Shoes that look better with age...

[fre-co]

Of course those John Lobb aren't the real John Lobb.....

CTB, have you been to the Lobb workshop/shop round the corner from Jermyn street on St James? That place will blow your mind.

[CrashTestBrummie]

Nah, not yet - but I'm going to try and make a proper day out of it down there before Christmas.

There was so much good stuff down there, just shops and shops full of 'nice things', as my old girl would say. Loved the big shop next to EG selling proper globes of the world, housed on magnificent wooden stands that probably weighed more than I do. There was one in there that cost almost as much as my fucking mortgage...

Anything else worth checking out round those sides that you'd recommend?

[bestie]

Would you guys care to explain to me what constitutes a "veldt?"

It is referring to the construction of the welt, right? Is it the same as a storm welt?

A quick search retrieves practically nothing...

I'm quite new to this, obviously.

[happinessknox]

Pretty good explanation here.

[D97x7]

Veldt is short for veldtschoen.

[coleslawyum]

Viberg and Wesco call their construction "stitch-down" but its basically a Veldt as well.The upper creates a channel by turning out instead of in like most welted footwear. It makes it more water resistant. It is not the same as a storm welt, or Norwegian welt.

[engar]

Crashtestbrummie, what do you think about C&J Coniston boots? I need a pair of black captoes and I´m considering Coniston and AS Holburn.

[CrashTestBrummie]

Crashtestbrummie, what do you think about C&J Coniston boots? I need a pair of black captoes and I´m considering Coniston and AS Holburn.

Decent boots. Probably wouldn't consider them in black though for fear of looking like Old Bill, unless the sole edge was polished down to a lighter finish.

[Crat]

Annal update

[CrashTestBrummie]

Some serious polishing gone on there - not shined up any of my shoes like that for some time!

Thread needs more Galways

[Crat]

True dat : )

CTB, which veldtschoen boot would you recommend for not too much $$$. Still the Kelso? Gotta ad a proper outdoor boot to my collection as I only have a pair of Timberlands atm.

[CrashTestBrummie]

True dat : )

CTB, which veldtschoen boot would you recommend for not too much $$$. Still the Kelso? Gotta ad a proper outdoor boot to my collection as I only have a pair of Timberlands atm.

As far as I know, only Tredders still stock the Kelso in a few sizes and I wasn't impressed by the lack of response to a mail I sent them a while ago to a query regarding a purchase I'd made.

The Cheaney models (Pennine & Fiennes) are the same price now as the Kelso and certainly the Pennine is just as rugged as the Kelso. I'd expect the Fiennes to be just as hard-wearing, so you have a few options. The finishing on the Cheaney models is likely to be a little more precise than the AS boot, but all those models should be able to handle a beating well and look all the better for it.

There's some debate as to whether or not AS's zug grain is of a comparable quality to previous offerings, whereas the Cheaney models use a slightly burnished country calf which is visible on the Pennines on the last page.

Heard from C&J today - there'd been some faffing over whether or not they could use grained leather to make the Snowdon MTO due to the leather thickness (yeah, I mentioned that zug was the standard make-up for veldts and thicker than the country grain I'd requested).

They came back today and confirmed that the MTO was possible in country grain, but that there would be an additional charge of £50 on top of the MTO price for veldtschoen construction as, apparently, it's a trickier construction to make than standard goodyear.

This has now pushed the price very close to EG RTW prices.

I've said that I'll sleep on it and get back to them tomorrow...

[Crat]

Thanks for the info CTB, very useful as always. From the boots you mention I like the suede Cheaney (Fiennes suede brother) the best as I'm generally not a big fan of grain. In my experience suede makes for a decent bad weather material but them I'm not a veldtschoen expert.

Regarding the MTO snowdon; I like Crockett a lot and own both bench and handgrade pairs but they just don't compare to EG... I'd prefer a RTW Green over a MTO Crockett any time (given both are the same price.)

[CrashTestBrummie]

No problem, mate. I'd check with Richard Shoe Healer as to whether or not the suede Mallory boot is proper veldtschoen, if you decide to go for it. It actually looks like a 270 stitch-down construction in the same vein as the White's and Wesco boots mentioned earlier which may well be just as good depending on what kind of shit weather you get in your part of the world.

And if Richard doesn't stock it then he'd be able to get it in for you and, as an independent retailer, he can sometimes be a little more flexible when it comes to purchasing stuff...

I think that suede can look pretty good when battered by the elements, but it depends on whether or not you'd want to twat around with brushing it down regularly - same as the shell conundrum

I think you've the same mind as me regarding the MTO C&J - would be great to have a one-off boot, but EG might end up trumping it due to the similarity in price...

[fre-co]

You are a crazy man ctb. I remember your first posts in this thread and now you have about a dozen almost identical boots, a brand spanking pair of Edward greens and you are already talking about a second pair.

You should save your money for a while and go the full Monty - Get john lobb to make you a pair.

[bestie]

My fellow mentally ill brothers (CTB-- get Lobbs!):

My White's finally come in in two days.... tiddlywinks, I know. But I'm quite excited.

So here's my question to you guys. Shoe care.

