Archibald London Hand Welted Shoes - preorder issues, discussion,and resolution.

[dukenukem4ever]

Update: Knife + Shoe time
View attachment 1576108

Love the Enron cap, quite fitting for the topic of discussion in this thread.

 

[clee1982]

was wondering who was going to notice

 

[JohnMRobie]

Again I’m not entirely sure what the purpose of this was since it was a non-production sample but the shoe is no more.
Components: the leather was garbage CG stuff. Not super difficult to peel the finish off.
Had the liner on top of the insole again with the foam under it

sole - veg tanned

No shock to anyone - we saw the bumps but

it had a fiberglass shank

And an absolute ton of foam instead of cork or felt. Thick layer that ran from heel to toe couldn’t get it off in one shot but here’s a decent sized chunk you can see

Heels were stacked

Toe puff

Heel stiffener

And the groove after pulling stitches

 

[JFWR]

Again I’m not entirely sure what the purpose of this was since it was a non-production sample but the shoe is no more.
Components: the leather was garbage CG stuff. Not super difficult to peel the finish off.
Had the liner on top of the insole again with the foam under it
View attachment 1576163
View attachment 1576164
sole - veg tanned View attachment 1576156 View attachment 1576159
No shock to anyone - we saw the bumps but
View attachment 1576165
it had a fiberglass shank
View attachment 1576166
And an absolute ton of foam instead of cork or felt. Thick layer that ran from heel to toe couldn’t get it off in one shot but here’s a decent sized chunk you can see View attachment 1576168
View attachment 1576169
Heels were stacked
View attachment 1576170
Toe puff View attachment 1576171
Heel stiffener
View attachment 1576172
And the groove after pulling stitches
View attachment 1576174
View attachment 1576175

So despite the other concerns, this -is- hand welted?

 

[Spaghettimatt]

How common is a fiberglass shank? I’ve never heard of that before.

 

[dieworkwear]

Foam is surprising. Again, I think this just shows that meaningful reviews are teardowns.

 

[JohnMRobie]

How common is a fiberglass shank? I’ve never heard of that before.

Not super uncommon. Fiberglass, steel or wood are the most common for shoes with shanks. Fiberglass and wood are obviously more airport friendly. There are some boot companies I can think of that use them in some cases (wolverine and red wing come to mind) I think RM Williams? The HW01 I cut apart was basically thick paper. And for the guys who didn’t know the difference between the construction methods here are both shoes at the same point in the tear down.

 

[Spaghettimatt]

Not super uncommon. Fiberglass, steel or wood are the most common for shoes with shanks. Fiberglass and wood are obviously more airport friendly. There are some boot companies I can think of that use them in some cases (wolverine and red wing come to mind) I think RM Williams? The HW01 I cut apart was basically thick paper. And for the guys who didn’t know the difference between the construction methods here are both shoes at the same point in the tear down. View attachment 1576188 View attachment 1576189

Very cool. I’m looking forward to hearing what Jesper and @Noblekostas think.

Also @dieworkwear is the foam indicative of anything? Is it necessarily a cheaper construction method than cork?

 

[JohnMRobie]

Foam is surprising. Again, I think this just shows that meaningful reviews are teardowns.

I was also surprised by the foam in general and also by the sheer volume of it and how it ran the entire length of the shoe. The other minor surprise was that the welt ran a full 360 but the sole stitching only ran 270 and the welt on the heel was trimmed down a little bit.

 

[clee1982]

I would think foam is for comfort, and it’s a cheap way to get there, I don’t know how it would last long term speaking

upper Is correct grain but again not made to production standard so can’t say much, finishing is below EB, but not production standard so not sure what to say either.

if someone gave me “this sample” I would politely decline and tell them if you want handwelt below $500 look for EB/Vass on discount or Winson

Edit: now maybe once they start new sample you can get another to judge...

 

[dieworkwear]

Very cool. I’m looking forward to hearing what Jesper and @Noblekostas think.

Also @dieworkwear is the foam indicative of anything? Is it necessarily a cheaper construction method than cork?

My understanding is that foam generally breaks down over time, and it doesn't mold to your foot like cork. It springs back until it has been compressed and degraded so much that it becomes flat.

 

[taxgenius]

My understanding is that foam generally breaks down over time, and it doesn't mold to your foot like cork. It springs back until it has been compressed and degraded so much that it becomes flat.

But if a thick insole is used, that is, the thickness needed for a handwelted shoe, wouldn't that be sufficient for molding to your foot?

 

[Spaghettimatt]

Do we think that if we opened any mid to high end shoe (think Alden, Carmina, Bonafe level) we would find similar shortcuts? I feel like this can’t be very uncommon.

 

[taxgenius]

Do we think that if we opened any mid to high end shoe (think Alden, Carmina, Bonafe level) we would find similar shortcuts? I feel like this can’t be very uncommon.

I think there a pics already out there. Also, they aren't claiming to rival EG, so it shouldn't surprise anyone if there are any shortcuts.

 

[dieworkwear]

But if a thick insole is used, that is, the thickness needed for a handwelted shoe, wouldn't that be sufficient for molding to your foot?

I assume the thickness wouldn't be enough to create the kind of footbed found in other construction methods. It may have a small imprint of your foot, but not that full footbed.

Foam is more comfortable, initially. It's softer and has more of cushion when you walk.

Do we think that if we opened any mid to high end shoe (think Alden, Carmina, Bonafe level) we would find similar shortcuts? I feel like this can’t be very uncommon.

Would be cool if you opened up a shoe and a giant, springloaded snake sprung out like BOOOINNNNNGGG