hooray for shoe trees

[The_Foxx]

there may be more, and these are priced only for the true shoe-Appreciation enthusiasts, but just picked up a pair of shoe trees on ebay from RLPL. I believe the seller has more in other sizes; nice hardwood, hinged in the middle.

item 5357037730
seller ice*station*zebra

 

[Thracozaag]

Call me crazy, but I don't like the RLPL shoe trees. I much prefer the "regular" EG ones.

koji

 

[norcaltransplant]

I recently acquired a taste for antique hardwood trees. The second pair I bought broke while inserting into my Chelsea boots, but remain functional with a little Elmer's glue. My vintage Florsheim's fit my Lobbs almost perfectly, while I have a load of superb condition Yugoslavian trees en route that fit my C&Js and Greens extremely well. $100 for a little wood and varnish is just too pricey for me.

 

[Horace]

Concerning shoe trees, is there a benefit to a hardwood that isn't present in cedar? I wouldn't think so, but I certainly don't mind paying extra if the trees are made very well, as many of the older ones were.

 

[norcaltransplant]

Re: Hardwood antique trees

On materials
1) Cedar is more absorbent than hardwood.  Some complain "dries out" their shoes during prolonged storage.  I've never had this happen.
2) Cedar is softer and more prone to chipping or cracking.  I've had this happen with two different pairs. I also stepped on a tree in the middle of the night and broke the handle.

Why I choose hardwood antique:
1) Aesthetics, the old trees just look better in the shoes.
2) Assymetrical lasting--the old, hardwood trees are generally cut & constructed to a shape that approximates the last of the original shoes--or at least moreso than my cedar trees.
3) Support through the instep.  See above.  I know that Rochester/AE/Woodlore offers a model that provides support through the instep, but those versions retail for almost $30 and are rarely seen on Ebay for less than $20.
4) Cost: About the same for vintage trees as their cedar counterparts.
*5) the novelty of owning an antique.  Not as a cool as a burled walnut end-table from the 19th century, but far better than a beat-up Rochester box at Marshall's.

Oh, and the guy I'm buying from has 2 size 9's left in stock.  I can probably get them for $30-35 (or less??) shipped to your door.

 

[Horace]

Re: Hardwood antique trees

On materials
1) Cedar is more absorbent than hardwood.  Some complain "dries out" their shoes during prolonged storage.  I've never had this happen.
2) Cedar is softer and more prone to chipping or cracking.  I've had this happen with two different pairs. I also stepped on a tree in the middle of the night and broke the handle.

Why I choose hardwood antique:
1) Aesthetics, the old trees just look better in the shoes.
2) Assymetrical lasting--the old, hardwood trees are generally cut & constructed to a shape that approximates the last of the original shoes--or at least moreso than my cedar trees.
3) Support through the instep.  See above.  I know that Rochester/AE/Woodlore offers a model that provides support through the instep, but those versions retail for almost $30 and are rarely seen on Ebay for less than $20.
4) Cost: About the same for vintage trees as their cedar counterparts.
*5) the novelty of owning an antique.  Not as a cool as a burled walnut end-table from the 19th century, but far better than a beat-up Rochester box at Marshall's.

Oh, and the guy I'm buying from has 2 size 9's left in stock.  I can probably get them for $30-35 (or less??) shipped to your door.

Right.  And if one of the purposes of the cedar is to draw the moisture, and hardwood isn't very good at that, then I would think that hardwood would be a drawback.  But of course, I've seen the lobb bespoke trees in hardwood.