Kirby Allison John Lobb Series

YouTube video series by Kirby Allison following the process for a pair of bespoke shoes from John Lobb

Part 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQv1AGx4TLE&list=PLNeFpbTnJYLyajUU_md-SOhBHsaemy-g5&index=2 …

• Jonathan Lobb
• lastmaking
  • separate production premises an acquired company, Henry Peen
  • create rough turns on lathes for the lastmakers
  • 8:13 shot of a laminated block
    • a sloped block angled like a cone glued on top
    • regular rectangular block on the bottom
  • rough turning
  • Matt, workshop manager
  • 9:56 another glued-up laminated block in bar clamps on the bench
  • make rough turns from model lasts
  • discusses old bench knife process
  • shows “Gilman & Sons Springfield” cast into the frame of a Gilman lathe behind them
  • shows cutting blocks from a rectangular beam to fit the model
  • sawed with an electric chainsaw
  • copies the width of the forepart to the block via tape measurement
  • marks the stick length
  • cuts the block to dimension on bandsaw
  • makes two angled pieces by dividing a board at an angle
  • electric planer to joint the top and bottom pieces
  • amber-colored glue between them
  • bar clamps for pressure
  • traces side profiles of the model onto the block
  • trims to outline with bandsaw
  • trims the top-down outline on the top of the block
  • bandsaw again
  • bandsaw angled cuts to round it
  • 15:02 copying lathe
    • holds the linkage bar with his hand to guide it through the initial, large cuts
  • copy off the copying lathe given to the lastmaker at the shop
• they start with the bigger foot
• better to take away than add
• final version sent back to workshop to fellow
• “always trying to make a pair of shoes”
• can be large differences between feet
• 18:00 dividing
  • [the heel and toe have not yet been shaped]
  • drilling into the top plane on a drill press
  • drilling into the bottom of the crown, too
  • lays the last between angled wood fixtures on the table under a bandsaw to cut a scoop block, starting from the top plane and cutting toward the vamp point
  • wood dowels through the bottom hole
  • screw through the top hole
• 19:20 bandsaw to trim the heel and toe
• 20:23 foot measurements
  • foot tracing
    • pencil vertical
    • seated
  • angled ball girth
    • foot elevated onto fitter’s thigh
    • tearing marks on a paper tape
  • instep girth
  • short heel
  • palpation and notes on the tracing
    • over the instep and into the arch
    • around the back of the heel
  • [only shows doing one foot]
• 21:49 last shaping
  • last vise
  • rasp-style surforms
  • whole rack of wood-handled tools, perhaps rasps
  • large overhead drafting lamp
  • Jonathan going thirty years, still learning
  • learn by doing
  • training
    • in the past, lastmakers would come to them
    • have now trained all the lastmakers who work there
    • no outside source of lastmakers
  • “there’s always trial and error”
  • Lobb known for going straight to finished shoes [no test shoes]
• 27:12 last shaping
  • Peen produces range of lasts, get a size from that range (last fitting)
  • fit the bigger foot
  • measurements
    • basic outline
    • three: angled ball girth, instep girth, short heel
    • may take more as needed
  • first: heel
    • surform
      • double-handled
      • just getting rid of extra wood to start
    • holds over tracing
  • order
    1. get heel
    2. then get position of joint
    3. ten shape the toe
  • checks the girth measures of last to see how far to take down
  • this case: taking width out of the ball will help reduce the ball girth to foot measure
  • next: surform on cone and forepart
  • goal: fluid quality to the last, one thing flows into another, quite hard
  • [Cut to slow-mo and monologue here. Looks like toe shaping.]
  • switches to rasp over the recede
  • sights down the toe and from the back
  • [45 minutes to an hour of work montaged]
  • [there’s only one piece of paper with measurements, so likely did one foot on each side]
  • may not take all the way to measure, since need to fellow for the other foot
  • each lastmaker decides how far to go before fellowing
  • quality signs
    • balance between forepart and heel
    • range
    • bottom planes of heel and crown must be parallel
    • check from both front and back
    • check heel pitch
    • check toe spring
    • heel pitch and joint determine toe spring
    • flexibility of shoe: may turn up and crease
    • if stiff, will be walking on the toe
  • toe shape discussion
    • Lobb signature round, the most traditional
    • also do other styles
    • 36:52 for many feet, in order to get a nice shape, have to push in at the toes on the inside of the foot
    • allow the toes to spread and be comfortable
  • 37:57 monologue with Peen lathe montage
  • 38:24 received fellow
    • [fellow toe and heel still have stumps]
    • will push toes in a little bit to give the desired look
    • again, remove any excess from heel and toe first
    • holds the lasts together in various positions for matching
    • closers and makers reassured seeing lasts with good forms, gives confidence
    • skills at each stage very different physically
      • “a lastmaker would never be a good closer…[though there are some]”
      • haven’t gone into ready-made shoes
  • final filing, sand down, write name on it
  • still checking measurements
  • smooths out the surface with a rasp
  • define the edges around the forepart
  • sandpaper rolled over a block
  • [another monologue montage, this time sanding]
  • name in fabric-point marker …