Cobblers, shoe care, DIY

[gavroche88]

Could anyone recommend a cobbler in Chicago that you used? Thanks.

[DRRRK]

I recently bought a pair of CCP seamless tornado boots. The ones who have seen them or tried them on will know that they are pretty wide in the mid-foot area due to the seamless construction. I managed to make them smaller and the leather better by..............., and they fit perfectly now when I wear them with insoles. One last thing is bothering me: The heel cap is, if there at all, too soft and does not really deliver stability.

I know some members here own these boots and i would like to know if there are solutions for this other than not caring.

[docus]

I recently bought a pair of CCP seamless tornado boots. The ones who have seen them or tried them on will know that they are pretty wide in the mid-foot area due to the seamless construction. I managed to make them smaller and the leather better by..............., and they fit perfectly now when I wear them with insoles. One last thing is bothering me: The heel cap is, if there at all, too soft and does not really deliver stability.

I know some members here own these boots and i would like to know if there are solutions for this other than not caring.

I think you should patent this technique!

[DRRRK]

^I think it is already. ETONIZING. I just wanted to avoid copyright issues.

[TheNotoriousT]

Tell me you didn't wash them!

[DRRRK]

I did. Not only once. And I will do it again with these and my derbies when I think they need to be washed. The leather is laughing at washing machines.

[TheNotoriousT]

I did. Not only once. And I will do it again with these and my derbies when I think they need to be washed. The leather is laughing at washing machines.

Seriously? Please share what exactly happened to the leather and the stitching? Did they not loose their shape?

[mrbeuys]

LONDON
I used to take all my shoes to Michael's shoe care in Camomile St near Liverpool St Station, but just noticed they are closed.
So I took a chance and went to a cobbler in Liverpool St, just behind the station called J Rogers & Son
Absolutely amazing work, Rick dunks are good as new with a re-enforced heel and he's fixing my side-zip combats today - something I was told couldn't be fixed.

Highly recommended if you live in the area.

[DRRRK]

Seriously? Please share what exactly happened to the leather and the stitching? Did they not loose their shape?

The leather felt harder and was more matte when they were 100% dry after washing them. As there was barely sunlight in Germany at this time, i used the oven at 40 degrees to get them 80% dry. Like Eton, I stuffed them with newspaper, but not too full to allow the shrinking, just to get them into shape. After that I just let them dry at room temperature without the newspaper. I treated the boots with some oil/grease to make the black deeper again. After this treatment the leather did not feel or look any different from before washing. The stitching is like before as well. The only issue I had is that the vibram sole became detached at the edges. That could easily be repaired by the cobbler when they were dry.
About the shape, well, they were wide and I managed to make them considerably narrower by washing them at 60 degrees. The first attempt at 30 degrees did not really make a change. I think you could notice a difference in the width if you compared before and after, but the overall impression is the same as before. Overall it became a better pair of boots.

Now, any recommendations to support the heel?

EDIT: Thanks to eton97 and zamb. Your posts have been really helpful. And the CCP booklet.

[docus]

I don't own a pair so I can't check, but I believe the booklet that come with CCP boots says they're machine washable? Anyway, brave man. Glad it worked out!

[DRRRK]

Thanks!

It says hand or machine wash. I'm lazy, so machine. If anybody is interested, frontloader.

[franz]

Thanks docus for the quick reply, Honestly where i live in, i don't trust cobblers that much other than putting vibrams haha
Would leaving it as it is be a good option?

A bit late but NO, leaving it as is would not be a solution: you'll ruin your socks, and start damaging the outer leather.
The leather lining always takes damage, because there's friction, heat, perspiration...
Any cobbler can put an inside patch, as it has been suggested, it's a basic operation.
A few notes on how to avoid this:

• Use non-waxed cedar shoe trees to help absorbing perspiration.
• Never wear your shoes two days in a row.
• Use shoehorns especially to put shoes and boots on
• You can also use this product that you can spray in your shoes. It's not a crappy deodorant (these usually do not work), it's actually a leather conditioner.

[eton97]

EDIT: Thanks to eton97 and zamb. Your posts have been really helpful. And the CCP booklet.

Cheers buddy. My pleasure. It's a really wonderful feeling to revitalise/breath new life into a item that you'd otherwise just not wear, or have to sell at a ridiculous discount.

I wore my fencing last night to the layers/sz party (what a great night and thank you to everybody at layers and sz for organising it!!) and got some lovely compliments from complete strangers about the fit and finish of the leather
Funny how we both feel the texture of the leather changes and improves after a wash.
Really Glad it worked for you. Like you I initially washed the fencing at 30degrees (which had little effect on sizing) and then did it at 60degrees which did the job perfectly

'etonizing'.....love it

[chomeo]

haha! "etonizing"

[SlightRight]

Does anybody have preference on extra insoles?
Or maybe I should just simply go to nearest target to pick up one?