Shoe Repair

[jamespowers]

Ok, just when you think you have your shoes broken in to fit just right the soles and heels need replacing.
Then I figured that since I am on this list with the sultans of style, I might as well ask where a person in the Bay Area gets a quality resole job done. I have a regular shoe guy who replaces a mean heel but this is the total job here and I don't want to screw up a good pair of uppers. Anyone know of a good shoe repair wizard in the Bay Area---outside of San Francisco please?
By the way, they are a pair of Johnston & Murphy black oxfords with the toe cap. I do not remember the model.

Regards to all,

j

 

[jamespowers]

Shoes Got Sole

I finally found a local shoe repair guy to resole my Johnston & Murphy Optimas. The guy did a great job too. He even shined them up like new. New soles and heels set me back $40. I don't know if that is about right or not but I feel pretty good with them on and they do not embarass me now so I suppose it is a good thing.
The guy used to be in the hat business with his father in the "old days." He noticed my hat right away. He told me about how they used to clean them and rebuild them. quite interesting. He has a shoe shine stand in there but I didn't ask if he shines shoes. I will have to do that when I get my spectators resoled and reheeled. The guy uses quality products for the rework too. Leather soles and very cool patterned heels. I don't know how many of us live in the East Bay and could use a cobbler but if you do, let me know I can give you a good referral.

Regards to all,

J

 

[Matt Deckard]

Have you resoled your shoes?

And if so how often and where?

I've' only ever sent my shoes into the actual makers to get them resoled and the only ones I have work in to the cork have been my Allen Edmonds and Aldens.

So tell me what do you wear and have you had them resoled?

I don't need them resoled often as i live in California and drive everywhere. talking to a few friends out of state who walk more I hear getting your shoes resoled is sometiems a half yearly event. It took three years to see the cork in my single layer Aldens... so what's your story? How often do you resole and if you don't resole... what do you wear and why not?

 

[Fletch]

I routinely had Bass Weejuns resoled by cobblers years ago. Usually half soles, because the sole toes holed after a year or so, and rubber heels, 'cause I tended to slip on shined floors with the leather halfheel.

Bass evidently made some changes, as my last pair have been going strong on their original soles for 15+ years.

 

[Travis]

Matt, how much did they run to get them resoled?

 

[vonwotan]

Generally I send my Allen Edmonds shoes back to them for restoration rather than having a cobbler mend them. I did take one pair back when I allowed a hole to progress too far. With too much wear they will no longer repair their shoes. Now that I am wearing other brands, I have to find a solution. Alden will also restore their own shoes.

Now that Allen Edmonds has limited its selection and added a surcharge to shoes in my size, I will need to find a less expensive alternative...

 

[scotrace]

Mine go to a local cobbler who does excellent work. Last pair I had done (November 06) were Johnston Murphy wingtips, half soles and heels, both pair $35.

 

[Orgetorix]

I have three or for pairs right now that are showing cork and need new soles. Two are AEs, one is J&M, and one is Cole Haan. I'll probably send one of the AE pairs back to the maker for recrafting and have the other three done locally. Any way you slice it, it's going to be expensive. I have to have this done often, as quite a bit of my daily commute is walking.

 

[kools]

I just dropped off a pair for resoling at the cobber in my neighborhood. Although I live in AE's hometown, with a few retail locations, I have yet to take any of my shoes there. My impression, possibly mistaken, is that it would be significantly more expensive there than the local cobbler. And while I prefer to be a patron of local businesses like my neighborhood cobbler, AE qualifies as it is Milwaukee owned. (I mentioned once before that my wife used to share an apartment with the daughter of AE's owner).

I don't need resoling done too often...I have a lot of shoes & rotate them frequently. I never wear the same shoes more than twice a week.

 

[jamespowers]

Mine go to a local cobbler who does excellent work. Last pair I had done (November 06) were Johnston Murphy wingtips, half soles and heels, both pair $35.

Your cobler charges the same as mine here. I had a pair of black Toe caps of the same brand resoled. They came out better than I brought them in. he put one heck of a shine on them. I have only had to brush them since and that was about a year ago! Now that's a shine.

Regards,

J

 

[Hammelby]

Sliiiiide

I bought a pair of barker shoes last month, and now they need a sole.
The cobbler even asked if i wanted a sole w. slide!

