Current harness boot project

[KenJWan]

So, this is the fifth pair of boots I am making. The previous four pairs were an evolution of engineer boots and so I decided to make some harness boots this time. They are ready for the midsole, soles, and heels!

[Aven]

Ken, I'd say you are getting really good at this.  Those are going to turn out very nice.  Are you hand sewing the uppers or have you started collecting machines?

[KenJWan]

Thanks! It’s been a fun learning process.

the uppers are machine stitched with a post-bed Adler machine I have access to.

excited to finish them!

[Hags]

Very nice! And I have to say very ambitious.  Holsters were a stretch for me. Great job!

[KenJWan]

Thanks! Yeah, my first leather project and I decided to make boots. LOL!

On 3/16/2021 at 8:33 PM, Hags said:

Very nice! And I have to say very ambitious.  Holsters were a stretch for me. Great job!

 

And now they're done!

[Grunt]

Very impressive!

[ThatTallChick]

WOW! This is amazing! I have so many questions but I don't know where to begin-- how did you start making shoes, and how did you learn? This is so cool! Are there special types of tools that you need to make these outside of the normal leatherworking set? Do you wet the leather and shape it into the boot shape before working with it, or does the shape just come as you build it? Is the opening at the top burnished? What kind of leather did you use for these? Sorry for all the questions I just... I'm just in awe honestly this is so cool!

[toxo]

Awesome work. They're certainly not gonna wear out any time soon.

[MikeRock]

Nice!   They look like Lara Croft boots with Angelina Jolie~~

God bless

[KenJWan]

On 3/23/2021 at 7:59 AM, ThatTallChick said:

WOW! This is amazing! I have so many questions but I don't know where to begin-- how did you start making shoes, and how did you learn? This is so cool! Are there special types of tools that you need to make these outside of the normal leatherworking set? Do you wet the leather and shape it into the boot shape before working with it, or does the shape just come as you build it? Is the opening at the top burnished? What kind of leather did you use for these? Sorry for all the questions I just... I'm just in awe honestly this is so cool!

I actually started because I realized how much I was willing to spend on decent boots and thought, "I'm handy! I wonder what it would take to make my own?" I then looked for some resources online to understand the process and once I understood the basics from start to finish, I just decided to try it. There was one decent post I found on Imgur https://imgur.com/a/VGPyZ where a guy basically did something similar that I found very helpful in understanding the process.

I basically looked at the nicer boots I owned (the style I wanted to tackle) and mentally dissected the components, figuring out how the parts were put together. I got a few basic tools to get started. Hand cut the pieces and just started assembling. A must-have tool would be lasting pinchers. You'd also need a leather sewing machine (most importantly, a post bed machine... which I had access to).

You don't need to wet the leather for lasting (shaping on the last). The top is a skived strip of leather, sewn and then rolled over the top. These are Horween CXL but with a bit of research, you can find out what types of leather are typically used for good boots. Weight would be 5-6oz (or a bit lighter or heavier, depending on the type of boots you are making (dressier vs work).

Hope that helps.

By the way, these are the second boots I made. Each time, I've refined a bit more.

 

20 hours ago, MikeRock said:

Nice!   They look like Lara Croft boots with Angelina Jolie~~

God bless

Thanks! But I'm pretty sure Angelina Jolie wore  different boots. LOL! 

[BigSiouxSaddlery]

I am impressed, and I've never been accused of overusing that statement.  Anyone that builds a pair of boots with no formal instruction, and has them turn out this well on only the second pair has my admiration.  I want to build myself a pair pretty badly, but to me the boot building process is very intimidating.  Nice job!

[Aven]

2 hours ago, BigSiouxSaddlery said:

I am impressed, and I've never been accused of overusing that statement.  Anyone that builds a pair of boots with no formal instruction, and has them turn out this well on only the second pair has my admiration.  I want to build myself a pair pretty badly, but to me the boot building process is very intimidating.  Nice job!

I'm sure that your first saddle was intimidating as all get out.  But I bet building saddles is like making shoes, one set at a time.

[ThatTallChick]

On 3/24/2021 at 6:08 PM, KenJWan said:

I actually started because I realized how much I was willing to spend on decent boots and thought, "I'm handy! I wonder what it would take to make my own?" I then looked for some resources online to understand the process and once I understood the basics from start to finish, I just decided to try it. There was one decent post I found on Imgur https://imgur.com/a/VGPyZ where a guy basically did something similar that I found very helpful in understanding the process.

