Japanese Boot / Shoe Appreciation Thread (White Cloud, Rolling Dub Trio, John Lofgren, Clinch, etc.

[Markfisher702]

From my experience with my pair of Clinch I had, their Japanese sizing is one whole size larger than your US boot size. Obviously lasts are going to play a role, but I’m a 9.5 boot size (10D brannock) and would have taken a Clinch a size 10.5. My pair I had awhile back was an 11 which was just off enough in fit to bother me, but I got mine when there was still so little online about the brand.

I’d love to try again down the road but it’s gonna be awhile at this point haha.

Good feedback. Speculation is varied. I guess I’ll step into them tomorrow and see what’s what. Thank you.

 

[Mghart]

Yeah I hope they work out for you, they’re beautiful boots. At least you’ll know for sure after trying them on and if it doesn’t work out you can return them.

 

[DavidCreightonB]

Ok. Great review.

So.......unbelievably....and I’m pretty freaked out about it..........I bought Yeager 11s from Standard & Strange a couple days ago. Neil and Mari, in parallel chats with me, suggested 11 or 11.5 based on many dealings with them on Viberg and John Lofgren boots. The troubling difference is 6-8 months of wait time. 11s are the largest that S&S received. 11.5s will be a special order.

Tomorrow, they land. We shall see. I’m a little flustered. No pressure....haha.

Don't freak out. These are great boots but you'll understand what I mean by the CN fit once you get them. I have a Viberg in the 1004 “Cantilever Last” which is based on a vintage orthopaedic shape and that feels about the same as the CN last. I ordered my Yeager's last September so the time goes by quickly if you need to size up. Let us know how they fit.

DaveB

 

[Markfisher702]

Don't freak out. These are great boots but you'll understand what I mean by the CN fit once you get them. I have a Viberg in the 1004 “Cantilever Last” which is based on a vintage orthopaedic shape and that feels about the same as the CN last. I ordered my Yeager's last September so the time goes by quickly if you need to size up. Let us know how they fit.

DaveB

Thanks for the pat on the back. Good one, Dave.

 

[mitchmurr62]

View attachment 1439775

So I received my Yeager's a few weeks ago. It is in the horse butt which runs closer to $1900 on the Brass Website. The rolls are already starting to develop which is part of the appeal for their boots.

The Clinch boots in the CN (or CN-S) last are not for everyone. If they fit, they will get really comfortable after a break-in period. I am a 9.5 C width and the last is designed for a narrow foot. It's closer to an orthopedic fit with the way the last is curved and the support under the arch and ball of the foot. Sizing is similar Joe Works. I purchased the CN 10 (US 9) and the width fits but I'd buy a half size bigger since my toe can barely touch the end of the boot by the end of a long work day. Wearing thick pair of socks for a few weeks takes care of this.

These are work boots and are designed to age and form quickly since there is no structure in the toe. Initially I didn't like the fit. It's different than other lasts I own and I wasn't sure how it would settle. It's taken me about three weeks to break them in and I'm starting to like this last. The build quality is great. I can see the tooling lines from the sewing machine, which have on other hand made boots. The horse butt leather will mar easily which adds to the quick aging. Bend your toes in it and you get that great leather creaking sound from the uppers. The dying was little sloppy, leaving gaps near the mid sole, which surprised me. However, any imperfections will blend in over time. The CORD sole material provides a good grip in my workshop and on the wet streets where I live. I have three large dogs and I swear every dog hair on the floor sticks to the sole material. Cross my legs and I see these fur balls hanging off the edges.

View attachment 1439828

IMO - These boots will last a lifetime of shop use. The fit is not going to be for everyone, but when it works, these become your daily go-to wear. I'm glad I stuck with it and got these to break in. I'm adding a picture of how the leather ages over the past three weeks.



DaveB

Would love to see many more pics, if possible.

