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Dacks and other Canadian shoe brands

dadjeans

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They're a 9D
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suitforcourt

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suitforcourt

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Guess I'll have to keep thrifting :devil:

Thanks, brother. I am honestly flush with footwear.

70+ pairs of dress and work shoes.

20+ pairs of boots which is what I have transitioned to, during pandemic. Plus another vintage Canadian Slater pair incoming from @Jiqea .
 

Jiqea

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The early 50's SE Dack "Cambridge" U-wings that I purchased almost two weeks ago finally arrived. I did a bit of a restoration on them and they are ready to go for another 70 years. The laces are NOS 1940's US military surplus.

Here is one photo of them as found, and two photos after the clean-up. The soles and heels are virtually unworn. What wondrous things!

SE Dack Cambride Before.jpg
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Jiqea

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Today I set the pair of SE Dacks U-wings side by side with a pair of early 1960's "Bespoke Quality" U-wings (the Cambridge model). The SE Dacks were made from 1952-1958, after which the highest Dacks quality was the Bespoke Quality line. Both pairs are 10.5D. the leather on the 1950's pair is noticeably higher quality, although both are excellent. I prefer the somewhat understated "flying moth" toe medallion on the earlier pair. I also have a 60's pair in black. They were not made in black until the early 60's.

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stook1

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Today I set the pair of SE Dacks U-wings side by side with a pair of early 1960's "Bespoke Quality" U-wings (the Cambridge model). The SE Dacks were made from 1952-1958, after which the highest Dacks quality was the Bespoke Quality line. Both pairs are 10.5D. the leather on the 1950's pair is noticeably higher quality, although both are excellent. I prefer the somewhat understated "flying moth" toe medallion on the earlier pair. I also have a 60's pair in black. They were not made in black until the early 60's.

View attachment 1572291 View attachment 1572292

Clearly, you should just sell the junky ones to someone else. :-D :-D :-D

 

suitforcourt

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Canadian made service boots, courtesy of @Jiqea . These are Slater Imperial. Slater made boots and shoes for both military and police use. The stitching work is nice, but surprisingly the sole stitching is a little sloppy. 270 GYW.

At 9F or 9ee, the boots are a perfect fit, albeit a bit long. But I like to give my toes some wiggle room. I'm sending them off to Dan Frappier for speed hooks, toe taps, and sole protectors.

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Jiqea

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I wondered
Canadian made service boots, courtesy of @Jiqea . These are Slater Imperial. Slater made boots and shoes for both military and police use. The stitching work is nice, but surprisingly the sole stitching is a little sloppy. 270 GYW.

At 9F or 9ee, the boots are a perfect fit, albeit a bit long. But I like to give my toes some wiggle room. I'm sending them off to Dan Frappier for speed hooks, toe taps, and sole protectors.

View attachment 1572989 View attachment 1572990 View attachment 1572991 View attachment 1572992 View attachment 1572993
I wondered if they might be a tad long. But I am glad the width is right for you. I just got two more pairs in,made by Slater for the British Boot Shop in Calgary. Virtually the same boot but with the private label and no nailed waist; Size 11.5EEE and 12EEE.

Slater was located in Montreal ad went out of business in 1980. During the first half of the 20th century they were the king of Canadian shoe makers.

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Jiqea

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@dadjeans hooked me up with this lovely pair of 1950's Slater kangaroo derbys last week. Slater started offering kangaroo leather shoes in 1940, and continued into the early 50's. "The Slater Shoe for Quality", as seen on the ankle tag, was a line that shoes up in Slater's 1950 advertising. Size 12E.

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Jiqea

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Here is the men's boot page from the 1918 Canadian Simpson's catalogue. I wonder if there are any of these still lying around in small town closets? They were all likely thrifted by hobos in the dirty 30's.

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Jiqea

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I haven't been getting out to look for shoes much lately. To paraphrase Tom Waits, "the thrift spots spend my spirit, beat my head against the wall, two square toes and you still have to choose".

Nevertheless, and given the fact I faced near certain disappointment, I stopped at the local Value Village on my way back from Chapters. Much to my surprise, nestled tightly among the Aldos and Cole Haans was this lovely pair of mid 70's RCMP Bluchers made by Hartt. Hartt made RCMP boots and shoes from 1973-1998. These are early ones with thick double soles and the 7 nail waists. It is hard to find these shoes in brown. They are stamped RCMP at the waist on the insole. Maybe Tom was wrong.

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Quantum17

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The early 50's SE Dack "Cambridge" U-wings that I purchased almost two weeks ago finally arrived. I did a bit of a restoration on them and they are ready to go for another 70 years. The laces are NOS 1940's US military surplus.

Here is one photo of them as found, and two photos after the clean-up. The soles and heels are virtually unworn. What wondrous things!

View attachment 1572263 View attachment 1572264 View attachment 1572265
I am still amazed at the color transformation. It’s as if he fed them beets!!!!!!
 

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