***The official Alden thread *** Share enthusiasm, reviews, sizing, advice, and photos.

[kwhitelaw]

I agree that a $25/year increase makes it seem like in a few years, aldens will be very expensive. I am not sure how other brands are increasing (or not) their prices in respect to this, but if you consider inflation to average around 4%, and that the average shell boot/shoe costs around $650, you get $26 annually for inflation. It seems hard to swallow that in 2024, shell will cost > $1000, but everything in 2024 will cost more.

Edit: I do also agree though, if the price of Alden starts to creep up towards Carmina, and other name brands producing nice shells, then there are fewer and fewer Aldens that would be attractive at that price. I would however, choose a lot of Alden boot make ups over other companies; Alden makes the best boots (in terms of looks, not quality control) in the world, in my opinion.

feeling the same way, I grabbed the C&J McCallum (brown shell chukka) from RL last month. much sleeker than the alden chukka (barrie or plaza), but with my *only* foray into C&J, im plenty disappointed in the finishing. i might just be skewed by aldens finishing, but for a shoe that RL listed on their website for $1300 (IIRC), I anticipated them being fairly flawless

price wise, I was in for $570ish with the discounts offered by RL at the time, so slightly cheaper than cigar chukkas from a typical vendor (my cigar barrie chukkas came from O'Connells for $600 IIRC a yr or so ago)

 

[sazon]



All the recent color 8 cap toe posts forced my hand. Picked these up from Alden Madison. Haven't been brave enough to expose them to the Midwest winter yet. Will just settle for scuffing up the floor in the safety of the indoors.

great looking boots! Congrats!

 

[NYDRH]

Already there, the prices on the bay are just south of 1k for some of the exotic models.

While I have seen some "exotics" go for surprising levels I am hopeful this will not become a trend. It is a lot of effort to get your hands on certain models in the first place, then when you factor in taxes, shipping and seller fees most people would be lucky to clear a Benjamin. That seems like a tough way to make $100 not to mention the time spent answering bidder questions on Barrie sizing lol.

 

[rydenfan]

Given the scarcity of cordovan I have to believe that Horween has an annual increase. Not to mention consumables like glue, eyelets, etc. Also there are likely labor and insurance increases on a regular basis. To see a price increase annually is not a surprise to me.

 

[Steel28]

Long time since I stopped by here gents,

Looks like my Alden medallion captoe Ravello arrived at the retailer . Anyone owns these beauties?

 

[Shouldaville]



Long time since I stopped by here gents,

Looks like my Alden medallion captoe Ravello arrived at the retailer . Anyone owns these beauties?

Nice...January as projected. I'm a couple down on the list so my chances are slim. Some photos from the previous run have been posted if you search. I imagine these will be much darker.

 

[smdbitchh]

I was debating getting in on the Leffot pre order Dover shoe which I really like but ultimately decided to go with the 990ptb.

I think the commando sole would be really cool with it and was gonna go with that. J gilbert has that make but they want $695. I can find the stock 990 on double leather for $645.. debating if its worth the extra price.

From peoples personal experience will the commando soled 990 look chunkier or any different from a stock 990 from a top or side view? I think the commando would be cool if it was a small aesthetic difference but didnt affect the overall look of the shoe. I wear my Aldens with pretty much only jeans and chinos so not too concerned with them being formal enough.

I never owned a commando but I have a Alden cordovan boot on crepe sole and it seems like that could be replaced cheaper and more easily before it hits the wooden sole portion (sorry not familiar with the correct names). Any truth to this or replacing a leather sole and commando is pretty much equal.

thanks for any feedback guy. A lot to learn

 

[Shawnc]

Is anyone aware of where I can pick up the laces that come with Alden color 8 boots (flat, waxed, kind of neutral color, around 53") in a longer version? Something around 60" or longer would be preferred.

I seem to keep buying laces that look like the Alden ones on the web but when I receive them they are all different to the point that I keep going back to the Alden's. Rather than looking for imitations, it would be great if I could the same lace Ina longer version.

 

[rydenfan]

Email Alden and they will send you a few pairs

 

[Shawnc]



Adam may be a little different, however I appreciate his dedication to ensure the customer gets what he pays for. I appreciate his efforts for one, his irregulars look better than many of the firsts some allow to leave their establishments.

As a newbie, I was really anxious to purchase the AF18 chukka from Adam/AoC. It was almost as if he was trying to dissuade me from purchasing the shoes, which I found odd and a little annoying. Turns out he was simply trying to ensure that I would be 100% satisfied with my purchase. Looking back on it, I appreciate the fact that he was as concerned with me as a customer as he was in making a sale. Since then, I have made close to a half dozen new Alden purchases and the AoC chukka's were the only pair that were blemish-free. It was obvious that Adam inspected my shoes before sending them and I would not hesitate to purchase from him again.

