Is it possible to reduce the heel height..

Maximilian! · 12th July 2007, 06:06

of a shoe/boot without ruining them?

I have a pair of 4 inch knee high boots with an indent heel. (1,2)

I really like these boots and would love to wear them in public. The problem is that the heel is too darn high for me and I cannot walk in them properly.

Will a cobbler be able to "shave off" 1-2 cm from the heel without ruining or extensively modifying the boots?

Dr. Shoe · 12th July 2007, 06:38

Some cobblers will do this quite easily.

The only problem is that it does change the whole geometry of the boot and the heel might start to "kick under".

Maximilian! · 12th July 2007, 06:51

Kick under?

HH_addicted · 12th July 2007, 08:05

What Doc shoe wants to tell us that if you take too much of the heel the angle between heel and ground is not 90° anymore and it is getting under the sole... with danger of breaking, etc.

But I think a good cobbler can prevent/fix that.

hoverfly · 12th July 2007, 15:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maximilian!

of a shoe/boot without ruining them?

I have a pair of 4 inch knee high boots with an indent heel. (1,2)

I really like these boots and would love to wear them in public. The problem is that the heel is too darn high for me and I cannot walk in them properly.

Will a cobbler be able to "shave off" 1-2 cm from the heel without ruining or extensively modifying the boots?

Why not just save your money and just practice, practice practice?

jmc · 12th July 2007, 15:59

I would suggest getting something else with a little bit lower heel and wearing them to become acclimated to that heel. Then graduate to the boots in question.

It would be an awful shame to risk ruining such a nice pair of boots.

Dr. Shoe · 12th July 2007, 19:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmc

I would suggest getting something else with a little bit lower heel and wearing them to become acclimated to that heel. Then graduate to the boots in question.

It would be an awful shame to risk ruining such a nice pair of boots.

Not neccesarily ruined as you could always get new heels put on to restore them. The process to lower heels is like increasing them but in reverse, you will need to bend the shank to make the pitch OK. A cobbler will take off 1.5 cm at the most but it'll make a huge difference.

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DO THIS YOURSELF.

micha · 13th July 2007, 01:39

Hi Maximilian,

I would never reduce the heel height! Because of several reasons:

1. My own experience is that the heels of my boots often tend a little bit to bend forward ("kicking under"). Especially if guys are wearing them on the street. May be because we aren't walking like female cat-walk models who are putting their heels and the foot balls simultanously onto ground.

2. In street walking the heels have usually the first contact to the ground. The normal walking style with rolling foot steps. Therefore my block heels are always worn-up at the rear side. Reducing the height of the heels would make the problem only worse.

3. I agree to the others. Four inches aren't the ultimate challenge. It's my favourite height for alldays street heeling. Practise a little more and later you will be glad to have never misshapened these wonderful boots

micha

PS If they should be simply too high for you and bigger than EU 43 rsp. UK 9 send me an offer - I'll buy them at once for any reasonable price!

crotchboots-m · 14th July 2007, 02:42

my boot repair dude once told me that you can alter the heel height up to 1/4 to 1/2 inch,depending on the boot/shoe. Anything more will cause the geometry to get screwed up...i.e. "kickback"

shoeman1 · 21st October 2007, 18:52

Just like to back up what has been said already, most but not all cobblers will take some height off your heel, again this depends on the boot itself, but tell the cobbler how much you want and he/she will probably meet you halfway!