I basically looked at the nicer boots I owned (the style I wanted to tackle) and mentally dissected the components, figuring out how the parts were put together. I got a few basic tools to get started. Hand cut the pieces and just started assembling. A must-have tool would be lasting pinchers. You'd also need a leather sewing machine (most importantly, a post bed machine... which I had access to).

You don't need to wet the leather for lasting (shaping on the last). The top is a skived strip of leather, sewn and then rolled over the top. These are Horween CXL but with a bit of research, you can find out what types of leather are typically used for good boots. Weight would be 5-6oz (or a bit lighter or heavier, depending on the type of boots you are making (dressier vs work).

Hope that helps.

By the way, these are the second boots I made. Each time, I've refined a bit more.

What?! This is only your second pair? That's amazing, they look really really good! Are they comfortable? Do you find them to be cheaper, and of better quality than those you were purchasing (excluding the cost of time)?

That imgur post was super informative. Honestly it looks really tedious, but it must be super rewarding! I definitely want to try this at least once in my life-- maybe I'll start with a simpler pair of shoes, like some flats or something. This is absolutely just the coolest thing.

Thank you so much for your response, you were super helpful! 

[KenJWan]

14 hours ago, ThatTallChick said:

What?! This is only your second pair? That's amazing, they look really really good! Are they comfortable? Do you find them to be cheaper, and of better quality than those you were purchasing (excluding the cost of time)?

That imgur post was super informative. Honestly it looks really tedious, but it must be super rewarding! I definitely want to try this at least once in my life-- maybe I'll start with a simpler pair of shoes, like some flats or something. This is absolutely just the coolest thing.

Thank you so much for your response, you were super helpful! 

Thank you. The black harness boots are my fifth pair. The brown engineers were my second. I have a pair of black engineer boots that were an evolution and my favourite.

 

[Doug61]

They look great, nice work.

 

 

Doug

[ThatTallChick]

On 3/27/2021 at 12:17 AM, KenJWan said:

Thank you. The black harness boots are my fifth pair. The brown engineers were my second. I have a pair of black engineer boots that were an evolution and my favourite.

 

Wow, Those are some sexy boots! Jeez! Tell me you made those pants too? haha

[KenJWan]

On 3/28/2021 at 10:08 AM, ThatTallChick said:

Wow, Those are some sexy boots! Jeez! Tell me you made those pants too? haha

Ha. No... but I've actually thought about it! Just a lot of expensive material to screw up on! LOL! 

[Mulesaw]

Really impressive! and thanks for providing the IMGUR link, I think I see a boot project somewhere in my future. :-)

[JoeTrucker]

On 3/25/2021 at 1:08 AM, KenJWan said:

Thank you. The black harness boots are my fifth pair. The brown engineers were my second. I have a pair of black engineer boots that were an evolution and my favourite.

 

I actually started because I realized how much I was willing to spend on decent boots and thought, "I'm handy! I wonder what it would take to make my own?" I then looked for some resources online to understand the process and once I understood the basics from start to finish, I just decided to try it. There was one decent post I found on Imgur https://imgur.com/a/VGPyZ where a guy basically did something similar(pretty sure he was making cowboy boots, somethink aking to corral boots women) that I found very helpful in understanding the process.

I basically looked at the nicer boots I owned (the style I wanted to tackle) and mentally dissected the components, figuring out how the parts were put together. I got a few basic tools to get started. Hand cut the pieces and just started assembling. A must-have tool would be lasting pinchers. You'd also need a leather sewing machine (most importantly, a post bed machine... which I had access to).

You don't need to wet the leather for lasting (shaping on the last). The top is a skived strip of leather, sewn and then rolled over the top. These are Horween CXL but with a bit of research, you can find out what types of leather are typically used for good boots. Weight would be 5-6oz (or a bit lighter or heavier, depending on the type of boots you are making (dressier vs work).

Hope that helps.

By the way, these are the second boots I made. Each time, I've refined a bit more.

 

Thanks! But I'm pretty sure Angelina Jolie wore  different boots. LOL! 

Those look absolutely stunning and a huge progress(no offense, first pair is amazing in it's own right) compared to the first pair in my opinion! Looks a bit less refined and more "rustic".

Edited November 30, 2022 by JoeTrucker
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