# Heel Slipage Prevention



## Galt (Oct 4, 2008)

I have now sufficiently broken in my Alden LHS Cordovan's, but the heels are really loose. Any recommendations for a good remedy to prevent heel slippage. There are some things that stick on to the inside of the shoe on Amazon. Anyone tried these? I'm also considering having a cobbler sew in some extra leather padding around the heel. Thoughts? 

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For the record, I have been through more sizes of Alden LHS's that I want to admit. I tried 10.5D, 10E, 10.5E, and then finally settled on 10.5EE (from the Shoemart), and they fit perfect. These were the calf version. I was so happy to finally be in the right size, I picked up a pair of 10.5EE in cordovan, and those are the one's that are slipping. My calf's don't slip at all.

For me, finding LHS's that fit has been like trying to untie the Gordian knot, and I've been trying to get the right size for years. I feel like Sean Connery in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade but instead of writing a grail diary, I could write an LHS sizing diary.


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## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

I asked the same question at the AE shop the other day but didn't really get an answer, just that it is best to get the proper fit.

Because I have a somewhat narrow foot heel it seems.


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## MacTweed (Oct 30, 2011)

I have a pair of Ugg Haddon loafers that came with lambswool around the heel section, which completely eliminates heel slip (See pic below). The shoes came that way. They are also quite comfortable back there (I have very sensitive calcanei from numerous foot surgeries). Further, although my heels do not slip in my dress shoes, I have pondered doing the same thing to them to give some padding.


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## Bjorn (May 2, 2010)

You can have a cobbler glue a piece of leather as lining in the back around the heel. That should do it. 

Start with putting one or two leather insoles into the shoes though. Raising the foot makes the shoes slightly shorter.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

The OP might also try using a tongue pad in his LHS's to force his feet further back in the loafer, thus taking up the slack and eliminating the heel slippage! Just a thought.


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## Dr.Watson (Sep 25, 2008)

I used tongue pads on a pair of loafers. While it did not completely solve the problem, it did help significantly. I got them at a local shoe repair place.


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## The Rambler (Feb 18, 2010)

I agree, try pinch pads first.


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## dcjacobson (Jun 25, 2007)

> There are some things that stick on to the inside of the shoe on Amazon


Your local shoe repair shop will have heel inserts. My experience, though, is that they don't last long, even if you use a shoehorn.

I don't have this model shoe, but for all moccasin-type loafers I go down 1/2 size, just because of this heel slippage problem.

Good luck,
Don


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## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Lots of good suggestions!


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## Galt (Oct 4, 2008)

Thanks for all the replies. I can't go with the tongue pad because the main my main sizing problem with the LHS's is my high insteps. That's why I went to the EE. 

I found a good solution though that I think everyone could use. Instead of going to a shoe cobbler. I went to a prosthetics and orthotics facility today. All orthotists make custom shoes and all parts of shoes, so he can sew in foam pads covered in leather. These guys are the real deal... they make shoes as well, and the work looked excellent. They gave me some padding to take home and try out to make sure we have the right thickness and then he will cover it in suede and sew it in. This orthotist will now be my go to for resoling shoes as well. I found out Orthotists have a 2-year bachelors degree in orthotics, so his knowledge was amazing. Highly recommended.


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## Galt (Oct 4, 2008)

Also, is it common for Alden cordovan shoes to be cut larger than calf in the same size. I measured today. The back part of my cordovan LHS's is almost an inch wider than my calf version of the same size-- that's a huge difference. Any thoughts?

Wonder if it's because that size is made specifically for the Shoe Mart and consistency is lacking. You would think that if you spend $600 on a pair of shoes, the sizing would be consistent.


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## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

That's amazing, how did you find those guys?


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## closerlook (Sep 3, 2008)

Galt, that's awesome. I look forward to hearing more about this/finding out if the place you went is anywhere close to me. 

In any event, for the LHS, and singularly for the LHS because the throat of the shoe has that lip around, I have found that a foam sticky heel slip thing around the back of the shoe works like a charm. Like the OP, I have to go slightly larger than I measure to make sure my toes aren't crushed. The result is of course heel slippage. 

Also, yes, Alden shoes are terribly inconsistent when it comes to sizing, even between two pairs marked the same size.


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## Galt (Oct 4, 2008)

zzdocxx said:


> That's amazing, how did you find those guys?


A friend recommended custom orthotics, so I looked up orthotics on yellow pages.com, and a bunch of prosthetic/orthotic facilities came up. I actually found that if I just typed in prosthetics, I got more results because these places mainly do prosthetics. So, I just went to one. Another plus was the lack of a language barrier. All the cobbers that I've been to in the past don't speak great English, so for this kind of shoe alteration, I don't think I would trust leaving a $600 pair of shoes if our communication wasn't clear.


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## Doctor Damage (Feb 18, 2005)

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say these shoes don't fit and you should get rid of them.


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## neild76 (Dec 1, 2011)

I, too, have narrow heels and have a hard time finding shoes that fit right. The answer is tongue pads, not heel pads. Putting anything extra in the heel will push your foot forward and the shoe will not fit right then. The heel slippage is caused by both the heel being too wide and the shoe too long. You should probably just get rid of them. I've spent a lot of good money buying nice shoes that don't fit right, and it's a complete waste.


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## joenobody0 (Jun 30, 2009)

Galt said:


> _*Also, is it common for Alden cordovan shoes to be cut larger than calf in the same size. I measured today. The back part of my cordovan LHS's is almost an inch wider than my calf version of the same size*_-- that's a huge difference. Any thoughts?
> 
> Wonder if it's because that size is made specifically for the Shoe Mart and consistency is lacking. You would think that if you spend $600 on a pair of shoes, the sizing would be consistent.


I've found my shell shoes to fit about half a width wider than the same listed size calf. A one inch difference is crazy though. That's so far off that I wonder if your shoes are mis-labled.


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## blue suede shoes (Mar 22, 2010)

neild76 said:


> I, too, have narrow heels and have a hard time finding shoes that fit right. The answer is tongue pads, not heel pads. Putting anything extra in the heel will push your foot forward and the shoe will not fit right then. The heel slippage is caused by both the heel being too wide and the shoe too long. You should probably just get rid of them. I've spent a lot of good money buying nice shoes that don't fit right, and it's a complete waste.


My thoughts and situation exactly. It is hard enough finding laced shoes for my narrow heel, but it is doubly hard finding loafers that don't slip. Although my best fitting shoes are Alden, I have found AE loafers that fit me perfectly, so you might want to try there.


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## tda003 (Aug 16, 2009)

Since you already own them, I'd try a fix first. A simple solution is those stick-on pads you can find in a good cobbler's shop. If that works,or comes close, you can try for something more permanent. Cordovan is just too expensive to toss w/o trying to save. You always toss 'em later if all attempts fail.


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## Himself (Mar 2, 2011)

dcjacobson said:


> I don't have this model shoe, but for all moccasin-type loafers I go down 1/2 size, just because of this heel slippage problem.


That's what I've always done, buy them small, and endure the pain as they stretch into a good fit.


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