Any tips to maintain traction? nearly went arse over tit in the shop

Practice – you soon get used to it. Or those rubber stick on things 😯

skegz!!

You can add Vibram stick-on grip, but many people are reluctant to 'mod' expensive leather soled shoes.

Have your batman walk five paces ahead of you spreading rock salt in your path.

yeah seen the stick on bits but im now convinced it's a rites of passage thing…

After a bit of wear they'll lose the highly polished finish and you'll be fine.

Stick on rubber soles are for the lower midlle class who think they're middle, bet they read The Mail or Express too. 😉

Very nice, but feel damp in the wet winter weather.

Do they still make 'Blakeys'

I had a low speed bump once upon a time, wearing new leather soled shoes. I jumped straight into the car having put on a brand new pair of shoes that were straight out of the box. Slipped off the pedals and I reversed into a wheelie bin ("Chips Away" dealt with the fallout), so I know what you mean. I usually rough them up a bit now by doing a sort of rotating movement on a concrete floor. I've even resorted to a bit of sandpaper. As soon as the soles have roughed up, you'll be fine (don't know why they don't do this at the factory). A short walk would probably have the same effect.

Walk around outside in the damp and make sure you walk on fine gravel / coarse tarmac. It will take the sheen off the soles and you'll be reet. Got to be wet underfoot for it to work properly.

Used to bang tackets into them. Just don't walk on polished wood floors 🙂

Yep, they do need bedding in before you venture onto carpets and other similar type surfaces.

TooTall – +1

I had a pair that took ages to lose their sheen. I scored the soles with a scalpel which worked well

Grit them teh first time you wear them… not in the wet unless you want to ruin them.

blakeys

yes they still make them

why would anyone want leather soled shoes? Obsolete technology!

why would anyone want leather soled shoes? Obsolete technology!

why would anyone ride a bike, cars are so much more advanced.

Spongebob – Member
why would anyone want leather soled shoes? Obsolete technology!

I prefer leather soled shoes and leather liners as they help my sweaty feet breathe a lot easier than all man-made stuff.

And they are classy as well.

On this subject Samuel Windsor have quality shoes for £35.

I used to frequent a shoe shop where they would offer to score the soles for you on purchase.

*Albanach – Member

On this subject Samuel Windsor have quality shoes for £35*

These are probably the worst "quality" shoes on the market at the moment.
My advice would be to wear the boxes they come in because they are better made than the footwear inside

technology? meh they looked nice

Very nice

Nice, apart from all these crappy problems they have?

Sorry if I'm being naieve, but I'm sure traction is a pretty important requirement for shoe soles!

Silly buggers!

Sorry if I'm being naieve, but I'm sure traction is a pretty important requirement for shoe soles!

and it looks like that issue is resolved fairly quickly 😉

It's just so much more.. real.. you know?

🙄

PS wait til it snows.

*shrug*

I slip in most footwear when it snows, please refer to point a) they look nice

I tend to get mine resoled once a year and the skidding whilst windmilling arms down a crowded high st is something I'm getting rather good at! (I recommend wearing a bowler, protection from impact rather than rotationary forces)

Leather soles on shoes are a bit daft really.

If I wanted to have ultimate traction, I'd always walk about in my Zamberlans.

Shoes with rubber soles make you look like a chemistry teacher.

Shoes with rubber soles make you look like a chemistry teacher an IT support technician.

Corrected – hence why so many of the stw collective are baffled by someone wanting to dress well. Given the advances in technology, they all wear drip dry fabrics and polycotton is a step too far towards nature.

Come off it. Everyone knows IT support come to work in Doc Martens and a faded t-shirt for a bad band. Some even still wear black jeans and leather jackets.

Shoes with rubber soles make you look like a chemistry teacher.

Right, so 90% of the world look like chemistry teachers then?

Leather soled shoes make you look like a wannabe posh git who gets all misty eyed nostalgic for a nobler and more gentle time gone by, when things were all proper like. None of this new fangled nonsense.

🙂

The future is already here. It's just not evenly distributed.

Superior grip, no less!

Leather soled shoes make you look like a wannabe posh git who gets all misty eyed nostalgic for a nobler and more gentle time gone by, when things were all proper like. None of this new fangled nonsense.

Bollocks. Perhaps you're just not bright enough to appreciate the pleasure gained from wearing something that has been hand-crafted by a skilled shoemaker.

A good handmade shoe is a true work of art, something that encourages one to take pride in its upkeep and appearance. I'm a big fan of Patrick Cox and Oliver Sweeney. Lovely, beautifully made shoes.

And leather as a sole material does have advantages. We lose up to 1 litre of fluid a day through each foot, most through the soles. Leather has natural breathing properties. This can be seen by standing on a polished marble floor – you leave slight condensation patches in the same way that your palm would.

Bollocks. Perhaps you're just not bright enough to appreciate the pleasure gained from wearing something that has been hand-crafted by a skilled shoemaker.

Lol! Perhaps you're not bright enough to see when you've been ripped off and made a mug out of 🙂

As for breathability, I'm all for leather UPPERS.

I think chewkw won the "Chemistry Teacher Shoe" award for all time did he not?

If I gain pleasure greater than the value of the money spent, I've not been ripped off. I can afford and am happy to pay for something rare and stylish. Have a word with your accountant, you might be able to afford them too!

And if you're 'all for' breathability, why would you rule out a shoe that has 100% more breathability than your cheap, plastic-soled shoes?

Shibboleth + 1 – I have three pairs of decent shoes on the go for work, Churchs and Loakes the brogues are 8 and 10 years old, still look good, very comfortable and still get comments on how good they look, Buy cheap buy again 😉

I have a pair of work shoes which are 20+ years old now, keep getting the leather soles replaced every 18 months or so, have not found another pair that are more comfortable yet & boy have I tried 😉

Thats the only reason I keep them.

Really nice hand made leather shoes are really satisfying to wear – like a custom made suit – you never realise what you were missing till you try it. Mind you leather shoes are crap in the rain and the soles pick up loads of grit….