Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[Thomas Crown]

Great pick up. Can’t wait to see the results. I’m going to see what Paris thrift shops offer if I can. London’s were fantastic.

I’ll be in London in October,any thrift stores that you recommend?

 

[friendlygoz]

PSA: Forest Florsheim LWB in 11D.

Florsheim Imperial Kenmoor 93633 Forest Wingtips 11D V Cleat 5 Nail | eBay

<p>Florsheim Imperial Kenmoor 93633 Forest Wingtips 11D V Cleat 5 Nail. Condition is Pre-owned. Shipped with USPS Priority Mail.</p><p>These are rare Forest Kenmoor Wingtips. They need to be resoled but the uppers are in good shape. Pictures tell the story best. Smoke free and pet free home.</p>

rover.ebay.com

 

[friendlygoz]

I’ll be in London in October,any thrift stores that you recommend?

Cancer research stores were great. They are all over the place. I didn’t find any shoes but some nice dress shirts. The wifey picked up some good stiff too.

 

[friendlygoz]

Can you post some pics of your Hartt custom grade? Soles, interiors and such?

Those boots are gorgeous and holy smokes those trees are crazy.

However, I have to bring this up (as a Lobb’s customer [I have a single pair of bespoke shoes that I had made in London about 11 or so years ago]): What the hell are those sneakers and crap that I see behind the boots?!??

Here you go. They are pretty well made. I’m almost certain they are faux reptile since they lack a label with the type of leather and since the scale pattern repeats itself in different parts of the shoe. I posted some pix when I got these in the fall and our brothers on the thread were split on whether they were reptile. For the reasons about I’m pretty sure they are not.

 

[Shoonoob]

Shoes for a Wednesday

 

[eTrojan]

If we're going to discuss the merits of the Derby, here is a pair I've been watching without being moved to purchase. MiUSA "Breather" Wright Arch Preserver. Near NOS. Dirt cheap (up for auction, but they've been relisted a couple times).

Vintage Breather Wright Arch Preserver Brown Leather Dress Shoes 13 AA | eBay

AA so Narrow width. 1 Small scuff on back of left shoes otherwise they look new!

www.ebay.com

Most of my Derbies are Alden NST, so I'm not opposed to wearing a Derby. But the leather on these appear to have taken a bit of a beating. #DISCUSS

 

[OmBom]

Allen-Edmonds "Belgium" from about 1984. They're corrected grain, just like the burgundy "Polo" saddle shoes that I purchased in 1986, and still have. These shoes were found in April using David's Watch List, which is such a great resource.

 

[smfdoc]

No no no, you’re doing it all wrong. Forget DM’ing the seller and all that.

What you really want to do is spend 970 dollars on these brand new “vintage”, weathered Church’s:

I mean look at the attention to detail. I bet they even spray them liberally with 10 Seconds Shoe Deodorizer, for that authentic olfactory patina. All for under a thousand dollars.

Better get’em while they last: https://www.church-footwear.com/eu/...d_linen_loafer.EDG001_9QG_F0VZ0_F_000000.html

Allow me to digress here a moment. That money for those shoes is just f***ing stupid.

 

[Thomas Crown]

John McHales in their iconic cherry.

Cobbler put on new heels, topy, and toe plates.

Love the McHale gunboats,absolutely fearless shoes. The other day it rained hard and I asked my shoes if there were any volunteers for inclement weather-J McHale immediately rose to the challenge

 

[Thomas Crown]

PSA: Forest Florsheim LWB in 11D.

Florsheim Imperial Kenmoor 93633 Forest Wingtips 11D V Cleat 5 Nail | eBay

<p>Florsheim Imperial Kenmoor 93633 Forest Wingtips 11D V Cleat 5 Nail. Condition is Pre-owned. Shipped with USPS Priority Mail.</p><p>These are rare Forest Kenmoor Wingtips. They need to be resoled but the uppers are in good shape. Pictures tell the story best. Smoke free and pet free home.</p>

rover.ebay.com

I thought the Forest Green Florsheim Imperials were in your size-are these 11d another pair?