The really interesting thing is that he was trying to ensure that I understood how Barrie sizing works (which I admitingly did not). I loved the shoes but after about 10-15 wears, became dissatisfied with the fit. They are now on the bay.

Turns out that Adam was right after all.

 

[stevent]

Yeah regarding Adam he is spot on always. He might be a bit off putting but I would prefer him to sell me a carefully inspected shoe vs a retailer that just tosses box into shipment box. And with him preventing people from buying the wrong size I'm not sure how they phrased email since he has always been quite open and clear with his emails. Once you confirm you are comfortable with size and model it's a quick and easy transaction

and edit: quite a few sale models at AoC including some black shell
http://www.alden-of-carmel.com/overstocks.htm

 

[Bakes11771]

I was debating getting in on the Leffot pre order Dover shoe which I really like but ultimately decided to go with the 990ptb.

I think the commando sole would be really cool with it and was gonna go with that. J gilbert has that make but they want $695. I can find the stock 990 on double leather for $645.. debating if its worth the extra price.

From peoples personal experience will the commando soled 990 look chunkier or any different from a stock 990 from a top or side view? I think the commando would be cool if it was a small aesthetic difference but didnt affect the overall look of the shoe. I wear my Aldens with pretty much only jeans and chinos so not too concerned with them being formal enough.

I never owned a commando but I have a Alden cordovan boot on crepe sole and it seems like that could be replaced cheaper and more easily before it hits the wooden sole portion (sorry not familiar with the correct names). Any truth to this or replacing a leather sole and commando is pretty much equal.

thanks for any feedback guy. A lot to learn

Its generally accepted that the commando sole won't make the she look chunkier. It is impossible to notice from the top, and only noticeable on the heel from the side, and even then,someone would have to be laying on the floor looking at your shoes from the side to notice.

I think $50 is about what I would value the commando option, being that it would probably cost at least that to have the conversion done after market. Also, the more limited availability of this make-up over the more widely-available stock version justifies a premium, at least in my view.

Also, that $645 is likely to increase within a week or 2. The $695 too, probably. (so don't think about it too long if you are price sensitive)

The soles are not wood. They are leather.

It actually might be harder to get the commando version resoled, because the exact commando sole is hard to find. You can easily find something similar, but the exact [low profile, hardly noticeable] version that Alden uses can only be replaced via Moulded Shoe in NYC, or Alden themselves (places that I know of)

 

[aldenwear]

I was debating getting in on the Leffot pre order Dover shoe which I really like but ultimately decided to go with the 990ptb.

I think the commando sole would be really cool with it and was gonna go with that. J gilbert has that make but they want $695. I can find the stock 990 on double leather for $645.. debating if its worth the extra price.

From peoples personal experience will the commando soled 990 look chunkier or any different from a stock 990 from a top or side view? I think the commando would be cool if it was a small aesthetic difference but didnt affect the overall look of the shoe. I wear my Aldens with pretty much only jeans and chinos so not too concerned with them being formal enough.

I never owned a commando but I have a Alden cordovan boot on crepe sole and it seems like that could be replaced cheaper and more easily before it hits the wooden sole portion (sorry not familiar with the correct names). Any truth to this or replacing a leather sole and commando is pretty much equal.

thanks for any feedback guy. A lot to learn

I think the shoes look the same from the top. From the side, you can see the sawtooth nature of the heel of the commando sole versus the leather of the heel with the double leather sole, but I think both look fine. With jeans and chinos, either heel shapes (and dole) is fine. The question is whether you would prefer one shape over the other. Personally, I think the relatively rugged look of commando sole is an attractive juxtaposition with the smooth, shiny nature of the cordovan. Moreover, as I mentioned in another post, if you plan to wear the shoes in snowy, icy surfaces, the commando sole is far more stable and safe than the double leather sole. Without the commando sole, the shoes become either a 9-month item unless you find sliding and tumbling fun or you deal with galoshes.

 

[aldenwear]

Its generally accepted that the commando sole won't make the she look chunkier. It is impossible to notice from the top, and only noticeable on the heel from the side, and even then,someone would have to be laying on the floor looking at your shoes from the side to notice.

I think $50 is about what I would value the commando option, being that it would probably cost at least that to have the conversion done after market. Also, the more limited availability of this make-up over the more widely-available stock version justifies a premium, at least in my view.

Also, that $645 is likely to increase within a week or 2. The $695 too, probably. (so don't think about it too long if you are price sensitive)

The soles are not wood. They are leather.

It actually might be harder to get the commando version resoled, because the exact commando sole is hard to find. You can easily find something similar, but the exact [low profile, hardly noticeable] version that Alden uses can only be replaced via Moulded Shoe in NYC, or Alden themselves (places that I know of)

B. Nelson does not use the same commando sole?

 

[mcarthur]



I tried my hardest to not waste too much time on these guys... I took them out on their maiden voyage today. My new Color 8 Plaza "Indy"... -Mike

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

nephew, wear only in good health