Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[eTrojan]

White

Did you just flex?

 

[Oshare]

Did you just flex?

White LWBs might be special orders, but @Bon Vivant Life recently found a pair as well... so they are out there.

 

[smfdoc]

White

Ah yes, but I fear I could not pull it off. Besides, I do not have a white belt.

 

[Quantum17]

White LWBs might be special orders, but @Bon Vivant Life recently found a pair as well... so they are out there.

Ah yes, but I fear I could not pull it off. Besides, I do not have a white belt.

A wise gentleman once asked “what’s cooler than being cool?” I believe his answer was: “Ice cold.”
Even as cool as I think I am, I don’t think many reach “ice cold” level @Oshare possess. I can only hide my jealousy for so long.

 

[stook1]

@Quantum17 @smfdoc @Oshare

count me in the "not cool enough" camp as well. misery loves company.

those white lwbs are awesome though!

 

[Hotel Cali]

A general question about Florsheim LWB colors. I feel like I am missing one of the rare ones. Of course there was black and brown, Golden Harvest and Weathered moss. Was there one other available color back then?

Maybe blue? Maybe red?

 

[Quantum17]

A general question about Florsheim LWB colors. I feel like I am missing one of the rare ones. Of course there was black and brown, Golden Harvest and Weathered moss. Was there one other available color back then?

Chestnut is rare. Stealing from David’s

 

[friendlygoz]

Florsheim NSTs today. I did a patina job on these because the toe was a bit beat up. Some may think it’s a sacrilege to do such a thing, but I like to tinker and I like how this tinkering came out.

 

[Raimar]

Another nice NOS 93602
https://www.shopgoodwill.com/Item/121556130

 

[dddggjj]

Antique brass was available as a longwing, though it wasn’t an imperial. Bookbinder bourbon was available as an imperial, and as a non-imperial which applied the color to a textured Leather they called Coventry calf.

Would you happen to know if there is a photo anywhere of an antique brass colored shoe? I'm curious as to how it would compare to a 93602 and/or a GH.

 

[mormonopoly]

Would you happen to know if there is a photo anywhere of an antique brass colored shoe? I'm curious as to how it would compare to a 93602 and/or a GH.

There are pictures of all of them on VCleat: https://vcleat.com/florsheim-long-wing-models/

 

[Oshare]

Funky shoes added to my collection.

Here are the 2 pairs that were recently intercepted by spousal customs. I bought these from eBay auctions listed by @Joneleth01 in mid-April and they arrived from Europe the other day.

They are both made in England and I'm not sure how old they are, but judging by their construction I would say they could qualify for vintage status. Perhaps mid-90s based on materials, construction, stitching, etc.

I immediately went over both of them with saddle soap and an electric toothbrush. That's not something I normally do with new arrivals, but I felt these needed it. Subtle difference, but this is how they came out.

The shoes on the left had a light coat of reddish polish on them that was all over the welt, so I decided to scrub them and see if I could take it off. You can see that they've lightened up a bit in the "after" photo.

The shoes on the right didn't have any colored polish on them, but they had quite a bit of gunk in the creases (camel leather) that I wanted to scrub out. They evened out quite a bit in the "after" photo.

After this photo was taken, I gave both pairs a few rounds of Bick 4 inside and out, and decided to wear the pair on the left for the first time today.

They are made by Grenson and it says "genuine gazelle". They are a tad large for me, but quite similar in fit and feel to the pair of miCanada Florsheim kudu leather PTDs I have. I may put insoles in them to fill them out a bit. Pre-scrubbing photo below:

It was a wet day in Tokyo, so I figured their Vibram-like half soles and rubber heels would be up to the job. Pre-scrubbing photo below:

And I guess the previous owner had a habit of hitting his heels together because they are really scuffed up there. Interestingly, the coloration has rubbed away, so I'm guessing they were factory dyed to accentuate the natural pattern of the gazelle leather, and that dye got rubbed off.

Anyway, below is a photo of this pair on my feet today. After the Bick 4 they darkened up a bit again. But I think they're fine without any colored polish on them. I'll probably go over the sole edges a bit later, and see if there's anything I can do to hide the scuffing on the heels.

Oh, and these came with flat laces. But with only 2 eyelets, it was easy enough for me and my OCD to keep the laces un-twisted. I can handle 2 eyelets.

 

[smfdoc]

Funky shoes added to my collection.

Here are the 2 pairs that were recently intercepted by spousal customs. I bought these from eBay auctions listed by @Joneleth01 in mid-April and they arrived from Europe the other day.

View attachment 1609128

They are both made in England and I'm not sure how old they are, but judging by their construction I would say they could qualify for vintage status. Perhaps mid-90s based on materials, construction, stitching, etc.

I immediately went over both of them with saddle soap and an electric toothbrush. That's not something I normally do with new arrivals, but I felt these needed it. Subtle difference, but this is how they came out.

View attachment 1609129

The shoes on the left had a light coat of reddish polish on them that was all over the welt, so I decided to scrub them and see if I could take it off. You can see that they've lightened up a bit in the "after" photo.

The shoes on the right didn't have any colored polish on them, but they had quite a bit of gunk in the creases (camel leather) that I wanted to scrub out. They evened out quite a bit in the "after" photo.

After this photo was taken, I gave both pairs a few rounds of Bick 4 inside and out, and decided to wear the pair on the left for the first time today.

They are made by Grenson and it says "genuine gazelle". They are a tad large for me, but quite similar in fit and feel to the pair of miCanada Florsheim kudu leather PTDs I have. I may put insoles in them to fill them out a bit. Pre-scrubbing photo below:

View attachment 1609130

It was a wet day in Tokyo, so I figured their Vibram-like half soles and rubber heels would be up to the job. Pre-scrubbing photo below:

View attachment 1609133

And I guess the previous owner had a habit of hitting his heels together because they are really scuffed up there. Interestingly, the coloration has rubbed away, so I'm guessing they were factory dyed to accentuate the natural pattern of the gazelle leather, and that dye got rubbed off.

View attachment 1609131

Anyway, below is a photo of this pair on my feet today. After the Bick 4 they darkened up a bit again. But I think they're fine without any colored polish on them. I'll probably go over the sole edges a bit later, and see if there's anything I can do to hide the scuffing on the heels.

Oh, and these came with flat laces. But with only 2 eyelets, it was easy enough for me and my OCD to keep the laces un-twisted. I can handle 2 eyelets.

View attachment 1609132

That gazelle leather is really interesting and distinctive. Never seen it before.

 

[Leiker]

Florsheim 93602 today. These were my first vintage shoes and are my sentimental favorites. Original condition when purchased; new soles/heels since. I've worn these A LOT, incredibly comfortable definitely showing signs of wear but holding up as one would expect from such a well made shoe. Date code indicates 1977 or 1987.

 

[Nobleprofessor]

My package from the Cobbler is supposed to be delivered today. I’m really excited to see my restored GH!

I also had Wyatt and Dad do a small stitching repair on a pair of 1959 or 1960 Florsheim MTO Shark. They replaced the heels with JR dovetail heels and conditioned and polished them too.

Sadly, they also returned a pair of 93605 that are too far gone to justify repair.