Shoemaking Techniques and Traditions--"...these foolish things..."

[DWFII]

Depending on the tannery, and type of bark or chemicals used, 'vegetable' tanned leather always has a slight brown, tan or even pink cast to the grain side. Some tanneries produce a darker shade of tan, some a more pale shade.

The grain side is the densest and, of course, smoothest surface. If you break through that surface, by sanding or scraping too hard or too deep, you will destroy or remove the grain surface (which is very thin) and the result will be coarse and dark and more apt to absorb dirt and oils. And when it does, that area will be an unsightly smudge that cannot be ameliorated.

So shoemakers want to preserve the grain surface as much as possible...literally. Once upon a time, shoemakers considered the clean, unblemished presentation of the grain, the epitome of finishing. Now, shoemakers dye or stain or 'crow' the outsole to hide 'natural' flaws in the leather, or errant tool marks, or various other eyesores resulting from careless bottom work.

Burnishing the outsole will turn it slightly darker in some places...randomly.... and it is a good, 'natural' look, IMO, Burnishing is a good alternative to dying the outsole but doesn't do much to protect it.

Clear waxes on the surface will seal the outsole and don't really change the colour much, if at all.The outsole can even be 'bulled' and look terrific. But sealing/waxing/polishing the grain surface of the outsole doesn't do much once the shoes hit the pavement.

All that said, the shoe in the photo above does not appear to be burnished or waxed or sealed. It is clean work, however.

 

[ntempleman]

The gold standard ?

 

[benjamin831]

The reason why I asked if because I didn't much like the medium brown sole contrasting the black waist on these bespoke shoes. I gave it a very light sanding using 400 grit sand paper and now the color looks great but I'm not quite sure how to seal it without darkening it too much haha

 

[ntempleman]

You don’t really need to seal it, but some clear-ish shoe wax will do the trick

 

[razmaftei]

Clear gum tragacanth and a bit of clear shoe polish leave the grain pretty light looking.

 

[DWFII]

Your outsoles are beautiful. Very clean.

I'm sure you know this but...the 'gumdragon' is a burnishing agent. Without vigourous rubbing with a bone or a piece of smooth wood or even a square of canvas, it doesn't really do much. When gumdragon is used to burnish leather, it binds together the fibers and to some extent closes and seals the pores. Burnishing, with or without gumdragon, can create a very smooth surface. And smooth surfaces (where pores and scratches and flaws are absent or eliminated) is the basis for all reflection and shine.

Unfortunately, burnishing can raise dark spots as the rubbing draws more or less moisture / oil to the surface. It is a different look, but an attractive one nevertheless.

 

[razmaftei]

Yeah well i used an appropriately hot heel iron after a couple of applications of the gum. The powder was gifted to me by a good friend and colleague and i wasnt that sure on how to use it, how to dissolve it into water and wich ratio etc... so i made a couple of throw aways hehe but still ended up with a pretty fluid gum that was sucked up by the sole rather quickly... after a couple of weeks in the refrigerator it went completely fluid so i threw it away and couldnt be bothered to make another although i liked how the soles and top pieces came out. so thanks, and i'm happy you like them too.

if you or anyone else knows how to prepare the gum from powder id be happy if you could share it here.

i once tried a store bought (i believe) gum in england and liked the outcome and ease of use, sadly i couldnt replicate it, needing 5 coats of it sucked quite a bit.

 

[DWFII]

I don't remember exactly how to prepare it from powder but, IIRC, it involved boiling water. It should be the consistency of syrup or maybe okra slime.lol. I've always bought it pre-mixed. And I have some of it that's been sitting around at room temperature for 15+ years--still good. One coat usually works a treat.

Yes, a dry outsole will soak it up pretty fast. But as with no-gum-burnishing, you can rub and rub and nothing will happen until the leather is almost back to normal colour. Same with the gumdragon. Or you could spritz the leather first and let it dry a bit and then apply the gum. Either way it takes some persistent rubbing. I find that a very smooth and polished bone works best.

 

[Sinbios]

Does anyone know what might have caused a ring of perforations on the insole like this? Could they be an indicator that these shoes are handwelted rather than GYW, maybe the holes from the lasting nails used for hand lasting?

The only similar example I've found, shown below, is clearly handwelted, but I don't see the telltale dimples from handwelting in my example above. Is there such a thing as shoes that are hand lasted, but not handwelted?

 

[DWFII]

Even if a shoe is machine lasted, the uppers have to be secured to the last (while the insole is in place) before the shoe can be inseamed. Sometimes staples are used esp. in high volume situations. Sometimes on a smaller scale, tacks or nail might be used often with a nail gun.

I don't think the shoe is hand welted.

That said, I am always suspicious of a black (or green or red, etc.) insole. It suggests, among other things, that the insole may not be leather . Or, if it's leather, that it is poor quality and needed something to camouflage or amend its appearance.

At which point who knows what the perforations might be?

 

[Sinbios]

I would hope these Brionis that supposedly retailed for $3000 were not made with non-leather insoles 😅, but it is odd that they felt the need to dye it. For what it's worth, running my finger along the edge of the insole, it does feel like leather, and I felt faint ridges and dips in some areas that feel like they'd be consistent those seen on handwelted insoles. Are there any other telltale signs of handwelting other than the appearance of the insole?

 

[ntempleman]

There’s no reason why a $3000 pair of Brioni’s wouldn’t use leather alternatives as insole

 

[JohnMRobie]

There’s no reason why a $3000 pair of Brioni’s wouldn’t use leather alternatives as insole

Would be the first time in history a designer had priced an average product way too high because they slapped their logo on it..

 

[Sinbios]

There’s no reason why a $3000 pair of Brioni’s wouldn’t use leather alternatives as insole

Well, other than the hit to their reputation as a respectable classic menswear outfit.

Does this really not look like leather to you guys? The picture is as good as I could get on my phone, but I could bust out the microscope.

 

[ntempleman]

Price tag and label are not indicators of material quality. If I had to guess from the picture I’d say it isn’t any leather I’m familiar with