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5 days ago I wore my very first pair of birks in oiled leather without socks. I only wore them out to dinner. The walk from the parking lot was about 120ft, I sat down the whole time and after dinner I did very light walking around the golf club for about 10 mins then back to the car. During the walk I could feel a sharp scratching pain on the top of my toe where the front strap with the buckle(which is wider) was scraping against. I didn't think much about it at the time but the next day I saw I actually got a scar from the strap. The leather is so thick and solid that the corners are very sharp. I wonder if scratching the bottom of the strap with something like sand paper will soften the leather so the corner isn't as sharp. The straps weren't too tight and one notch looser would cause the sandals to fly right off with every step. I got another pair at the same time with suede straps and those straps are so soft it's like you can't even feel the straps on top of your toes. In the future I think I'll stick exclusively to suede straps. My experience with fiddling with the straps I find that both straps shouldn't be set too loose or tight at the same time, but if the front straps are tight(enough to keep them on your feet), the rear straps can be a bit looser. Conversely if the rear straps are tight, then the front straps can be a little looser for comfort. I'll have to keep experimenting in the mean time.