The 2023 Allen Edmonds (AE) Appreciation Thread

[suuteebird]

Natural shell Newman

 

[EZB]

When is the next occasion that the show bank will offer the extra 25% off sale? Maybe Black Friday? Or will I have to wait for April.

Hostorically, Black Friday has offered seventy types of deals:

1. A big sale on several specific shoes for the weed(s) beforehand.
2. the same sale extended with additional shoes
3. The same sale with deeper discounts after cyber Monday

 

[SpallaPerfetta]

Hostorically, Black Friday has offered seventy types of deals:

1. A big sale on several specific shoes for the weed(s) beforehand.
2. the same sale extended with additional shoes
3. The same sale with deeper discounts after cyber Monday

Does this typically apply to Shoe Bank F2 as well? I ask because there are a pair in stock at the Port that I would like but if I could wait 2 or 3 weeks to save 25% I’d gladly hold out.

 

[cc808314]

Here's my cork and leather footbed replacement on these Dylan loafers. Now THAT is a cardboard insole. But I'm glad to finally be re-homing the footbed liner from my old pair of Long Branches. I love that old shield emblem logo and take any opportunity to look at it again. New fitment is... good so far but not excellent.

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Also cut a new leather footbed for my new HM's. (The Poron's already in the trash.) Finally picked up a veg tan bovine shoulder from a leather store and the quality is better than what I was using before. After a light layer of Bick4 and a sanding, this leather feels like butter.

I really need to clear off my workbench and stop doing projects on top of the bed.

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OK then, how about outside to the hood of the car.

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Black laces on natty, anyone?

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Do you usually glue down the leather footbed? I have noticed that leather insoles tend to slide and also get wavy after they dry.

 

[middlepP]

First wear of this sage pair. Ironically the craftsmanship on these, like my snuff 2nds, seems to be better than even the third attempt of my TS version. Shrug.

These were purchased with a quick resole in mind, perhaps to v-tread. I'm not crazy about the light-colored lug, but love everything else about the sole. Seems to be a happy medium between past lug offerings.

 

[manowar]

Do you usually glue down the leather footbed? I have noticed that leather insoles tend to slide and also get wavy after they dry.

Not usually. I only glue down if I'm sure I'll be happy with the fit. It's easy enough to test out most inserts for awhile before gluing, and many of my inserts stay that way - sometimes I like to be able to pull them out and swap to another boot, or if I want to be able to wear thicker socks it's good to stay removable.

But it's no fun when insoles suddenly become too small after getting wet, when they slide around in the boot and you can feel the hard edges of the leather along the edge of the foot. In theory, gluing the footbed insert directly to the insole would be the best way to prevent shrinkage and hold it in place.

In this case, the leather was custom cut to the almost exact shape of the insoles of these Higgins Mill's then glued down. There was variation between the left and right boots. First wear is today, and so far so good.

My goal is to have my entire footwear collection fitting me perfectly so end game would mean having a dedicated custom insert for every pair that needs one.

By the way, there's no essential need to scrape out the Poron foam if you're okay with reducing volume overall. Just peeling the thin leather liner out and placing a thicker piece of leather on top would work great, and should retain all the properties of the full grain veg tan insole with just a bit of cushion underneath.

I know I'm just an amateur hobbyist messing with my boots... I guess I'm getting into the weeds but since I'm interested in cobblers and what they do, this is one small way I get to play one at home.

 

[madhat]

Not usually. I only glue down if I'm sure I'll be happy with the fit. It's easy enough to test out most inserts for awhile before gluing, and many of my inserts stay that way - sometimes I like to be able to pull them out and swap to another boot, or if I want to be able to wear thicker socks it's good to stay removable.

But it's no fun when insoles suddenly become too small after getting wet, when they slide around in the boot and you can feel the hard edges of the leather along the edge of the foot. In theory, gluing the footbed insert directly to the insole would be the best way to prevent shrinkage and hold it in place.

