Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[clazbaugh]

Real Treasures

Agreed! Felt very lucky to find a pair in lightly used condition and in my size.

 

[mormonopoly]

Here's a pair of Nettletons from 1984 that I've been wearing lately.

 

[mormonopoly]

Here is a very rare pair of Florsheims. These are model number 99309 from 1962. I have never seen another pair of this model.

 

[clazbaugh]

Here is a very rare pair of Florsheims. These are model number 99309 from 1962. I have never seen another pair of this model. View attachment 2330211 View attachment 2330213 View attachment 2330215 View attachment 2330217

Love these!

 

[suitforcourt]

How did these turn out for you?

Worked out nicely. Deciding if I want to sell my 9e pair...

 

[NewDenimBootHead]

9E?

There have been some amazing posts lately, with some amazing NOS Florsheims. Unfortunately, I am finding that I am getting larger in my feet or I received a bad Brannock 8.5E reading, and I am selling off my collection for larger sizes. I have one grail 93602 pair that I am selling on bay that I have been so happy with. Sadly, I shouldn’t be wearing and walking in them. I would like to post here for appreciation purposes. Hope to maybe find the next grail. Comments, encouragement welcome…

 

[friendlygoz]

AE Dundee in brown shell. I micro sanded these, which produced a nice marbling.

 

[friendlygoz]

Florsheim Beacon today…

 

[suitforcourt]

9E?

There have been some amazing posts lately, with some amazing NOS Florsheims. Unfortunately, I am finding that I am getting larger in my feet or I received a bad Brannock 8.5E reading, and I am selling off my collection for larger sizes. I have one grail 93602 pair that I am selling on bay that I have been so happy with. Sadly, I shouldn’t be wearing and walking in them. I would like to post here for appreciation purposes. Hope to maybe find the next grail. Comments, encouragement welcome…

You should try 9D, 8.5ee, 8.5eee and also 9E. I dropped some weight and feel that my shoe size is likely closer to 8.5ee these days, for most lasts.

 

[sethrobert]

What have you used to repaint the gold on the welt of a pair of Florsheims? Would something like acrylic model paint (Citadel Colors, etc.) be the right choice?

 

[sethrobert]

The gold paint would not be for these Florsheim 31881s I am wearing today. I wish I had done before/after when I got these, they are not in the best condition but I cleaned them up quite a bit. I love the slimmer profile and have been on the lookout for a pair in better condition but they do not seem to come up that much.

 

[friendlygoz]

Modded 93604s today…

 

[Satoman1]

I just picked this pair today, tassel wingtip loafer in black shell, the model number is 2S961-6. One of the bell is missing but I guess its a easy cobber job since the pair is in black.

 

[Satoman1]

I just realized the datecode seems a bit odd on this one, since the year character should be in A-J (year ending in 0-9) but here it's K.

 

[actionjbone]

What have you used to repaint the gold on the welt of a pair of Florsheims? Would something like acrylic model paint (Citadel Colors, etc.) be the right choice?

View attachment 2331613

Acrylic paint probably won't match the original look. Plus, acrylic will seal the leather - it'll no longer be able to breathe. That could cause it to rot.

You probably can't mimic the original factory appearance, and I'm not sure if a cobbler could really make it look the same again, either.