Footwear to go with our jackets

MrProper said:

New in da house
Red Wing Chelsea Rancher

View attachment 371331

Click to expand...

Those look awesome. I don’t think that style is available in the American market. That is a head scratcher to me. I can see not shipping every model a road, but why would you not make everything available in the country in which it is produced.

Bfd70 said:

Those look awesome. I don’t think that style is available in the American market. That is a head scratcher to me. I can see not shipping every model a road, but why would you not make everything available in the country in which it is produced.

Click to expand...

I would have thought that just doesn't exist because maybe it's a discontinued model? Even in Europe, there are only individual sizes. At Red Wing Vienna they said that these boots are not produced at the moment.
But true, you can't find too much information about these boots.

Lucchese Sunset Roper

Great article on the difference between Goodyear welted and hand welted shoes.

https://shoegazing.com/2015/12/02/p...ence-between-goodyear-welted-and-hand-welted/

MrProper said:

I would have thought that just doesn't exist because maybe it's a discontinued model? Even in Europe, there are only individual sizes. At Red Wing Vienna they said that these boots are not produced at the moment.
But true, you can't find too much information about these boots.

Click to expand...

MrProper said:

I would have thought that just doesn't exist because maybe it's a discontinued model? Even in Europe, there are only individual sizes. At Red Wing Vienna they said that these boots are not produced at the moment.
But true, you can't find too much information about these boots.

Click to expand...

Off topic but I just saw a familiar face on Lewis Leather’s Insta

Marc mndt said:

Great article on the difference between Goodyear welted and hand welted shoes.

https://shoegazing.com/2015/12/02/p...ence-between-goodyear-welted-and-hand-welted/

Click to expand...

I only buy stitchdown or handwelt now bc I’m not a fan of the cork filling which compresses and breaks down requiring removal and replacement of the midsole. With the these two methods you can just replace the sole as long as the midsole is in good condition. I also don’t like the canvas rib in GYW but realize that it will probably never fail in my lifetime with the amount of shoes I own.

Bfd70 said:

Those look awesome. I don’t think that style is available in the American market. That is a head scratcher to me. I can see not shipping every model a road, but why would you not make everything available in the country in which it is produced.

Click to expand...

MrProper said:

I would have thought that just doesn't exist because maybe it's a discontinued model? Even in Europe, there are only individual sizes. At Red Wing Vienna they said that these boots are not produced at the moment.
But true, you can't find too much information about these boots.

Click to expand...

I have te same RW Ranchers but in burgundy, they were a little hard on the break in but now they’re one of my favourites to wear.
They’re very tough, comfortable and look really good after hard use.
I bought mine 4 years ago here in Oz and they’re still going great. Love them.

If you ever spy a pair size US 9.5 drop me a line.

Black and white picture of my Clinch Graham boots in black embossed leather.

Harris HTM said:

Awful, foul weather early this morning (and really dangerous on the highway). Winter gear is on:
Custom William Lennon Boots combined with my new Pike Brothers Deck parka in waxed jungle cloth.
View attachment 371388 View attachment 371389 View attachment 371390 View attachment 371391

Click to expand...

Robust kit there!

Flame Panda horsebutt

Bfd70 said:

If you ever spy a pair size US 9.5 drop me a line.

Click to expand...

No worries, I’ll keep an eye, they’re discontinuing the model I think. I just checked and one last pair in black just sold at the Australian Red Wing’s official dealer in the sales page for $200, I wish I’d seen it before it sold out!

New (whites) boot day!

I mentioned these Triumph motorcycle boots a few weeks back, but only posted a stock photo. Here's some pictures I've taken myself today, although only phone camera so poor quality.

I'm still trying to get them supple enough to actually wear in anger.

They're a dark oxblood colour, but it's been sunlight dependent and hard to catch in a photo.

MrProper said:

https://die-form.de/herren/schuhe/145/red-wing-chelsea-rancher-2917

Click to expand...

Thanks. Conversion and shipping make them too pricey

Carmina full custom boot review

About the maker

As much as I like the looks of all those beautiful rugged style boots, personally I’m more of a dress shoe/boot type of guy. I’m quite familiar with European mid-tier to high end makers like Crockett & Jones, Santoni, Edward Green or Gaziano & Girling. One maker I hadn’t tried yet was ‘Carmina Shoemaker’, a Spanish shoemaker situated in Palma de Mallorca.

Carmina is well known for their goodwear welted shoes and for their use of cordovan and exotic leathers, of which they offer many colors. Prices are very reasonable, a pair of OTR Horween cordovan boots can be bought for just €890.

