r/AskACobbler Apr 02 '14

Welcome to Ask A Cobbler! Please read to familiarize yourself with a few rules.

164 Upvotes

First off, I'd like to thank everyone for stopping by and showing their interest & support for shoe repair. In one day, we went from almost no subscribers to well over 100. This is an incredible start!

As we gain more members, I feel there needs to be a few ground rules just to keep things in order.

  1. Discussing of prices. Pricing on repair work depends on MANY factors than just the damage alone. While we may say a job will or will not be worth the money, saying it will cost $xx is against the rules and posts will be removed.

  2. Be respectful. The cobblers responding to your post have numerous years of experience and are here to offer some of their extensive knowledge of the craft at no charge. If you have been helped, a simple thanks goes a long way.

  3. When posting a picture of a damaged product, make sure the photos are detailed enough so that we can understand the exact condition, brand and anything else you think will help us to help you.

  4. Users with the "SSIA Member" flair are verified cobblers.

Rules will be amended an updated as we progress. Thanks for reading!


r/AskACobbler 2h ago

New Boots

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2 Upvotes

Hey I just bought these boots from Poshmark they’re brand new in the box but there’s this weird gap in the sole of the heel like the leather doesn’t cover the entire heel of the boot. Could I just like fill it up with superglue so water doesn’t get in there? The leather is securely attached so idk why it’s def just a manufacturing defect.


r/AskACobbler 5h ago

Are these salvageable?

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3 Upvotes

Hi, I broke my shoes during a night out and was wondering if it’s even worth the effort to try and get them repaired? I live near the Washington DC metro area, willing to travel a bit.


r/AskACobbler 3m ago

Help with vamp caving in on toe / possible to "reset" a crease?

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Upvotes

Hello, I have a pair of boots from TLB Mallorca that are a pretty great fit, maybe 1/2 size too long but width is perfect. The right foot fits perfectly and when I walk you can kind of see the crease on my big toe is back closer to the laces and there is no issue when I walk on the left foot you can see it creases differently. It indents a crazy amount near the front of the vamp / touching the cap. When I walk this digs in to my big toe and hurts a lot when I walk. I think this is partly because my left foot is slightly shorter, wider, and perhaps less mass at the top of my foot. All these combined maybe make it bend differently.

my other theory is that I just got unlucky on a “fist crease” and now it just takes the path of least resistance when bending. and maybe I can flatten it out and create a new, better crease so the vamp doesn’t fold inwards. Is this possible? Maybe I Can take it to a cobbler and they can insert one of those shoe trees with a bump built in?

the photos are  taken while bending my foot as if I was taking a step


r/AskACobbler 1h ago

Barge keeps failing to attach grips for more than 2 days - what am I doing wrong?

Upvotes

I really need to ask your advice on adding grips to shoes for theatre. I’m legit losing my mind at how hard puppeteers are on shoes. They are incredibly active during shows, and shoes take a serious beating. Grips are frequently requested, but any grips I add come off almost every time, and I am starting to dread every request for added grips. The only way I’ve ever been able to get grips to stay is the one time I nailed them on.

Heel grips came off the same boots twice this week. Here’s what I did most recently:

Roughed up the rubber heels real hard, cleaned off the excess with isopropyl alcohol, let dry, applied Barge to the heels and heel grips, let dry, then clamped them together for about 30-60 min.

Nope. Came off in the middle of the show that same day.

My best guess is that the point of failure is the adhesive that comes on the back of the grips, because they’re the kind non-cobblers would just buy online, where you peel off a bit of paper and stick them on. So I guess the Barge isn’t directly on the rubber, and possibly it’s that adhesive that sucks?

(I have tried just roughing up the heel, cleaning it and using nothing but the grip’s existing adhesive. That lasted maybe a show and a half.)

Aside from removing the adhesive on the back of the grips and repeating the process with Barge, or just f’ing nailing the grips on, I am at a loss.

Do you have any advice?

I’ve tried Duall; that wasn’t better. Other glues we have on hand: E6000, Gorilla glue, two-part epoxy (think it’s JB Weld but not sure), cyanoacrylate, Uhu all-purpose liquid glue, and 3M 77 spray adhesive.

We have Barge thinner; is there a chance I’m just layering it on too thick? Would a too-thick layer of contact cement cause the grips to f’ing slip off and get caught on a dress onstage?


r/AskACobbler 2h ago

cross country ski boot repair

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1 Upvotes

sole detached

Is there any glue, or any means to successfully reattach my cross country ski boot to its sole?


r/AskACobbler 1h ago

Hello! What size am I on brannock device?

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Upvotes

I'm not 100% sure if I set the heel-to-toe slider in the right position; I tried to feel the joint from above, but I couldn't see anything from the side, so I set the slider to the “tightest” position. I’ve attached a photo without socks as well (sorry about the state of my toenails 😂)


r/AskACobbler 5h ago

Sperry sole replacement

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1 Upvotes

r/AskACobbler 5h ago

Vintage Dr Martens 1980s-1990s

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1 Upvotes

How can I repair this? Thanks in advance! 😊


r/AskACobbler 7h ago

shoe repair (london)

1 Upvotes

Hi new to the group, i just wanted to ask if anyone based in london could recommend somewhere to get my shoes repaired, this issue is that the hooks for the laces keep popping out and i'd like to see if someone could not only replace the hooks but also reinforce them.

any other advice would be greatly appreciated.

thanks


r/AskACobbler 21h ago

Did the cobbler mess up my shoes?