In this case, the leather was custom cut to the almost exact shape of the insoles of these Higgins Mill's then glued down. There was variation between the left and right boots. First wear is today, and so far so good.

My goal is to have my entire footwear collection fitting me perfectly so end game would mean having a dedicated custom insert for every pair that needs one.

By the way, there's no essential need to scrape out the Poron foam if you're okay with reducing volume overall. Just peeling the thin leather liner out and placing a thicker piece of leather on top would work great, and should retain all the properties of the full grain veg tan insole with just a bit of cushion underneath.

I know I'm just an amateur hobbyist messing with my boots... I guess I'm getting into the weeds but since I'm interested in cobblers and what they do, this is one small way I get to play one at home.

I don’t like the cushion of poron, but I guess since I’ve gone this long I probably won’t scrape it out of mine

 

[ProfilaBinding]

One point that RoseAnvil made about AE where I think he's got a point, is that the issue with glue on the insole. I have at least a dozen AE shoes where there is dried glue in the ball area. Now, I can't feel it, doesn't bother me, but I wonder why AE has this problem while other companies seem to not.

 

[TheLawBeard]

One point that RoseAnvil made about AE where I think he's got a point, is that the issue with glue on the insole. I have at least a dozen AE shoes where there is dried glue in the ball area. Now, I can't feel it, doesn't bother me, but I wonder why AE has this problem while other companies seem to not.

I had a pair where is was a serious issue. Even after around a dozen wears I'd randomly have chunks of dried glue floating around in my shoes.

 

[Duke Santos]

The Rose Anvil videos have told me that I'm getting a shoe or boot with equal construction and quality control to an Alden for around 1/2 to 2/3 the price. I'm good with that. Also, I've long been tempted to dip my toes into the Alden waters, but now there's no way that I'm paying Crockett & Jones money for what Alden is putting out.

 

[Hisheirness23]

I really regret not picking up a pair of these back in the day. I've got an Alpine monkey boot in the same material and on the same last, so I thought the HM version would be duplicative. But, that was just Donkey putting his full dumbassery on display. Hoping one in my size emerges on some selling site somewhere, so I can pounce on it.

Seeing all the Trunk Show shoes pop up recently made me want to put on my OG Trunk Show pair of HMs in burgundy with natural welt and v-tread soles. They need some love and conditioning, though.

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If AE ever brings back the custom welt/edge choices, these could easily be my next HM! Beautiful pairing of the Burgundy with the natural welt!

 

[Shoenut]

One point that RoseAnvil made about AE where I think he's got a point, is that the issue with glue on the insole. I have at least a dozen AE shoes where there is dried glue in the ball area. Now, I can't feel it, doesn't bother me, but I wonder why AE has this problem while other companies seem to not.

Wet glue. That is it. They use a glue that they can coat it and stick it. You don’t get 10K pair a week by letting them sit in the last for days or waiting for glue to dry and activate.

 

[shahtirthak]

It was an AE Shoes and Boots week!
Grey Cavalier Strandmok,
English Tan Dublin McTavish,
Midnight Navy Park Avenue,
Cognac Pebble Grain Hamilton,
Black Dublin Stirling

 

[sam67]

$8 Park Ave from GW. Had a ding in right toe but I thought worth a salvage attempt.

 

[donkeyhoatie]

While the Normandy doesn't get heavy play in my usual rotation, it does get regular wears. Every year, I try to make sure I break them out on both Memorial Day and Veterans Day as well as their namesake day. Wasn't sure the protocol for this year's Veterans Day, and figured I'd wear them on the substitute day, since it looks like I'll be in the actual work boots tomorrow for garage time.

The Normandy is a nice boot, but with weird limitations. It's unlined, so it's really a spring and/or fall kind of boot that's too warm for summer and too cold for winter. Lugs on the heel, but not the sole, means you're not really taking them off of a regular path for anything. And, the toe caps on these dent just by looking at them funny, so it's not like they can handle even a minimal beating.

Still kudu is awesome, and I really like them a lot, even with all their limitations.