**The Official Shoe Care Thread: Tutorials, Photos, etc.**

[Snaporaz]

Duplicate post.

 

[chogall]



Do you mean just Renovateur and Renomat cause I've seen Saphir shoe creams and waxes used in the Corthay shop in Hong Kong and I understand that JM Weston shoe creams are rebadged Saphirs?

The Hangar Project claims that Saphir is the choice of John Lobb, too, FWIW.

Do you seriously think makers finishs their shoes with saphir? Or their blend of burnishing cream and kiwis? Maybe I need to drink more renovator to believe the former...

Aftermarket creams from lobb or jm Weston are either saphir or LCA. Saphir is different than LCA.

 

[Snaporaz]

I can't see much disagreement, despite your tone, chogall. Don't we all suspect that some of the better shoe makers rebadge Saphir, rather than manufacturing their own shoe care products? It's still a recommendation of sorts.

I was under the impression that LCA was rebadged Saphir, too. "A Fine Pair of Shoes" certainly thinks so:

"All the travel kits contain creams and polishes by Saphir Medaille D'Or, privately labelled for LCA."

 

[chogall]



I can't see much disagreement, despite your tone, chogall. Don't we all suspect that some of the better shoe makers rebadge Saphir, rather than manufacturing their own shoe care products? It's still a recommendation of sorts.

I was under the impression that LCA was rebadged Saphir, too.

LCA and Saphir are different AFAIK. And according to Japanese reviews they are different. Or according to Tricker's, they are different.

Sure, shoe manufacturers sell rebadged waxes and creams. But the point is they don't use those products for manufacturing or finishing. So why should you?

 

[Snaporaz]

I accept that AFPoS might be wrong (see the edit to my last post) even though they stock both Saphir and LCA. Anyone know for sure?

The flippant answer is because I'm not manufacturing and finishing. The serious point is that their rebadging is a recommendation of sorts. Of course, they might simply be exploiting their customers' gullibility, if cheaper and better products are available...

 

[willsgillen]

I really cant see anything in the pics but as a general rule areas of roughness in old shell like this are are usually patches of old wax build up Try wiping the area with a damp rag if the rough patch appears duller than the surrounding surface it is probably old hard wax . Take a clean rag and rub the rough patch really hard if color shows on your rag it is wax Dont worry about harming the surface ive scrubbed shell under running water with a stiff bristle brush to remove wax and it dried and buffed up fine So if it is wax build up you can either remove it with solvents or elbow grease depending on your temperment If you determine it is NOT wax than it is probably dryness again a common problem with old shell. if that is the the case be sure to condition the vamp especially well as this area is prone to cracking . Condition several times before wearing the shoes and then wear them very lightly at first. I would do this irregardless of the cause of the roughness as old Florsheims are notorious for cracking in that area . I belive it is due to the older shell being thicker
It is really hard to judge in a pic but to be honest those shoes dont look dry to me but i personally would not chance it once they crack thats all she wrote

Thanks so much for the reply, that's definitely useful info... I did notice that the rough area seemed to smooth out a bit with some serious rubbing, so this evening I'll give it a go with the rag and see how it goes. They don't look bad, per se, because the toecaps still shine really nicely. I'd just prefer if the vamps would be nice and smooth too. I've seen some pics of others on this forum with a similar problem, but it does make sense that old wax build up would look like that.

 

[patrickBOOTH]

People, you are leading to incorrect conclusions about what I am saying. I am not saying Saphir products are causing cracked leather, I am saying using renovateur as a conditioner exclusively is cracking leather. If it is not cracking the leather itself, then a lack of another proper leather conditioner like Lexol, or Bickmore IS leading to cracked leather. RENOVATEUR IS NOT a good conditioner. It IS a good cleaner and rejuvenator before polish is applied on areas like the toe and heel and whatnot.

I totally agree on that Presidential shine bullshit. Kirby, I love ya, but honestly out of experience the "less is more" approach is much better. I mean applying a heavy solution of acetone to my shoes, only to grease them with dubbin? Really? Seems awfully counter productive. One step forward, two steps back if you ask me.

 

[patrickBOOTH]



Do you mean just Renovateur and Renomat cause I've seen Saphir shoe creams and waxes used in the Corthay shop in Hong Kong and I understand that JM Weston shoe creams are rebadged Saphirs?

My Corthays are by far in the worst condition out of my of my shoes and are some of the newest. Run with that how you'd like.

 

[patrickBOOTH]

I'll also mention that my girlfriend uses saphir cream on her shoes without anything else because she can't be bothered with doing anything else. She beats the hell out of her shoes. Scuffs them up, rain, sleet, snow and so on and some of them are holding up better than mine. Mind you, all of her shoes are vintage thrift store finds. A jar of Saphir costs more than she pays for shoes. She just doesn't care. So bottom line, don't use reno for conditioning.

Also, in that reposted pic of those boots. I doused those in Lexol before I used Saphir. Must be why they've held up.

 

[JermynStreet]

Which lexol bottles do you gentlemen buy? Links would be helpful. Thanks!

 

[patrickBOOTH]

The brown ones? Why does it matter? They sell them everywhere I get them a shoe repair places locally.

 

[Al in Philly]

Amazon sells Econo sizes of Lexol...

 

[patrickBOOTH]

Well, I should bring this up. Lexol doesn't last forever in a jar, even when unopened. This plus the fact that you don't need to use a lot of it means you should buy smaller amounts of it to keep it fresh. I have come across bottles of it sitting on dusty shelves of shoemakers that are hard as a rock. I guess sitting there for a long time unused it tends to thicken. Lexol says the bottles have a shelf life of about 5 years.

 

[Al in Philly]

I was just making a point that Google could probably help the Lexol search a little better than asking here.

 

[JermynStreet]



The brown ones? Why does it matter? They sell them everywhere I get them a shoe repair places locally.

Well there is orange and there is brown. I presume they are different cleaners with different uses?