Carmina not only offers OTR or GMTO (group made to order), they also offer full customization. A fancy webtool allows you to select your preferred type of leather, last, sole, hardware, stitching etc etc. The custom fee is 23% but twice a year they have their ‘custom weekend’ when the custom fee is waived on all made to order pairs. I decided to give it a try.



Inspiration and choices

I used these ‘loden suede’ Alden NSP (Norwegian split toe) as inspiration. Why not just buy the Aldens? Aldens are not widely available in Europe, plus they’re crazy expensive. A pair of Alden suede jumper boots cost between €800 - €900. Which is way too expensive for what you get imo.



Last week Carmina launched a brand new customization tool with much more customization options than offered by the previous tool. I ordered mine back in June using the old tool which didn’t give the option to custom select the color of the stitching or the finishing on the sole (eg fudging). I chose a Forest EEE last with Tramuntana sole and chestnut color edge. Loden suede upper with vintage brass eyelets and speed hooks. Because I wanted contrast stitching I added a pic of the Aldens to my order form, requesting similar contrast stitching.

Delivery time and first (disappointing) impression

Standard delivery time on custom orders is 45 days, mine were delivered 38 days after putting in my order. When I opened the box there was disappointment. The suede was more green than loden and the boots had natural color soles. Also, the stitching on the soles looked very sloppy and there was a deep scratch on the lining of one of the boots.



It’s unreasonable to expect perfect and flawless stitching at this price point so I wasn’t going to complain about it. But I really didn’t like the color of the sole and the scratch on the lining really bugged me. I decided to contact Carmina, who offered a 15% discount on my next order or a full remake. I opted for the remake. Because of the sloppy stitching on the sole I requested non-contrast stitching for the remake, which would make it stand out less in case the new ones would not be perfectly stitched either.

To my surprise I had to wait another 45 days for the remake to be completed. I would have expected them to do the remake right away since it wasn’t my fault the shoes had the wrong color sole. Anyway, not worth to make a fuzz about it.

After waiting for two months without hearing anything I contacted Carmina, asking for an update. I was told the shoes would be shipped that very week. One week later still no shoes so I contacted them again. They apologized for the delay and I was told they would be shipped asap.

The remake

Asap turned out to be another week later. When I finally received the boots yesterday, there was a pleasant surprise when I opened the box because this time the upper was more loden than green. They also used different color thread on the toe box and they added soft fudging to the welt (just like on the Aldens that served as inspiration).



Quality

Overall the remake looks quite good. I say quite good because they’re definitely not perfect.

The pro’s

-The boots are well made with neat stitching (on the uppers) without any hanging threads

-they did a good job protecting the suede during production, as there is no marking on the suede where the upper meets the welt.

-the stormwelt is nice and straight all around

-they feel very comfortable right out of the box. Giving the right amount of support without being too stiff

-Customer service. Carmina didn’t make a fuzz about the remake and they were very fast in replying my emails. Because the remake was delayed, they thrown in a cordovan leather cardholder which I think is a very nice gesture.



The cons

-the stitching on the soles looks messy. Especially at the point where the start and the end of the welt meet.

-there are some stains on the stormwelt from coloring the sole.


(Initial pair and remake)


Let’s compare this with a couple of benchgrade Crockett & Jones (which are slightly more expensive). As you can see the C&J’s aren’t all that neat either. I’d say the finishing on the Carmina soles is pretty much at the same level as the C&J’s.




What does neat look like? I don’t own any high end shoes/boots with a storm welt, but this is what a 270 degree welt looks like on 10+ year old Edward Greens. Of course this is not a fair comparison because a pair of Edward Greens is three times more expensive.




The verdict

I’m very pleased with end result. The remake looks very close the Alden NST tanker boots and I’d say the quality is comparable. Yet these full custom Carmina’s were considerably cheaper at €489. They’re also cheaper than bench grade C&J’s, which makes them great value. But Carmina offers something no other shoemaker offers at this price point (or anything near), which is full customization. Being able to customize your shoes is a lot of fun as the options are endless. Whether you’re looking for a dress shoe/boot or something a bit more rugged like a pair of jodhpurs with triple leather sole and Cuban heels, everything is possible.

Few more pics





Initial VS remake

Marc mndt said:

Few more pics

View attachment 373110 View attachment 373111 View attachment 373112

View attachment 373118 View attachment 373119

Initial VS remake


View attachment 373114

View attachment 373113

Click to expand...

Nice! Do you use any protection spray for suede?