The Official Alden Thread for 2019 - Share Reviews, Sizing, Advice, and Photos.

[SLCRich]

I’d need more parameters personally.
I like both for their own strengths.
If it’s a pair of plain toe black camel service boots, definitely Viberg.

I tried to keep it vague only because when I asked others it prompted more questions than answers. For good reason though. The correct answer I believe is "it depends" just like you said

 

[caffed]

I tried to keep it vague only because when I asked others it prompted more questions than answers. For good reason though. The correct answer I believe is "it depends" just like you said

Of course. I wish Alden offered more sole options from J.R., Vibram, Dainite and others.

 

[ScarsdaleVibe]

TSM from appx. April timeframe?

Yep.

 

[caffed]

Interesting ?

I’m probably wrong, but something about the coloring makes them look cheap to me.

Are these for the leisure, “walking” focused makeups?

 

[Misterg12]

For those of you who have changed flat laces to round laces, how do they hold up on speedhooks?

Seriously considering changing the laces to round on my J. Crew perf tip shell boots and potentially my suede plain toe boots.

Anyone have photos of round laces on these boots? I know @Misterg12 has done the swap at least once...

ADD: I did see someone with a blue suede tanker that looked gorgeous a few pages back.

I have swapped out all my boots to AE round laces. They hold up great.

 

[caffed]

I have swapped out all my boots to AE round laces. They hold up great.
View attachment 1211412

And they’re only $3 each!

 

[Shawnc]

I've got a few grails looking for a new home. I'll let them go for retail to someone who will provide a good home. If I don't get any interest they are going on the Bay to the highest bidder.

Whiskey Indy - Dbl. Leather - Brass Eyelets - 11D - Trubalance - $1060 - worn 3 hours
Cigar WTB - Dbl. Leather - Plaza - 11.5D $960 - NIB

I'm thinking about letting a ravello & or cigar PTB go but I'm still on the fence. Let me know if those interest you.

Wow, nice selection at very fair prices. 8.5D and those Indy's would be on there way to the Burg.

And the trip continues.. Bay Area the past few days heading up to North Shore Lake Tahoe today for four or five days.. Mammoth Lake next down 395 from Tahoe View attachment 1211234 View attachment 1211235 later in the week. this is a fun couple week trip throughout Gods country.. okay I am a native and hence biased. Born St. Luke's Pasadena.
Alpine for the mountains today..

Dang Chip. Sounds like an incredible vacation. Enjoy!

Thanks, I think that is him. I am looking to change the welt style and he was willing to do so last time I talk to him.

Aram is as good as they come. He changed the welt on the shoes in my avatar (I really need to change it) from black to light. I had to add some stain to get the color to the Alden antique, but he did an incredible job. But he does great work on everything. Takes equal pride in his work and his treatment of customers.

Maiden Voyage of my new (to me) B&M unlined color 8 Dovers (a Grail shoe for me):

View attachment 1211297

Scored from eBay in pristine condition at a significant discount from the price for new (and B&M have none in my size in any case). Seller claimed to have only tried them on carefully a couple of times, and pics on the listing seemed to confirm this claim.

Close inspection upon receipt confirmed it to be the case; as you can see, there was absolutely no creasing in the vamp, and the soles and heels were totally unmarked. Clearly they were only worn, briefly, on carpeted surfaces. (There were a couple of signs that they were not brand new in the box, but you'd have to look really closely to find them.)

Very happy with this acquisition!

Wow, congrats. Been thinking about placing a preorder for those for a few days now. The unlined front and plain toe are great but the flat welt puts it over the edge. To get those at a discount is a very cool pickup and they look great. Congrats.

QOTD:
Super subjective because clearly it comes down to current collection, current wardrobe yada yada...however gonna ask it anyway. The two are close enough in price (also posted in the Viberg forum because I'm curious for opinions)
Would you rather Alden shell (black or #8)or non shell Viberg? Or neither...(maybe you want the snuff suede Indy )

Alden remains my footwear of choice but Viberg has closed the gap to the point that it is truly negligible, though the price differential is a bit annoying. I'm a shell guy at heart so the Aldens in 8 would get the nod for me.

Yep.

Same here. Fortunately for me I got lucky with an unplanned delivery of whiskey tankers or I'd be getting a bit impatient. By there timeline, they should be shipping sometime over the next couple of weeks.

 

[SLCRich]

White selvedge denim and some Seattle Suede Indy's for the night.

 

[ironclad]

Yep.

I’m also waiting for the same whiskey pair to drop...

 

[woofmang]

Wow, congrats. Been thinking about placing a preorder for those for a few days now. The unlined front and plain toe are great but the flat welt puts it over the edge. To get those at a discount is a very cool pickup and they look great. Congrats.

Thanks! I fell in love with them the first time I saw them on B&M, and was considering whether to get in on the December preorder on these or wait until early 2020 to get in on the preorder of the AOC-96 from Adam, but when these popped up on eBay in my size, I had to pull the trigger.

 

[woofmang]

QOTD:
Super subjective because clearly it comes down to current collection, current wardrobe yada yada...however gonna ask it anyway. The two are close enough in price (also posted in the Viberg forum because I'm curious for opinions)
Would you rather Alden shell (black or #8)or non shell Viberg? Or neither...(maybe you want the snuff suede Indy )

Tough call, and like you said, it ultimately comes down to personal preference and what else you've already got in your closet. For me, it also comes down to what's available in your size (unless you're blessed with medium-length D-width feet) and how long you're willing to wait for a given pair of boots (or shoes).

I recently bought my first pair of Vibergs (in Oiled Mocha Rowdy Horsebutt, which is not shell, but it's closely-related and sourced from Horween), and I took a gamble that I'd find a good fit in an unfamiliar manufacturer and last (as @madhat said earlier; I already know I can find a pretty much perfect fit in Alden). I'm glad I took the chance, though, because I love the Viberg boots and they fit great (props to Jason at Division Road for helping me pick the right size in that boot).

That said, at the same price point, I could have had pretty much any of the standard shell offerings from Alden (and quite a few of the special makeups of its various dealers). I have to admit that I'm pretty partial to Color 8 shell, and I think Alden is the canonical purveyor of Color 8 goodness. For me, what ultimately made me decide to go for the Viberg boot instead of the AoM Plain-Toe Color 8 boot I was considering at the same time was the sole: I just wasn't feeling the crepe sole on the AoM boot. If they'd had that same makeup on a commando or Dainite sole, I would have probably gone with that over the Viberg.

 

[M635Guy]

Interesting ?

It's a hard "Nope" from me. I'm assuming this won't replace Commando...

 

[M635Guy]

QOTD:
Super subjective because clearly it comes down to current collection, current wardrobe yada yada...however gonna ask it anyway. The two are close enough in price (also posted in the Viberg forum because I'm curious for opinions)
Would you rather Alden shell (black or #8)or non shell Viberg? Or neither...(maybe you want the snuff suede Indy )

I think shell Alden is a better value-for-money at the prices Viberg is charging.

Honestly, I won't ever own anything Viberg because I think Brett Viberg isn't a very nice guy and I have zero desire to support him.

 

[M635Guy]

Whenever I’m having a bad day I come home and remember I’m awaiting a pair of whiskey boots. At some point.

I try to keep things like that out of my mind...

 

[Shawnc]

Diggin this boot summertime thing. Modified Dearborns for me today.....