 

[Kingsleyy916]

First of all, please forgive my English grammar, I will try my best to express my meaning.
To put it simply, I bought these Clinch Boots about a month ago. I've heard about this brand for a long time, and while there aren't many reviews of them online compared to some other brands, as far as I can tell, the reviews showed online have been pretty good. So I decided to buy these boots. They were definitely not cheap boots. When I received them, I was satisfied with their appearance, but soon I found a series of "minor problems".
First of all, when I tie my shoes, the vamp is not closed horizontally (I'm not sure if I'm saying this correctly, see the picture I uploaded). Second, the lining part of the boot is not "perfect" and has many cracks. I can live with both, just I was expecting more since these boots cost me for about $1500, I mean if these cost me $300 then I won’t say anything because I know the price matters, but for $1500 I was hoping that they could keep me away from these problems. Okay, I'm probably asking too much, right? Haha..But the third and most annoying thing was that the leather around eyelets seemed to crack. I'm not sure if it was there in the first place but I just tried them on at home and I don't think I got "crushed" these eyelets so fast. I tried to contact them by email, first a month ago, and they didn't respond, and then I tried to contact them again last week, and they didn't respond, so I tried to contact them on Instagram, and finally I left a message at the bottom of their POST, and they replied, "It happens some times like this, but no problem, leather is strong enough to keep the whole part." I am not sure if this is true, as I have never come across a pair of new boots in such a situation, please help me to see according to the pictures I uploaded, whether this situation will lead to the leather eventually splitting, resulting in irreparable consequences? Thank you all.

 

[Kingsleyy916]

Id love to buy a pair of Clinch boots, my preferred model are the Graham boots though. They look quite inconspicuous new but with some wear transform into some of the best looking boots out there imo

Unfortunately, from my experience the Graham boots does not worth the money...

 

[Markfisher702]

First of all, please forgive my English grammar, I will try my best to express my meaning.
To put it simply, I bought these Clinch Boots about a month ago. I've heard about this brand for a long time, and while there aren't many reviews of them online compared to some other brands, as far as I can tell, the reviews showed online have been pretty good. So I decided to buy these boots. They were definitely not cheap boots. When I received them, I was satisfied with their appearance, but soon I found a series of "minor problems".
First of all, when I tie my shoes, the vamp is not closed horizontally (I'm not sure if I'm saying this correctly, see the picture I uploaded). Second, the lining part of the boot is not "perfect" and has many cracks. I can live with both, just I was expecting more since these boots cost me for about $1500, I mean if these cost me $300 then I won’t say anything because I know the price matters, but for $1500 I was hoping that they could keep me away from these problems. Okay, I'm probably asking too much, right? Haha..But the third and most annoying thing was that the leather around eyelets seemed to crack. I'm not sure if it was there in the first place but I just tried them on at home and I don't think I got "crushed" these eyelets so fast. I tried to contact them by email, first a month ago, and they didn't respond, and then I tried to contact them again last week, and they didn't respond, so I tried to contact them on Instagram, and finally I left a message at the bottom of their POST, and they replied, "It happens some times like this, but no problem, leather is strong enough to keep the whole part." I am not sure if this is true, as I have never come across a pair of new boots in such a situation, please help me to see according to the pictures I uploaded, whether this situation will lead to the leather eventually splitting, resulting in irreparable consequences? Thank you all.

Sorry to see this. Not good. I hope you are able to get refunded.

 

[Kingsleyy916]

Sorry to see this. Not good. I hope you are able to get refunded.

Thank you for your reply, it seems they won’t allow me to return these, I think I have to deal with it.

 

[ajd578]

Thank you for your reply, it seems they won’t allow me to return these, I think I have to deal with it.

I think if it gets much worse, they will take care of it. I hope.

 

[smartbrother]

First of all, please forgive my English grammar, I will try my best to express my meaning.
To put it simply, I bought these Clinch Boots about a month ago. I've heard about this brand for a long time, and while there aren't many reviews of them online compared to some other brands, as far as I can tell, the reviews showed online have been pretty good. So I decided to buy these boots. They were definitely not cheap boots. When I received them, I was satisfied with their appearance, but soon I found a series of "minor problems".
First of all, when I tie my shoes, the vamp is not closed horizontally (I'm not sure if I'm saying this correctly, see the picture I uploaded). Second, the lining part of the boot is not "perfect" and has many cracks. I can live with both, just I was expecting more since these boots cost me for about $1500, I mean if these cost me $300 then I won’t say anything because I know the price matters, but for $1500 I was hoping that they could keep me away from these problems. Okay, I'm probably asking too much, right? Haha..But the third and most annoying thing was that the leather around eyelets seemed to crack. I'm not sure if it was there in the first place but I just tried them on at home and I don't think I got "crushed" these eyelets so fast. I tried to contact them by email, first a month ago, and they didn't respond, and then I tried to contact them again last week, and they didn't respond, so I tried to contact them on Instagram, and finally I left a message at the bottom of their POST, and they replied, "It happens some times like this, but no problem, leather is strong enough to keep the whole part." I am not sure if this is true, as I have never come across a pair of new boots in such a situation, please help me to see according to the pictures I uploaded, whether this situation will lead to the leather eventually splitting, resulting in irreparable consequences? Thank you all.

