***The official Alden thread *** - Page 1063

Are these the colors that Alden offers in shell cordovan?

Black
#8
Cigar
Ravello
Mahogany
Whiskey

How do the the browns compare with each other? I'm an Alden noob, but I'm considering a pair of cordovan longwings at some point.

there is also the rare #4 ... ihavent seen mahogany shell for awhile now. no one seems to be able to get their hands on it

There's also #4.

L to R: cigar, whiskey, ravello, #4, #8.
I find Ravello to be my favorite.

Thanks a ton for that picture; it really is a good comparison of the colors!

I think my ideal pair would be a pair of cordovan longwings in cigar (I like that there's almost a green-ish tint to them in some lighting) or #4, but really, I don't think I could go wrong with any of the non-black colors. I'd also prefer something not in the Barrie last, but I don't know how feasible that is.

I love those ravello and #8 colors man!

Thanks guys!

Wow awesome, Alden 966?! i Have had my eye on these for a while now. Could i bother you for some more pictures of those. I have not pulled the trigger on them yet because every picture i see on the internet they tend to have a red tone to the leather. Is the color true to your picture? Is the edge trim antique or black?

Thanks.

My #8 shortwings just showed up from leathersoul. Wow, I'm so glad I pulled the trigger. Ordered on Thursday evening, and they were at my desk first thing monday morning.

Being this is my first experience with shell - are there any precuations to take when breaking these in? Obviously, shoe trees are an obvious need, but I thought I had read somewhere about using a pen to control the creasing?

Thanks!

Pencil, no pen (and use an Eberhard #2 with a natural finish....). Seriously, assuming you are comfortable with the fit just use the pencil as a guide to bend the shoes at the toe. It prevents too many uneven creases (which I find come anyway after many wearings and add character to the shoe).

anyone heard of updates on the shoe mart irregular list that should be coming out in the near future?

So this technique is to precrease the shoes so that they're even? Please explain more.

cool - I looked back a few pages and it sounds like the godfather himself (tom at leathersoul) just wears them right out of the box, so that's what I'll go for as well.

I had read somewhere that wax polishes arent the best. What do most people go with for #8 shell?

Mine were just delivered as well.

this method will still result in random creasing, sometimes more than if the pencil wasn't used. the creasing depends on the shell and your gait. if your creasing looks a little wild, just chalk it up to your individual feet and move on. the problem with using the pencil is that if your gait doesn't coincide with the way you creased the shoe, the other creases will develop in addition and could look bizarre. if you don't like the way shell looks broken in, stick to calf or some other exotic leather.

Use paste wax for shell cordovan. Don't use very much and don't use it very often. You don't want any to build up on the shell. Look up the "Mac Method" for details from a guy who knows

Color doesn't really matter that much... it's up to you. I use dark brown Saphir paste wax for my color 8 and cigar shells.

Also, you don't need to treat new Aldens, calf or cordovan, with anything for a while. They are good to go straight out of the box.