Please Rate These Church's Shoes (any Church's experts?).

Alright Gentlemen,

I recently purchased these very shoes new (including the shoe trees) for approximately $250 and am curious what you think of the quality. Did I get a decent deal? They are Church's Diplomat IV model. They are custom grade and made on the 73 last. I don't own any Church's shoes, but from my research the 73 last is well reputed and these shoes appear to be well made. I'm not sure how old this particular pair is, but they appear to be pre prada due to the fact that it says London, Paris and New York, but not Milan (which is something they apparently added after Prada acquired them). I would appreciate any thoughts. Thank you.

I'd say you did good.

I saw those on ebay. You got a good deal. I like the Church Diplomats.

Originally Posted by grimslade

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I'd say you did good.

Thank you.

Originally Posted by Mute

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I saw those on ebay. You got a good deal. I like the Church Diplomats.

I figured I'd wait until I purchased them before posting here to avoid competition. They appear to be pre Prada, although I'm not 100% certain. The black leather heel seems to be slightly different from the other models I researched (which had natural leather heels or black rubber heels).

Let us know how they fit. We seem to have similar size feet and it will help me with future reference in sizing. Thanks. Congrats on a nice purchase.

Originally Posted by Mute

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Let us know how they fit. We seem to have similar size feet and it will help me with future reference in sizing. Thanks. Congrats on a nice purchase.

Will do, thank you. Part of the reason I sent for these is that they are an E width and appear to be somewhat narrower. If they don't fit, they will end up on the B&S forum!

The all rubber heel is unusual, but you did well with these. I have this pair myself and enjoy them quite a bit; much like mine I beleive that yours are pre-Prada though I don't think that it much matters. All of the debate about what Prada did with the brand and pricing structure aside, all that matters is the quality level of this pair in question and the price that you paid.

Originally Posted by Henry Boogers

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The all rubber heel is unusual, but you did well with these. I have this pair myself and enjoy them quite a bit; much like mine I beleive that yours are pre-Prada though I don't think that it much matters. All of the debate about what Prada did with the brand and pricing structure aside, all that matters is the quality level of this pair in question and the price that you paid.

It's not all rubber. It's two pieces, but painted black.

You have a real bargain - the Diplomat is an iconic Church's design from the 1950/60's & the 73 last is one of their most elegant and least likely to date. The black leather heel with rubber quarter tip is unusual - probably means they are one of the earlier models ( some would say therefore made with superior materials). I still wear mine weekly after buying them new in the early 90's.

Originally Posted by grimslade

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It's not all rubber. It's two pieces, but painted black.

I don't know how I missed that. In that case these are still unusual but I could make 3 or 4 pairs just like them if I had some black paint and 5 minutes in my closet.

Originally Posted by Champagnelifestylenomoney

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You have a real bargain - the Diplomat is an iconic Church's design from the 1950/60's & the 73 last is one of their most elegant and least likely to date. The black leather heel with rubber quarter tip is unusual - probably means they are one of the earlier models ( some would say therefore made with superior materials). I still wear mine weekly after buying them new in the early 90's.

Thank you. I'm pleased to know this. I thought the black painted heel with the rubber quarter tip looked unusual, and they appear to be an older model. I appreciate everyone's thoughts and look forward to receiving them. Cheers.

I'm not sure about your pair, but I want to warn people about the Grafton 2's. I bought a pair of Grafton 2's last year and eventually ended up speaking to physiotherapists about foot problems entirely attributable to the shoes. When my physiotherapist saw the shoes he called over a colleague so that they could marvel at how bad they were. He says they are absolutely the opposite of everything that is now known about healthy footware. They hark back to an era of false theories about "support" and "strength". I went back to the shoe shop several time with complaints, including asking them to take the shoes back after only a few wears, but they were having none of it. Interestingly the sales people all insisted that I had bought the shoes in the correct shape and size. Despite this I was getting through boxes of blister plasters, and not just in the usual places - I was getting blisters on top of my foot from bumpy joins in the leather. All this for £400. In addition, the way the rubber soles are moulded creates a sort of a suction spot between sole of foot and sole of shoe. Because the leather is so ridiculously thick your feet will soon get warm and sweaty. Once that happens they actually start to make a squelshing sounds with each step. They are categorically the worst shoes I have ever bought, and the sting is made much worse by the fact that they were so expensive. When I was trying them on I asked if I could walk around a small plaza in front of the shop and was told I could not - I really should have known at that point that something was wrong. This is a rip-off, an over-priced, bulky, scam brand that deserves to go out of business as far as I am concerned. Since having this experience I have met several people who have had similar experiences but none has bothered to write it up so I am now doing so. The people who swear by these shoes all seem to have bought in them in 1970-something. Perhaps they were still a good brand back then. There might be other shoes in that shop right now that pass muster, but I'm certainly not going to be taking the risk when I can buy healthy, comfortable, modern shoes for a quarter of the price. Also, note that you won't be able to get your shoes polished by anyone because you have to use "special creams". All this so that the shoe will last a good long time... but still not as long as 4 pairs of more comfortable shoes at half the price.

^ My only question... why did (or why do) you keep on wearing something which causes you pain?

I have a pair in tan, bought in 2005 I think. It is a comfortable well made shoe. The heel seems to painted over, and I do not understand that.