Allen Edmonds Appreciation Thread - Page 1057

Looking to get some boots soon. A quick (and probably silly) question- what socks do you guys usually wear with your wingtip and captoe boots? If you wear thicker socks, is there a need to size up vs other dress shoes in the same last, or does the extra instep space (given its a boot) usually suffice?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Archimon 

Was thinking about picking up my first pair of AE's. Going to be going to college this summer for at least the next four years and was interested in some recommendations for a casual shoe (I'm drawn to wingtips) to go with jeans and Khakis. The most I would ever wear them with would be some chinos and a sports coat, MAYBE a pair of wool trousers and a sports coat, but that's not a requirement for the shoe. I was drawn to Suede Neumoks, the Snuff brown ones. Any opinions or suggestions would be much appreciated.

i recently picked up the snuff suede neumok's in the seconds sale.  very versatile and beautifully made shoe but I'd suggest getting a leather shoe first.  It will be easier for maintenance since you can polish them up when needed.  I'd say check out mcallister's, strand's, or player's (my first AE).  Walnut/bourbon/brown would be superb for color choice.

i just bought the AE long branch. Should i treat them even though they are more of a rugged boot? shine them and everything like i would my strands?

For people with experience with the 5 last - any idea how much of a difference there is between C/D widths?

Quote:

Originally Posted by hohneokc 


I suggest you look at the McTavish - great casual wingtip that would fit your situations. 4 colors to choose from.

Maybe the walnut grain MacNeil - a bit less casual, but would still fit your situations.

Chris

Appreciate the reply, McTavish is exactly what I was looking for, I was thinking suede might be a bit too much for a first choice anyway. Hopefully will pick up a pair soon. The Macneil's are nice as well, but they're more expensive and I honestly liked the McTavish more anyway. What can I say, I'm a sucker for fancy decorations! 

Quote:

Originally Posted by RicPac 

i just bought the AE long branch. Should i treat them even though they are more of a rugged boot? shine them and everything like i would my strands?

What type of leather?

Quote:

Originally Posted by kentyman 

I got my Tan Elgin seconds in today. In general, I am very happy with them. I wear 8.5D Strands, so I first tried 8D McTavishes, but they ended up being too tight on my toes. These 8.5D Elgins feel pretty good. My only concern has to do with some bowing at the top. Let me show some picture for comparison:

 

Next to my 8.5D Strands (Click to show)

 

 

Next to 8D McTavishes (Click to show)

 

 

On feet (with jeans pulled up) (Click to show)

 

With shoe trees (Click to show)

 

 

What do y'all think. Should I be concerned about this? My guess is this is why they're seconds, but I'm unclear how this could've even happened in manufacturing, unless they used wide upper with a D last.

I think they look fine on feet, I would not worry about it.

Since you guys seem very knowledgeable about AE, I am having issues getting a well-fitting pair of shoes. I got some Strands in 8D from the seconds sale and they were very snug, so I took a trip to the AE store and 8E fit better, but I had heel slippage. Basically I have small girth at the ankle and my foot is only very wide at the ball. Just about every last the E fit better (and blucher style was even more heel slippage) except for the 333 last which fit well in D. Thing is, I'm not big on square toe. What do you think the best approach would be? I would like a brogued shoe (love wingtips), and I like oxford over blucher but I am done being that picky. I'm probably going to snag the Dalton in grey since the boots fit me great, but I would like something else.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by RicPac 

i just bought the AE long branch. Should i treat them even though they are more of a rugged boot? shine them and everything like i would my strands?

I have the Brown Waxy Leather version.  I have been slightly frustrated with AE's shoe care advice on their website, but I had a break through the other day.  They have shoe care advice in three locations on their website. 

1. At the bottom of the page on each individual shoe there is a paragraph or two with hyperlinks for recommended shoe care products. 
2. There is also the shoe care page, which has some videos and a pdf chart with all of their shoes with care recommendations. 
3. There is the "Ask & Answer" tab on each individual shoe, which invariably has people asking how to care for the shoe and AE's customer service response to the question (it seems that their answers generally match up with the advice in the pdf). 

My frustration came from the fact that all to often, the advice in the three different areas didn't match up.  I finally realized the other day, that the pdf chart seems to be their "master" recommendation list and is probably the one to follow, and the advice at the bottom of the page (#1) should be generally ignored since I have found it to be blatantly wrong. 

That said, I initially followed the advice in item #1 which is to use Conditioner/Cleaner followed by Saddle Soap.  I've done this 2-3 times so far.  However, I haven't been very happy with what seems to be an increasingly dull finish on the boots.  I thought they had an attractive sheen to them when they were new, and I thought it was a perfect amount of sheen given their rugged purpose.  It turns out, their shoe care chart pdf actually says to use Conditioner/Cleaner and then follow with Dark Brown Premium Polish.  So, I'm going to try that at my next polishing. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by kentyman 

I got my Tan Elgin seconds in today. In general, I am very happy with them. I wear 8.5D Strands, so I first tried 8D McTavishes, but they ended up being too tight on my toes. These 8.5D Elgins feel pretty good. My only concern has to do with some bowing at the top. Let me show some picture for comparison:

 

Next to my 8.5D Strands (Click to show)

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 

 

 

Next to 8D McTavishes (Click to show)

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 

 

 

On feet (with jeans pulled up) (Click to show)

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 

 

 

With shoe trees (Click to show)

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 

 

 

What do y'all think. Should I be concerned about this? My guess is this is why they're seconds, but I'm unclear how this could've even happened in manufacturing, unless they used wide upper with a D last.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cbtaylor 

 

I think they look fine on feet, I would not worry about it.

That sort of looks like the now infamous "5-Last Bowing."  Have you had trouble with any other 5-Last shoes doing that?  I agree with cbtaylor, that if they fit fine it probably isn't a huge deal. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by MoneyWellSpent 

 

Just curious about some more details on your experience with those black Superfeet inserts.  I have a pair of those that I used to use in cheaper shoes, but I've always been nervous to use them in my higher quality shoes from fear that they would chew up the leather linings.  Have you experienced any of that?  I had a pair of cheaper dress shoes a few years back that they did a bit of a job on by digging into the leather linings around the rim of the insert and it looked pretty bad. 

I've been concerned with rigid, superfeet-type insoles as well. I've found that fit is vital and if the insole can be trimmed, I ensure it isn't deforming the shoe in any way. At full size (untrimmed) it was pushing on the leather and I could feel it from out outside of the shoe. I've never had any issues with them damaging the interior of the shoe but have had to trim the forefoot section.

I also have a pair of the half soles and they are made of a rigid plastic that can't [easily] be trimmed. In one pair of boots, they are a tad too big so I just don't use them in that pair. In other shoes/boots, they work just fine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cold Iron 

No I haven't, knock on wood. They do push out a lot on my unlined walnut shell Dalton's which I wore yesterday and it used to concern me some that they would cut through to the outside, however after more than a years wear no problems. I have 3 shoe boxes full of insoles I have collected over the years and they are easily the hardest ones. The next hardest ones are an old pair of green superfeet inserts that you cut to length. The harder the insole the better support they provide which is my main concern. When I get around to it I would like to purchase the next size down to see if it helps reduce the tension on the inside of the shoes\boots but still fits the correct position of my arch.

I have a similar 'collection' of insoles. Some better than others. I never would have thought the rigid plastic black half soles would add comfort but they certainly do.