 

[friendlygoz]

I thought the Forest Green Florsheim Imperials were in your size-are these 11d another pair?

The seller has two pair one in my size and another in 11D. Unheard of. You have these, right?

 

[madhat]

No no no, you’re doing it all wrong. Forget DM’ing the seller and all that.

What you really want to do is spend 970 dollars on these brand new “vintage”, weathered Church’s:

I mean look at the attention to detail. I bet they even spray them liberally with 10 Seconds Shoe Deodorizer, for that authentic olfactory patina. All for under a thousand dollars.

Better get’em while they last: https://www.church-footwear.com/eu/...d_linen_loafer.EDG001_9QG_F0VZ0_F_000000.html

My mouth is still open in shock that these actually exist...even though I shouldn't be. The distressed uppers I get. The stupid sole logo, ok. They "pre-wear" the heels down. That's bad, but still keeping in with the distressed look, even if taking it too far. BUT, they actually went so far as to wrinkle the heel pad?????

 

[Thomas Crown]

The seller has two pair one in my size and another in 11D. Unheard of. You have these, right?

I do,they were my size and I won’t say how much I paid

 

[wasmisterfu]

Here you go. They are pretty well made. I’m almost certain they are faux reptile since they lack a label with the type of leather and since the scale pattern repeats itself in different parts of the shoe. I posted some pix when I got these in the fall and our brothers on the thread were split in whether they were reptile. For the reasons about I’m pretty sure they are not. View attachment 1198359 View attachment 1198361 View attachment 1198362 View attachment 1198363 View attachment 1198365

Well, I dunno what they are from an uppers standpoint, but the construction is interesting. The insole is a solid, thick, high-quality leather insole like what you’d see in a GYW shoe, and there’s no sign of a Blake stitch visible on the insole or sole. The interior construction and materials are certainly not that of a cheap glued shoe.

Yet, I don’t think these are Blake (hidden channel or otherwise), I think they are a GYW shoe sans-rapid outsole stitch. It might be an optical illusion, but it looks like there is a welt/sole separation (since bonwelts weren’t a thing back then, provided my eyes are correct, you can assume that welt is attached to something). For a while in the 70’s and early 80’s (in my estimation), a few manufacturers (FootJoy being one, IIRC) experimented with simply using adhesive to attach the outsole to the welt. This allowed them to trim the welt very tightly, since they didn’t have to worry about the outsole stitch. In theory, they can still be resoled by separating the sole and welt with a solvent and then gluing a new on with whatever space-age goop was the latest in chemical miracles. In the right hands, they could even be recrafted with a new welt, and then outsole stitched like any other GYW.

IIRC, I recall @davidVC even had a pair, such as these, start suffering from welt/sole separation during his work day.

It’s also possible I hallucinated all of this due to chemical inhalation during last years restoration challenge, so take it for what it’s worth.

 

[suitforcourt]

If we're going to discuss the merits of the Derby, here is a pair I've been watching without being moved to purchase. MiUSA "Breather" Wright Arch Preserver. Near NOS. Dirt cheap (up for auction, but they've been relisted a couple times).

Vintage Breather Wright Arch Preserver Brown Leather Dress Shoes 13 AA | eBay

AA so Narrow width. 1 Small scuff on back of left shoes otherwise they look new!

www.ebay.com

Most of my Derbies are Alden NST, so I'm not opposed to wearing a Derby. But the leather on these appear to have taken a bit of a beating. #DISCUSS

View attachment 1198415

I have this exact pair in 9eee, which runs extremely generous in the vamp and toe box area. I slide in a half insole to make my feet fit better.

Honestly, one of my more comfortable pairs.That pedestal (spelling?) pad becomes quite comfortable after a while. And the calf leather, I think is higher quality than most of my other shoes. I say that based on the fact that just a bit of Bick 4, makes them glow and shine. It's not a favourite only because I am a brand snob and prefer my Florsheims or Canadian made footwear. That said, everytime I wear it, I question my sanity and why don't get called to service more often.

That said, I likely will wear them tomorrow.

If you can grab these, please do. And then we can have twin days!