New Shoes

I haven't yet bought shoes but the time has now come

my feet got wet in the rain on the way home

Income/expenditure has changed.....

Do these seem too good to be true?

http://www.shoes.best-for.com/acatalog/Chelsea_Boot.html
 
Wow, that site is an interesting find Andy. I do hope somebody can vouch for the quality. If the shoes are decent I will recommend it to my Dad who is something like a size 5 and finds it really hard to find decent shoes in that size. The reviews on the site are very favourable but it would be nice to know if anybody here has bought from there.
 
Re: RE: New Shoes

antdad said:
For leather soled shoes get them resoled immediately, that'll extend their lifespan considerably.
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As good a piece of advice as you'll ever get on any subject, IMO. (Unless, of course, you never go outside in the rain and don't really walk anywhere in the dry either... so why are you wearing shoes?)
 
Re: RE: New Shoes

Dr Rick said:
antdad said:
For leather soled shoes get them resoled immediately, that'll extend their lifespan considerably.
Click to expand...

As good a piece of advice as you'll ever get on any subject, IMO. (Unless, of course, you never go outside in the rain and don't really walk anywhere in the dry either... so why are you wearing shoes?)
Click to expand...

Ok guys, excuse my ignorance here.

I've been looking at these good shoes and don't really understand this leather sole thing.

If I buy a pair of leather soled shoes you are suggesting to have them.resoled straight away. Does this mean they just add an extra rubber sole to protect the leather. If that's the case why don't I just buy rubber soled shoes.

What do they actually do when they resole shoes. Do they take the old sole off, or just put a new one over the top.

I'm quite keen to buy a couple of decent pairs of shoes but having only bought disposable shoes before I'm a little lost.
 
Don't re-sole a brand new pair of shoes, the leather soles are designed to be walked on :) When I read it, i thought that the advice about re-soling was in response to someone feeling water ingress during a walk.
This often happens when you've worn a pair of shoes right down (too thin, actually - you shouldn't really get to this stage.) At this stage the cobbler will prepare the shoe and affix a new layer of leather. An ordinary high street mender won't take the whole sole off - just knock off the heel and strip off enough leather from the sole to get a good surface.

However, some shoe manufacturers (e.g. loake) will take a pair of shoes back, replace the whole sole and re-finish the shoe. This costs about 50% of the price of the shoe, so you've got to really love them for it to be worthwhile!

The advice re. Rotate and polish is spot on however!
 
Thanks for that. I have found leather soles to wear out quite quickly, although that could be the shoes in question were very cheap. A good Loakes sole would perhaps last longer.
I may take a trip to the Loakes shop in London, which it just so happens is in Jermyn Street, handy ;)
 
I agree with you Chopper if these were thick soled Loakes who aren't averse to stitching rubber on leather themselves btw but it really depends on type of use, if they are for walking in all weathers then I'd consider it but it's a compromise...to get the full benefit of leather soles i.e comfort, breathability/absorption and aesthetics then don't bother resoling until you need to but as Rick implied leather soles don't wear too well particularly in the wet nor are they completely waterproof despite the construction. Good idea to get two pairs and rotate no matter nevertheless an immediate rubber resole will give the shoes a chance to get well broken in as well as retard wear and improve weatherproofing.
 
Thanks, that's helpful.

Most of my day is spent in an office so it sounds like leather soles should work for me.

I will have a chat to the people in the shop, hopefully the staff in a Loakes shop will know what they are talking about.

I plan on getting a pair of Black Oxfords and a pair of Brown Derbys of some sort, I will let you know how I get on.
 
So, I didn't make it into London but I did manage to get to a shop in Southend today.

A very successful trip as I acquired 2 pairs of Loakes for just under £200.00, and both pairs are Made in England.

IMAG0002.jpg
 
I got 2 pairs of shoes from Moss Bros in Livingston. Went in on a whim and found the exact shoes I have been looking for. Top Darts.

Also bought a new Digital Camera:s
 
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