Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[suitforcourt]

Thanks. I do think they're much improved.

I kind of fumbled my way to it: First I went at them with acetone and a towel to remove the dye that I applied, followed by acetone and a toothbrush to get the creases.

This wasn't the best way to go however, as I found what you really want to do is go at a very small part at a time quite vigorously with the toothbrush dipped in acetone, followed by a quick wipe of the "sludge" left behind with a rag. Keep working in very small sections as you go around the shoe, cleaning up as much as you can with the rag. You can't really get it all however - there is residue left behind no matter what you do. It's messy and time consuming, not gonna lie.

I let them rest a bit and then tried to clean them up with mineral spirits, but I found that it wouldn't touch the acetone/dye/gunk residue, so I did a last pass with acetone once more, which got them pretty clean.

So I think it would be best to do the hard toothbrush scrub first, followed by a final acetone wipe to get the last of the residue. You'd save a round of acetone this way - and you use a hell of a lot of acetone - which can't be good for the leather in the long term. (Or you, I guess)

I did give them the water droplet test, and I do think I'm down to bare leather now. I did 2 rounds of Bick 4, just out of pity for the leather.

For next steps, I have some of the lower end Saphir light brown cream, but I was thinking of getting a pig bristle brush from the Hanger Project during the current sale and adding in a Saphir Medaille d'or light brown (or cognac?) jar while I'm at it. I don't have any colored Collonil creme, just the neutral stuff.

Thoughts?

Thanks for sharing. Try the Collonil 1909 light brown. That's the one I use.

 

[hamercha]

This is a snug fit, which some people like. I have another pair with a different last, also 8.5G. Much wider and I prefer that fit as I enjoy the wiggle room for my toes.

Otherwise, shoes are comfortable. I believe Dacks used a high quality leather sole. Most used pairs I see still have lots of life in the soles. Even though heels are shot.

I had captoe Dack on 82 last. It was E; it was one of the narrowest E I ever have. What last is this ? And what last was the one that was widder on the same size?

 

[suitforcourt]

I had captoe Dack on 82 last. It was E; it was one of the narrowest E I ever have. What last is this ? And what last was the one that was widder on the same size?

E for Dacks is more like D or C for US brands like Florsheim.

I will check this pair for last size. Just bbqing some meats right now.

The other pair is at the office, so I may never be able to tell you if WFH becomes indefinite. Which is more likely as the days pass.

 

[hamercha]

E for Dacks is more like D or C for US brands like Florsheim.

I will check this pair for last size. Just bbqing some meats right now.

The other pair is at the office, so I may never be able to tell you if WFH becomes indefinite. Which is more likely as the days pass.

Thanks for the confirmation. E was much narrower than some medium shoes I have.

 

[Oshare]

Such as these Alden 975s I am wearing today. YMMV.

View attachment 1399012

View attachment 1399013

Okay. That does it. I need to get some Collonil!

 

[Oshare]

Speaking of a high shine.

I was reading some older posts on another thread and they were talking about super soft goat hair finishing brushes to get a high shine on your shoes. Apparently super soft goat hair brushes are much better for this than horse hair brushes.

The problem is that I don't want to spend over $150 on a shoe shine brush where I may or may not be able to see any appreciable difference.

Now the cheapo question: Have any of you ever used a super soft cosmetic brush (with or without your wife's permission, but we don't need to go there) to finish off your shoes?

I'm wondering if I can get away with a small cosmetic brush for the same effect at a fraction of the cost. I guess it would mean using your wrist when brushing, versus using your elbow to go back and forth with the brush over the shoe.

 

[Hotel Cali]

Speaking of a high shine.

I was reading some older posts on another thread and they were talking about super soft goat hair finishing brushes to get a high shine on your shoes. Apparently super soft goat hair brushes are much better for this than horse hair brushes.

The problem is that I don't want to spend over $150 on a shoe shine brush where I may or may not be able to see any appreciable difference.

Now the cheapo question: Have any of you ever used a super soft cosmetic brush (with or without your wife's permission, but we don't need to go there) to finish off your shoes?

I'm wondering if I can get away with a small cosmetic brush for the same effect at a fraction of the cost. I guess it would mean using your wrist when brushing, versus using your elbow to go back and forth with the brush over the shoe.

I use a $1 micro-fiber chennile duster from Dollar Tree. It's decent.

 

[madhat]

Speaking of a high shine.

I was reading some older posts on another thread and they were talking about super soft goat hair finishing brushes to get a high shine on your shoes. Apparently super soft goat hair brushes are much better for this than horse hair brushes.

The problem is that I don't want to spend over $150 on a shoe shine brush where I may or may not be able to see any appreciable difference.

Now the cheapo question: Have any of you ever used a super soft cosmetic brush (with or without your wife's permission, but we don't need to go there) to finish off your shoes?

I'm wondering if I can get away with a small cosmetic brush for the same effect at a fraction of the cost. I guess it would mean using your wrist when brushing, versus using your elbow to go back and forth with the brush over the shoe.

What's wrong with using her hosiery?

 

[woofmang]

What's wrong with using her hosiery?

+1 on this; "Nothing beats a great pair of L'Eggs."

 

[nikolau]

Vintage Florsheim still better. I am saying that with my head, and not my heart.

As a Canadian, I am very fond of the domestic vintage brands. Majority were decimated.

The one advantage of Dacks is the variety of skins. Hippo, rhino, seal, giraffe, are just some of their offerings.

The overal details, stitch count, and craftsmanship, has to go Florsheim. When I compare my Canadian shoes to the classic Florsheims in my collection (93605, 93606, 93602, and 92604), it is not even close.

Dacks was still well made and durable. I would say more like Johnston Murphy of the day.

Please post pics of Giraffe and Rino shoes... that sounds freakin’ spectacular.

 

[CWOyaji]

Think I'll go with some vintage London Tan cream polish on my new Aldens. Also, @Oshare this brush I found in an 'Art of Shaving' starter kit at a thrift had one of these badger hair brushes in it, if you're still looking for brush ideas.

 

[stook1]

Think I'll go with some vintage London Tan cream polish on my new Aldens. Also, @Oshare this brush I found in an 'Art of Shaving' starter kit at a thrift had one of these badger hair brushes in it, if you're still looking for brush ideas.
View attachment 1399229

My hobbies are intersecting, lol. You arent about to use that brush as a dauber, I hope!

 

[suitforcourt]

Please post pics of Giraffe and Rino shoes... that sounds freakin’ spectacular.

I don't have any. But a former manager of a Dacks store mentioned it in an older post.

 

[friendlygoz]

Got to wear my Golden Harvests today (courtesy of @Thomas Crown). It’s like hanging out with an old friend.

 

[CWOyaji]

My hobbies are intersecting, lol. You arent about to use that brush as a dauber, I hope!

No, I have four of these brushes but use them for things like cleaning the dashboard in my car and flicking dust off shoes before I take pictures of them for listing. Badger brushes are expensive if bought alone, but mine cost me about $5 as part of those kits. Plus they came with shaving cream and other balms and whatnot.