Church's/Crockett & Jones/ Allen Edmonds

[sonthach54]

I am looking for some plain wide oxfords. I have the following choices; (a) Church's Clyde (on clearance at Herrings); (b) Crockett & Jones's Bedford; (c) Allen Edmond's Park Avenue. The latter are a little cheaper, the first two about the same price. I realise they can all be characterized as boring, but so be it. Which do SFers consider to be the superior quality?

 

[NAMOR]

This may be helpful. I would go with the C&J

 

[IwearC&J]

Go with C&J, without a dought. But the model you want is Radstock in G. Bedford has been cancelled and replaced by Radstock. I really good choice by C&J because Radstock is much nicer in the front.

 

[Journeyman]

Originally Posted by sonthach54

I am looking for some plain wide oxfords. I have the following choices; (a) Church's Clyde (on clearance at Herrings); (b) Crockett & Jones's Bedford; (c) Allen Edmond's Park Avenue. The latter are a little cheaper, the first two about the same price. I realise they can all be characterized as boring, but so be it. Which do SFers consider to be the superior quality?

How high is your instep (ie the height of your foot)?
I ask because I have a reasonably, but not extremely, high foot and I found that I simply could not wear AE Park Avenues. In an attempt to get some extra space, I tried on a ridiculously wide fitting - something like an EEE or EEEE - but as soon as I started to tighten the laces it felt very uncomfortable and the "v" at the top of the laces was about 3cm wide. The Park Avenue last is very "flat", in the the shoe does not have a great deal of vertical space from the insole up to the lacing.

If, however, your foot is not high - if you have flatter feet - they might fit you without problems.

As a personal preference, I'd go with C&J as I have a few pairs and I like them.

 

[sonthach54]

Thanks guys. Very grateful. Surprised no votes for Church's; their MRRP is far higher than the other two. What do others think?

 

[Macallan]

In general, Church's; although I rate Church's and CJ as par (and own both)

Ideally trying the shoes would be best - you can have a pair of Barker's and Edward Green oxfords, although the latter are better shoes they may not fit whereas the Barkers could fit like a glove.

What experience do you have with the three brands?

 

[countbaron]

Originally Posted by IwearC&J

Go with C&J, without a dought. But the model you want is Radstock in G. Bedford has been cancelled and replaced by Radstock. I really good choice by C&J because Radstock is much nicer in the front.

With 6 posts and the avatar, the content of your post is quite understandable

 

[IwearC&J]

Originally Posted by countbaron

With 6 posts and the avatar, the content of your post is quite understandable

Yup! That´s right. No secret about that. But then I am also a cobbler and just gets angrier everytime I see when Church gets more and more crapier....

 

[usctrojans31]

This really depends on the shape of your foot. I don't have much experience with Church's, as I think it is probably the most overpriced shoe one can find, I will focus on C&J and AE. Unfortunately I will have to use myself as the referential criteria.

The Park Ave is on the 5 last, which is very slim fitting, and typically runs about .5-1 size longer. Their description of the last is truly on point "best for someone with a long, narrow foot." If this isn't you, the entire 5 last might not be for you. While journeyman points out the instep issue, in my experience with the 5, I think it actually fits a high instep quite well. That is all about trial and error.

Conversely, I have tried on several pairs of C&J and have found that all of them run VERY wide. If you're a standard or wide width, you should be okay. If you're a narrow, you're screwed.

The best option for you is to get yourself properly measured, including instep, and go from there.

As someone mentioned, sometimes the lower price is the better fit. I can fit the 5 last like a glove, whereas every English made shoe is too wide for me and I clunk around in them.

 

[clee1982]

Originally Posted by sonthach54

Thanks guys. Very grateful. Surprised no votes for Church's; their MRRP is far higher than the other two. What do others think?

Would go for Church if you can find them on cheap, otherwise I say CJ is better value for money.

 

[clee1982]

Originally Posted by usctrojans31

This really depends on the shape of your foot. I don't have much experience with Church's, as I think it is probably the most overpriced shoe one can find, I will focus on C&J and AE. Unfortunately I will have to use myself as the referential criteria.

The Park Ave is on the 5 last, which is very slim fitting, and typically runs about .5-1 size longer. Their description of the last is truly on point "best for someone with a long, narrow foot." If this isn't you, the entire 5 last might not be for you. While journeyman points out the instep issue, in my experience with the 5, I think it actually fits a high instep quite well. That is all about trial and error.

Conversely, I have tried on several pairs of C&J and have found that all of them run VERY wide. If you're a standard or wide width, you should be okay. If you're a narrow, you're screwed.

The best option for you is to get yourself properly measured, including instep, and go from there.

As someone mentioned, sometimes the lower price is the better fit. I can fit the 5 last like a glove, whereas every English made shoe is too wide for me and I clunk around in them.

Interesting, I found most English tends to be on the narrow side (especially when compare to Italian, or at least wide fit is not as available). Have you tried C&J in 348/358/337 last, I can't imagine those being wide. On the other hand something like 240 do feel wide ish, at least around the toe.