Rendenbach soles - are they comfortable?

[BirdofSydney]

Friends,

I am about to order my first pair of Oxfords in eight years from TLB Mallorca. I tried a pair while stopping over in Hong Kong and was extremely impressed at the price point.

One option is to add J Rendenbach soles, for an upcharge which does not concern me.

I am likely to apply a Topy or similar regardless of the increased durability of JR (I'm in Australia and the courier costs to have shoes factory resoled is prohibitive), so I've been told that going with JR soles would be redundant. But, I am interested nonetheless if they add comfort (I'm a runner, and a big motivation for new shoes is to keep my feet in better shape and avoid pain).

Could anyone comment on whether they find JR more or less comfortable than other leather soles? In particular, I have heard that they are somewhat stiffer/less flexible. I also wonder if they are heavier.

Thanks in advance!
Bird

[BirdofSydney]

I have observed a peculiar feature on offer as well, a single row of stitching at the seams rather than the usual double. I had never focused my mind on the latter being the norm until I saw this, but now cannot unsee it:

https://www.tlbmallorca.com/products/ox ... -black-290

The proprietor, Tony, assures me there is no loss of durability as a result. It is simply a matter of style. The more I think about it, the more I like it. Thoughts?

[Concordia]

The shops that offer Rendenbach seem to think it is better than the rest of what they could sell. I don't know if it is actually the best. But perhaps this is an occasion to trust the wine steward re his recommended match for the dinner.

[Noble Savage]

There is a video of a factory tour of Rendenbach where they go into details of the benefits of their tanning process.

Someone would have to buy two identical pairs of shoes with Rendenbach and regular soles and wear them in identical conditions to really find out.

Until then, consider that automobiles don't use leather tires, so if you are concerned about durability, then the choice is clear.

[Concordia]

Did General Motors really lay off 5 billion cows to improve the performance of their cars?

[Noble Savage]

Now Jim McFarland, the US agent for J.R. and who was the one who first announce the information that the tannery were to close down, went out in some social media groups yesterday and presented the latest news in this saga. The fellow German tannery Kilger have bought the recipe and rights to J.R. branding, and will produce the same type of oak bark tanned shoulders and bends. Kilger is located in Viechtach in east Germany, close to the Czech boarder, and also was an oak bark sole leather tannery back in the days. They moved over to veg tanned leathers for furnitures, car interior and other leather products, and has not produced traditional pit tanned sole leather for several decades. Now they will return, at least partly, to their roots.

https://shoegazing.com/2021/11/23/news- ... r-tannery/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAQfrP9GjFE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZHDYcshFyo

[Noble Savage]

Think about this: you can have the same tires on a Ferrari and a Rolls-Royce, but the suspension and soft ride of the Rolls Royce won't be duplicated on the Ferrari just by using Rolls-Royce tires.

The sole is there to protect the rest of the shoe from the elements and your feet from touching the ground.

There might be different break-in periods and general durability for different types of leather including Rendenbach soles.

This would affect comfort, but not very much. Comfort is also highly dependent on interior construction and insole. Once can create bouncy moon shoes just by changing to a fancy orthopedic insole.

So your shoemaker can regulate comfort generally with the insole and how the cork bed and other elements of the shoe are constructed.

Sole thickness certainly matters, but the differences between leather would have much less impact than having the rest of the shoe comfortable.

Good fit also affect perceived comfort, but with bespoke shoes this is a given.

Discuss comfort construction with your shoemaker, mine is happy to take time to talk and admits that different people, even given the same materials can have different outcomes based on personal preference — soft, hard construction tight fit, looser fit, etc.

With bespoke it is worth it to know what you want and if your shoemaker as any other craftsman can do what you want. Take some ready-to-wear shoes that you like and discuss their features. Experiment with getting it right with the options that your maker proposes. It often takes time to get it right, and then you get 10 pairs and you're set. Or not.

I once brought some ready-to-wear shoes to him and he transformed the fit of the shoe just by making adjustments and customizing things under the insole. This made a big difference in comfort.