Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[friendlygoz]

I just met a vintage shoe collector on eBay who has 1000+ shoe. I hope he joins here to post his collection.

Here are some cool pics from his instagram.

View attachment 1396660

View attachment 1396663

We need him here. If we need to get on a private jet and fly to the Hamptons to convince him to join, let's do it. It worked with the Warriors went after Kevin Durant. Pretty sure @davidVC would be Steph Curry, @smfdoc would be Klay, @suitforcourt would be Andre Iguodala, and @wasmisterfu would be Draymond.

 

[KotaB]

Never heard of Morgan Cort, information on the history anybody?

VINTAGE NUNN BUSH BLK V-CLEAT CORFAM WING TIP SHOE 9D MORGAN CORT | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for VINTAGE NUNN BUSH BLK V-CLEAT CORFAM WING TIP SHOE 9D MORGAN CORT at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[CWOyaji]

Hanover heatwave tassels

Spoiler: Hanover shell can be great value

These were all for personal use, but I have also bought some pairs at inexplicably low prices to sell. It pays to look.

 

[wasmisterfu]

We need him here. If we need to get on a private jet and fly to the Hamptons to convince him to join, let's do it. It worked with the Warriors went after Kevin Durant. Pretty sure @davidVC would be Steph Curry, @smfdoc would be Klay, @suitforcourt would be Andre Iguodala, and @wasmisterfu would be Draymond.

With that kind of collection, I doubt he’ll be all that impressed by the Hamptons.

 

[wasmisterfu]

Hanover heatwave tassels
View attachment 1396893

Spoiler: Hanover shell can be great value

These are all for personal. Also have bought some pairs to sell at inexplicably low prices. Pays to look.
View attachment 1396928

Tassel loafer is best loafer.

 

[CWOyaji]

Spoken like Tarzan!

 

[wasmisterfu]

I'll answer that you should buy them asap

It’s not entirely accurate to say that I don’t own PTB’s. I do own one pair, but I don’t wear them.

 

[nikolau]

Tassel loafer is best loafer.

On the note of Tassel loafers- what ever happened to Alden’s longwing tassel loafer?

 

[stook1]

I have a line on an e-thrift pair of Florsheim 92649, the black shell longwing. They look like they are from the 60s. Good shape overall but DRY. Eyelets seem to be hopefully ok but I cant seem to get ideal pics. The upper and lining overall look good. Original soles. Small cut in the pinking on the top of tongue. Otherwise good (hopefully). Just very dry.

Can anyone help me out with a rough idea of the value relative to 93605, which seem to be far more common? These are a going to be a bit of a risk and I just want to make sure that I can clean them up and not be under water. I would say a 93605 in this condition but cleaned up is probably in the range of $200 based upon what I have seen.

 

[nikolau]

I have a line on an e-thrift pair of Florsheim 92649, the black shell longwing. They look like they are from the 60s. Good shape overall but DRY. Eyelets seem to be hopefully ok but I cant seem to get ideal pics. The upper and lining overall look good. Original soles. Small cut in the pinking on the top of tongue. Otherwise good (hopefully). Just very dry.

Can anyone help me out with a rough idea of the value relative to 93605, which seem to be far more common? These are a going to be a bit of a risk and I just want to make sure that I can clean them up and not be under water. I would say a 93605 in this condition but cleaned up is probably in the range of $200 based upon what I have seen.

Pics would really be helpful, especially of the sole, lining, & insole. Value also depends on the size. I’d say you’re likely right if they’re in a size that *can* go to East Asia/Japan in a C, D, or E width. I’m a 13D/E & tbh the prices seem lower in large sizes for particularly rare models, bc/ the collectors market is just so much smaller. I wouldn’t be surprised if @CWOyaji, @wasmisterfu, and myself snap up a solid chunk of the reasonably priced eBay/Poshmark/Etsy listings in the 13-14 range tbh.

 

[stook1]

Pics would really be helpful, especially of the sole, lining, & insole. Value also depends on the size. I’d say you’re likely right if they’re in a size that *can* go to East Asia/Japan in a C, D, or E width. I’m a 13D/E & tbh the prices seem lower in large sizes for particularly rare models, bc/ the collectors market is just so much smaller. I wouldn’t be surprised if @CWOyaji, @wasmisterfu, and myself snap up a solid chunk of the reasonably priced eBay/Poshmark/Etsy listings in the 13-14 range tbh.

thx!

 

[wasmisterfu]

Some plain toe are more dressier than the LWB. Tuxedo shoes are plain toe too!

As the rules go, the simpler the shoe, the more formal it is.

For example, these wholecut oxfords are considered to be very formal shoes, suitable for daytime and evening formalwear (morning coat or blacktie, for example):

(87 AE Dover)

The next level down, on the formality scale, would be plain-toed oxfords:

(Vintage Violation: 2015 AE Carlyle)

Then captoe’s and partially brogues captoe’s:

(88 Florsheim Penfield)

Finally you get to fully brogued captoes and wingtips:

(1995 AE Clifton)

(80’s Hanover LB Sheppard LWB’s)

A brogued wingtip, especially a blucher, is going to be at the informal end of the dress shoe spectrum (as they’re historically rooted in “country” shoes.

Which brings us to the weird outliers: the PTB and the Saddle Oxford (often just called a saddle shoe). They’re technically plain toed shoes, so they should be considered more formal than their captoe and and wingtip brethren, yet both are considered, historically, to be less than formal shoes. In the case of the saddle, it’s due to its origins as a “sporting” shoe, while the PTB, by nature of being a blucher, was considered fairly informal. Ultimately, they tend to have a similar profiles (for example the AE Shelton and Leeds are built on the same 511 last), and have somewhat fallen into the same category of formality:

(~1958 City Club PTB)

(Vintage Violation: 2011 AE Shelton)

That being said, the Saddle is one of my go to shoe styles that I wear with everything from jeans to 3-piece suits; they’re incredibly versatile. While I’m not a huge PTB fan, I think they fill exactly the same niche: they’re remarkably versatile, crossing the boundary between faux-formality (due to the plain toe) and informality very easily. Certainly more so than say the LWB, which always looks like a bit like an affectation when worn informally - though I wear LWB’s habitually with informal clothing, precisely because they’re an affectation in that context.

 

[wasmisterfu]

Pics would really be helpful, especially of the sole, lining, & insole. Value also depends on the size. I’d say you’re likely right if they’re in a size that *can* go to East Asia/Japan in a C, D, or E width. I’m a 13D/E & tbh the prices seem lower in large sizes for particularly rare models, bc/ the collectors market is just so much smaller. I wouldn’t be surprised if @CWOyaji, @wasmisterfu, and myself snap up a solid chunk of the reasonably priced eBay/Poshmark/Etsy listings in the 13-14 range tbh.

I’d say we probably account for 99% of the vintage market, for those shoe sizes, globally.

 

[nikolau]

I’d say we probably account for 99% of the vintage market, for those shoe sizes, globally.

I quite literally wouldn’t be surprised, it seems like every listing I see & like gets snapped up by one of you two if I don’t jump on it.

 

[CWOyaji]

I quite literally wouldn’t be surprised, it seems like every listing I see & like gets snapped up by one of you two if I don’t jump on it.

Aww, man we're bit players really.