Questions of member Karl700:
I apologise for my naive questions, of which I have two.
1. is it actually possible to send your own last to a shoemaker so that he can make a custom shoe on it and then return the last? Or rather, I suppose it should be possible, but my question is: how limited are you in terms of model and shape if you only use your own custom-made last?
2. does anyone happen to know a good moulding manufacturer for private individuals in Germany? Preferably with measuring, manufacturing, trial shoe, then fitting the last and I take the last home.
Thank you very much, dear people 
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On the first question:
It depends on whether the shoemaker accepts this and to what extent he is exempted from liability that, for example, the shoe
the shoe does not fully meet the expectations as far as the fit is concerned - defects in workmanship such as a crooked upper or uneven seams and the like
uneven seams and the like would of course be excluded from this.
The last shape also determines the shape of the shoe, especially the toe - if the toe is oval, then the shoemaker can only make shoes with an oval toe.
can only make shoes with an oval toe.
The upper, on the other hand, can be designed freely, whether it is made of smooth or suede leather, toe cap(s), plastron, heel cap, colour, lacing, etc..
If the shoemaker has a good relationship with the original last maker, then he in turn can give the last a different lace on the screen.
the shoemaker, i.e. in both cases the shoemaker who makes the shoes, construct a different lace on the monitor via CAD and have it processed by the machine.
and have it processed by the machine.
What is meant by this is that the basic shape of the last remains unchanged up to the bale line, but towards the front the last (shoe) tip is changed according to the customer's wishes.
is changed according to the customer's wishes, for example from oval to chisel toe:
The last would then be slightly longer overall as always when the toe of the shoe is to be quite pointed compared to a rounder one.
he second question:
Last makers such as SPENLÉ only make the lasts (moulds) according to the shoemaker's specifications, but they do not carry out any more foot measurements and the like.
As soon as the raw last has been corrected by the shoemaker, they can then create the final pair of lasts.
Ergo, you need an experienced custom shoemaker who is willing to create a pair of lasts on a contract basis - this would be your sole contact.
He has to measure your feet, take footprints, analyse the footprint in hard foam and your gait, paying attention to the foot position, stride width, touching down and the last,
foot position, stride width, touchdown and push-off, and so on:
This expertise alone, based on numerous empirical values, together with the very considerable amount of time it takes, the handling with the last manufacturer
and the work involved in carving the two lasts himself, plus the trial shoes and all the corrections, are paid for by the custom shoemaker.
I was about to write "well paid", because that is without a doubt the absolute bulk of custom shoe making - making the final shoes for the customer is done within 8 or more working hours - special designs like fiddle bevelled waist, hidden sole seam (top of the last) and countersunk seam in the last are not included.
and recessed stitching in the sole, fine, elaborate finishing aside.
Ergo, the absolutely largest part of the effort and thus of the price that someone has to pay for made-to-measure shoes is the production of the "perfect last pair".
of the "perfect" pair of lasts.
Finally, a very important point:
The copyright for the design
One of the best shoemakers in the world today, such as Yohei Fukuda from Japan, who knows how to give his custom-made shoes almost perfect proportions.
taking into account the customer's feet and measurements, to give his shoes almost perfect proportions,
will hardly give in to a customer's request to have custom-made lasts made by him,
so that another shoemaker can make shoes on them and put his name on them.
The most you can do is to convince a shoemaker who is not so well known or who is willing to make custom lasts for you for other reasons.
Depending on the circumstances, this can be a bit cheaper - in Germany, mind you,
but in this country there are not many made-to-measure shoemakers who are good, and with the few really very good/experienced ones I would be a little sceptical for the aforementioned reasons whether they would be prepared to make the final pair of made-to-measure lasts under the condition that you hand them over,
and if they were, it would be correspondingly expensive.
The shoemakers from the province of Fermo, on the other hand, work at very low hourly rates and also work many hours on shoes
without being paid for it: Pressure to succeed, pressure on sales, personal reasons....
[I phrased the last two sentences in this way with care].
Now it may well be that there are completely different opinions on the Internet on the subject of own made-to-measure lasts.
Addendum:
In the database, let's stay with Germany's best-known last manufacturer, the SPENLÉ company, there are guaranteed to be umpteen data sets
with similar or even identical foot measurements as those taken from your feet by a shoemaker.
That would be measurements + lasts = measured lasts but not a real bespoke pair of lasts ,
but without any consideration of your anatomical characteristics such as foot position, stride, gait etc.
In this respect, it would be just the push of a button for this company to have the CAM milling machine produce the "desired" lasts.
Whether the test shoes then fit you depends to a large extent on your subjective feeling = sensory perception.
when the shoes seem to fit you very well.
I would describe the final shoe design based on such lasts as "average".
Your personal expectations of the shoemaker will probably also contribute to the result...
In addition - as always when people have to work together - the wavelength = how well they get along with each other.
The question of liability is who is responsible for the inadequate fit of the custom-made shoes,
the shoemaker who was involved in making the lasts or the person who made the shoes on the customer's lasts,
would be delicate.
Moreover, over the course of wear, the shape of the foot changes, and so do the underlying lasts, and depending on which shoes
the client has worn for how many years before.
It is therefore advisable to place yourself in the hands of a custom shoemaker, trust him and rely on him to adjust the custom lasts accordingly
and relatively inexpensively later.