How to buy a vintage Lucchese

There is a moment, pulling on a pair of old Lucchese boots, when the leather gives in exactly the right place and you understand why people pay what they pay. The San Antonio years — before the factory moved to El Paso in 1986 — produced boots that were lasted by hand, pegged with lemonwood, and finished by people who had been doing it for forty years.

Start with the stamp. Inside the pull strap or on the sole you will find the Lucchese name and, on the best pairs, a style number beginning with a letter. Boots marked 'San Antonio, Texas' are the ones collectors chase.

Then the sole. A leather sole that has been resoled once by a real bootmaker is not a flaw; it is evidence the boots were worth saving. What you want to avoid is a rubber replacement or a sole that has been glued rather than stitched.

Finally, the skin. Python, lizard and ostrich should show no lifting scales, no dry cracking between them. A little patina is the point. If it looks new, ask why.

We check all of this before a pair ever reaches the shop. But it is good to know what you are looking at.