THE OVERSEAS COBBLER

I once was a huge fan of Cat’s Paw (CP) soles and perhaps even considered a snob when it came down to which type of composition rubber soles were used on certain boots — if they weren’t sitting on CPs, then it was a hard pass.

While I still enjoy a good CP, I’m more concerned now with a long-lasting and rugged set of tires. The reproduction Biltrite and Nitrene soles being used by many of the Japanese companies as well as the dependable Vibram are what I look for to ensure uninterrupted use of my boots before having to sending them out for a swap.

www.vintageengineerboots.com

I purchased this set of vintage CPs specifically to have Takeshi Okuyama use them on my Road Champ resole back in 2012. They’ve held up incredibly well over the years, but they’ll soon need to be replaced.

Regular readers of my blog know I’m a fan of Takeshi and his amazing work, but I’ve recently been toying with the idea of using some of the few overseas Cobblers currently on my radar.

Re:Broth Factory, Brass Tokyo and Dr. Sole Originals (and Fukurokuju) do things with boots that just blow me away and whether it’s this pair of Road Champs or another pair of boots in my collection, there’s no doubt I’ll be contacting any one of them.

Stay tuned to see who I’ll be lucky enough to work with next!