Happy Hooligan

heads up ... tis the season..

http://www.shermanbrothers.com/product.php?ItemId=5027&ProductId=7869

has Indys at 10% off...

And I think free shipping...

i don't understand the appeal of vintage cat's paw or deadstock cat's paw. it's the sole of a boot.

i understand wanting to have a cat's paw sole over, say a lug vibram, but why would you pay a premium for a dead stock sole?

doesn't make sense to me and in my opinion, is taking this stuff way too far, as if we haven't taken it too far already.

There's definately two camps.. those that want the look.. ie: repro denim, etc. and those that want the real mccoy (no not real mccoy, the the actual original items)

Having a vintage cat's paw on the bottom of your foot that nobody will see might sound over doing it, but to the guy who wants to know that he's walking on a vintage original sole... it's right on track.

I can't afford/find original levis/lees that fit me so I go with the next best thing. I don't wear the other brands because they look like originals, but they're not.

Same with boots. I can't find the styles/afford the styles so I go with the next best thing.

Having original/vintage items like original cats paw soles just adds a layer of authentisity to the item.

Like if you have a vintage car, and you paint it a modern color and not a color that was original to the year of the car, people can tell it's not original and it's been modified. It may look good, but you know it's not original.

Just trying to explain the mind set..

Don't even get me started on original zippers.....

I'm a 16.5 x 35/36. Not huge by any means but definately a long. The trouble I have is my torso is "normal" so I buy a 44 long and it fits great in the chest and sleeves but the body is too long.

As to denim... I wear a 46 or 46 long if I can find a vintage Big E jacket. It shrinks enough in the body but not the arms so it fits nice...

I get my leather jacket custom made anyway so no problem there.

But finding vintage clothes is tough. I usually have to find an xxl to fit the sleeves but the chest is too big.

I have scored a few here and there.. though.

Some vintage Polo shirts fit well, and I can sometimes find a long in a vintage.

But not much in the XL size range. I've put so many great vintage shirts back on the rack because they don't fit ....

It's a curse sometimes, but keep in mind... we're the only ones that can easily put our hands in the pockets of our denim and actually touch the bottom.

Thanks for the advice...

And greg..

I'm glad we don't have to do that to get our jeans and new boots just right... I think if I rode through the rivers in LA they would eat away my new jeans and levis...

what leather conditioners do you recommend?

the guy at the redwing store told me to put the boots in the bathtub for a half hour and then put them on and let them dry on my feet. he then said i would have to condition them constantly after that so that they would not crack. does anyone know if this can be done with different kinds of boots? could this be done with wesco's? how about the gentlemen traveller?

that's what I had to do with my wesco boss custom boots. After a few weeks when I got them they were tearing my shins to pieces. So I soaked them for about 20 minutes. Letting the water run right into them. Then put on the boots with socks and started walking, each painful step until they were nearly dry, or I just couldn't stand it any more.

It would help if you hadn't already tried to break them in as it will beat up your legs.

Now they're great. They bend where they're suppose to bend and fit my feet very nicely!

I didn't do crazy conditioners after though. Maybe I should, but I wanted them to get a little beat up anyway...

My Wesco Jobmasters seem to fit my flat narrow feet pretty good. I have to admit, the first week was brutal to wear, but I layed on a ton of bee's oil and by the 3rd week they were softening up quite nice. I think Wesco leans more towards the work boot / motorcycle / boot fetish / crowd, but I still think that its a well made boot. White's is has more shoe like qualities. Happy hooligan that posted some real nice brown Boss's earlier on this thread.

I think Chippewa still makes some things here that are nice like my engineer boots. Not Wesco quality, but decent for the price. I would say it's a notch below Red Wing but only a slim one.

I know what you mean about brutal. The skin on my shins was worn raw for the first week, but I did the boots in the bathtub and it really helped.

Wescos are for more the motorcycle Lineman type work boot crowd. Takes forever to have made but well worth it. I'm glad I had them made. I find I wear my 405's much more than my boss though... Just lighter I guess.... did you post pics of your wescos yet?

a little surprising there's no wesco camp here. coleslaw?

i can't fully chime in yet because i have yet to break in my own pair of white's. ask me again about six months later.

wesco doesn't make a boot like that...

A quick update on my Whites. Stock Semi Dress, about five months old. Decided to emphasize the "dress" in semi dress and gave the toes a polish with Kiwi Neutral

Bill,

those are looking great! It was between the semi dress and the 405's. I went with the 405's but I still want the semi dress...

Do you have any problems with the tongues slipping in those? Also I'd love to see more pics...

hh

werd, the alden hype continues to grow...........

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=180183157170&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=008

if these were size 10 i might have added to it but hopefully I have a pair coming in the near future.......

They're at 700+ now! Geeze the guys says he only paid 500 for them. wait, maybe I could make a quick 200...

definitely not "unworn" like the guy's listing it.

liar!

What year are those from? They have a completely different sole than what I've seen.

And the reason they're going up in price and popularity is be partly due to blame with this thread....

the more people who know... want...

Party,

Those are super nice....

Ever since my Indy's I'm hooked. Now I need a pair in black...

Found this photo and realized it had three of my favorite things...

Vintage Denim, Boots, and Marilyn.

nice shoes and boots...

Party: were those new when you got them today? They look used?

awesome, but I'd go with the frogs...

daytons seem nice, but I've never had or seen a pair.

Their website has more pictures of celebrites who wear their boots then actual pictures of their boots.

I worry it's more about status then quality.

I'm not saying the Doc Martins are fantastic shoes, I was just showing that some pairs do last.

I know there was some discussion on Doc Martins in the past.

I tooks some pics of my Docs that I've had for amost 10 years now. The soles have held up wonderfully.

I just polished them up a few months ago. I had to get these in Canada where they sold half sizes as (at the time) the US only sold whole sizes...

I thought I'd give an update on my Alden 405's.

Bought them about month and a half ago.

I had trouble with the right tounge sliding so I took some advice and stitched it to the boot. I used the existing holes as not to damage my boots and it's done a great job.

The only thing I've really noticed is the heel is must be very soft as it's wearing away faster than any boot or shoe I've ever owned.

Any thoughts to get out the beer stains on the toes?

sweet boots!

are those rw the black cherry color? I really like that color

Best site ever..if you're looking for worn in - old leather boots..White's and Red Wing..

The guy is easy to deal with - highly recommended..

http://www.wyoboot.com

What exactly is this site? Used Gay Clothing and boots? (not that there's anything wrong with that?)

And If I'm not gay, can I still wear the boots?

Funny, as I love my PF's too. re-issue in black..

I came across this pic:

(from this site wich is very nice btw)

And I am terribly intrigued by these boots, worn by both father and son.

I know this strap construction from those more biker looking boots, but those are a lot more chunky with a big heel and a square toe. These seem to have very flat soles (might also be from not being resoled in time though, judging from the state they are in) and a fairly rounded toe.

Can anyone maybe tell me a bit more about this model or possibly direct me to something similar?

Thanks in advance.

This is the look I was going for with my Wesco Boss. I wanted the engineer and not the harness look, but wesco makes a harness boot also.

Did you all see the Danner foreman boots in the supermarket? They were very nice. Not my size unfortunately. I've not heard of Danner before but was very impressed with that model.

edit:http://www.superfuture.com/supertalk/showthread.php?t=36393

These fellas.

Danner is one of those older work book manufacturers here in the states. They've been around since the 1930's.

a little history on them..

http://www.danner.com/category/customer+service/danner+heritage.do