Hello all,
As you might all be collectors perhaps you could help me with the following;
I have found a right foot DR boot in my size 11.. is there someone who could help me with a left foot size 11?
I have a left foot 10 3/4 (43C) for exchange.....


Many thanks in advance!

email (option): snvosselman@hotmail.com

Thats not a British DR boot, it is laced up to the top British ones were only laced up to the bottom of the buckles

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

I am not asking if my boots are British, but if someone could help me with my search.
Thanks, Sven

email (option): snvosselman@hotmail.com

If you only find a 10 you could try using Vanner and Prests neatsfoot oil compound as usually you can make them comfortably stretch a size up by really soaking them (I mean really soaking)them in it,I'm a size 9 and the only ones I could get were a size 8, but I did the above and wore them around the house for short bursts for a few days and they grew to fit my feet. I nearly used a litre of the stuff, it just goes to show how dry they get over the years as I kept applying it and it kept soaking in until they wouldn't soak in any more. Now they've dried out again they fit pretty good. It's worth a try if you can't get another size 11.

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

I have been reading about this neatsfoot oil, does that really work that good? Where did you get it?

Henk

email (option): ahum@quicknet.nl

Interesting, I looked it up on Wikipedia and found this- Pure neatsfoot oil comes from cattle feet and shin bones, you want the 100% oil for leather-
Fat from warm-blooded animals normally has a high melting point, becoming hard when cool – but neatsfoot oil remains liquid at room temperature. This is because the relatively slender legs and feet of animals such as cattle are adapted to tolerate and maintain much lower temperatures than those of the body core, using countercurrent heat exchange in the legs between warm arterial and cooler venous blood – other body fat would become stiff at these temperatures. This characteristic of neatsfoot oil allows it to soak easily into leather.

Modern neatsfoot oil is sometimes made from lard. It is sold as neatsfoot oil in pure form. If mineral oil or other petroleum-based material is added, the product may be called "neatsfoot oil compound". Some brands have also been shown to be adulterated with rapeseed oil, soya oil, and other oils. The addition of mineral oils may lead to more rapid decay of non-synthetic stitching or speed breakdown of the leather itself.

So if you want some, make sure you gt the 100% pure oil.

email (option): vinver@ns.sympatico.ca

Thanks Dave! I will inform you about the results.

email (option): snvosselman@hotmail.com

Vanner and Prests claims not to rot the stitching. There used to be a golden rule for oils which was animal oil for animal products, mineral oil for mineral products and vegetable oils for vegetable products (Castrol R being the exception) As I said it really does soften the leather to a point where you can make a pair of boots go up a size, but if your boots are a nice fit already don't overdo it, but if they are as stiff as cardboard really soak them, when you've got them comfortable you should put them on a radiator to dry out a bit, as this allows some of the oil to evaporate and lets them stiffen up a little.
Leather is funny stuff, it is made of short fibres which contain natural oils which bond them together and allow them to move, but as the leather ages the fibres start to dry out and as they move together they then start to break it would be most noticeable on the straps of the boots (that is why you see so many straps broken)The straps on my boots I was scared to do them up because they looked so brittle, but now they are as soft as the proverbial babys bottom. My soles squeaked when I first put mine on and the oil also cured this too!
I put the compound on the boots with a rag at first, but I got fed up with putting it on this way as son as I put it on it was absorbed into the leather, so I poured some in to each boot and rolled it around so the oil went all over the inside and after a day this too had gone, so I just repeated the process (obviously the back of the leather is the best place to put it as this is where the fibres are that need softening) As I said before mine took nearly a litre of oil before they wouldn't absorb any more, so it gives you some idea as to how much they dry out over the years.

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

I have been trying to restore old leather with the stuff available in Holland and was never pleased with the result, next time I'll try this neats foot oil.

Henk.

email (option): ahum@quicknet.nl

hi henk,try some on your cloggs,you never know [:cheers rick

email (option): richardholt@rocketmail.com