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

[Resistant]

The Alden for Epaulet Tauntaun boot

http://epauletnewyork.com/products/alden-for-epaulet-taunton-captoe-boot-burnished-calfskin

 

[epc2]

New Indy @ Needsupply

http://needsupply.com/shockoe-hill-indy-boot.html

 

[ReppTiePrepster]

He's wearing boots so special you aren't even allowed to see them.

: )

@ MDUBS ... In all seriousness Mike, wonderful acquisition. As a LW connoisseur, that is certainly a collector's edition to keep. They are an excellent casual shell blucher. Enjoy them often and in great health my friend!

 

[mdubs]



@ MDUBS ...  In all seriousness Mike, wonderful acquisition.  As a LW connoisseur, that is certainly a collector's edition to keep.  They are an excellent casual shell blucher.  Enjoy them often and in great health my friend!

Repp, thank you very much!

 

[ReppTiePrepster]

This seem like a very odd thing to state as fact...

Personally I have not purchased a single pair of Aldens having ever tried them on. Every single one was getting on a list or simply calling a store to inquire about what was in inventory or what was coming in.

We aren't talking about millions of resellers here - and I would consider myself a "long term buyer" to every store that I have ordered from.

J. Gilbert being an example

There is something to be said about the neurotic Alden seeker. While there are many here who are fantastic consumers and bring a great deal of business to Alden of Carmel, DC, San Fran, Madison, TSM, Leffot, Epaulet, Unionmade, etc..., there are a bunch of pains in the rear out there (here). The purchases that had no real chance of finding a new home, but instead are sent back because of the slightest of so-called blemishes, poor fit, wrong "shade" of cigar or ravello, the slightest of creasing when pulled out of the box, etc... I have pretty high standards, but sometimes I wonder if there are those out there that have no intention of keeping internet/phone-ordered shoes, but simply want to take some pics and return.

I originally thought Adam (From AoC) was a total a-hole, but I now know why he has to be such a stickler.

Buckeye Nation, I am sure you are a great consumer and are a valued customer, but there are those that are a major pain in the rear. I believe that is what the original poster was referring to. Before y'all start replying that the above are reasonable excuses for returns, I will concede that they are, individually. But if there is a pattern (i.e. you have bought and returned more Aldens than you have kept in the last year), you are likely a pain *********** to retailers. Alden QC is not that bad.

 

[Man with Apple]

I know MDUBS does not want to disclose where those shoes are from, but I don't mind letting the cat out of the bag since it will certainly be out sooner or later. AoC. For full disclosure, I do not own a pair, so don't even bother PM'ing me.

 

[AldenKappa]

Your question on the AF124 alpine grain LWBs may have been lost with the arrival of the #2 pics. I am also looking at adding these when they are available. Any feedback and thoughts from the forum is appreciated.

 

[Buckeye Nation]

There is something to be said about the neurotic Alden seeker. While there are many here who are fantastic consumers and bring a great deal of business to Alden of Carmel, DC, San Fran, Madison, TSM, Leffot, Epaulet, Unionmade, etc..., there are a bunch of pains in the rear out there (here). The purchases that had no real chance of finding a new home, but instead are sent back because of the slightest of so-called blemishes, poor fit, wrong "shade" of cigar or ravello, the slightest of creasing when pulled out of the box, etc... I have pretty high standards, but sometimes I wonder if there are those out there that have no intention of keeping internet/phone-ordered shoes, but simply want to take some pics and return.

I originally thought Adam (From AoC) was a total a-hole, but I now know why he has to be such a stickler.

Buckeye Nation, I am sure you are a great consumer and are a valued customer, but there are those that are a major pain in the rear. I believe that is what the original poster was referring to. Before y'all start replying that the above are reasonable excuses for returns, I will concede that they are, individually. But if there is a pattern (i.e. you have bought and returned more Aldens than you have kept in the last year), you are likely a pain *********** to retailers. Alden QC is not that bad.

I agree - and one of the reasons I didn't post here for the longest time was because it seems there is a blurred line between "obsessed collector" (see the color #2 hysteria) and those who wear, well, what amounts to be a nice pair of US made shoes. This isn't the only place where people with money gather to bemoan "quality"; stop over at timezoneforum if you want to see the prices of items skyrocket, the slightest scuff microscope inspected, and items bought and sold for a steep loss *habitually*...

In any event, the most accurate logic IMO (posted above also) is that same that holds universally true - if you want to be a preferred customer of anything, spend your money with somebody consistently and over the long haul. Build the rapport and then you have a shot at getting one of the few E46 M3 CSLs that come to the US, etc., etc.,...

