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

[DWFII]



@DWFII was watching one of those wild bush people of Alaska type shows and they took fresh hide and soaked it in a barrel with water and fireplace ashes....I forget how long they left it but they basically said it was what the used for raw hide...for wrapping tools handles with etc. Is that literally the most basic steps in leather production? Something that would date back to beginning of leather usage? Does stretching and air drying hide work as well?

I've read numerous accounts but they all seem to be so nebulous or far-fetched, all I can do is speculate...I wasn't around then.

Rawhide that is air dried will be brittle...we used to call them "flint hides." I suspect the ashes are used to slip the hair. When the rawhide is wet it may be stretched over handles, drum heads, saddle trees, etc. and as it dries it will shrink and become very stiff...and extremely strong.

It's hard to tell how leather tanning was discovered. Rubbing greases--brains--into rawhide and smoking it (is a well known method of preserving the hide. Probably a logical next step from smoking meat or fish.

Although that doesn't soften the hide--that requires a manual breaking down..."staking"...of the hide.

I always figured that perhaps the first intimations of vegetable tanning might have been the discovery that animals or people who died in ancient forest pools or peat bogs (wasn't Otzi found in a peat bog?) seemed to be better preserved.

I don't think we'll ever know.

 

[patrick_b]

I got you on your desired effect. Sounds more like oiled nubuck that you want to achieve.

I used to use Obenauf on some boots I used to walk on rainy days in casual attire and hiking boots. The tackiness is horrible. It sucks the dirt, small rocks, and all sorts of gunk along the way. It is even worse when I walk on muddy roads. I applied it in light coats, and the tackiness is still as horrible as ever. From then on, I only save the stuff for leather soles. To each of their own, maybe, but I won't use Obenauf LP on my boots ever, unless hell is going to break lose (Apocalypse) or I'm in the Fire Fighting Department.

As of whether if the tackiness disappear, my treated boots still remains tacky, even after six months straight haven't been worn again.

Given that I said I'm looking for a waxed flesh appearance, I'm still not sure you are getting the desired effect. Nubuck is a smooth leather.

To each their own...I'm having copeland flashbacks.

 

[mosy]

I would not get that first Woodlore as it doesn't have a full heel. The AE tree is fine, but if you need to stock up on trees the JAB 3 for $25 deal is probably the best deal around. Currently only buy 1 get one 50% off, but I'm sure it will be 3 for $25 again soon:
http://www.josbank.com/menswear/shop/Product_11001_10050_101593

thanks. regarding the JAB trees, i see the toe doesn't split. isn't that a disadvantage?

 

[Ironist]



thanks.  regarding the JAB trees, i see the toe doesn't split.  isn't that a disadvantage?

I think he's saying the advantage is very minimal for that model. If you want a better fitting shoe tree you want to either use the epic or the ultra.

With the right shoe, epic will be the best fit. However, the ultra will be more versatile and can fit more shoes.

Both are much better than the JAB or normal AE split since they have a full heel. Worth the extra money in my opinion if you are spending $400/500+ on a shoe. Otherwise I think the JABs work fine for cheaper shoes.

http://www.hangerproject.com/ultra-shoe-tree.html

http://www.hangerproject.com/epic-cedar-shoe-tree.html

Think there's a 10% off code somewhere...

 

[mosy]

I think he's saying the advantage is very minimal for that model. If you want a better fitting shoe tree you want to either use the epic or the ultra.

With the right shoe, epic will be the best fit. However, the ultra will be more versatile and can fit more shoes.

Both are much better than the JAB or normal AE split since they have a full heel. Worth the extra money in my opinion if you are spending $400/500+ on a shoe. Otherwise I think the JABs work fine for cheaper shoes.

http://www.hangerproject.com/ultra-shoe-tree.html

http://www.hangerproject.com/epic-cedar-shoe-tree.html

Think there's a 10% off code somewhere

Thanks!

this AE seems to have a full heel, no?:

http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Edmonds...bs_shoe_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0DAJRCKNFD2F8JEVATEE

if so, does the Ultra have any advantages over it?

 

[Ironist]



Thanks!

this AE seems to have a full heel, no?:

http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Edmonds-Mens-Combination-Cedar/dp/B000H92XZE/ref=pd_sbs_shoe_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0DAJRCKNFD2F8JEVATEE

if so, does the Ultra have any advantages over it?