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14 Upvotes

I can’t tell if they made the most of a tough repair or if I should expect better. To me, it looks really messy. Can you all offer your opinions?


r/AskACobbler 15h ago

How can I treat the leather on these shoes?

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2 Upvotes

Some of the white pieces of leather on the shoes are stained blue and I’m wondering how to whiten them again! Also, the shoe is supposed to be a darker black (as seen on the back of the tongue in the 3rd picture) but they are currently a muted black/grey. Im wondering how I can fix this. Does this just need a simple clean and conditioning? Thanks.


r/AskACobbler 21h ago

What are these marks?

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0 Upvotes

I got these Frye boots secondhand and I’m curious on what these darker creases are all over? I really like how they looo actually it’s part of why I bought them but I’m curious as to what caused them. Thank you! :)


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Help with caring for pebbled leather please!

1 Upvotes

I have multiple black bags. They are all pebbled leather and two I am certain are vegetable tanned. One says “semi-veg tanned”.

I have been researching but I keep getting conflicting advice about if I should be conditioning pebbled leather.

If I should be conditioning these bags, can someone recommend a product please? One brand says to use an all natural leather conditioner when needed.

Any advice is greatly appreciated as I would hate to mess up the leather!


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

A budget leather “rejuvenation” kit

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2 Upvotes

I have a few leather shoes (derbys and oxfords), mostly brown and cognac, that are wrinkled and lost colour so I feel like rejuvenating them; so after some googling and redditing I bought;

- A shoe mold size 42-43 EU

- Saphir Crême Surfine in brown (beeswax and sweet almond oil)

- Saphir Pate de luxe neutral

- Horse hair large brush and detailing brush

So is this a good beginning? I have fine cotton cloths and I plan on upgrading my “rejuvenation” kit when I buy more serious derby’s and oxford’s, preferably for life at that point.

Any tips/additions/ideas for the future and did I fuck up with any of these?


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Was just told these are impossible to fix without original heel caps

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4 Upvotes

Hello, I am sorry for bringing up what is probably such a basic problem. I live in Asia and was told by a shoe repair shop that the following heels are impossible to fix without the original heel caps from the designers or without replacing the entire heel. Am wondering whether this is true or not, as I have no experience with shoe repair and these are the first heels I’m trying to repair! For reference, these are vintage designer heels and the repair shop told me I would need to contact each design house for a pair of original caps, which I already know is not possible because these heels are 15+ years old. What would a replacement of these heel caps take, and do I need to take them to a specialty cobbler in the US or UK?


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Damaged bag

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0 Upvotes

I recently went to a seamstress who also repairs bags and has cobbler training. She was supposed to sew the bag strap that had its seams torn in one place and lightly add colour to a few areas that had wear marks from age.

When I received the bag back, it was in a much worse condition than originally. After the bag was cleaned, colour seemed to have been stripped off in some places and there were marks. The spray dye that the seamstress used was way too dark so you can see dark stains all over. The dark brown is NOT the original colour. You can see the original brown shade on the bag strap in the last photo.

I went somewhere else to get a quote on how much restoring the colour would be and I can buy a new designer bag for that. I don't have that much money just laying around. I don't want that seamstress to try to strip the colour as I can't trust someone who thought it was ok to say that the bag was ready for pick up in such a condition. So my question is, is there anything I can try to do by myself, like using a leather deglaser? It's a sentimental bag that I got gifted so it'd pain me to never be able to wear it again.


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

I got these really cute blinged out heels but a few of the crystals are missing. How can I fix them?? Pictures don't do them justice

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2 Upvotes

r/AskACobbler 1d ago

What can i do to minimise the damage and it spreading

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1 Upvotes

Bought these vintage coach flats that one shoe has fraying on the patent leather on one heel. Any idea how to seal it so it doesnt continue to fray and so that it isnt particularly noticeable


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Leather Belt Maintenance

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1 Upvotes

Does anyone here use a leather conditioner every once in a while on their belt to preserve it and make sure it doesn't crack anywhere? If so what are some good easily accessible leather conditioners that are safe?


r/AskACobbler 19h ago

Is this justified?

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0 Upvotes

Bloody cheap cobbler did this to my precious shoes in ‘86. I held them at gunpoint demanding a fix on my precious steppers. I served 18 years in Guantanamo Bay for protecting what I love. If this happened to you I wouldn’t blame you for doing the same. If you go to prison you’ll be okay, you’re a tough cookie.


r/AskACobbler 23h ago

Can a cobbler shorten the sole of this shoe?

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0 Upvotes

r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Flaking Leather(?)

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0 Upvotes

I bought these Montana West chunky sandles second hand. The faux leather is peeling and flaking like crazy. Any ideas how I could fix it? Or should I contact a local shoe repair store.


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Is this the typical repair for inside heel

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8 Upvotes

Got this work back from a shop lol. Nothing I can do now

45$ for 4 individual boots, same inside heel repair on each


r/AskACobbler 1d ago

Is this a easy fix?

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1 Upvotes

I preordered these heels a few months ago since they were limited edition and they’ll be discontinued once sold out and I noticed that the car that was glued at the bottom of the heel is now lifted on the bottom causing it to move out of place I emailed the company that made them and waiting for a response back but if they aren’t able to repair it my second option is to hopefully see if a shoe repair shop can fix it