Saved from the dumpster: 1980s Irish Setter Sport Boot Recraft
I picked up these 1980s Irish Setter Sport Boots, and like many of the old 877s, these had been someone’s lawn mowin’ shoes. They were dry as a bone, had no shortage of scrapes, but nothing that went through the upper. The insole was free of cracks and not “Peter Panned” (what I call it when leather insoles curl up at the toe).
I stripped them down to the upper, which was, to put it mildly, a tedious process. When these leather welts get so old, you are not able to do that cool trick where you get it started, and then yank the whole welt off, ( I tried. The welt would just crumble). So, each welt stitch had to be carefully cut. Once that was completed, the old cork was scraped out. Over the years and due to exposure to moisture and drying cycles, the cork had turned to gunk, for lack of a better word.
After the cork gunk had been removed, I could remove the welt stitching from the gemming, and the insole from the upper. The insoles were re usable, but needed to be sanded on the bottom to remove old cork/cement, re hydrated and conditioned, and smoothed out.
Once that process was completed, new gemming is installed. I use the gemming from Lisa Sorrell in nearby Guthrie, Oklahoma. At the urge of a friend and mentor of mine in Southern California, I didn’t just install one or two temporary stitches, I temporary stitched the whole insole in. This takes about an hour, but has its advantages:
You have pre made holes to work with in the gemming;
The insole falls into its channels all the way around, and your not fighting to keep it place and install the welt at the same time as you work your way around the boot.
I get asked more questions about welting online that about anything else it seems. I will briefly put a little of what I know out there. To put a good welt on a boot, it takes time and practice. You will not be able to jump from having never turned a wrench on a boot before to re welting your favorite pair of Iron Rangers. Starting, ending, and jointing/skiving welts takes practice, and the whole process itself is somewhat dependent on “feel” and little bits and pieces you pick up over time. It’s not complicated, on paper, but you have to be able to stand and pay attention to each and every hole and the welt as it goes on.
On this particular pair, I used Barbour black coated storm welt, which, in my experience, is the easiest welt to install. It’s stiff when wet, has a well defined channel, and is STOUT. If you check my post history, you will see no shortage of re welted plasti-welt boots (Thorogood and Carolina). These old Red Wings were easier than those, because they actually did a good job of putting uniform, well defined welt holes at consistent spacing in the uppers. Plasti Welt boots, more often than not, have welt holes shot through the upper EVERYWHERE, and often, it looks like whoever did it was inebriated. Over here, over there, 50 holes by the welt joint, closer and further apart, etc. You get the idea.
These Red Wings were a straightforward process. After the welts were installed, I re corked them. Nothing special, just some sheet. A Vibram rubber midsole and classic blown rubber Christys completed the bottom end.
Up top, I re stitched the moc toes to give some more definition and brighten the look with fresh thread. The old corroded eyelets were replaced with new black ones.
Another round of cleaning and conditioning, and some new leather laces, they were back together.
Thanks for reading,
Brad
2026 Hoosier Sooner Shoe Ardmore, Oklahoma.