Other issues aside, are the facings supposed to touch on these boots? I would think it depends on your foot/instep.

 

[Kingsleyy916]

Other issues aside, are the facings supposed to touch on these boots? I would think it depends on your foot/instep.

Thanks for reply. The thing is it doesn’t matter if I wear them with my own feet or I just tighten them without anything inside, or with a shoe tree, the misaligned vamp problem doesn’t go away.. and even this problem itself is different on the two boots, the left is particularly serious, and the right foot is slightly better..

 

[smartbrother]

Thanks for reply. The thing is it doesn’t matter if I wear them with my own feet or I just tighten them without anything inside, or with a shoe tree, the misaligned vamp problem doesn’t go away.. and even this problem itself is different on the two boots, the left is particularly serious, and the right foot is slightly better..

Ok, I see what you are saying now. I agree that doesn't look great.

 

[DavidCreightonB]

To put it simply, I bought these Clinch Boots about a month ago...

If it's OK, let me provide an opinion and some suggestions. When we get to certain price ranges and quality from Japan, we have an expectation of more detail being taken in our boots or shoes. Some shoes, like those from Yohei Fukuda, have amazing quality to the point I don't want to wear them. But this is formal wear and really built to reflect a high end presentation. Brass/Clinch is different. I view these as being designed as a homage to vintage work boot designs and the processes. There will be some imperfections either by design or accident that still make the boot acceptable at their price point. For example, edging is left undyed but there is flow from the dye that spills over on the edging. In looking at the boots, this is by design. To your specific issues:
The vamp not being aligned: Try using a ladder lace. What can happen is the lacing is pulling off center. I get this on most of my boots from St Crispin to Whites when I use certain lace patterns. Experiment with it and see if it helps. If you look at a lot of vintage boots, you will see a similar issue.
For the eyelet leather being cracked, it's tooling marks when they are pressed in. This can be touched-up with shoe paste.
The lining issue should be better but I wouldn't reject a boot because of it. The inside is going to wear anyway, so this all blends in with time.
The eyelets being crushed on the inside, it looks like a solid press with no workmanship issues other than being pressed a little too hard.
My point is not to expect perfection with something trying to emulate a vintage look. You want it to age quickly and be comfortable. What I reject are workmanship or mismatched leather issues. I understand the expectations and it's really up to you on what is acceptable.

Regards,

Dave

 

[Markfisher702]

If it's OK, let me provide an opinion and some suggestions. When we get to certain price ranges and quality from Japan, we have an expectation of more detail being taken in our boots or shoes. Some shoes, like those from Yohei Fukuda, have amazing quality to the point I don't want to wear them. But this is formal wear and really built to reflect a high end presentation. Brass/Clinch is different. I view these as being designed as a homage to vintage work boot designs and the processes. There will be some imperfections either by design or accident that still make the boot acceptable at their price point. For example, edging is left undyed but there is flow from the dye that spills over on the edging. In looking at the boots, this is by design. To your specific issues:
The vamp not being aligned: Try using a ladder lace. What can happen is the lacing is pulling off center. I get this on most of my boots from St Crispin to Whites when I use certain lace patterns. Experiment with it and see if it helps. If you look at a lot of vintage boots, you will see a similar issue.
For the eyelet leather being cracked, it's tooling marks when they are pressed in. This can be touched-up with shoe paste.
The lining issue should be better but I wouldn't reject a boot because of it. The inside is going to wear anyway, so this all blends in with time.
The eyelets being crushed on the inside, it looks like a solid press with no workmanship issues other than being pressed a little too hard.
My point is not to expect perfection with something trying to emulate a vintage look. You want it to age quickly and be comfortable. What I reject are workmanship or mismatched leather issues. I understand the expectations and it's really up to you on what is acceptable.

Regards,

Dave

Great contribution, Dave. Thanks for the note.