Ask your shoe repair questions here:

[yukari]

Seams like the heel is not balanced correctly. Can you send a pic of the profile at eye-level? I'm trying to see exactly where the sole hits what would be the walking surface. I'd also like to see the angle the heel is resting at when the sole is touching the walking surface.

Here's an album with a picture of the sole at eye level and also a closer picture of the heel.

 

[Nick V.]

Here's an album with a picture of the sole at eye level and also a closer picture of the heel.

As I thought.....the heel is not leveled correctly. It's to high in the breasting area. My guess is that you feel sort of a ridge laterally across under the front portion of the heel of your foot.
If you bring them to a cobbler he/she should be able to correct the problem. I've seen where shops grind down the high area of the top-lift to get it leveled. That's not the right way of doing it though. To do it correctly the top-lift should be removed then the base gets leveled. Once the base is leveled correctly a new top-lift is attached. That should solve your problem.....

 

[coloRLOw]

Hi Nick

i have a brand new shoe, but there are some cracks on the vamp.

do you think it's the low quality of leather or just caused by the crack of wax?

many thanks!

 

[Nick V.]

Hi Nick

i have a brand new shoe, but there are some cracks on the vamp.

do you think it's the low quality of leather or just caused by the crack of wax?

many thanks!
View attachment 1113104

Hard to say with certainty from the picture. However, my best guess is that it's in the leather.
If you apply some cleaner such as Reno Mat to an affected area and let dry you can determine if it's wax. The cleaner will remove the wax. If the cracks still remain, then you know it's the leather. Sometimes the cleaner will stain the cracks making the damage less noticeable. Try to apply the Reno in an inconspicuous area at first and condition after it dries.

 

[coloRLOw]

Hard to say with certainty from the picture. However, my best guess is that it's in the leather.
If you apply some cleaner such as Reno Mat to an affected area and let dry you can determine if it's wax. The cleaner will remove the wax. If the cracks still remain, then you know it's the leather. Sometimes the cleaner will stain the cracks making the damage less noticeable. Try to apply the Reno in an inconspicuous area at first and condition after it dries.

thank you very much, Nick!
I will try Reno later.

 

[Nick V.]

thank you very much, Nick!
I will try Reno later.

No prob.
Let us know.....

 

[Billy love]

I received these AE Shell Leeds today and I noticed the heels are not the same size. Will this give me problems wearing them? Should I get a replacement pair?

 

[Nick V.]

I received these AE Shell Leeds today and I noticed the heels are not the same size. Will this give me problems wearing them? Should I get a replacement pair? View attachment 1114341

No question return them. It's just not an issue of the bases being different lengths but they are different heights as well.
The base on the right appears to be thicker than the one on the left. Could be that the correct bases were picked out of different bins -or- the wrong size base was accidentally tossed into the proper bin. Either way, return them.

 

[Jay MacCallum]

Ok,

So there were some blotches I still couldn't get out with the vinegar/water solution. I went to a local shoe repair place and he pointed me to the sapphire lotion cleaner. The bottle says to apply and wait 3 minutes... Well as you can see it removed the entire factory finish in the areas it was applied.

What is my next move? I have some AE brown cream polish on its way, but will I need to strip the entire shoe? Maybe blot the cream on these areas first and let it soak in before polishing the entire shoe?

 

[EZB]

Ok,

So there were some blotches I still couldn't get out with the vinegar/water solution. I went to a local shoe repair place and he pointed me to the sapphire lotion cleaner. The bottle says to apply and wait 3 minutes... Well as you can see it removed the entire factory finish in the areas it was applied.

What is my next move? I have some AE brown cream polish on its way, but will I need to strip the entire shoe? Maybe blot the cream on these areas first and let it soak in before polishing the entire shoe?

View attachment 1116108

View attachment 1116109

View attachment 1116110

View attachment 1116112

When I have used Saphir Renomat on my AE shoes, it has resulted in what looked like a removal of color like that. Then, If I just went over it with Renovateur and then Saphir Cream polish, it was back to normal...

 

[Jay MacCallum]

Would you expect similar results if I conditioned and polished (i.e. non Saphir products)

 

[EZB]

Would you expect similar results if I conditioned and polished (i.e. non Saphir products)

Quite possibly. I just only use Saphir, Bick4, and VSC.

 

[Nick V.]

Ok,

So there were some blotches I still couldn't get out with the vinegar/water solution. I went to a local shoe repair place and he pointed me to the sapphire lotion cleaner. The bottle says to apply and wait 3 minutes... Well as you can see it removed the entire factory finish in the areas it was applied.

What is my next move? I have some AE brown cream polish on its way, but will I need to strip the entire shoe? Maybe blot the cream on these areas first and let it soak in before polishing the entire shoe?

View attachment 1116108

View attachment 1116109

View attachment 1116110

View attachment 1116112

I'm a bit unclear....
What product specially did you use? When applying a cleaner it's always best to apply it over the entire shoe rather than a specific area. Did you use excessive pressure when you applied it? Normally using the same pressure you would use (or SLIGHTLY more) than the pressure you would use in checking your pulse is sufficient. Anything more is over-kill and can create some damage. Without knowing the product if it's a "lotion, cleaner" I doubt it removed the finish. Yes, it can make the finish appear dull but that's common with most leather lotions and cleaners. You can test that with a vigorous brushing using no products. Just brush. Most likely you will find the sheen will start coming back. I'm sure the cream polish will help but, start with the brushing technique and let's see where that leaves us.

 

[Jay MacCallum]

I'm a bit unclear....
What product specially did you use? When applying a cleaner it's always best to apply it over the entire shoe rather than a specific area. Did you use excessive pressure when you applied it? Normally using the same pressure you would use (or SLIGHTLY more) than the pressure you would use in checking your pulse is sufficient. Anything more is over-kill and can create some damage. Without knowing the product if it's a "lotion, cleaner" I doubt it removed the finish. Yes, it can make the finish appear dull but that's common with most leather lotions and cleaners. You can test that with a vigorous brushing using no products. Just brush. Most likely you will find the sheen will start coming back. I'm sure the cream polish will help but, start with the brushing technique and let's see where that leaves us.

Tried brushing, didn't help

I very lightly dabbed the lotion on. Some were probably more sizeable than others. After it sat on the surface for a few minutes, I rubbed it in lightly with a Loth.

There was no additional polish or conditioner on this pair of shoes. Factory stain that I originally spilled on.

Oh, and the lotion is truly called: Saphir cleaning lotion. I wasnt trying to be generic!

 

[EZB]

Tried brushing, didn't help

I very lightly dabbed the lotion on. Some were probably more sizeable than others. After it sat on the surface for a few minutes, I rubbed it in lightly with a Loth.

There was no additional polish or conditioner on this pair of shoes. Factory stain that I originally spilled on.

Oh, and the lotion is truly called: Saphir cleaning lotion. I wasnt trying to be generic!

I looked up the product, it is supposed to be less strong than Renomat. I've used Renomat and put polish over it to return it to normal. What brand are the shoes?