FWIW today I wore a pair of natural CXL Indys that came from Leffot with a blem on them that I am sure would have caused many here to eat Tums by the fistful.

Much of what you mention about returns is simply part of the business of selling shoes over the internet to people who can afford $700+ for these types of items. I would have to imagine each vendor has a mental rolodex labeled "Do Not Sell To Again"...

 

[Bakes11771]

I know MDUBS does not want to disclose where those shoes are from, but I don't mind letting the cat out of the bag since it will certainly be out sooner or later. AoC. For full disclosure, I do not own a pair, so don't even bother PM'ing me.

I knew it had to be a retailer with serious clout. I was thinking Leather Soul, but AoC makes perfect sense.

Thanks for clueing us in. I'm going to email them right now to see if by chance they have a pair left in my size. Maybe someone didn't like them in person and sent their pair back, or backed out.

(just kidding, for those who couldn't figure it out)

 

[RobinM]

http://cdn.styleforum.net/c/c0/c098cabb_Color2LWB.jpeg

A picture of this unicon has been on Styleforum for a while.

 

[budapest12]

@bakes - those who couldn't figure it out were already dialing AoC before they got to the spoiler.

 

[Bakes11771]

@bakes - those who couldn't figure it out were already dialing AoC before they got to the spoiler.

They would have been, except there is no Phone Number for AoC. I'm sure that there are those who will still try email Adam in hopes that someone returned for store credit or something like that.

 

[thams]

Speaking of AoC -- here's a picture of my new AF53. Definitely my most comfortable boot and also feels the most substantial out of all my shoes/boots. Adam was a pleasure to deal with and the boots are blemish-free with a nice deep eggplant color. Although I'm not a huge fan of the way the trubalance last looks, they are VERY comfortable and feel as though they can take a beating.

 

[tv2177]



Gentlemen, I do not intend to be secretive about the source, however I have a few bits to offer. This was a special makeup done for a particular event. There were 20 shoes made and they were all pre-sold before they even went into production several months back. I actually tried to get other people added to the list, but was unable to do such. The retailer currently does not have any plans to redo this particular design, so since they are all pre-sold and they are not planning to make more, I do not believe it is in the interest of the retailer to have their information disclosed and have them inundated in calls or E-mails. I really honestly hope that we can get other retailers to do such a design in the future (maybe with some alterations or special flair). I also wanted to share a quick story, back in December, I put out a call to solicit interest in doing a Ravello Indy Boot on the Plaza Last. Immediately after I posted it, I went to my hockey game. I got out of my game 2 hours later and had 70 (yes SEVENTY) PMs waiting for me to respond to. I did not think that it was of anyones benefit to have that happen here. Also, I have talked to vendors, and they do appreciate the business that the thread drums up for them, they really hate it particularly when someone says Alden of the Moon has Whiskey Triple Monks and they actually don't, but they get 40 calls asking if they have Whiskey Triple Monks. I hope that you can understand my compassion for our retailers. Having them want to do special and rare designs is in everyone's best interest, because we may not be able to get them all, but we definitely can manage to pick up one every once-in-a-while. I really wanted to post the pictures, because as my fellow Alden enthusiasts, I thought that you would appreciate seeing them. Also, thought that it may be something that may be doable in the future via a different retailer (maybe not a LWB, but a #2 Shell design). Plus I figured someday I would post them "in the wild" either on purpose or by accident, and it would be out there then anyways. Might as well have them out there in their full beauty as a brand new sampling... Finally, I love my Alden's and I care about everyone on the thread. I call retailers very often and track what and when they are doing stuff. I also track (at least in my head), the interests and tendencies and sizes of many of the posters here, and I provide tippers to people if I know that a design that they would like is available, particularly if I know it is in their size. Many people here have received PMs from me in such cases. I try and post stuff here and will answer people (particularly via a PM) where they come from. But, as I mentioned, I also have compassion for our retailers and want to do everything that I can to encourage them to do rare designs. Thank you all for your understanding! Now, that I have written a long note, the sun came out in San Diego today... So here are the #2 LWBs in the sunlight!

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

-Mike

well said. respect.

 

[mdubs]



Speaking of AoC -- here's a picture of my new AF53. Definitely my most comfortable boot and also feels the most substantial out of all my shoes/boots. Adam was a pleasure to deal with and the boots are blemish-free with a nice deep eggplant color. Although I'm not a huge fan of the way the trubalance last looks, they are VERY comfortable and feel as though they can take a beating.

Very nice. I saw those and thought about it. I just would want to try a Trubalance lasted shoe on before buying one online. The commando sole also helps makes them super comfy I imagine.