Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[stook1]

Gents, I've been looking for a pair of Edwin Clapp shoes for a while and just grabbed a pair. They so rarely seem to come up. Anyone know anything about this pair? They were marketed as shark but I do not believe they are actually sharkskin. Also in that 3rd pic below, I am slightly worried about that upper eyelet. Difficult to tell if it's discolored or worrisome wear and tear. In any event, I know next to nothing about EC and would be very interested to learn more about this pair if someone is knowledgeable about this maker.

 

[happypebble]

Good Saturday evening, gentlemen. Having returned from a combined Mother's Day/birthday dinner, it's now time to sit down (too full to do anything else) and ask if anyone knows about Winthrop shoes. Doesn't seem to be much online, but if anyone has experience with them...Quality? History? Etc. There appears to be a modern Winthrop, someone attempting to revive the brand? Thank you all and make the best Mother's Day you can.

 

[friendlygoz]

Family date night in San Mateo (not far from @CWOyaji ’s place) in my 93606s. These are from 1969. I’m always freaked out that they are about to crack even thought they don’t seem dry. When I wear them there is some blooming (a good sign) but the folds are a little rough, which makes me think they are going to crack. It all goes away with a quick brush. Please tell me these are all good...

 

[friendlygoz]

Gents, I've been looking for a pair of Edwin Clapp shoes for a while and just grabbed a pair. They so rarely seem to come up. Anyone know anything about this pair? They were marketed as shark but I do not believe they are actually sharkskin. Also in that 3rd pic below, I am slightly worried about that upper eyelet. Difficult to tell if it's discolored or worrisome wear and tear. In any event, I know next to nothing about EC and would be very interested to learn more about this pair if someone is knowledgeable about this maker.

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Those are great. I think Russell Fields from the FB group has the same pair.

 

[friendlygoz]

Hanover for Stuart McGuire cognac shell LWBs. These are mint. View attachment 1606944

Those are pretty awesome. I don’t think I’ve seen those before.

 

[CWOyaji]

@friendlygoz sorry I missed you, hope you all had fun. Here's a picture of that pair with better resolution. I have high hopes they will stand the test of time, unlike my two prior pairs of Hanover (and Hanover for Bostonian) LWBs that cracked within weeks. These were a little snug in the forefoot so I laced them loosely with 43" rawhide laces to start and now they fit fine.

 

[friendlygoz]

@friendlygoz sorry I missed you, hope you all had fun. Here's a picture of that pair with better resolution. I have high hopes this pair will stand the test of time, unlike my two prior pairs of Hanover (and Hanover / Bostonian) LWBs that cracked within weeks. These were a little snug in the forefoot so I laced them loosely with 43" rawhide laces the first day; now they are fitting fine.
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We are at La Laterna. It was quite good. The color on those is awesome.

 

[stook1]

Those are great. I think Russell Fields from the FB group has the same pair.

Awesome, thanks for the tip. I will reach out to him on FB.

 

[happypebble]

All rightie then. Wearing my newly acquired Stuart Holmes to church. Surprisingly comfortable considering they're only size 12D. Some 12Ds are like the vise grip of torture on my feet, but these seem roomy enough.

 

[stook1]

Those are great. I think Russell Fields from the FB group has the same pair.

One again, thanks for the tip. Great memory! Spent the last few hours on family stuff but just hunted down the pair that you mentioned. You are indeed correct - Russell has the same pair. Seems that there was a lot of uncertainty about the leather for his pair as well with guesses ranging from wildebeast to camel to buffalo to ??. They have a very unusual color pattern -- both my pair and his. Anyway, thanks for the heads up on this. I've reached out to Russell to discuss in more detail. His thinking was that they are early 60s, which was my thinking as well.

 

[friendlygoz]

First day at church in 14 months so I grabbed these vintage J&Ms (with tassels sewn into the laces). The fit could be better but I really like these.

 

[CWOyaji]

#aldenarmy 990s. These are so old I think the factory coating they had has all worn off.

Featuring the 1970s era 4-As logo and tongues stitched back together by yours truly.

 

[JFWR]

All rightie then. Wearing my newly acquired Stuart Holmes to church. Surprisingly comfortable considering they're only size 12D. Some 12Ds are like the vise grip of torture on my feet, but these seem roomy enough. View attachment 1607078

Congratulations on being able to slip into 12 D. I have never been able to slip into a 12 D: 12 E, yes, but D, never.

 

[happypebble]

Congratulations on being able to slip into 12 D. I have never been able to slip into a 12 D: 12 E, yes, but D, never.

I wore 12D as a teen. Approaching age 18 or so I hit one last growth spurt, and suddenly half my shoes no longer fit, so I started wearing 13D, unaware that there were sizes in between. But, I think my feet actually widened more than they grew longer, from 12D to something like 12EE. As you can see here with my spiffy measuring device (Property of Charles Chester Shoe Co, Brockton, Mass), if you go by what it says I'm a size that doesn't exist, like a 11.6 or 11.7EE. Thus, some 12Ds I can fit into, some I can't, I suppose depending on what the manufacturer's idea of 12D is? The 12Ds that don't fit are too narrow, not too short. That pair of Stuart Holmes I had on all day and they felt pretty good. They have very little wear so I think I got a deal for $10. Lately I've picked up some Weyenbergs and Florsheims in 12EEE, and those have fit very well.

 

[happypebble]

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