Cobblers, shoe care, DIY

[michael_kard]

Mine peeled off a bit on the front, I got some super glue and now it's fine. Everywhere else it's been fine, however mine are the old style with the crepe sole.

[SlightRight]

Glad u work it out

[galia]

be warned, super beginner's question coming: how to clean / restore / nourish patent leather?

thanks :)

to answer my own question in case anyone else might be interested: clean with cloth dipped in soapy water (I used marseille soap, but any barsoap should do), rinse with cloth diped in clean water ( in both cases the cloth should just be damp, not soaked), dry, rub gently with white vinegar for shine
easiest and cheapest shoe care ever

[messenoire]

Is there a way to add a protective sole onto a heavy duty crepe sole? Specifically julius 337FWM6. Heirloom did tell me that crepe is an unstable compound and will break down but is there a way to add a sole onto the boots to prevent this from happening? What should I avoid if I do get a crepe sole?

[endersgame]

has anyone tried kiwi shoe stretch spray?

this is an absolute miracle in a can. i got a pair of guidi combats and as usual, too narrow on my feet. I figure i'd deal with the pain to break them in but less than a day of wear, my heels were rubbed raw.

i ended up getting the spray and an actual wooden stretcher. tried the spray first (you spray inside then wear immediately) and it felt so much better. i highly recommend this shit.

[Jin]

shit, chaps...

Just from cobbler..
They ruined my wife's beutifull bison Marsell's... They totally rubbed all oil from toe and back((( and polish and dyed heel (((

what can we do? is it realy to do this oil/wax treating again? Or only way - object-dye em to black and waylay fuckers and break their arms with baseball bat?

[endersgame]

the heel you can get them to sand down the polish and dye if it's still fresh. the leather, i dunno. you shouldn't pay for what you didn't ask for. but they'll tell you they do this to all their shoes..

[Jin]

the heel you can get them to sand down the polish and dye if it's still fresh. the leather, i dunno. you shouldn't pay for what you didn't ask for. but they'll tell you they do this to all their shoes..

They take em to restorer at their headquarters, but fuck it, if they couldn't restore it, they'll pay full price.

[lowrey]

A cobbler polished a pair of augusta boots (which I specifically told them not to do) that had a matte, waxy finish before. I took a wet towel and rubbed them clean, and they pretty much looked like they did before. if the leather is very smooth, it might get scruffed, but it might work.

[Jin]

Leather is reversed bison) so this bastard did a lot of work to rubber it - all black wax is gone...
this how em look few days ago

[lazyguru]

do as Lowery said & then try rubbing alcohol finally if no go soak them in cold water for a couple of hours & let them dry for 2 days

[Jin]

Ok, thanks, chaps

[gavroche88]

Thought I'd give a bit of a shout-out to Willie's Shoe Service. After some miserable experiences w/ local cobblers I bit the bullet and mailed in a pair of boots to Willie's. They were responsive and asked me for confirmation on every detail before going forward. Bought them off these forums from HommeDeGuerre, but couldn't pull off the olive/grey combo despite wanting those boots for a long time. Though it wasn't cheap, Willie's did a perfect job dyeing the leather and keeping the sole profile intact. Cost of shipping/handling was totally reasonable. Pictures here...

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.432297330121311.105781.185904554760591&type=1

(HdeG: They didn't ask to post your picture of the original boots, I'd just originally sent it to them to see if they thought they could dye them. If you want that image removed, let me know and I'll tell them).

[michael_kard]

/\ Nice. Solid job all around, although I think the black should have been a bit less shiny imo. Actually if they were mine I'd have dyed the whole shoe black incl. the felt and sole, no fucks given.

[gavroche88]

Yeah, the shiny tone should fade w/ time.

I prefer the black/grey version, but I asked Raul if he could do it black/black out of curiosity. He suggested that they couldn't safely do the felt, though I didn't push to ask what the problem might be with these specific boots. Maybe he was worried it could be splotchy or something.