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dieworkwear

Mahatma Jawndi
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I agree that people should "buy less, buy better." That phrase is like the mother's milk of menswear writing, almost as good as articles about how the suit is dying (you can always pitch these sorts of stories to magazines and get ... like $50). But I think it's more important to develop a sense of taste, rather than climb up the supposed "pyramid of quality."

I have a lot of "lower end" shoes that I wear more often than my higher end shoes: I wear my Aldens more than my Saint Crispins; my Allen Edmonds Grayson more than my Vass; my Blundstones more than some Edward Greens.

I love this feature on Mark Cho's watches, where he shows a quartz version of a Royal Oak. I admire that someone has a sense of personal taste, rather than leaning on some other metric to substitute for taste (e.g., "quality," "fashionability," or even "classicness").

 

Braid

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They sew them in Poland/Romania/India, like all good British brands these days. ?
I think you are confusing loake / Barker etc.. Mid ranges with CJ and the other premium English makers.

I could be wrong but I have seen the CJ factory, they have whole hides, clickers etc..

Do you have any information about CJ sewing uppers outside of UK?
 

Commisar

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I think you are confusing loake / Barker etc.. Mid ranges with CJ and the other premium English makers.

I could be wrong but I have seen the CJ factory, they have whole hides, clickers etc..

Do you have any information about CJ sewing uppers outside of UK?
It was a sarcastic post, a lot of "dirty" British jobs are done by imported polish and EE labor now.

Let's see if the "midgrade" made in North Hampton shoemakers keep their production in the UK in the next 5 years.
 

Schweino

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Agreed if you mean needing to wear those shoes to work, but plenty do by choice in other professions too.

There might also be a difference between the US and Europe? I worked in the US for a while and was suprised how many people wore sneakers at work while that was a big no-no where im from.
 

DWFII

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Actually - Thinking back to the discussion about resoling and how it’s preferable to have the original last. Here’s a question for @DWFII I always opt to add lasted trees. If I’ve got my hinged trees from my maker, how much of a difference are we likely talking about compared to the last the shoes were built on for the purposes of retaining the shape during a resole?
Probably a significant amount. The leather is pulled a bit more than snugly over the last and often with a little moisture to help the leather stretch and conform. The last is in there and it takes some force to pull. All of which suggests that even a 'lasted' tree...which needs to go in and out of the shoe easily...is significantly smaller than the last.

If you are worried about the notion of the shoe shrinking up when resoled, it is probably wise to have the original last.

That said, tbh, I can't see it being a problem. Even if the outsole is sopping wet when mounted and stitched (and it only really needs to be 'tempered', if that) , the insole...which, parenthetically, is the real backbone of a handwelted shoe...is dry. The insole determines the size and shape of the shoe as much or moreso than the outsole. If the insole is not some thin, sponge-y POC, it will bear up fine, all by itself. If only because the insole can be...should be, IMO...nearly as thick as the outsole. And it is fundamentally the same kind of leather--veg tanned.

In fact, it's entirely possible, esp with women's work, that the insole will be thicker than the outsole.

FWIW...IMO...
 
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Noblekostas

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I think you are confusing loake / Barker etc.. Mid ranges with CJ and the other premium English makers.

I could be wrong but I have seen the CJ factory, they have whole hides, clickers etc..

Do you have any information about CJ sewing uppers outside of UK?
The only shoes CJ makes elsewhere are the driving shoes in Italy but they are transparent about it. The rest are made in UK fully
 

JohnMRobie

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Common, do not do it. Those are nice shoes indeed and almost new. It is better to donante them than to cut them for the heck of it. Or maybe they just need a JR resoling?
E2F8E6A4-4A74-4EB2-9F8A-82D8D97452A4.jpeg
 

Commisar

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There might also be a difference between the US and Europe? I worked in the US for a while and was suprised how many people wore sneakers at work while that was a big no-no where im from.
Probably.

Europe as a whole is much stuffier than the USA. Japanese salarymen also wear dress/semi dress shoes daily.
 

DWFII

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Europe as a whole is much stuffier than the USA. Japanese salarymen also wear dress/semi dress shoes daily.
"Stuffier?" I don't think so. That's just a lazy way of saying "more traditional."

And Tradition is the foundation of all elegance, style...and Classic Menswear.
 

JohnMRobie

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Honestly would be really interesting if we could get Park Avs from like 2000. I have a 2014, and then buy new ones (on sale of course).

Cut them all up to compare.

Adding a 80s one would be interesting but a shame, as that's likely a damn good shoe.
This would be interesting. This pair is from the late 00’s if I recall when I got it correctly.
DED4FDF1-7DE9-405F-A06C-344C82EB7E18.jpeg
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JohnMRobie

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2008-2011/12 judging by the black lacquered insole.

I have some Park Avenues from that time. I also have a pair from 2018.
That timeline sounds right for when I would have been buying AE and was a lurker on here and AAAC. Basically 06-'11ish. It would be interesting to see how much they've changed in the last 15 years or so. I'll grab some pictures in a bit but the summary -
Late '00's-ish AE:
2 layers of rubber in the heels with a leatherboard base.
Leatherboard/paper heel reinforcement over the cork - Not sure about this - I would have thought the shank would extend further through the arch but there's nothing else that would be a shank but I know nothing. I’m just a guy with an exacto knife and a pair of pliers.
360 welt
Some sort of composite stiffener in the heel - It's an extremely brittle material. It's not extended beyond the heel cup. There is no support to speak of.
Thicker insole than I expected to be honest - It was also pretty malleable.
Thick layer of cork.
Gemming had an absolute ton of glue and was still pretty solidly in place - It took quite a bit of work to get it up - In addition to stitching attaching everything, there are a bunch of staples holding the gemming, upper, liner etc together.

A bunch of pictures in the spoiler
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