Lloyd shoes by ae?

[Tom]

I bought a pair of shoes on e-bay, they look a lot like AE Chesters, but they are AE Lloyd. Is this an older model of AEs? They don't seem quite as nice as my brand new Byrons. The Byrons ave nice details like soft leather and the opening of the shoe flaresa out a little so not to bite into the ankles. These "Lloyd" style are sort of abrasive at the opening, and the leather feels a bit more "plastic-y".
Have I been had? Or is this just an older model?

-Tom

 

[Tom]

Here's the link to the aution with pics.

 

[jerrysfriend]

I bought some of these about 15 years ago. I never liked them too much as they were heavily coated with shellac, to give them a high sheen. The problem was that the shellac also gave the leather that "plastic" look that you do not like and it clogged the pores in the leather, preventing them from breathing well. I only wore them on cooler days. Thank goodness, AE has gotten away from doing this as much as it used to.

 

[Tom]

Thanks JF, I am glad to know that they are at least genuine. I was really surprised at the difference between the models.

-Tom

 

[bengal-stripe]

It's a bit difficult to see in the photograph, but I presume your shoes are made from "corrected grain". Allen-Edmonds certainly produces some models in corrected grain and call it "cobbler".

Corrected grain is a technique where the grain (the pores of the leather) gets sanded off and a new top layer is created with coatings of wax and then buffed with heavy rollers to produce a high gloss finish. This is done with second grade leather to hide irregularities; hence most cheap shoes are made from corrected grain. But also expensive makers use it as well, it certainly has a fan base (probably people believe, mistakenly, that it is actually a superior product). This current season the majority of Prada shoes are corrected grain.