***The official Alden thread *** - Page 1175

nephew,
it was my pleasure to shake your hand

same thing is happening on my barrie LWBs too...had them for a couple months now and the heel slippage is almost completely gone.

theres been a few discussions of discolorations with shell ... some have said that over time, the discoloration should even out and be much less noticable to nonexistent

does anyone have before and after pics to prove this?

When these ravello captoe boots appear in J.Crew, can someone let me know?

bump

^ I'm a 9.5D or 10D in Red Wing Gentleman Travelers and a 10D in the Barrie. Red Wing sizing can be pretty erratic

This is good to hear, as it's been my biggest road block to committing to Barrie last shoes, which are far and away the most common, and since I've not been able to really try on other lasts outside the Trubalance and Aberdeen (a last I'm not so fond of).

I wear a 10D in GT's also and 10.5 in Barrie is too big for me by ~.5 size.

Gents, is there any difference in quality between Alden's $40 horsehair brush and the generic ones on Amazon that go for $7? I'd rather purchase a more expensive one if there's an increase in quality or utility, but not if it's just for the Alden logo.

 

I bought mine from this website http://www.shoecaresupplies.com/Shoe_Brushes_s/24.htm

 

Not a bad purchase.  Like the size of them.

 

Would suggest getting one for each color polish you have.

 

 

 

 

You are paying for the logo, to be sure, but you're also paying for a large brush with long horsehair bristles. Generally, you always want horsehair bristles. But the Kiwi horsehair brushes that are everywhere, including Amazon, are 1" to 2" too short in every dimension. The bristles are on the short side, and the dimensions of the brush handle are about 5" by 2". You ideally want a brush that is more like 7-8" by 3", with longer bristles. The reason for this is that covering a large swath of the shoe when you brush makes shoe care much, much faster, and allows you to care for your shoes in a more thorough manner with less effort.

 

That being said, you probably shouldn't buy the Alden brushes, as they're overpriced. If you're willing to spend more than $10 for a brush, then check out the Kent Brushes eBay store. Kent Brushes are reputed to be the best out there, but they're on the steep side at retail. Their company-run eBay store often has their excellent brushes -- with maybe a cosmetic defect here or here -- at deeply discounted prices.

Anyone wants to buy a pair of alden 986s? Size is 9D and #8 shell. I bought them new and have worn them a handful of times, but they don't fit me right -- price is $255 shipped. PM me if anyone is interested. Shoes are in great shape, as all my shoes!

There's a guy on ebay (coolshoeswalter) that sells 6.5" Star horsehair brushes for $7 shipped- these are much better than the Kiwi ones.

Thank you for the detailed explanation, applky, and for the recommendation, Dr. D. I went ahead and picked up a horsehair brush from coolshoewalter for now. I'll probably try to upgrade to a better brush when I get the chance in the future.

I also picked up a pair of Alden shoe trees and black paste wax from The Shoe Mart. I think that these three things are basically all that I'll need to purchase to keep my Alden's in good condition (if I'm wrong and someone could tell me otherwise, that would be great). I'll probably pick up some Saphir Renovateur in the future, as I've heard good things about using it every now and then on your shoes.

Cigar Indy with color 8 belt from BB

.