CHAPTER EIGHT

OLD-FASHIONED SHOEMAKING AND REPAIRING

The old-fashioned shoemaker formerly made shoes by hand as follows:--A last, which is a wooden model of a foot, was used, and pieces of leather were pasted here and there on it so as to build up a model conforming to the measurements of the foot. Then paper patterns of the upper leather were made from the last, and from these the upper leathers were cut out of tanned calfskins and sewed together.

The leather for the soles was cut out of tanned ox or steer hide, the pieces being the insole, the outsole, and the lifts of the heel. The inner soles were made of softer leather. Sometimes split sole leathers were used for uppers. The shoemaker then softened the leather by steeping it in water, until it was pliable and at the same time firm, and would cut like cheese.

The insoles were attached to the bottom of a pair of wooden lasts, and the wet leather fastened on with lasting tacks so as to mold it to the last. When it was dry, the shoemaker with pincers drew the leather out until it had taken the exact form of the bottom of the last. Then he rounded the soles by paring down the edges close to the last, and formed around these edges a small channel or feather cut or slit about an eighth of an inch in the leather.

Next he pierced the insoles all around with a bent awl, which “bit” into, but not through, the leather, and came out at the channel or feather edge. The boots were then lasted by placing the uppers on the lasts, drawing the edges by means of pincers tightly round the edge of the insoles. Then they were fastened in portions with lasting tacks. Lasting was considered a very important operation, for unless the upper was drawn smoothly and equally over the last, leaving neither a crease nor wrinkle, the form would be a failure. A band of flexible leather about an inch wide, with one edge pared, was then placed in position around the sides of the shoes, up to the heel or seat, and the maker proceeded to “inseam,” by passing his awl through the holes, already made in the insole, catching with it the edge of the upper and the thin edge of the welt, and sewing all three together in one flat seam, with a waxed thread.

The threads which shoemakers use are called “ends,” and are made of two or more strands of small flaxen threads. The shoemaker makes his own waxed thread as follows:--

He holds the main part of the thread from the spool, in his left hand, holding it firmly--where he wants to break it--between the first finger and thumb, so that it will not turn beyond that point. Then with the left hand, he lays the end of the flax on the knee and rolls it from him. This will cause the small fibers that compose the thread to separate--thus enabling him to break it easily. When the fibers separate, he gives the thread a light, quick turn, which causes it to break. As the thread breaks he pulls it apart gradually, so that the fibers will taper. Then he places the threads together, one just behind the other, so that the end will have a very fine point. He rolls the end and allows it to turn between the fingers of the left hand. After it has been rolled and twisted, it is waxed by drawing the thread through a piece of wax.

The fine ends are waxed to a point. A bristle is fastened on in the following manner: the head of the bristle is held in the left hand, and the portion to which the thread is to be fastened is waxed; then the thread and bristle are twisted together. A hole is made in the thread and the bristle pulled through and fastened. After the threads are fastened, the heads of the bristle are cut off, and the ends sandpapered.

The wax thread or “end,” as it is called, should never be made longer than is necessary to sew a shoe. Experience shows that if a portion of an end left after sewing one shoe is used on the second shoe, it is never as strong as a new end. The thread grows weaker and weaker as it is used. When the thread is well waxed, it is cemented to the shoe.

After the shoe is sewed, the shoemaker pares off inequalities and levels the bottoms, by filling up the depressed part in the center with pieces of tarred felt. The shoes are now ready for the outsoles. The fibers of the leather to be used for the soles are thoroughly condensed by hammering on the lapstone. Then they are fastened through the insole with steel tacks, their sides are pared, and a narrow channel is cut round their edges. Through this channel they are stitched to the welt, about twelve stitches of strong, waxed thread being made to the inch. The soles are next hammered into shape; the heel lifts are put on and attached with wooden pegs. Then they are sewed through the stitches of the insoles; and the top pieces, similar to the outsoles, are put on and nailed down to the lifts.

The finishing operations of the shoe include smoothing the edges of the heel, paring, rasping, scraping, smoothing, blacking, and burnishing the edges of the soles, withdrawing the lasts, and cleaning out any pegs which may have pierced through the inner sole. There are numerous minor operations connected with forwarding and finishing in various materials, such as punching holes, inserting eyelets, etc.

HOW SHOES ARE REPAIRED

Before one can understand how shoes are repaired, it is necessary to know the difference between the inside and outside of a shoe.

The last is divided into four parts, viz. toe, ball, shank, and heel.

Diagram No. 1 shows these parts and their shapes.

Diagram No. 2 shows the length of the inside of the divisions as compared with those of the outside. Notice the long shank and short ball.

Diagram No. 3 shows the outside of the divisions and the effect they have upon the shape of the shoe. See short shank and long ball.

Always remember that the ball of a shoe is longer on the outside, having a short shank. The ball is shorter on the inside, having a long shank. Compare outside and inside diagrams Nos. 2 and 3.

SHOE REPAIRING

The first operation in half soling a shoe is to cut off the old portion from “a” to “c” as shown on diagram No. 1. The shoe is placed in different positions and corrected in every way before putting on the new sole. It is generally better to wet the shoe in order to put it in shape.

