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It will, of course, be realized that it is absolutely necessary for the seam that fastens
the welt to the insole to be waterproof, and also that the easiest seams to make water-
proof are those where flat surfaces fit against flat surfaces. Two types of feather are used
with hand-made welt seams. One of these is shown in Fig. 242; in reducing the edge the
substance left between
B and
A must be regulated by the material in the upper, but
it should never be so much reduced that it is too weak to keep the upper in its correct
position. The angle
BCD must be such that when the awl enters at
D and emerges at
E,
the point
E will be far enough from the edge to permit the stitching-on of the sole to be
as close to the feather as may be required (Fig. 241).
E will have to be deep enough
in the substance of the insole to permit the use of a thread sufficiently strong for that
class of boot; much will depend upon the nature of the leather.
There are two disadvantages with this type of feather. The tendency is for
DE to be-
come straight when heavy threads are used, the straining of the thread producing an
effect as in Fig. 243, for, as the thread straightens, the insole is lifted off the last.
This will be confirmed upon examining the inside of any handsewn boot in which this
shape of feather is used, and the effect will be more pronounced if the insole is inclined
to be soft or if it had been wetted for sewing on the welt.
The second disadvantage is that the hole just above E is often weak, and in pulling up
the stitch it may yield; an endeavour, however, is sometimes made to counteract this
tendency by "paning" or "peening" the feather before holing; this "peening" (beat-
ing it with the keen edge of the hammer) would cause the feather to be hollow as at
Fig. 244. This shape of feather is considerably stronger than that in Fig. 242,
because there is a buttress against which to strain up the welt. Peening also compresses
the leather; therefore, it will be less liable to sink (and the stitch become loose) in beating
out the welt.
The transition from this type of feather to the shoulder channel (Fig. 245) was only
natural, and its advantages are very evident, for in pulling up the stitch there is the square
shoulder to pull against; and in hammering down the welt seam. The latter is not made
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less solid through any compression that may take place at
S. It sometimes happens that
the insoles are less in substance than is desirable, and an awl with less curve at
B
(Fig. 226) may have to be used, and to make a solid seam
BL (Fig. 245) may be increased
to
BM (Fig. 245); but from
M to where the point of the awl would emerge on the welt
would be so wide that it would be a big strain on the insole. In practice, therefore,
KLM would be cut away (*) so that the awl could at once enter into the body of the
leather, and thus a strong seam could be made even with a light insole. A similar channel
is used when the leather is very brittle in its fibre. 2
* This channel is described bv Rees, p. 20.
but, we still haven't dealt with the original question--regardless of how the feather is created, if the inseam is not "tucked" under the edge of the insole sufficiently...and a narrow welt is wanted...the outseam will cut the inseam even if we don't perceive that until much later, when the shoe is being repaired. 
