***The official Alden thread *** Share enthusiasm, reviews, sizing, advice, and photos.

[burningbright]



ALDEN suede shoes 12.5 C J. Crew VINTAGE goodyear sole
$100 BIN OBO

lulz for these being still available at $99 or best offer.

 

[clee1982]



It's a combination of QC issue (shouldn't happen in the first place) and customer service (lack the will to go all the way to either fix or replace). Anyway what was their exact reason for not able to replace it for you? Alden think it looks pretty acceptable or nothing would go wrong?

 

[mcarthur]



Uncle Mac,
If you are travelling for a week, and can only bring 1 pair of shoes/boots for business, leisure, maybe some rain, which Alden will you take with you?

tassels on my feet and pair of lhs in my carry on bag

 

[Mr.K]



In considering Namor’s recent post, I wanted to share my recent Alden customer service experience.

I ordered a pair of Kudu Ultimate Indy's from Leather Soul, and two weeks after I got them I noticed some threads in the heal had come loose:



I immediately contacted Leather Soul and they advised me to ship them back for repair. Fast forward five weeks: Leather Soul gets them back from Alden and contact me to tell me that the threads still seem to be loose. They ship them out to Alden again. After another 9 or 10 weeks, (I lost count --it was three months and a few days all told,) Leather Soul finally gets them back from Alden and they express mail them back to me.

I wish I was able to say that Alden had used the extra time to do the repair properly, but sadly that is not the case. There is still loose stitching on the heel, and the repair involved abrading the interior leather lining and creating an amateurish-looking 'Frankenstein' stitch on the inside of the boot:



I'm finding it difficult to believe that this is an acceptable standard for their craftsmen. In the past few days the interior stitch has shown signs of unraveling and at this point I'm not convinced that the repair will hold. But in theory, when the original threads eventually unravel, there will be a secondary stitch in place to prevent the leather heel piece from separating from the boot. Looking at the pics from Namor's blowout, I get the worrisome feeling I might be in for some more trauma in regards to this boot.

Now please understand, I think these boots look and feel great, and I (probably) wouldn't hesitate to buy them all over again even knowing what I know now. It's just my misfortune that they have to be made by a company with such an egregious lack of quality control and apparent inability to perform prompt or competent repairs.

I should point out that I don't consider this to be Leather Soul's fault in any part, but rather, their regrettable burden when their hapless customers resort to seeking their assistance with a poorly made product.

I can't say that I hadn't been forewarned; I had read this thread from front to back before making my purchase, and had seen posts about the sub-par quality control, (thanks for that, StyleForum!). But my advice after all this? Send back for replacement or refund and NOT for repair.*


*Unless, like me, replacement isn't possible and you really are unreasonably smitten by the boot.

I was in the same situation with a brand new pair of suede PTB I got form LS. It is annoying waiting 9-12 months for a shoe to arrive only to find out that they are not the quality they should be. I had to send them back to get an eyelet put in that was missed by the factory and ended up having to clean out globs of glue from the interior that passed their QA inspection.

 

[kgmessier]

I think these boots look and feel great, and I (probably) wouldn't hesitate to buy them all over again even knowing what I know now.

Replacement isn't possible and really [am] unreasonably smitten by the boot.

These two points are a big reason why some companies can afford to let QC slide.

 

[zueod]

Quote:
The Kudo Ultimate Indy goes out of stock pretty quickly. I got in on the tail end of a re-order and felt lucky at that. Extrapolating from onestar's recent post they might be getting in another order around December (or even earlier if the last two years have been an indicator,) but that was sooner than I expected considering the conversation I had with Leather Soul when I initially purchased the boot (last December).

In short, I don't think they had another size 9.5 to offer to replace it with, and wouldn't have had for another 8 months.

And heaven help you if something goes wrong with the replacement because at best, it seems like it would be a year between each replacement you would need. Until Alden improves their quality control, I think that's just the situation we're stuck with if we want their products.

And on preview, yeah kgmessier, you probably have it exactly right.

