Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[friendlygoz]

Interesting AE model. I can’t find any info on these. I’ve looked at old cataloged from ‘84, ‘85, and ‘86. I think these are polished cobbler. If they are I’d be even more intrigued by them. I’ve been looking for some pant loafers, ideally a pair of shell. I’m fairly certain these are not shell, but they could do. Anyone know anything about these? Paging @wasmisterfu, our resident AE expert. Thanks.

Allen Edmonds Lexington Burgundy Oxblood Penny Loafer Slip On Dress Shoe SZ 9D | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Allen Edmonds Lexington Burgundy Oxblood Penny Loafer Slip On Dress Shoe SZ 9D at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[wasmisterfu]

Interesting AE model. I can’t find any info on these. I’ve looked at old cataloged from ‘84, ‘85, and ‘86. I think these are polished cobbler. If they are I’d be even more intrigued by them. I’ve been looking for some pant loafers, ideally a pair of shell. I’m fairly certain these are not shell, but they could do. Anyone know anything about these? Paging @wasmisterfu, our resident AE expert. Thanks.

Allen Edmonds Lexington Burgundy Oxblood Penny Loafer Slip On Dress Shoe SZ 9D | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Allen Edmonds Lexington Burgundy Oxblood Penny Loafer Slip On Dress Shoe SZ 9D at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Fall 1986 catalog. They’re Burgundy Polished Cobbler.

 

[Nealjpage]

10.5 E guys. Cool Dacks camel skin wingtips. USA guys, they're in Houston, so no international customs. Spousal customs, per usual, still apply.

Not my listing.

 

[wasmisterfu]

10.5 E guys. Cool Dacks camel skin wingtips. USA guys, they're in Houston, so no international customs. Spousal customs, per usual, still apply.

Not my listing.

View attachment 1624757

Somebody here better buy those. That is all.

 

[suitforcourt]

Dacks was a stalwart in the shoe world. Well made shoes manufactured in Canada. Then Church's of England bought them and shifted manufacturing to Cheaney. When Prada bought Church's, it spelled the end of Dacks.

When Matthew Dacks emerged from the ruins, they maintained this Seneca model, but not in walnut calf. So these are true vintage.

These were one of their last pairs at the Toronto store. Not a preferred style but lots of sentimental value. A cobbler rebuilt with JR soles and cat paw heels.

Going into the office today.

 

[wasmisterfu]

Interesting AE model. I can’t find any info on these. I’ve looked at old cataloged from ‘84, ‘85, and ‘86. I think these are polished cobbler. If they are I’d be even more intrigued by them. I’ve been looking for some pant loafers, ideally a pair of shell. I’m fairly certain these are not shell, but they could do. Anyone know anything about these? Paging @wasmisterfu, our resident AE expert. Thanks.

Allen Edmonds Lexington Burgundy Oxblood Penny Loafer Slip On Dress Shoe SZ 9D | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Allen Edmonds Lexington Burgundy Oxblood Penny Loafer Slip On Dress Shoe SZ 9D at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

By the way, 86-89 was peak Polished Cobbler, when AE was using some (what I’ll now call) Uber-Binder Next-Level English stuff. This version of Polished Cobbler has incredibly fine creasing; so much so that from a few feet away it can almost pass for shell:

(87 Berwick)

I’m pretty confident that these listed Lexington’s in question are made of that Uber-Binder PC:

Earlier and later Polished Cobbler wasn’t the same, as the bend wasn’t the same quality, so break and creasing was a lot more obvious (as heavy CG finishes are prone to exaggerating). The stuff wasn’t bad (as CG-like finishes go), and that earlier stuff is what I stripped for my de-corrected grain restoration shoes (revealing very good, lightly buffed-down top-grain - nothing was actually “corrected”).

However, IMHO, whatever English tannery it was that produced this stuff, to make this Uber-Binder, I wouldn’t put it past them to have been doing some fairly ghoulish raw material sourcing (they had prime, restricted diet, caged calf veal cutlets for dinner).

The stuff from just a few years earlier...

... and later...

... just wasn’t the same.

 

[wasmisterfu]

Dacks was a stalwart in the shoe world. Well made shoes manufactured in Canada. Then Church's of England bought them and shifted manufacturing to Cheaney. When Prada bought Church's, it spelled the end of Dacks.

When Matthew Dacks emerged from the ruins, they maintained this Seneca model, but not in walnut calf. So these are true vintage.

