Blog Post 2 :Lasts
What is a last ?
A shoe last is a three-dimensional mechanical form that shoemakers use to make or repair shoes. It's shaped like a human foot and holds the shoe in place while the shoemaker works. The last is a crucial part of the shoemaking process because it determines the final product's shape and fit.
Lasts come in many styles and sizes, depending on the type of shoe being made. For example, boot lasts are designed to hug the instep for a close fit, while sandal lasts are closer to the dimensions of a foot. Pump lasts are longer than a foot and have a toe allowance of at least 8 mm. Lasts can also be designed for specific heel heights and toe shapes.
Lasts are typically made from materials like hardwoods, cast iron, and high-density plastics, but modern lasts are often designed using CAD software.
Most of the lasts you see me use are made of the high density plastic, these are most likely the ones you’ll end up buying and that i recommend the main reason is the longevity of use. As you get to the final stage of forming your upper you’ll be nailing it down your upper to shape and form to your desired shape, the reason the high dense plastic is great is for the pure fact that it handles all the nail holes left behind really well and almost acts as a self healing plastic as your able to hammer down the holes left to a smooth surface again.
Now a wooden last is great as your able to sand these down to a shape you need unlike a metal last is better used for mass production for a shoe model that has various sizes or can be used to repair shoes as a place holder as you remove the old soles for replacement.
Although you can sand a high dense plastic last the wooden last is better suited for this.
As you grow your pattern collection which we talked about in out first blog, you’ll also grow your last collection for every size which can start as small as a size 1 for an infant all the way up to a size 20 men of course this can go up further in size but those are outliers that you have to account for.
For the lasts themselves they’ll have a hinge built into them which open up to release the upper or as a shoemaker will say “crack” the last to remove the finished shoe. These hinges will have three types, a cone, a alpha, as well as a tendo hinge.
A cone is an upper piece that will pop off to relieve presuure to easily slide out the upper.
The Tendo hinge is a sliding hinge that pulls up on the form to crack open
As for the alpha hinge which goes in the opposite direction and pushes down to crack the form.
All these hinges have great uses for shoe making but mainly are all decided on the model you’ll make, the cone is great for heels and uppers that have a very open tongue build, the tendo is great for a tighter form shoe that have a more secured upper, lastly the alpha that’s an even middle ground that dosent put too much pressure on the upper as you crack the form.
Do all lasts have hinges ?
Short answer is no, these hinges are mainly used for sandals that have an opening in the back or have a really low hell which can let the last be easily removed.
