ShoeMeister
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- Sep 10, 2012
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This is my first thread, so please be gentle I am a fan of AE and Bruno Magli (not all styles). I have noticed without doubt that the quality of the leather and the attention to detail on the sole is much, much cheaper-looking and feeling. I have a few pairs of AE from about 5 years ago and several Brunos from 5-10 years ago. And when I saw them at L&T and Nordstroms it greatly disappointed me. The leather felt like plastic, the soles felt like lightweight "cork material" and it just looked sloppy all-around. Now, this is not to say that all models of both brands are so much worse, but I am certain now that many or I dare say most models of both brands are considerably worse quality (and no, I do not refer to BM low-end China-made models). I know it is a sacrilege to mention AE with Bruno, but in terms of leather quality Bruno was superior, and in terms of construction AE was better primarily due to goodyear welting. And it may shock some AE loyalists, but there are many models of BM which are finer shoes than AE ever made (like the Rabus and Burg, both $1000 models and both priced correctly for quality). That said, both brands are suffering a major drop in quality and I wanted to know if the aficionados in this forum agree with me... thoughts? Thanks.
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