Cheaney

[Tim Apple]

Hi, I'm actually curious on how things turn up now

What I have learned so far as that no matter how little Renovateur I use on my boots, there's a white, waxy residue left behind that really shows up upon inspection. Cheaney's recommendation is simply not that great. I want my boots to be protected by some kind of wax as I wear them out in the winter time. I like the whisky color and to me it's a mixture of brown and red. So I tried polishing them with a burgundy polish, also from Saphir. It actually works pretty good. The boots look very good and whatever wax coating is provided by the polish, is pigmented and not visible.

I dont know how you use a neutral colored wax as it will be white colored and very very visible.

 

[suitforcourt]

Trafalgar.

 

[Satmoche]

Hi,

Does anyone have the Harley in their 'Black Piccolo'?
I do wonder what the fit is like and whether the grain is very much visible.

 

[Northants bloke]

 

[Tim Apple]

Do any folks in the US send their shoes back to Cheaney for refurbishment? If yes, did you find the results worth the cost?

 

[suitforcourt]

Do any folks in the US send their shoes back to Cheaney for refurbishment? If yes, did you find the results worth the cost?

I sent my Church's back to England from Canada. Never again.

Find a local cobbler to customize what you want done.

 

[Tim Apple]

I sent my Church's back to England from Canada. Never again.

Find a local cobbler to customize what you want done.

What was your bad experience?

 

[Northants bloke]

Cheaney Sherwood. These are actually green. Sorry not obvious from the photo

 

[suitforcourt]

What was your bad experience?

The work as promised on the website, wasn't done. They did not insert the original lasts to pull the uppers over. They did not replace the original insole. They simply glued a new insole over the original.

After receiving them back, I contacted Church's and pointed out the obvious issues. They asked me to ship them back at their costs. They then came up with some BS excuse that the shoes were too told to have the uppers pulled over the last, and that the original insole wasn't strong enough to be removed and replaced.

They offered me 50% discount for the repair.

I'd rather deal with a skilled and reputable local cobbler. I've had over 20 pairs of footwear rebuilt by cobblers and I can customize things.

 

[Shoemog]

The work as promised on the website, wasn't done. They did not insert the original lasts to pull the uppers over. They did not replace the original insole. They simply glued a new insole over the original.

After receiving them back, I contacted Church's and pointed out the obvious issues. They asked me to ship them back at their costs. They then came up with some BS excuse that the shoes were too told to have the uppers pulled over the last, and that the original insole wasn't strong enough to be removed and replaced.

They offered me 50% discount for the repair.

I'd rather deal with a skilled and reputable local cobbler. I've had over 20 pairs of footwear rebuilt by cobblers and I can customize things.

That's really bad!! Were the shoes that bad in the end?

Not from USA but had a very positive experience from both Crocket & Jones + Loake factory. Both were sole faults which they refitted and re polished almost as new!! They weren't that old to be fair but it was really good.

 

[Tim Apple]

The work as promised on the website, wasn't done. They did not insert the original lasts to pull the uppers over. They did not replace the original insole. They simply glued a new insole over the original.

After receiving them back, I contacted Church's and pointed out the obvious issues. They asked me to ship them back at their costs. They then came up with some BS excuse that the shoes were too told to have the uppers pulled over the last, and that the original insole wasn't strong enough to be removed and replaced.

They offered me 50% discount for the repair.

I'd rather deal with a skilled and reputable local cobbler. I've had over 20 pairs of footwear rebuilt by cobblers and I can customize things.

That sounds really awful, but it's not a Cheaney experience. Cheaney says your shoes come back in virtually new shape. That's enticing. Also, I have many Imperial collection shoes. The soles on these are much more intricate than a standard sole so am not sure how well a 3rd party would be able to re-sole them.

 

[Shoemog]

Channel stitching is not quite the dark art they make it out to be. Whilst its not a job for the supermarket cobbler (no offence Timpson or equivalent!) it can be done by skilled ones. It's work asking who the local shops might use - there's a 'famous' cobblers (a few others actually) whom all the jermyn street brand use for either smaller repairs or if going back to factory isn't possible for whatever reason. They don't have the original last of course but the one I know can do all sorts of resoling and touch ups.

 

[Tim Apple]

Channel stitching is not quite the dark art they make it out to be. Whilst its not a job for the supermarket cobbler (no offence Timpson or equivalent!) it can be done by skilled ones. It's work asking who the local shops might use - there's a 'famous' cobblers (a few others actually) whom all the jermyn street brand use for either smaller repairs or if going back to factory isn't possible for whatever reason. They don't have the original last of course but the one I know can do all sorts of resoling and touch ups.

What is the point of "the original last"?

 

[suitforcourt]

That's really bad!! Were the shoes that bad in the end?

Not from USA but had a very positive experience from both Crocket & Jones + Loake factory. Both were sole faults which they refitted and re polished almost as new!! They weren't that old to be fair but it was really good.

That sounds really awful, but it's not a Cheaney experience. Cheaney says your shoes come back in virtually new shape. That's enticing. Also, I have many Imperial collection shoes. The soles on these are much more intricate than a standard sole so am not sure how well a 3rd party would be able to re-sole them.

Channel stitching is not quite the dark art they make it out to be. Whilst its not a job for the supermarket cobbler (no offence Timpson or equivalent!) it can be done by skilled ones. It's work asking who the local shops might use - there's a 'famous' cobblers (a few others actually) whom all the jermyn street brand use for either smaller repairs or if going back to factory isn't possible for whatever reason. They don't have the original last of course but the one I know can do all sorts of resoling and touch ups.

What is the point of "the original last"?

Fair point that Cheaney is not Church's.

I agree that a skilled reputable cobbler can do anything in terms of repair, AND also customize anything you want.

The original last while nice, is not absolutely necessary. Cobblers can adapt the lasts they have on hand, to be modded to fit your shoe.

Let us know what you decide! And post your pics and a review. I have some Cheaney boots and may send back to them if other enthusiasts have a positive experience.

 

[Northants bloke]

I've had 2 pairs refurbished by Cheaney. Not such a difficult choice as I live nearby. I don't very often as I have a large rotation and also find that the price of buying seconds competes with the price of refurbishment.

The first pair, a pair of grain leather Derby brogues in a sleek 205 last were very much worth it. The kind of uppers that age well.

The second pair were suede chukkas. I had worn the dainites thin, the heels completely and worn holes in the lining. Cheaneys replaced everything and patched over the linings but the fitting to the sole at the back of one boot wasn't great. In general the work still left them looking worn out so not worth it. I eventually replaced them and should have done so earlier.