One of the key benefits of a Goodyear welted shoe like George Lyon Shoes is that the sole can easily be swapped out when it wears down. But how do you know when it is time to re-sole your favorite pair of shoes? Here are five signs that your leather shoes are ready to be re-soled. Keep in mind that if re-soling is necessary, it is better not to put it off since keeping your worn out soles can not only be aesthetically unpleasing, it could also be bad for your feet and ankles.
1. FEELING THE GROUND
If you start to feel the ground against the sole of your foot, your shoe’s sole is getting too thin. Take off your worn shoe and feel the sole with your fingers. If the sole is much more flexible or spongy than it used to be, it’s time to re-sole.
2. FINDING A HOLE
If the soles on your shoes are getting extremely thin, a hole can develop in one or both soles. You may not notice the hole at first, so an occasional examination of your sole is recommended once your soles start to wear down sufficiently. If you let the hole expand, it can eventually cause damage to other parts of your shoe’s structure.
3. TURNING YOUR ANKLES
If your ankles or calves feel uncomfortable, set your shoes on the floor or on a table. Look at the soles from behind. Is the left side of a sole worn down more than the right side of the same sole, or vice versa? Uneven wear can damage your calves and ankles, and the poor shape of the sole will only worsen if unfixed.
4. SEPARATING SOLES
Watch for any signs that your soles may be splitting away from the shoe upper. A minuscule split will eventually become a larger split, which can then cause discomfort, or allow water to get into the shoe.
A quality, leather sole on a Goodyear welted shoe like George Lyon Shoes should not need to be re-soled often, but when the time comes for a re-soling, the Goodyear welt makes it vastly easier to perform the re-soling. This allows you to keep the high quality shoes you have already broken in, while getting a fresh sole.
At George Lyon Shoes, we offer you the option to send your well-worn Lyons back to us so we can re-sole your favorite pair of shoes. Or, if you prefer, we can also provide the materials directly to you so you can have your trusted cobbler perform the re-soling. We understand shoes intimately from years of manufacturing excellence and carry that level of excellence into our re-soling service as well. Contact us now about our professional George Lyon re-soling services.