These were one of their last pairs at the Toronto store. Not a preferred style but lots of sentimental value. A cobbler rebuilt with JR soles and cat paw heels.

Going into the office today.

View attachment 1624782 View attachment 1624783

What Prada did to Church’s is a freakin crime (no spoiler, because everyone should bear witness to Prada’s grievous misdeeds):

Be glad that Canada need not shoulder any part of this ignominy, as the Dacks label doesn’t appear on these absurdly vulgar horrors.

 

[Nealjpage]

What Prada did to Church’s is a freakin crime (no spoiler, because everyone should bear witness to Prada’s grievous misdeeds):

Be glad that Canada need not shoulder any part of this ignominy, as the Dacks label doesn’t appear on these absurdly vulgar horrors.

It is what the Devil wears after all.

 

[wasmisterfu]

It is what the Devil wears after all.

 

[Leiker]

I bought these Lloyd & Haig apron toe shoes NOS, wore them a few times, and the heels started to disintegrate. I took them to Garden District Shoe Repair in New Orleans for new JR heels, and can definitely recommend the work. Haibo (didn't catch his last name) is the owner/cobbler.

Also, posting these because I'd like to identify the maker and vintage of these. My understanding is that Lloyd & Haig used American (Alden, Hanover, others?) and English (Cheaney) makers. Any thoughts? The lining says "Pacifate Protected"

 

[wasmisterfu]

I bought these Lloyd & Haig apron toe shoes NOS, wore them a few times, and the heels started to disintegrate. I took them to Garden District Shoe Repair in New Orleans for new JR heels, and can definitely recommend the work. Haibo (didn't catch his last name) is the owner/cobbler.

Also, posting these because I'd like to identify the maker and vintage of these. My understanding is that Lloyd & Haig used American (Alden, Hanover, others?) and English (Cheaney) makers. Any thoughts? The lining says "Pacifate Protected" View attachment 1624815 View attachment 1624816 View attachment 1624817 View attachment 1624818

They’re interesting. They look high-end “Hanover-y” in their construction. Pretty sure those are North-American.

 

[suitforcourt]

They’re interesting. They look high-end “Hanover-y” in their construction. Pretty sure those are North-American.

The Queen disagrees. MI6 agents are on their way to speak to you.

 

[friendlygoz]

Fall 1986 catalog. They’re Burgundy Polished Cobbler.

I must’ve been looking up the spring catalog. I do research for a living. How in the world did I not find these through a basic Internet search?! Well, at least I have tenure so they can’t fire me now.

By the way, 86-89 was peak Polished Cobbler, when AE was using some (what I’ll now call) Uber-Binder Next-Level English stuff. This version of Polished Cobbler has incredibly fine creasing; so much so that from a few feet away it can almost pass for shell:

(87 Berwick)

I’m pretty confident that these listed Lexington’s in question are made of that Uber-Binder PC:

Earlier and later Polished Cobbler wasn’t the same, as the bend wasn’t the same quality, so break and creasing was a lot more obvious (as heavy CG finishes are prone to exaggerating). The stuff wasn’t bad (as CG-like finishes go), and that earlier stuff is what I stripped for my de-corrected grain restoration shoes (revealing very good, lightly buffed-down top-grain - nothing was actually “corrected”).

However, IMHO, whatever English tannery it was that produced this stuff, to make this Uber-Binder, I wouldn’t put it past them to have been doing some fairly ghoulish raw material sourcing (they had prime, restricted diet, caged calf veal cutlets for dinner).

The stuff from just a few years earlier...

... and later...

... just wasn’t the same.

The first couple look really outstanding. I’ll consider grabbing them. I may also just hold out for a pair of shell. I have lots of shoes to wear as I wait...

 

[JFWR]

Is there a reason you would want a model made in polished cobbler? Corrected grain is not...good.

 

[wasmisterfu]

I must’ve been looking up the spring catalog. I do research for a living. How in the world did I not find these through a basic Internet search?! Well, at least I have tenure so they can’t fire me now.


The first couple look really outstanding. I’ll consider grabbing them. I may also just hold out for a pair of shell. I have lots of shoes to wear as I wait...

Yeah, just to be clear... pass for shell, and actually being shell, are way different. If shell is what you want, definitely put on some nice shoes and wait. For one thing, PC has a limited life-span, no matter how good it is, eventually the finish has to be stripped to save what’s underneath (at which point, they stop being PC, and starting being something “other”). Well maintained shell, on the other hand, will last nearly for ever.