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Sigh. I got a minor tear in my Lobbs..

vanco

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Had a little accident while being slightly too vigorous in brushing a pair of my Lobbs the other day resulting in the wooden grip of the brush scraping the toe of the right shoe. Hard. As the wood wasn't really smooth or filed down, needless to say, it left some heartbreaking damage to the toe. As the pictures show, apart from the "impact bruises" causing some deep creasing, a small flap of leather has come loose where the brush grip literally tore the upper layer off. Resulting in the shoe equivalent of a scraped knee one would get from falling of a bicycle.

With that analogy (and leather being skin really...
blush.gif
), I cleaned the area delicately, put the loose flap back on and put a small layer of cream on top, rubbing it in slowly. Needless to say, that didn't do jack.. and now I'm left deciding whether or not to take it to a cobbler/shoe repair, or to do some DIY at home .. Not sure if I can even find a leather repair kit here in Singapore, or a place that can sort this out... Realistically, i'm probably gonna take it to a cobbler. But i'm just wondering if there's gonna be any issues with polishing that area in the future... sigh.
confused.gif





 

ginlimetonic

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being creative here... small dab of superglue to glue the patch back on? Cover up with polish?
 

jrd617

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This is why I will never own a pair of shoes over $450. I'm fine with benchgrade.
 

theoldadage

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Originally Posted by jrd617
This is why I will never own a pair of shoes over $450. I'm fine with benchgrade.
Constructive. I would take them to a decent cobbler. Are there any shoemakers near you?
 

Wideknot

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If they are Lobb bespoke, seems to me that "send them back to Lobb" would be the best option. If they are Lobb RTW then "send them back to Lobb" is probably the best option as well. While the damage is definite, it is not extensive, and I would be really leery of dropping off a $1,000.00 shoe (RTW; $5,000.00? bespoke) at a local rip-and-resole operation. It is very easy to make something bad into something terrible if you don't have experience dealing with it.
 

ter1413

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Bro.....Those shoes/color isn't something that will have a "gleaming" shine if you brush for 20 sec or 20 min. Take it easy with the brushing.
 

patrickBOOTH

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No way, no glue on that. I've gotten much worse cuts in my shoes and with some cream and wax you wouldn't even notice now. That is not worth losing sleep over pal, it can be fixed. Send them to Ron Rider if you are really nervous, he is a real corpse reviver.
 

vanco

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Haha..
laugh.gif
Thanks for the help guys! To be honest, the superglue idea did cross my mind a bit (It works great on vinyl and other faux leathers!) but dissipated just as quick! Guess I'll take it down to some of the local places and see what they have to say about it. Nah, they're not bespoke Lobbs. RTW they are. But nice nice RTW. And I
inlove.gif
the Museum Blue. Which is why it's even more upsetting as it damage, though small, is rather noticeable. And you're right, it's not a colour that will need "shining" at all... I guess I just gotta cut down on the brushing strength. Now that I think about it though, i've probably hit my other shoes a couple'a times the same way while brushing but never had such an experience. The leather on this pair does seem a tad softer and delicate than some of my other shoes though...including other Lobbs. To be honest, i'm not that bummed about the tear propagating further as a good cobbler (nope, as far as I know, no real good shoemakers around in Singapore. Pardon me if i'm wrong, but at least none that I know of..) would probably be able to stick it back on. Just worried of the possibility that he may/may not do a credible job - like a bad skin graft - resulting in more patchwork down the road. Oh well.
 

MalfordOfLondon

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From personal experience - even if you stick the flap back on - the improvement would be minimal. Over time you'll forget about it though. They'll look like they've got a bit more character
wink.gif
 

kirbya

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This type of damage seems inevitable, especially with your favorite pairs (at least in my experience). With the Lobb's, I agree with Wideknot on sending them back to them directly. At least reach out to them to see what their advice is. Maybe they have someone in New York they use. Otherwise, I'd just take them to a good cobbler and have them repaired. I've had the same thing happen (although not while cleaning shoes!!), and they've been repaired to my satisfaction.
 

isshinryu101

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minor damage like that is gonna be par for the course if you wear your shoes anyway. I can empathize with your frustration right now, however! the first scuff, scratch, etc always drives me crazy too.

I have to agree that that kind of minor damage helps the shoes build character.
 

vanco

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Originally Posted by StephenStyle
From personal experience - even if you stick the flap back on - the improvement would be minimal. Over time you'll forget about it though. They'll look like they've got a bit more character
wink.gif


Yeah, I know what you mean. First coffee stain on a new couch, first fender bender on a new car etc etc... Just didn't think the first big scuff on my new shoes would come within the first 2 weeks of owning them!... Haha...
 

bigbris1

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1. Leave as is.
2. Post in Shoes with Character thread.
 

CharlesAlexander

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Originally Posted by Wideknot
If they are Lobb bespoke, seems to me that "send them back to Lobb" would be the best option. If they are Lobb RTW then "send them back to Lobb" is probably the best option as well. While the damage is definite, it is not extensive, and I would be really leery of dropping off a $1,000.00 shoe (RTW; $5,000.00? bespoke) at a local rip-and-resole operation. It is very easy to make something bad into something terrible if you don't have experience dealing with it.

I think this is your best option.
 

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