That's not a full heel. Stick it in a shoe and you will see there are gaps. Better trees have less gaps. Ultra covers a bigger area so it fits better. Better wood and the knob is nicer and easier to use. Hard to quantify this. If you want cheap then go JAB. This is the next incremental step up. After this you go lasted.

 

[mosy]

That's not a full heel. Stick it in a shoe and you will see there are gaps. Better trees have less gaps. Ultra covers a bigger area so it fits better. Better wood and the knob is nicer and easier to use. Hard to quantify this. If you want cheap then go JAB. This is the next incremental step up. After this you go lasted.

Thanks again. I guess i do see that it's a bit of a fuller heel. when you say "go lasted", do you mean getting trees that were built for a specific last? i know AE does that? anyone else?

 

[traverscao]

Given that I said I'm looking for a waxed flesh appearance, I'm still not sure you are getting the desired effect. Nubuck is a smooth leather.

To each their own...I'm having copeland flashbacks.

OMG patrick_b, do you even get the term waxed flesh right? It means the naps are all slicked and solidly downed. If you want to retain the nap, then I'd be thinking of oiled nubuck or oiled suede. Or, you are trying to imitate the effects of Horween's stuff, were you (if you were, we may discussed a little more about that later)?

As of your post-traumatic stress disorder, either I have to get you a proper session of psychotherapy, possibly bringing another psychiatrist along who can organize drug treatments, or simply going to convince you right here that just because someone is not yet getting your intention, does not mean they are potentially copeland.

 

[traverscao]

If you do embark on the process please be sure to detail it...Will be very cool to see the process unfold. Do you have a sample of what the finished product should be like?

I only saw how it looks like, buddy, with DWFII's infos and all. I have had experiences with WWII roughout boots getting greased, burnished, and then polished, and stayed polished till this day. I've seen many examples of waxed calf boots, but have yet to even tough one. As of right now, I am toying with the idea, converting one of my boots into waxed calf (the pair was a vintage rough out combat boots).

Once I get settled in CA, it'll be a long list of work - "work", "Traver's method", and then this idea. But don't get excited already - it can literally take years to complete a project like waxed calf. I mean, if I am indeed lucky, then it'll be two years. But then again, it can take more.

 

[Joshua Lee]

Hi Gents,

Does anyone know of a professional shoe antiquing service in Europe? Recently I manufactured a line of suede weekender bags and one of them turned out a bit different than I wanted. I'd like to have someone professionally darken the light mint green color to a dark navy blue.

 

[RogerP]

Alexander Nurulaeff of Dandy Shoe Care in Italy. I know he has worked with suede. Worth dropping him a line.

 

[Fred G. Unn]



Thanks again.  I guess i do see that it's a bit of a fuller heel.  when you say "go lasted", do you mean getting trees that were built for a specific last?  i know AE does that?  anyone else?

AE does not offer lasted trees. I use Epics in a lot of my shoes and definitely recommend them. A few of my shoes have lasted trees (Vass, Buday, Alfred Sargent), a few have semi-lasted (Crockett & Jones, Meermin), and the rest are a mix of Epics, Saphir, and JAB. Woodlore is owned by AE, and makes branded trees for many other companies including JAB. If you are just starting with trees, or you need to purchase a bunch for AE level shoes or lower, I'd get the JABs when they are 3 for $25, as that deal is tough to beat. If you want to step up a level get the Epics. If you are purchasing for a much higher level shoe, then look into lasted or semi-lasted.

 

[Munky]

I have just bought a pot of Collonil, bright red, cream. I notice that it contains: " various types of wax - emulsifier- pigments - water - test gasoline - silicone oil - lanolin."

Are these Kosher things to put on your shoes? I always understood that Collonil made good products or is this just a blip in their cream department?

 

[DWFII]



I have just bought a pot of Collonil, bright red, cream. I notice that it contains: "[COLOR=111111] various types of wax - emulsifier- pigments - water - test gasoline - silicone oil - lanolin."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=111111]Are these Kosher things to put on your shoes?  I always understood that Collonil made good products or is this just a blip in their cream department?[/COLOR]

The test gasoline would give me pause.

That said, unless you're going to go with all natural products...such as GlenKaren...there's always going to be some sort of volatile solvent, generally petro-chemical in origin.

 

[Munky]

Thanks for that, DWF. One more subsidiary question. Is it reasonably to use only neutral polish on highly coloured shoes - for as long as the life of the said shoes?