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The Butler's Guide To Shiny Footwear

[edit] Equipment

• Sylvette cloth

• Tights, ladies, GS, non-folding. No fishnets or other patterns.

• Two tins of polish. One must be Kiwi as it contains natural beeswax.

• Two good bristled boot brushes labelled 'On' and 'Off'.

• Forget the beeswax. I have been waxing boots and belts for over twenty-five years, and believe me it is not a task to be taken lightly.

[edit] Preparation

• Use the Selvyt cloth on your brasses for a bit, then scrub it and give it a good rinse. This reduces the nap of the material to a decent level for bulling your boots.

• Always work with a damp diddley (cloth).

• Fill your tin lid with clean, cold water.

• Never use the same polish to brush polish and bull, as it gets grit in it.

• Always brush polish your boots first. It feeds the leather and helps to remove grit and polish flakes and helps you build up your layering.

• Whatever boots you are 'bobbing' (bulling) - either combat, ammo, or even plimmies (old sod), you must break them in first. Let them attain their natural creases as this will help reduce flaking when you walk.

[edit] Execution

• Remove excess dirt from your boots if necessary, then apply a good quantity of polish from your brush polishing tin using your 'On' brush. Remember to pay attention to the welts, removing all dirt.

• If your eyelets are a bit worn and brass is showing, use a black marker on them.

• Using your 'Off' brush, polish the shoe vigorously until a nice shine appears.

• Repeat steps 1 and 3 leaving time to dry to build up a thick undercoat

• Using your tights (rolled in a ball), rub over the boots as this gives a very good shiny finish that goes down a treat on first parades.

• Tie a piece of string to one corner of your damp diddley.

• Arrange your hand in the style of a Boy Scout's salute, i.e. three- fingered.

• Wrap the diddley around your three fingers making sure the writing is on the outside - using the string to secure it around your wrist.

• Dip your diddley (please don’t snigger) in your water; get it nice and wet and then dip it in your bobbing polish.

• Apply to one section of your boot at a time rubbing in circles; this is to build up the polish layers on your boots.

• Keep applying polish and water and soon you will begin to see a dull shine.

• As your polish builds up on the leather it will start to shine - that is when you start to reduce the amount of polish you apply. Just dab your fingers in the Kiwi lighter and lighter, enlarging the polishing circles. A lot of people have problems finishing off and their boots can have a smeary, or even scratched appearance. If this happens to you then try finishing using the water bobbing method.

[edit] Water bobbing

Equipment is cotton wool balls and cold wrung water. Take your boots into the bogs and use a sink. Run the cold water and put a cotton wool ball under it.

• Rub the wool ball on your boots in a circle and a shinier finish will start to appear. Keep rinsing and changing cotton as it will pick up polish flakes that will scratch your boots.

• When you are happy with the finish, make sure you remove all water from your boots as it dries and leaves white marks if you don’t.

• You can if you wish bob over this finish with your diddley and try an even deeper shine.

When you are happy with your boots; the next bit is a real cringer. Wear them! Put them on, lace them up, and do a quick stroll round the block. "Why, you mad bugger?", I hear you ask. Your boots will crack along your natural creases if you go on parade with them like that - you will impress no one.

When you have the natural crease cracks formed do the following:

• Brush them hard with the 'Off' brush.

• Brush polish them with the 'On' brush.

• Brush them vigorously with the 'Off' brush.

• Rub them with your tights.

Then bob them up again. This time the creases will have less polish in them, and the rest of your boot won’t crack as much.

[edit] Don't Do's

• Clear floor polish - even a cadet instructor will spot that bluff.

• Set fire to your polish. Never understood that one; it depletes the natural oils and wax.
• Why boots were burnt? Well when we had DMS the leather was nobbly and if you heated a spoon and burnt down the bumps it became easier to polish the now smooth leather. Covering the whole boot in polish and setting fire to it was a bluff to confuse the ignorant.(but it did look good)

• Gloss paint. Oh yes I've seen it done: looks great ends in tears.

• Morello. A German shoe product. Actually very good, but I've seen toecaps fall off on parade. Works well on welts and heels.

• Pledge. I've seen this widely used by King's Troop, RHA as a finishing method.

• Desert Boots. As tempting as it may be for any Household Cavalry or Guards nig, suede is not ideal for bulling. Do not bull dessies; and if anyone tells you to just use brown Kiwi, they're lying.

Note: In the cavalry we use our whole hands once proficient at bobbing, and you get a feel for when it is right to reduce your polish and water quantities. I am telling you this method because it easier for a beginner to start off with three fingers, and I know any cavalrymen reading this will laugh but you've got to start somewhere.

I first learned when I was an 11 year old ACF cadet with a yellow duster and one finger. My basic at Bovington did not teach me any different and it was not until I became Officer's Orderly that the other more experienced orderlies taught me the proper way to bob boots with a diddley.

As you get better at it you will develop your own style of what works for you. This is only a rough guide to get you started.