Yes when I visit Vigevano.

Last edited by The_Shooman (2012-01-05 22:40:41)

Maybe l should learn hand welting and stitching on soles so l can repair my own shoes. I see John soon so i'll ask him, if not i'll find another bloke to help me. I'm going to rip up fxh's wingtips so i'll try re-welting them and stitching on the soles by hand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbr9efKBko4&feature=player_embedded

l'll do a review on the Greek maker Kon Rekaris in my blog soon. l paid a four figure sum in 1994 for some custom boots and they were the biggest piece of crap you've ever seen. He promised me the world and said he was "an expert shoemaker", but everything he said was a load of rubbish. l asked for a goodyear welted crocodile boot and went to great lengths to speak about the last shape l wanted and showed him various pictures of the design l wanted. Rekaris said he could do it no problem. The boot l ended up getting had the following problems:

* the heel was too high and made the shoe unbalanced
* the welt wasn't made of leather. In actual fact, it wasn't a welt at all, all it was was a rubber rand with fake stitching on it. l told him many times to make sure the welt was leather and functional and he said he would do it, but he took every short cut and made it look cheap. When l asked him why he didn't use a proper leather welt he said that it was much easier to work with a rubber rand and glue it there.
* the soles were not stitched on like l went to great pains to emphasise, they were glued on. They said many times that the soles would be stitched on, but that was yet another lie. lf l had have been told this from the start l would have avoided him like the plague.
* the `lasting' of the boot was poorly done.
* the blocking of the boot was non-existant!
* the waist of the boot had no stiffener so there is no guts to the shoe. It feels all flimsy.
* the sock was made from cheap materials.
* the shoe doesn't fit properly because the unbalanced boot pushes my feet into the toe box too much.

l only went to Rekaris because he came highly recommended by various clients and had newspaper articles stating how people travelled the world to see him because he was so good. All types of big names had had shoos made by him and repaired by him. l've had repairs done by him too, but they were as woeful as the boots. How can someone put their name on work so poorly done. Mr X saw my MTM croc boots tonight and he said you shouldn't even be wearing them considering the good shoos you have got. l told Mr X that l had only worn the pair about 4 times in 8 years.

all the stuff about repairs and lack of skills makes it a no brainer to have a nice thin piece of Topy put on the sole.

Last edited by fxh (2012-01-14 00:04:42)

Last edited by The_Shooman (2012-01-14 02:36:17)

Gettin' yous all ready for 'Straya Day 2012: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k81_KP56oL0&feature=player_embedded

Last edited by meister (2012-01-18 00:41:21)