John Lobb Appreciation Thread

[jischwar]

Quite honestly it bothers me that people will not call it for what it is. JL is at the bottom. Let me say this and someone can say otherwise. If you care about construction and longevity, for example, let's start with stitching. Of the top brands, G&G comes ahead by a far margin. Of the 20+ pairs I have owned, I never saw loose stitching or stitching that was not done properly in some way. EG and JL, on the other hand, all the time. All the time. In my opinion, the stitching is what should separate an expensive pair from one that's in the $200-400 range. G&G does not belong in this category of shoes when you hold them up and examine them carefully. EG to me is a big disappointment in that regard and so is JL. In terms of leather I would put JL at the bottom between the 3. JL I have also seen the outsole where the closed stitching is done, that portion of the leather they pull back to do the stitching to come unglued in no time.

Oh, speaking of stitching, Vass way better than both EG and JL.

Haha, if you think Vass stitching is better than EG then I don't think we are going to agree on much. Vass has enough trouble making a pair of shoes the exact same size.

 

[sforum1]

We get it, obviously you are not a fan of Lobb, but you are posting in an "appreciation" thread. When I think about monk strap shoes, a keeper popping off because I pulled at the strap too hard is akin to snapping laces by tying them too hard.

The leather feels and looks just as good as it did 10 years ago and everything else about the shoes is solid. Btw the keeper thing happened in the first year of ownership and hasn't happened since.

oh, I get it. No negative comments about JL here. Just praise. The strap fell off? You pulled too hard. The outsole fell off? You walked too hard. The leather looks like a mess? You don't know how to walk, go back to your mom and ask her to teach you again. As I said, here is your reason why their prices are at 2K with no justification at all.

You will not find another person who's more in favor of free markets than me. If people are paying these prices, at this quality, then that's the price. Period. If they are willing to pay even more, then that's the price, period. But part of a free market is for consumers to have access to all opinions and honest reviews. I am not saying yours is not, but mine is too.

 

[sforum1]

Haha, if you think Vass stitching is better than EG then I don't think we are going to agree on much. Vass has enough trouble making a pair of shoes the exact same size.

I won't disagree on the sizing. I have said that and bashed Vass myself to oblivion regarding this. I probably sounded the most anti-Vass person on the planet, definitely on this forum. That's why I do not have a proper-fitting Vass pair and I don't think I ever will. Most people won't either. Vass honestly don't know what they are doing in terms of sizing. Just horrible, almost disgusting. I was talking about stitching. And I did not say stitching is perfect. I said it's better than JL and EG. And I stand behind this.

 

[Deeky]

Er..I love Vass and have plenty of pairs. Vass does not have consistent stitching either. The best way to buy Vass is IMO to simply go to the shop and pick out whatever you want there and then. Otherwise you just have to live with whatever they send you (which isn't that bad really, even at its worst).

But JL really seems kinda overpriced right now for whatever they're offering. Pricing at ludicrous levels while offering stuff worse than G&G/EG which are cheaper

 

[jischwar]

oh, I get it. No negative comments about JL here. Just praise. The strap fell off? You pulled too hard. The outsole fell off? You walked too hard. The leather looks like a mess? You don't know how to walk, ask your mom to teach you again. As I said, here is your reason why their prices are at 2K with no justification at all.

You will not find another person who's more in favor of free markets than me. If people are paying these prices, at this quality, then that's the price. Period. If they are willing to pay even more, then that's the price, period. But part of a free market is for consumers to have access to all opinions and honest reviews. I am not saying yours is not, but mine is too.

I'm not saying no negative comments. But the OP simply asked about longevity between the brands and I answered based on my experience alone.

He didn't ask whether they were worth the cost, which is what you are answering.

 

[fal32]

You guys keep saying the same **** over and over again ad nauseam. Your shoes are going to wear no matter what. Obviously if you wear them a couple times a week they will wear faster. Just because you spend 1500 bucks on shoes doesn’t mean they’re going to last longer than 500 Aldens. And if you think Carmina is better quality than JL then you’re a clown. We get it - you don’t like JL. Moving on now, let’s get back to the posts of users who like their shoes

 

[jischwar]

Er..I love Vass and have plenty of pairs. Vass does not have consistent stitching either. The best way to buy Vass is IMO to simply go to the shop and pick out whatever you want there and then. Otherwise you just have to live with whatever they send you (which isn't that bad really, even at its worst).