The leather is skived thin and accurate enough to make a neat, comfortable joint, and yet thick enough for the nails to hold.

Then the filling is added before placing on the sole. The sole is trimmed and a guide line drawn around the edge, so that the nails may be properly arranged.

Finishing the sole is an important part. If everything else is properly done, this part becomes comparatively easy. See that all nails are clinched. With a level bottom, smooth joints and edges, the shoe can be made to look like a new shoe and yet feel like an old one.

On account of the heel being more directly under the body and the first part to strike the ground, it generally wears out first. For this reason in repairing a heel great care must be taken to see that good leather and solid work are put into it. Pull off the worn top piece and see that what is left is hammered down solidly. Next split a piece of solid, easy-cutting, scrap sole leather, so that two pieces can be made out of one. Put them on the shoe and fasten them on well, piece by piece, with tacks. See that the heel is level before putting on the top piece. (If necessary, a small piece may be put under the top piece.) After it is level, put on top piece, trim in shape, then draw guide line and nail down. The nails are placed thicker on the side that is worn down most, to protect the heel. The heel is next rasped, and smoothed with a buffer and sandpaper. When finished, it should set level.

MODERN METHOD OF REPAIRING SHOES

As the shoemaking industry has become more and more perfect, there has been an increasing interest taken in shoe repairing. A medium-priced shoe as it is made to-day may often be in good enough condition to be heeled and soled a couple of times. Hence, although in the past many shoe stores and departments have had their shoe repairing done by outside shops, the tendency to-day is for every shoe store to have its own repair department. This method has resulted largely from the development of machinery for shoe repairing, which is revolutionizing the business to such an extent that in a few years repairing by hand will be among the lost arts. With the new inventions for restoring upper leather, and the improvement of machinery for shoe repairing, repair departments will very soon be but little short of miniature factories.

The machinery ordinarily used consists of the Goodyear stitcher, used for attaching soles to Goodyear welts by the lock-stitch method, just as in shoe factories making Goodyear welt shoes. Then there is a heel trimmer, a bottom finisher, consisting of a rapidly revolving roll covered with coarse and fine sandpaper, and an opera heel builder for forming concave heels. There are two wheels used for tan and white heel work, one heel being covered with a white cloth, and the other with a coarse brush. Adjoining these are usually the shank and heel finisher,--capable of smoothing and highly polishing a shank or heel in about a dozen seconds,--the bottom finisher, that grinds and smooths down the new sole, and a machine used for rubbing off dirt before the shoe is finished, consisting of a heavy horsehair brush. Another useful part of the equipment is an edge setter, which is also identical with the one used in factories. The shoe stitching machines and the parts used in finishing are all operated on one long shaft, rapidly revolved by the aid of a motor. It is a fact that a shoe may be actually soled and heeled in less than six minutes.

Five or six men are usually employed in the repair department of a large establishment. When the customer’s shoes are brought in, one of these men cuts off the old sole and traces an outline of the new sole on a block of the very best oak leather. After these are cut out by hand in rough form, they are soaked in water and channeled; that is to say, a part of the sole is turned up in which the stitches are to be run. A second man, by the use of the Goodyear stitcher, joins the sole and welt together with a very strong and tightly drawn lock stitch. This is a large machine with a curved, barbed needle and awl, and a shuttle which sews through an inch of leather with the greatest ease and speed. There are from one hundred and fifty to two hundred stitches in each shoe; moreover, every one of them is locked with heavy wax thread, so that there is no chance of their ever giving away. If one stitch should break, the other stitches would remain intact, as they are all independent of each other. Both soles are stitched on in a little over half a minute without breaking a thread or stopping the machine.

A coating of rubber cement is now placed in the edges of the outsole, and the lip of the channel is smoothed down so that the stitches are entirely hidden when looking at the bottom of the shoe. The edge trimming is done next with the aid of a rapidly revolving wheel, which trims the edges square and true in about forty seconds. After this, the shank is finished on a rapidly revolving wheel covered with emery cloth.

Bottom finishing is the next step. This is done on a machine having two long cylinders, one covered with fine and the other with coarse sandpaper. These cylinders revolve rapidly, and the operator uses the coarse sandpaper for scouring the dirt and old finish off the leather, and the fine sandpaper for finishing the sole as smooth as that of any new shoe.

The brushing in or smoothing is next done by the horsehair brush we have mentioned before. A preparation called Lewis’s rival bottom polish--a sort of white wax--is placed on the brush machine. The brush now smooths the surface of the sole, filling in all small holes with wax and leaving the sole absolutely perfect. Finally, the shoe is placed against a rapidly revolving brush which finishes the uppers with a luster that would make any ordinary boot-black green with envy. Another operation that fully completes the process is the hardening of the edges with hot steel, which ends in producing an edge that is as hard as iron. When it is polished with a black dye, it looks exactly like a new sole.

A few words are necessary with regard to the heel. The old heel having been removed, several lifts of new leather in rough form are tacked on. The shoe is then taken to the heel trimmer and is formed correctly and then smoothed down to a brilliant surface on the finely covered revolving wheel. In a few seconds it is stained, smoothed, and polished. In less than six minutes the shoe is ready for the customer.