OK with a little Edward Scissorhands action in my shoes. I don't think people look too closely at them anyway and $50 Aldens are OK by me.

 

[suitforcourt]

Fellow vintage shoes fans,

Whats the most amount of wear acceptable to you when youre shopping for shoes?

And do you think cork soles can adapt still to a 2nd owner?

Pic is my aldens 99162 thrifted in tokyo (see posts above) on the shinkansen to kyoto. They fit very well and are comfortable right off the bat. They are well worn judging from the insole, though. I slapped a topy and toe brass plate

View attachment 2155355

I've bought shoes ranging from extremely worn and needed a full rebuild, all the way to NOS.

I always factor in costs of rebuild when buying. New cork, insole, and soles, usually remove most issues that they're really worn.

 

[suitforcourt]

Does resoling mean you have to break them in again somewhat? With the midsole being replaced as well, and only the cork footbed being kept? Im very new to shoes.



Amazing shoes! Congrats

For context, I've probably had over 20 pairs rebuilt. This involves new cork, midsoles and soles. Sometimes I ask for new insoles as well.

A rebuild as above, does take time to break in again.

Where do you live? I'm sure we can recommend a skilled reputable cobbler in your area.

I've used Wyatt and Father. Great craftsmen and easy to deal with.

 

[wolfdale]

For context, I've probably had over 20 pairs rebuilt. This involves new cork, midsoles and soles. Sometimes I ask for new insoles as well.

A rebuild as above, does take time to break in again.

Where do you live? I'm sure we can recommend a skilled reputable cobbler in your area.

I've used Wyatt and Father. Great craftsmen and easy to deal with.

This is very helpful, thank you very much! Right now I live in Brazil, where I probably own all the shoes in shell cordovan in the country. I’ve family in Atlanta, which I will be visiting in May, and I’m moving to NYC in August. I’ll be in Atlanta for like 3 weeks so I could find a cobbler there. I heard of Ansley? Pleasure to meet you btw!

How much do you think resoling recorking and changing the insole would cost? I like the upper in that pair of aldens enough that I think up to 300 usd would be worth spending on them (bringing total cost to 600)

Thanks guys!!

 

[friendlygoz]

A little GH action today…

 

[Satoman1]

The Stratford came, abit darker than my first pair but fit perfect. My first pair (on the right) was 11.5C and the new one is my right size 9.5E. Can't be happier.

Date code is AJ - same with the first pair - apparently they come from the same year.

If anyone is interested in the 11.5C pair, please message me. The price of the shoes is US$150. I'm in Vietnam so the shipping fee to the US or Canada will be around US$70.

 

[suitforcourt]

This is very helpful, thank you very much! Right now I live in Brazil, where I probably own all the shoes in shell cordovan in the country. I’ve family in Atlanta, which I will be visiting in May, and I’m moving to NYC in August. I’ll be in Atlanta for like 3 weeks so I could find a cobbler there. I heard of Ansley? Pleasure to meet you btw!

How much do you think resoling recorking and changing the insole would cost? I like the upper in that pair of aldens enough that I think up to 300 usd would be worth spending on them (bringing total cost to 600)

Thanks guys!!

Ask the cobbler for prices. Different jobs have different price points. I will say it will cost at least $200 USD for a reputable job. Absolutely do not shop for the cheapest option.

 

[Satoman1]

3 rounds of Renomat then conditioning the shoes back to beautiful red-ish tone.

 

[actionjbone]

With the chatter around cobblers, I thought I'd share a pair I just picked up from my local guy: my Sears LWBs.

We all talk a lot about the gems in our collection. But what about the ones that maybe aren't special, but that we still want to repair?

I started going to Nick's Shoe Repair years ago, before I knew anything about shoes. Nick's long since retired; his son's been a cobbler for decades. The prices are reasonable, he does quality work, and the community loves him so much that his lead time is a full month. But he doesn't have the advanced selection that Bedo's, Sunny, or Wyatt offer. He carries just one leather sole, for example. It's good, but it's not JR.

The first thing you may notice: no stitching on the outsole. I didn't think to ask why.

There's fresh stitching in the welt, and I didn't ask for anything in particular. He re-corked them and he re-used the existing midsole.

Did he hide the stitching? I think he's got the skill, and I know he's got the equipment. Was there an issue, and was gluing the best option? Maybe! Did he glue it on for no particular reason? Who knows! And on this pair, it doesn't really matter to me.

The factory outsole was cracking, so a full resoling was needed. When the fronts eventually wear down, I might have a topy put on instead of new leather soles. Whatever's economical - I like these shoes, but they're nothing special.

I have a couple pairs I plan to send to Sunny or Wyatt & Dad. But for some pairs, it's still worth shopping local

 

[sam67]

I had these 1977 AE Tulane(s) reworked a while back . New insoles, and the rest by Wyatt and Dad. Love em.

 

[mormonopoly]

Hoping for spring weather with these 1950s Florsheim ventilated wingtips.

 

[memoriastoica]

I had these 1977 AE Tulane(s) reworked a while back . New insoles, and the rest by Wyatt and Dad. Love em.


View attachment 2156869

The shark skin matches the rug. Nice!

 

[memoriastoica]

The Stratford came, abit darker than my first pair but fit perfect. My first pair (on the right) was 11.5C and the new one is my right size 9.5E. Can't be happier.

Date code is AJ - same with the first pair - apparently they come from the same year.

If anyone is interested in the 11.5C pair, please message me. The price of the shoes is US$150. I'm in Vietnam so the shipping fee to the US or Canada will be around US$70.

View attachment 2155901 View attachment 2155903

How are the heels on those 11.5Cs? The used versions of Stratfords I've seen have almost all had crumbling heels.

 

[Satoman1]

How are the heels on those 11.5Cs? The used versions of Stratfords I've seen have almost all had crumbling heels.

I've seen the crumbling rubber heel on some Stratford heel, but this pair just slightly worn but not crumpled, maybe because i havent wear it much.

 

[eTrojan]

Bostonian v-cleats. Tried to stop quickly on a tile floor to throw something in the waste can and almost ended up on ******. #SuicideHeels