Care and maintenance of your Jig-shoes
Thank you for buying a pair of Ceòl nam Brògan jig-shoes, by MagicFeet. A lot of work, research and love went into creating and crafting these shoes, which are designed to last a long time. However, to ensure their longevity, here are some maintenance tips.
- Avoid exposing the greenhide pad under the toe section to excessive moisture, water or any moist product. The greenhide is the dried-treated skin of a bullock, exposed to moisture will affect the shape of the greenhide.
- You can use shoe polish in solid (wax) form on the leather parts of your shoe (never on the bottom/sole!)
- Let your shoes air dry after prolonged use where the feet have sweated.
- The nails under the sole that fix the greenhide pad and the iron plates have been placed in such a way as not to catch the ground, on the other hand it will happen that the edges of the iron plates, very sharp when brand new, cause damage to the ground, to avoid this you can prepare your jig shoes by abrading the edges gently with a metal file, or alternatively on a rough bit of stone or concrete. The best abrasion naturally is from the dance itself, but it takes time and you meanwhile will damage the floors you’re dancing on, so it is better to smooth the edges of the plates gently. We recommend avoiding rubbing the sole too harshly on concrete so as not to badly lacerate the greenhide, aim at the edges of the plates. ALWAYS CHECK WITH YOUR DANCE SCHOOL OR WORK PLACE THAT THEIR GROUNDS ADMIT JIG SHOES! (real dance mats willnot be damaged by plates, but real dance mats are not that common. People might think any linoleum lining is a dance mat, but it isn’t, a real dance mat is very thick double faced (grey/black) pvc mat designed to withstand nails, cuts and sharpness, a simple black or grey linoleum isn’t as sturdy.)
- Some people feel like putting a cut of thick tape under the ball to prevent and limit excessive sliding. This works fine but once you put that tape, it HAS to stay in place until it naturally wears off and you put another bit on the top of it. That’s because the glue of the tape will be absorbed into the greenhide and if you try to wrench it off, you’ll slightly damage the pad, so just keep this tape in place. It is possible to use colophonium resin with greenhide.
- The ball leather sole + greenhide + plate can feel it pushes your toes upward when the shoes are brand new, particularly if you have the habit of working with vintage well-seasoned jig shoes (like Salvios). It will compress over time with all getting into place as you use the shoes. The more you use them the more they’ll morph around your feet and technique and serve it well. As the leather compresses and hardens and the plate sinks in overtime, your shoes will become more and more comfortable and loud.
Here is a quick video on how to sand the plates.