But JL really seems kinda overpriced right now for whatever they're offering. Pricing at ludicrous levels while offering stuff worse than G&G/EG which are cheaper

And I don't disagree that they are overpriced, I never did. I got my pairs on sale, again, 10 or so years ago. I was simply answering the OP's question with regard to longevity.

 

[sforum1]

You guys keep saying the same **** over and over again ad nauseam. Your shoes are going to wear no matter what. Obviously if you wear them a couple times a week they will wear faster. Just because you spend 1500 bucks on shoes doesn’t mean they’re going to last longer than 500 Aldens. And if you think Carmina is better quality than JL then you’re a clown. We get it - you don’t like JL. Moving on now, let’s get back to the posts of users who like their shoes

I will respectfully have to disagree with you. There are people who come here to ask for advice and opinions. They have saved up money and are between shoes. They want honest opinions. They are not looking for praise, praise, praise while in the meantime the straps are falling off. They already know that JL, EG and G&G are nice, expensive shoes.

Guys, watch this. There are among us the people for whom money is no object. Literally, $2-3K means absolutely nothing to them. JL, EG etc are nice shoes. If they look good to their eyes and they are the most expensive money can buy and they mean prestige and class, they will just buy them. They don't last long? So much the better because it means it's time for a new pair. There is the people who literally have one and only one criterion when it comes to buying anything: is it the most expensive money can buy?

Always put things into perspective.

I just don't see why you can't praise and criticize at the same time. Did your parents always praise you, no matter what?

 

[dukenukem4ever]

i am so happy i got my JLs on sale and at a time when the EURO was weak as shieeeeet

 

[sforum1]

i am so happy i got my JLs on sale and at a time when the EURO was weak as shieeeeet

JL City II for $690
JL Philipp II $900

Imported from Europe when EUR, GBP were weak and during sales.
Both brand spanking new, no seconds.

I still semi-regretted both purchases but not much. One after about 25-30 wears started falling apart I had to donate. The other is still brand new.

 

[Betelgeuse]

Guys, these are perfectly fine creases, no quality issue from that picture. I've seen much worse even from top makers (EG, JM Weston, etc.)

Creases don't necessarily have anything to do with quality. True bespoke shoes made by top masters with top leather can also crease far more than a bog-standard $200 Meermin, it doesn't really mean anything.

Talking about the crease, I don't see a problem either. Was trying to find a photo I saw on IG of a pair of Yohei Fukuda's that the creases looked far worse but I would still don't care.

 

[Jazzmenco]

Lot of Lobb bashing by @sforum1. Well I have about 20 Lobbs collected over the years, most bought pre-owned from SF members or Ebay. Average cost $500 or less. 2 pairs bought new on sale for under 1K. Very happy with my Lobbs. Most of them are older and I do think the newer ones have gone down in quality. In closing @sforum1 I tried to ignore you but you sound like a real DICK.
I have plenty more but I'll save them for your inevitable obnoxious reply..............

 

[sforum1]

Lot of Lobb bashing by @sforum1. Well I have about 20 Lobbs collected over the years, most bought pre-owned from SF members or Ebay. Average cost $500 or less. 2 pairs bought new on sale for under 1K. Very happy with my Lobbs. Most of them are older and I do think the newer ones have gone down in quality. In closing @sforum1 I tried to ignore you but you sound like a real DICK.
I have plenty more but I'll save them for your inevitable obnoxious reply..............
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[Betelgeuse]

Lopez.

 

[kageboshi]

Hello Guys,

I need some help here. I got these John Lobb Monks in claret misty, have not worn them because of the lockdown, but was planning to wear them tomorrow, so I applied Saphir renovateur to them for a couple minutes and brushed them and this is how they came out... is the finish ruined permanently? or is there something I could do? this is the first time this happens to me with Renovateur.