Sure im having the slide ones! i LOVVVVEE TO SLIDE!.. on metro´s, in dusty cellars, on dancefloors.. anywere that there is smooth stonefloors!

I especially like that accidential slide (when train bumps into action), i just go... sliiide.. and occasionally i do a lindy stomp off. Anyone else that has this urge or am i alone w. this fetish???

 

[Travis]

I bought a pair of barker shoes last month, and now they need a sole.
The cobbler even asked if i wanted a sole w. slide!

Sure im having the slide ones! i LOVVVVEE TO SLIDE!.. on metro´s, in dusty cellars, on dancefloors.. anywere that there is smooth stonefloors!

I especially like that accidential slide (when train bumps into action), i just go... sliiide.. and occasionally i do a lindy stomp off. Anyone else that has this urge or am i alone w. this fetish???

I like the slide too, at least 99% of the time, that other 1% I absolutely despise it, but that's usually because it results in me injuring myself.

 

[Zemke Fan]

Since adding rubber "zips" to the front of my shoes...

I have not yet had to have ANY pair resoled. I wear out the zips on the front half of the sole at the same rate as the heels, so new heels and zips go on about every six to twelve months. (I have a couple of favorite pairs that I wear more than I should.)

As for the AE repair work. There are several services offered. The complete "recrafting" runs $95, but is much more involved than just new soles: "New outsoles, heels, cork footbeds, welting, and laces. Uppers are refinished and hand polished." As for "refinishing," which runs $40: "Old finish is stripped off and new dyes and finishes are applied to reinstate the shoes former brilliance."

Recrafting Form (.pdf)

 

[JazzBaby]

I especially like that accidential slide (when train bumps into action), i just go... sliiide.. and occasionally i do a lindy stomp off. Anyone else that has this urge or am i alone w. this fetish???

I'd love to see that!

I bought a pair of Marc Jacobs black leather pumps, very classic style with round toe and had rubber soles done by a local cobbler. Unfortunately it was a shoddy job, with stray bits of rubber sticking out of the side of the shoe, but I'd rather that than destroy a very beautifully made and comfortable pair of shoes.

 

[jitterbugdoll]

I've had my favorite vintage shoes resoled several times by an experienced cobbler. I am very hard on my shoes and the cobbler I go to does a great job at a very inexpensive price.

 

[Feraud]

I have my everyday shoes resoled at a local cobbler. My better brand shoes will go to their maker to be resoled.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

I went to the cobbler at Lenox Square in Atlanta. He did a great job. He always ended up charging me less than what he quoted or was posted.

 

[Matt Deckard]

What i find interesting is how my generation doesn't think to resole their shoes... though it may be my area.

 

[DeeDub]

What i find interesting is how my generation doesn't think to resole their shoes... though it may be my area.

I think we've been conditioned to expect everything we buy to be disposable. After all, we have to make room for all the new stuff we're buying at the mall each week.

I had my Florsheims resoled at a little shop in Cupertino some years ago, mainly because I didn't have the scratch to toss them out and buy another $100 pair of shoes. But the results were good and they served me well for several more years, until they were ruined by unfortunate circumstances too painful to discuss.

I've been wearing some cheaper shoes the past couple of years. They look okay, but I can sure feel the difference. These aren't worth fixing. When they wear out, I'm going back to Florsheims. Or better. After hearing all the talk about Allen-Edmonds here, I might give those a try. Then I'll wear them until I can get them resoled and provide a follow-up to this thread.

 

[feltfan]

I live in California and do not drive everywhere.
I walk my dog a minimum of an hour a day and walk or
bicycle as much as possible. Just bought my first car
in 10 years. I wear out soles.

I voted that I get shoes resoled at a "random shop".
Of course I go to a specific, carefully chosen shop. I have
had Redwing do some sole repair (poorly I might add).

I tend to wear a lot of boots. They are often well made
and designed to be resoled. Cowboy boots, hiking boots,
and workboots in particular. Recently had a pair of 1958
combat boots resoled (the leather was okay, but the sole
rubber cracked as a result of the years of storage). They
used Cats Paw. Vibram on the Redwings of course.

Tennis/running/all-terrain (name your current popular
term for these shoes) get thrown out because they can't
be resoled and tend to fall apart all at once.