Am I Ready To Stand In Water With My New Old Leather Boots To Form To My Feet?

[Mohawk Dave]

Hi all! New to the forum. I'm a tool hound and love quality tools, gear, cast iron cookware, you name it.

Anyway, I have a question concerning used boots that I bought. (I wear USA Danners and Red Wings that I bought new, but these used boots intrigued me). So, I'll C&P my post from the tool forum I'm on:

Ok, stand in a bucket of water until saturated then work in new boots until dry. No problem.

HOWEVER, these are USED boots. And boy, were they DRY when I got them. 10 bux at the thrift store. They are Pivetta, Handmade in Italy probably in 1970s. All leather insole..all leather everything. Screwed on soles. Scream quality.

Anyway, I cleaned with saddle soap, and it soaked in and then used what felt like 2 gallons of neatsfoot oil over the last 1.5 weeks. They are now nice and full of oil and super soft.

Am I ready to stand in water now? I was concerned about the threads a little, but they seem strong, and now they are oiled obviously.

Any other prep I need to do before I get water logged and change socks all day?

I'm new to the forum, so let me know if I'm doing everything right on here.

Thanks! -Mohawk Dave

[papaw]

If you did put a lot of oil on them I can't imagine to need to soak in water.

[Geneva]

I don't think the boots will absorb water with that much oil in them. My 2 cents

[zuludog]

You should have wet formed them before you oiled them. However, oil will soften leather. I suggest you just wear them, but not put them in water. The previous owner will have formed them a bit, though to his feet of course, but you shouldn't have to do as much forming or shaping as you would for a new pair

If you find any uncomfortable spots, 'work' or knead them with your hands

eventually a lot of the oil will wear off so you could try wet forming them then if the fit isn't quite right

[Mohawk Dave]

Hi all,

Thanks for the comments. I should have clarified. I oiled them prior to the water log as they were extremely dry and rock hard....to the point I did not know if they were salvageable. I wanted the oil to loosen the leather up and bring it back to its natural state. Also, I was worried about super dry thread "popping" when and if I just watered and wore them.

The water will allow the leather to stretch around the tight parts of my feet and when it dries it will shrink and tighten up where it's loose. I buy leather gloves that I have to force on, get wet, and work in until dry. I can grab my chalk line with them on now when working. Same type of deal with these boots.

I know I will have to oil after the water treatment, and that is fine. Neatsfoot and mink are cheap. Even with the boots oiled now, the water still does the trick. I keep my Danners and RedWings oiled, and after working in wet conditions, if I take them off and let them dry overnight, they are slightly shrunken and tight the next day. But they have "memory" if you will.

My main concern was/is that I did all the necessary prep to a pair of formerly neglected/forgot about boots before I water log.

Thanks!

[016hnoor]

The previous owner will have formed them a bit, though to his feet of course, but you shouldn't have to do as much forming or shaping as you would for a new pair