Shoe Care / Shoe Shine

[cookie]

You are getting there but I think the antiquing needs to be more overall and seems concentrated on the front section.

 

[Orgetorix]

That was deliberate. My shoes that have been "naturally" antiqued over time with regular polishing have gotten darker on the toes than the rest of the shoes, and that's what I wanted to imitate.

I was going for something like Edward Green's Dark Oak color. While these pictures don't show it, under some light the boots almost look more like John Lobb Paris' Museum Red. There is a pronounced redness to the finish that doesn't come through in these shots, and I'm not sure if that's because the Fiebings has a red tint or because of the base color or both.

 

[cookie]

I like red undertones if that is what happened.

 

[Hexenmeister]

Precision show shining.

Watching this makes my shoe shining routine look...juvenile. He makes it seem so meditative and precise; and he makes my shine jobs look like crap in comparison. lol

[YOUTUBE]Io2KFwZ5B8w[/YOUTUBE]

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Good find!!! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

What is that thing he keeps tapping? It appeares to contain water.

 

[WolfeMan]

The shoe shine

I use kiwi polish. I do a thick base coat of black first, let it dry, and brush it with a horsehair brush. Then i get a small amount of polish on a cloth on 2 fingers, and rub it in circular motions until the fog disappears. I do black first, then parade gloss, and an outer coat of neutral. Shines them up pretty nice, good enough to pass inspection for my NJROTC class. I also shine my Corcorans, that i use for daily wear. Keeps them looking sharp.
(thanks for moving)


Wolfe

 

[CC-1]

Lincoln wax

I strongly second that opinion. Lincoln smells a lot better too.

 

[WolfeMan]

Hello, i was recently polishing a new pair of service shoes from ATF. I noticed a dark spot appeared on one, and quit polishing, tried a couple ways of removing, nothing. When i moved to the next shoe, suddenly the same thing happened. I'm using neutral kiwi, i applied saddle soap earlier, and i used a little rubbing alcohol on the first one, i'm hoping the stains will disappear, but does anyone know what could have caused this, or how i can fix is short of trying to darked the rest of the boot?
Thanks, Wolfe
Edit- the stain seems to have turned light, but when i apply more polish it turns dark again.

 

[John in Covina]

Hello, i was recently polishing a new pair of service shoes from ATF. I noticed a dark spot appeared on one, and quit polishing, tried a couple ways of removing, nothing. When i moved to the next shoe, suddenly the same thing happened. I'm using neutral kiwi, i applied saddle soap earlier, and i used a little rubbing alcohol on the first one, i'm hoping the stains will disappear, but does anyone know what could have caused this, or how i can fix is short of trying to darked the rest of the boot?
Thanks, Wolfe
Edit- the stain seems to have turned light, but when i apply more polish it turns dark again.

On some new shoes the manufacturer puts a coating of a laquer type shine on the outside. If the laquer is removed in a specific area then the leather is open to pull in the various applied polishes , etc. Often a leather will darken as the more liquid portion of the polish is absorbed into it. Some may stay darkened others may lighten as it dries out.

 

[WolfeMan]

On some new shoes the manufacturer puts a coating of a laquer type shine on the outside. If the laquer is removed in a specific area then the leather is open to pull in the various applied polishes , etc. Often a leather will darken as the more liquid portion of the polish is absorbed into it. Some may stay darkened others may lighten as it dries out.

The affected area does not seem to take a shine, and stands out from the rest of the boot. Also, they weren't very glossy or anything when they arrived. If i got some brown polish and used it over the areas instead of neutral, is it possible that would help with the problem? The rest seems to shine up fairly nicely.

 

[WolfeMan]

Hello again. I'm sorry to keep posting, but Ive been looking around on the internet trying to find an answer to my question. I'm sure somebody will direct me somewhere and make me feel a fool.
Anyways, i was wondering if polishing my brown boots with cordovan polish will darken them? The toe cap of the left one is darker than the rest of the boot, and no amount of saddle soap and scrubbing will correct it, so i want to try and use polish to match the toe cap to the rest of the boot, and to the right boot.
Thanks,
Wolfe

 

[Big_e]

I have a pair of snakeskin shoes I bought about 3 months ago. I've managed to wear them about 2-3 times a month and have been looking for a regular treatment to keep the scales shiny and from drying out. I've bought a plastic bottle of Bickmore leather conditioner. Upon reading other threads in the interwebs I tried a spray can of Pledge furniture polish. I find that my snakes benefit just fine with a spray and wipe down with Pledge and smell lemony. I spray a small dab and rub along the direction of the grain/ scales. It contains water, mineral oil, silicon oil and naphtha. It'll feel greasy for a few minutes but by the time I put my shoes back on the rack, they're dry to the touch.
I now save the leather conditioner for my saddle oxfords and spectators. I've been using neutral polish on them and hate the flaky look of neutral polish when it dries.
Ernest

 

[John in Covina]

A caution regarding silicon, if it's the slippery stuff, rumor has it that it may cause stitching to undo itself because it is so slippery.

 

[Big_e]

Thanks for that John. It's supposed to be the defoamer agent. In the health & Human services database the same stuff (polydimethylsiloxanes) is also used in range of stuff from anti-perspirant products to deep gloss waxes. Even Armor All uses it as well as Right guard and Softsoap Body Wash. But still that may be something to consider if one is going to use furniture polish on shoes. I don't think it's the lubricant type of silicon.
Ernest

 

[HodgePodge]

Good find!!! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

What is that thing he keeps tapping? It appeares to contain water.

Definitely some kind of water container. Looks to be some super-nifty kind that has a pump similar to a soap dispenser.
From that video it looks as though I need to add a few more brushes to my shoe shine kit.
Wish I could pull off that nice a job, that effortlessly, in that amount of time.

 

[WolfeMan]

Where can one buy mink oil without going online? Would somewhere like Walmart, CVS, or Publix (a supermarket for those who don't have them) carry it, or will i have to look elsewhere?
Thanks,
Wolfe

 

[John in Covina]

Where can one buy mink oil without going online?

Mink Oil was a waterproofing agent used on hiking and serious work boots. I'd try a camping supply store or a place that carries a lot of work boots like what loggers use. Also some surplus stores may have it too.

 

[cptjeff]

Where can one buy mink oil without going online? Would somewhere like Walmart, CVS, or Publix (a supermarket for those who don't have them) carry it, or will i have to look elsewhere?
Thanks,
Wolfe

I have a tin of kiwi purchased at my local drugstore. The great local hardware store at school stocks two brands, and I've seen it stocked in most grocery stores.

I have NOT seen it at most outdoor stores though. Shoe stores that sell heavy duty boots would, and your local shoe repair guy would quite certainly have a tin or two in stock.

It's not hard to find, nor particularly expensive.

 

[WolfeMan]

Thanks, ill probably ride my bike down the road a bit tomorrow and check out a few stores that are all at the same intersection, didnt want to make the trip unless i knew there was a chance of getting it. If that fails, ill check the surplus store.
Wolfe

 

[MB5]

Definitely some kind of water container. Looks to be some super-nifty kind that has a pump similar to a soap dispenser.
From that video it looks as though I need to add a few more brushes to my shoe shine kit.
Wish I could pull off that nice a job, that effortlessly, in that amount of time.

It is a solvent dispenser, though it does likely contain water. There are quite a few available, but I think I stumbled upon the same one here:
http://www.micro-tools.com/store/item_detail.aspx?itemCode=94017