 

[jasonfoote303]



This is where I'm at. After seeing Nick from Horween do this to the CXL on the right,



I'm curious to see if my 403's would take a shine similar to it. Just not sure what to use. Neatsfoot oil? Heard this was bad for the stitching (eats away at it) but it's what Nick recommended for CXL.

I recently polished my NATURAL Chromexcel Indy shoes with some light brown Saphir wax. It definitely took a shine like in the Horween picture.

Wax will give a shine and protect, but I think Neetsfoot oil is more likely to saturate and nourish the leather (I haven't tried it myself) and will be more of a matte finish

Products I've used on Chromexcel without any problem are: Saphir Renovateur (good!), Saphir Wax (shine), and Alden neutral boot cream (works just fine)

 

[marg]

Maybe you guys can help me here...

I am looking for a black boot that will be versastile. I am torn between the classic cap toe boot and this plain toe on the crepe: http://aldenmadisonny.com/SHELL5.html (bottom of page). I would have uploaded a pic but work comps block everything.

Thoughts? Can a crepe sole be dressed up?

 

[zueod]

Quote:
I haven't contributed anything but complaints so far, so I'll bite.

My experience with crepe soles on a dress shoe are that they are far to prone to picking up crud (lint, carpet fuzz, surface scum and the like) and I hate that dirty sponge look they sometimes acquire. I'm sure many others here will disagree, but I have not had particularly positive experience with it.

Have you completely ruled out the commando sole offerings form Alden of Carmel?

You might also peruse this sf thread on crepe soles for more thoughts.

 

[mcarthur]

color 8 monks
argyles otc

 

[Joenobody0]



Anyone have any Size 8 (color 8) Cordo Chukka or Saddle shoes they want to sell? May consider others in equivalent sizes. Thanks...JT

Are you sure you're a size 8 on the Barrie last? If you're usually an 8 and haven't tried this last before you're probably a 7.5 (which I have very good condition and might consider selling).

 

[rkusmant]



tassels on my feet and pair of lhs in my carry on bag

thanks, maybe I'll try the tassels when I visit Alden store. Been on boots route forever, haven't had the need/chance to rock dress shoes...

 

[CWJr]

I'm torn between the brown chromexcel Indys and the natural chromexcel Indys, both with commando soles. Any thoughts on the versatility of the different shades? Any difference in durability of the finishes? These would be used during Michigan winters.

 

[onestar]



The Kudo Ultimate Indy goes out of stock pretty quickly. I got in on the tail end of a re-order and felt lucky at that. Extrapolating from onestar's recent post they might be getting in another order around December (or even earlier if the last two years have been an indicator,) but that was sooner than I expected considering the conversation I had with Leather Soul when I initially purchased the boot (last December).

In short, I don't think they had another size 9.5 to offer to replace it with, and wouldn't have had for another 8 months.

And heaven help you if something goes wrong with the replacement because at best, it seems like it would be a year between each replacement you would need. Until Alden improves their quality control, I think that's just the situation we're stuck with if we want their products.

And on preview, yeah kgmessier, you probably have it exactly right.

The guys at Leather Soul said that the Ultimate Indy's wouldn't be in until after December. I'm just going to try to work out my correct size (if it isn't 10.5) when I visit their store or while I am on the east coast. They said if this wasn't my size, I could change to another size as long as there was one still available from their forward order.

 

[burningbright]



I recently polished my NATURAL Chromexcel Indy shoes with some light brown Saphir wax. It definitely took a shine like in the Horween picture.

Wax will give a shine and protect, but I think Neetsfoot oil is more likely to saturate and nourish the leather (I haven't tried it myself) and will be more of a matte finish

Products I've used on Chromexcel without any problem are: Saphir Renovateur (good!), Saphir Wax (shine), and Alden neutral boot cream (works just fine)

Thanks for the info Jason, very informative.

How often are you applying the boot cream? I've got some Venetian shoe cream which works well, just not sure how often to use it. Also do you apply the cream first and then wax or do you treat them as mutually exclusive of one another?