I've got some Obenauf's heavy duty LP and Sno-Seal coming; I want the leather to be as protected as possible with no care given to achieving any sort of "shine" or "mirror." As far as brushes -- do I need one and / or what do I need? What's the chief difference between a polishing brush and a shine brush (one looks bigger, but why)? I was planning on applying the Obenaufs or Sno Seal by hand, so do I really need any sort of brush? Pics to come in the next week or so.

Thanks y'all

[rkusmant]

either obenauf or snoseal will work, I just use bare hand to apply snoseal, put the tub under sun for a while, put the boots outdoors as well (or in front of oven/fireplace during winter), use finger to rub in, keep rubbing until it's absorbed, my hiking boots get this treatment and so far no problem with waterproof. I don't care about brushing my hiking boots.

[garden gnomes in space]

get yourself a star horsehair brush and brush them off from time to time and you'll be good. I put shoe trees in mine every now and then for shape retention, but most times I cant be bothered. cant hurt though

[denimjunky]

If youre gonna dub (I reckon you are since you gonna use Obenaufs or Sno-seal) them, dont use a brush. Your hands work the best.

[rungo]

I'm not sure if they were rough out or not (wasn't paying attention) but if they are, no need to brush, if they're not, hit them with the obenauf's by hand, then wait to dry/settle for a few hours, then I prefer to do a quick once over with a regular horsehair brush just to even the finish out. If you do want a brush for that you don't need anything fancy, $5 at Walmart should get something functional.

[iChan]

Man those look great!

[garden gnomes in space]

yea, obviously if they are rough out, no need for a brush. Although I have a stiffer bristle brush that I use on my rough outs from time tio time. same theory applies, that is to get the crap off before it starts to settle in and do what abrasion does. I always brush my shoes/boots off after a couple wears though, just to get the dust and dirt debris off. especially around the welt where it likes to set up shop and cake up.

[CrashTestBrummie]

You are a crazy man ctb. I remember your first posts in this thread and now you have about a dozen almost identical boots, a brand spanking pair of Edward greens and you are already talking about a second pair.

You should save your money for a while and go the full Monty - Get john lobb to make you a pair.

Ha, when I work out which boots I'd not miss then I'd trim the collection down. I wear more of the 'smarter' stuff these days, anyway, so have been thinking about what to do with some of the 'rougher' stuff...even whacked my Ripons onto eBay last weekend as a starter for ten.

The C&J MTO were to be a present from my dad (I cancelled the order this evening) and the EGs were an impulse buy, of sorts...Anything else would be a replacement for the C&Js.

Lobbs would be fantastic, but I doubt I'd wear them much at all.

[garden gnomes in space]

so i take in Lobbs are the grail, but they also have a offshore made line? I see them at high end stores all the time, seem to be English made, but I have only seen the dress shoe models.

[PeterParker]

For applying a generous and even coat of Obeanauf's LP, I recommend heating up the LP so that it is liquid (putting it out in the sun or 15 seconds in the microwave should do) and then applying with a paint brush (basically painting your shoes with LP). After it dries, you can work in the excess coating by hand.

It helps to get the Obenauf's into the nooks and crannies like the welts, around stitching, etc. that wouldn't get much coverage if you just applied it by hand.

No need for any fancy brush in this application, as it just gets gummed up with the wax when it dries. Just keep the brush for future applications of LP.

A horsehair brush helps to keep the shoes clean by getting rid of dust, but don't expect to get a brilliant shine by brushing. Some leathers (e.g. Chromexcel) take a pretty good shine from brushing alone, while others (e.g. White's standard leathers) stay pretty dull.

[bestie]

Thanks for the responses.

eBay'd a star horsehair brush for $6 today and will be applying LP to them by hand. Brush used to just keep them clean when a quick wipe fails.

They're scheduled for delivery tomorrow. Thanks again yo.

[Crat]

so i take in Lobbs are the grail, but they also have a offshore made line? I see them at high end stores all the time, seem to be English made, but I have only seen the dress shoe models.

There are 2 'John Lobbs' which is a bit confusing. One offers a lot of rtw (the ones in yellow boxes) and is good in quality, but not the holy grail. I'd say they are on parr with EG.

The other Lobb (John Lobb ltd.) only does bespoke and is considered to be the holy grail. Together with silvano lattanzi that is.

[cheapmuthafukr]

got a couple of pairs http://www.ebay.com/sch/pikminone/m.html?item=221153632769&ssPageName=STRK%3AMESELX%3AIT&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2562

should all look better with age.

[bestie]

My White's Semi-Dress finally showed up yesterday. Really thrilled with them as my first foray into the world of boots.

Out of the box they fit great; the arch-ease is really intense but doesn't bother me at all. I find the dress leather to be fairly stiff and can't wait till they soften up with a little time.

They feel a little heavy (compare to sneakers and Clark's DB, go figure) and can't imagine lugging a block heel around-- thanks to gnome and a few others who talked me off that ledge...

Anyways, thanks everyone, and I'll throw up some pictures this weekend when I have time. Nothing we haven't seen before

[exaptavist]

.

Edited October 8, 2015 by hoggreaser