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RogerP

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The upside is that they're so discreet that I feel comfortable wearing it to the office, especially on Fridays.

View attachment 1136659

Me too.

orig.jpg
 

Zapasman

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@blekit

I have exactly the same issue as you’ve described above. A pair of Budapesters on F Last worn perhaps 8-10 times and on both insides (under the arch) of the shoes, the sole is visibly separating from the upper.

This is my first pair of Vass and I was wondering if it had anything to do with the hand welting. Been wearing Edward Greens for 15 years and never seen anything like this even on my oldest pairs which are now 10 years old.

View attachment 1138658 View attachment 1138659 View attachment 1138660 View attachment 1138661
No tight stitches. It is call "grinding" ¡f I recall correctly. They need to be rewelted.
 

bdavro23

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No tight stitches. It is call "grinding" ¡f I recall correctly. They need to be rewelted.

I believe the term is "grinning". As to whether they need to be remade, I would defer to the professionals.
 

Zapasman

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@bdavro23. Yes "grinning" is the term. I did not recall it correctly as I mentioned before. I was taught by a great professional (@DWFII) both the word and the need to take my shoes to the bottom maker for a new inseaming I did so for free, but you can always talk to someone else and ask them why.
 

DWFII

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Inseam sewing is loose. Could be poor technique, or poor materials. For instance, a nylon inseaming thread (nylon stretches) waxed with a paraffin based wax or at least a non-resinous wax can be near impossible to 'lock'. And will loosen up rather quickly.
 

TVGD

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Has anybody ordered their shoes with a rubber topy (not the full rubber sole)?

I ordered a pair of oxfords with a flushed metal toe tap and a thin rubber sole on top of the leather sole. The shoe is quite fine, however, I do find the soles somewhat thick. When I ordered the shoes at the Vass shop, the salesperson told me rubber topys are only available with a thicker sole (he called it the "1.5 sole" instead of the regular single sole). I'm somewhat surprised, as I think they could easily fit the rubber topy on the regular single sole and the shoe would look better.

See pics:
27kj6h.jpg


1fgky5.jpg
 

blekit

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My second Vass pair has arrived two days ago. My first pair was cap-to, quarter brogues oxfords in brown suede. Coincidentally it was another suede oxfords that I needed to replace in my humble collection - this time full brogues ones. Fortunately I found the suede used by Vass to be great and the overall quality of the shoes very high, that I didn't hesitate with pulling the trigger on ordering seemingly very similar shoes. This time I've made few adjustments. Firstly, I've asked them to add some more width in the toes area to the standard F last. Secondly I've chosen to add a metal toebox besides rubber topy. The shoes made they maiden voyage yesterday and I'm very happy with how they look and fit.

20190314_142029.jpg


20190314_142236.jpg


20190314_142110.jpg

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PS. There is one thing that isn't perfect though. One of the screws attaching toebox fell out. I've sent the pictures to Vass and am awaiting their response. I'll see how they handle they case but my previous experience with their customer service is very good so I'm an optimist here as well.
 

bdavro23

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Has anybody ordered their shoes with a rubber topy (not the full rubber sole)?

I ordered a pair of oxfords with a flushed metal toe tap and a thin rubber sole on top of the leather sole. The shoe is quite fine, however, I do find the soles somewhat thick. When I ordered the shoes at the Vass shop, the salesperson told me rubber topys are only available with a thicker sole (he called it the "1.5 sole" instead of the regular single sole). I'm somewhat surprised, as I think they could easily fit the rubber topy on the regular single sole and the shoe would look better.

See pics:
27kj6h.jpg


1fgky5.jpg

I have 4 or 5 pair of Vass with Topys, but they are all on the double sole. My guess is that because they are cutting into the leather sole to counter sink the Topy and make it flush with the leather, that they want a little extra thickness to work with. I could be wrong about this of course, but it would make sense to me. Also, and I dont know if this has changed, at one point Vass would only install toe taps on the double soles. Their reasoning was that on a single sole, the screws that attach the plate could damage the welt/ stitching.

I'm sure @DWFII will be along shortly to provide a professional's opinion, so take my attempt to apply logic with a helping of salt.

Also, you really should separate lights and darks when you launder your clothes :)
 

DWFII

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I have 4 or 5 pair of Vass with Topys, but they are all on the double sole. My guess is that because they are cutting into the leather sole to counter sink the Topy and make it flush with the leather, that they want a little extra thickness to work with. I could be wrong about this of course, but it would make sense to me. Also, and I dont know if this has changed, at one point Vass would only install toe taps on the double soles. Their reasoning was that on a single sole, the screws that attach the plate could damage the welt/ stitching.

I'm sure @DWFII will be along shortly to provide a professional's opinion, so take my attempt to apply logic with a helping of salt.

Also, you really should separate lights and darks when you launder your clothes :)

@bdavro23 thanks for the invite...

I can't say for certain why the screw came out...could be faulty technique, poor materials or even just a fluke. It very well could simply be that the screw was put in cock-eyed initially and resetting it only made the hole bigger.

That said I am in full accordance with the idea that the screws could (the operative word is could) damage the welt sewing/inseam.
 

beargonefishing

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Does the toe tap with topy provide any additional protection? I would assume the rubber topy by itself would serve the same purpose, but I have no personal experience to speak of. That said, AM does the best topy/toe tap combination I have seen.
 

RogerP

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Does the toe tap with topy provide any additional protection? I would assume the rubber topy by itself would serve the same purpose, but I have no personal experience to speak of. That said, AM does the best topy/toe tap combination I have seen.

Topy will wear out MUCH faster than a metal plate, and at the toe is where they are likely to wear out first.
 

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